Page 45 - Black Bart News Today

Both james hume and wells fargo. they are becoming a joke. and so they are determined now to try and figure this out. and lots of pressure is coming from lots of different directions. >> our refuse to buy are black bart has fabricated by the press. he is a fraud. who is robbed and hoodwinking a gullible public. >> sir! >> what is it? >> hes in your office. >> who, bart? >> yes, sir. >> show me. show me! >> excuse me, sir. >> narrator: from 1875 to 1828, black bart holds up at least 20 wells farg...

With guns blazing behind him, black bart beats the hasty retreat. leaving his dirty laundry behind for hume. who is more than happy to pick it up. >> what you got, hume? >> fresh sign.

>> on november 17, 1883, the wests stagecoach bandit is sentenced to ten years in san quentin prison. he signs in under another alias, c.t. spalding. after serving four years without incident, hes out on good behavior. reporters wait for his release. >> are you going back to your life of robbing stagecoaches? >> no, im giving my life to crops. >> are you going to go back to writing poetry? >> did you hear me, son? i said im done committing crimes. >> charles e. bowls, bolton, black bart, tg spal...

Whatever his name, his polite nature endear him to many in the west. but one man rejects the romantic notion of a bandit or highway poet. >> aside from the criminal manner of his livelihood, his career has been entirely and completely despicable. >> when bowles is released, he returns to san francisco where hume has him tailed. >> bold was a smart guy. it is likely he knew that hume was following him. hume, perhaps, had a hunch that maybe bowles might return to his nefarious ways. >> black bart ...

Boy: once upon a time, there was a nice house that lived with a family. one day, it started to rain and rain. water got inside and ruined everybodys everythings. the house thought she let the family down. but the family just didnt think a flood could ever happen. the reality is, floods do happen. protect what matters. call the number on your screen or visit the website to learn more. >> narrator: in san francisco, a miner takes revenge on a company he believes stole his claim, wells fargo. livin...

>> narrator: he now calls himself charles baldwin and lives in san francisco, posing as a successful gold prospector and socialite. >> charles boles went by charles bolten because it sounds very sophisticated, it has a certain dignity associated with it. he is as comfortable living in the wilderness as he is in the city. >> yes, sir. >> more champagne. >> circumstances compelled me, i yielded to the temptation of crime, only after enduring severe struggles from which i have no control. >> narrat...

Time they pass. i found them to be at the same spot every morning at 7:00 a.m. >> boles comes up with a clever way to pull off a non-violent highway robbery. its called a breaker cannon trick. used in the revolution and civil wars, that is name for the quakers. who like boles oppose violence. the trick uses strategically placed sticks, made to look like guns. to fool the enemy into believing theyre facing a force much larger than they actually are. >> narrator: charles boles, once a law-abiding ...

Treks on foot for four days, following a stagecoaches routes through the wilderness, looking for a place to strike. now a seasoned outlaw, he knows thousand keep himself strategically hidden. willing to endure a little hardship for a big payday. >> easy, boys. easy does it. keep those hands where i can see them. nice. would you be so kind as to throw down that box. >> ill get it the right now for you, sir. >> easy, boys. >> narrator: grazed by buck shot, black bart barely escapes the close call.

Mr. bolton. hold it right there. >> what can i do for you, officer? >> we caught someone making off with your coat. >> excellent work, excellent work. thank you very much, officer. >> i was never really afraid of the police officers, i knew many of them. and they knew me to be a man associated with good people, i never dreamed i was in the business of robbing stages. >> narrator: hume is making little progress, though wells fargo sends in reinforcements. but even the toughest and smartest detect...

>> couldnt stay away, huh? i want to ask you right now. >> but despite his claim to be a venking wrong unto his family by wells fargo, charles bowls never sends one dime home. revealing the truth about the real man. in february 1888, bowles and his alter ego black bart disappeared into the last time leaving behind a legacy of crime and a true legend of the real west. >> im never going to settle down. if they had, i wouldnt be here today. >> next time on "legends and lies" -- >> that will wondere...