[This brief account of the life of James W. Taylor is found in this issue]

James W. Taylor was born January 20, 1843, at Dallas, Texas, and died May 17, 1917, at Gem City, Texas. When he was nine years old he picked pecans and sold them to the immigrants for enough money to buy a little old shotgun. His father died with yellow fever and Hamp Witt raised him. He carried the mail from Dallas to Fort Worth when he was thirteen years old. In 1874 he joined the Texas Ranger company of D. Rufus Berry, when the Indians in Jack county threatened an uprising if the whites did not turn over Captain Hanen to them. He was in the fight with Indians when Charlie Rivers was killed, and also when the Indians attacked Loving's ranch and tried to drive off the ranch horses and cattle, but the cowboys and scouts drove the redskins back to the hills. Mr. Taylor joined W K. Baylor's company, which was stationed in Young county. He was at the dance given W. K. Baylor in the courthouse at Weatherford and a picnic at Palo Pinto county in honor for killing every Indian in the battle. At the lower edge of Jack county in 1868, he and four more men ran onto ten Indians and they killed four out of the ten. Mr. Taylor was wounded in the leg, just above the foot, the - arrow passing through his boot. He killed the leader and the rest fled. A man named Dunn was killed in this battle, and Mr. Taylor carried his lifeless body about three miles to a house, where a coffin was made out of a wagon box and the next morning the body was carried up to Old Veal Station and buried alongside of Pete Holden and Captain Tackett, two great Indian fighters. If there ever was a man who helped rid Texas of the Indians and outlaws it was Mr. Taylor. He was in hearing of the fight when Brit Johnson, the negro, was killed on Salt Creek Prairie in Young county.

Mr. Taylor's wife, Mrs. Lula Taylor, now resides at Canadian. Texas.