"Obie's" Father

While pious Mexicans decorated the village church at Ahuacatlan in preparation for Palm Sunday last week, bearded, unkempt J. E. Bristow of San Angelo, Tex., rode into town on the back of an ass. A three-week bandit chase by Mexican Federal troops had ended. Somewhere in the mountains an able kidnaper and bandit chief named Cruz Delgado was dividing $5,000 in gold among his followers. Back in San Angelo Mrs. Bristow received a three-word telegram from her Oklahoma footballer son, Gordon ("Obie") Bristow: DAD WITH ME. Mrs. Bristow cried, "Thank God! Thank God!" and then collapsed.

Seven weeks ago J. E. Bristow, oil operator, set out into the thickly wooded mountains of the west coast State of Nayarit with an interpreter-guide, Mr. Fields, to prospect for gold and inspect a zinc property. A week later Interpreter Fields galloped into the dusty, desolate village of Ahuacatlan with a scribbled message. Prospector Bristow had been captured by Cruz Delgado, was held for $15,000 ransom. The Mexican police instantly clapped Interpreter Fields into jail.

From four directions came moves to liberate Prospector Bristow. With Secretary of State Stimson in London, lesser officials of the U. S. State Department protested to Mexico City. Prospector Bristow's son, ''Obie," mistrusting officialdom, withdrew $15,000 in gold from two Texas banks to ransom his father. Largely because of the football prowess of son "Obie" at the University of Oklahoma, the Oklahoma City Times sent one Merle Blakely, staff writer, to assist and report the bandit hunt. From the railhead of the only railway in the State of Nayarit the Mexican Government hastily sent out a squadron of cavalry.

Days passed. From Mexico City came exciting accounts of a battle in which three bandits had been killed by the Federal troops. In the town of Tepic grew a much more definite story that Bandit Cruz Delgado was demanding more money. When Prospector Bristow rode into Ahuacatlan on his donkey last week the true story became known. "Obie" Bristow had bargained with mysterious agents of Bandit Delgado for over a week. A ransom of $5,000 was finally agreed upon and paid. Followed the prisoner's release.

"Considering everything," said Mr. Bristow, "they treated me pretty fair. What I missed most was a chaw of tobacco. I had plenty to eat except when the Federal troops got too close, then we all had nothing but bread and water. Wild turkeys were roosting all around us but nobody dared shoot at them for fear the Federals would hear. My closest escape was one night when five of the bandits got drunk and wanted to hang me for the hell of it. Cruz Delgado finally talked them out of it. I taught those fellows to play poker. Some of them got to be pretty good. The last night after the ransom was paid they killed a turkey and gave me a party. The mosquitoes, though! They were something fierce."

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