The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1874-10-27
A TERRIBLE ENCOUNTER.

fhRiLs OF EXECUTING LAw-TERRE HAUTE
OFFICERS TAKE A MURDERoUs DRsPERADo-
BRAVERY AND SKILL SUCCEED.
That Terre Haute has the bravest of
officers, both in Sheriff Hull and Cbiefzot
Police Shoemaker and their subordinates.
has been often demonstrated before. bnt mt
often in so thrilling way as on last Sum
day night, when they arrested two of the
worst roDoeis and desperadoes in this conn
try. at the imminent peril of their lives.
The Journals account is as follows: About
4e'clock Sunday afternoon Sheriff Hull re-
celved information through private sources
that noted desperate named William
Rudiford could be found at the house of
Hiram Rolls, small cabin in the woods
ABOUT quarter OF mile east of Col. r. w.
Thompson's residence, four miles southeast
OF the city. 1t was also thought three or
four other thieves would be found there.
Accordingly, the sheriff made arrangements
10 capture the gang He took two of his
deputies, Officers Erney and Hamilton, and
procured the services of three of the CITY
force, Chief Shoemaker and Officers Buck
ingham and vandever. A vehicle was hired
OF Barker Alvey, and the six men started
from the city at dark. Leaving the wagon
In the woods quarter of a mile AWAY. thew
approached the house. Officers Vandeyer
ana buckingham went around to one side
OF the house, while Sheriff Hull with Erney
and Hamilton came to the other side and
Knocked at the door. II was opened by
Rolls, the proprietor, and they entered.
Two men were found within, enjoying a So
cal game. One Of them was Rudiford. Mr..
hull said: us your name Rudiford?n "N7 -
he replied. Then Officer Vandeyer. fy,.o
mad with Ward Hayward captured him four
years ago robbing Andrews shoe store and
VINO consequently knew him) came up and
said, Hello Bill?" The fellow replied,
"You don't know me.n eyes he does y said
Ern6V. 81 III oil
to town. Mr.. Hull" then added.
THE DESPERATE STRUGGLE.
Rudiford studied a second, and said ssWelI.
all right, I'll CO." He arose and walked to
the bed where bis coat was hanging. closely
! accompanied by Hull, vandever and Buck
ingham. Just as he reached the bed he
whirled around. and reached to his rear for
revolver: He has pistol-hold hint"
exclaimed Hull, Selling his arm. But Rudi-
ford jerked out revolver, and Hull and
| Nandever wrestled with him try
ing to hold his arms. Buckingham
seized the revolver and tried
to pinion the hand that held it to his side.
But Rudiford succeeded in twisting his
hand around so as to point the weapon at
Buckingham's breast, and pulled the trig-
ger. The hammer came down partly against
Buckingham's finger as he held it, and
struck the cartridge with sufficient force to
make small impression, but with not
quite enough to explode it, owing to the
resistance of the finger. Shoemaker and
buckingham then instantly wrested il
from him. He produced another revolver
from somewhere in his clothing, but
Vandever at once got it away. The man is
| six feet high and of extraordinary power
and the four officers had quite a fight. They
choked and beat him, and fell over the bed,
smashing it. Hull struck Rudiford with his
INST, hurting his own finger badly. Vande-
yer struck him on the head with his revolt
yer, and peculiar projection in it made
hole that let out the blood in good quanti-
ties. Vandever also gave him a bad kick in
the ribs that knocked the wind out of him,
and after the others had secured good hold
upon his throat and arms they sue
ceeded in tying him fast with a rope.
The smaller man was easily disposed of by
Erney and Hamilton, and a revolver was
found in his vest pocket. He refuses to give
his name. and won't say anything. BE is
known, however, to be precious Jail bird.
The window sash was smashed, and other
damage done in the struggle. Rudiford and
his accompllce were shackled together and
brought to the city, arriving about IL O'Clock,
and both were safely locked up.
OTHER EXPLOITS.
1t is said that one of the policemen, on see
ing the ball taken from Mr.. Jerry Packard's
head-the result of theshooting on Saturday
oACldluoQs D6l a
dollar that's from bull dog.n When the re.
volver that Officer Vandever took from Rudi-
ford was brought to the light and examined
it was found 70 be a new "bull dog" (the
brand of the weapon), and one of the carts
ridges had no ball and looked as If it had been
fired not long before. This is an extremely
| suspicious circumstances, besides the fact
that the description of the two men answers
we'll to that given of the two who shot Jere-
miah Pickard. There are half a dozen other
charges against them, and it is reported Oh the
street that the Dickman robbery is intimate
ly mentioned in their case. OF this last,
however, we can not affirm. 1t is sufficient
forthe present to know, however, that the off,
GERS have made good haul. They are also
to be commended for wrestling so desper-
ately with Rudiford. trying to capture him
without seriously hurting him. He is an
old offender, and besides serving two years
for his attempted robbery of Andrews
store, he escaped from the penitentiary
while under sentence for a robbery in
another county, but was afterward recap
tured.
| The Terre Haute Gazette of Tuesday even
ing adds: The city papers of last Saturday
gave the particulars of the robbing of II. A.
Day, Greencastle jeweler, of some sixty
five watches which he was carrying from his
store at night to bank for deposit, and of
the long chase which Marshal Allison had
after the desperadoes. Last night the jew
eler and the marshal came over
from Greencastle, and visiting the
JAIL identified the two men
caught near Col. Thompson's on Sunday, as
the same who "gobbled'' the watches at
| Greencastle. 1t seems likely that these two
desperadoes can be identified as the. perpe-
traitors of every crime and misdemeanor
which has taken place within 200 miles of
Terre Haute for the last six months. We
are not even sure that they can not be
proved to have set fire to Chicago, in 1870,
and that Mrs. O'Leary's cow is after all, an
innocent and much abused animal.
One more pleasant little episode of the
campaign, wherein the good in man rises
above the evil in political contest, is re-
lated by the Laporte Argus. 1t says: Major