The Van Buren press., 1873-05-20
NO. 4


the mystery. a day or two after Long.
chor was lost his TEEN was found about
sixteen miles south Of the Bender place.
1t had evidently been driven there IN
great haste and abandoned. At several
points on the line between the Bender
place and the spot where the team was
found several persons were told OF SEE
ing the team go past at furious rate,
and on this line were found at intervals
the endboard Of Longchor's wngon and
his guns, which had fallen out in the
hasty drive.
The Bcnders talked boldly about this
disappearance, and insinuated that the
man must have been shot down on Drum
creek
w. +. Mccarthy. another OF the vic.
tins, was a Howard county farmer. He
WAS formerly in the One Hundred and
Twenty third Illinois infantry. He had
had long dispute about his claim with
n man who belonged to the Bender gang,
The latter had taken him away to have .
settlement and he was never seen after.
wards until his body was uuearthed. The
supposition is that he was enticed to Ben
der's and murdered in the same manner
as the others.
B f. Mckenzie was a farmer from
Ohio, who was looking about for lands.
lie had $4,000 or $1,000 and disappeared
MS mysteriously as the others His body
was found also.
Another man named Boyle, who start
cd from independence to Mission with
800 in his possession was found also.
Two Others were identified, but the
rest Of the bodies were not recognizable.
Nearly all the victims had teams or
saddle herscs In two instances the Va.
gons were found on the prairie and in one
instance a horse which had been pecu-
liarly marked was left with the wagon.
! In the other cases the horses were run
Off by some members Of the gasg and
disappeared as mysteriously IS their own.
ers. DR.. York when he disappeared bad
with him very feet and valuable r"aes-
ster
1t seems that after the visit OF Senstor
York and his party, the next msrniAg
the old man ploughcd the field, and
shortly afterwards they hitchcd up and
drove to Thayer. a station on the Gull
road, twenty or twenty five miles away
whero they were not known, arriving
there in time to take the night train. II
seems that they stopped little way out
of town, Embarrassed the horses and tied
them to the wagon Then leaving the
dog with the team, they went to the de-.
po. and left
The team remained out OF town two Or
three days. no one knowing to whom It
belonged. Finally, the town marshal
went out and brought il in.
A day or two after that some country
people were in the town, and one OF them
noticing the dog which had been lcft with
the team, exclaimed; "Why, there's old
Bendcr's dog"
|. This led to some explanations, and the
team was readily identified. This led 70
visit to the Bender place, and then It
was discovered that the whole family had
departed This was just before or about
the time that the detective made his Wis
il to the claim.
| As soon as the bodies were unearthed,
Beers entered upon his search for the
criminals. lie found that the Benders
were co operating with band ofthieyes,
and Just before he left Kansas, had sworn
out warrants for the arrest OF twenty-five
parties, many of them professedly farm
ers, holding claims in Southern Kansas.
Beers himself has assumed the difficult
task OF hunting down the four members
of tho Bender family. He succeeded in
tracing them until they left the State,and
then had an interview with the Governor
of Kansas, who authorized him to 60
ahead and hunt down the murderers re-
4 gardless Of expense.
With this understanding be started and
arrived in st. Louis yesterday, having
| followed a clear trail to this place.
The Benders left Kansas with about
SIC, coo, and Beers thinks that they have
gone straight to the seaboard with the in
ien,ion OF hiding across the ocean.
lie will follow rs fast rs the trail can
be picked ur. Chief McDonough VIII
render every assistance possible lnfor-
nation has been received already Of par
ties here who have told more about the
murders than they ought to know as in.
noeent people.
Detective Beers says tie people 81
Southern Kansas are terribly excited over
the discoveries, and it would be difIi-
cul, task to keep the Benders ont OF the
hands of mob if they should be taken
back now.
The claim upon which the bodies were
found, he says, is being visited by hun
dreds and thousands, who come from
many miles The lot was carefully and
deeply plowed over before all the bodies
were found, and it is not known yet but
that there may be other victims buried
near the bloody home Of the Bendeis.
Beers is almost worn out with the ter
riblc strain he has been under for two
weeks, and when visited yesterday BY the
Times reporter was trying to rccuperste
a little. He will set to work this morn
ing in fall earnest.
| IY,s.a ,yps =