The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1874-12-03
FROM THE INDIAN TERRITORY.
Indians, Winter and Horse Thieves.

United States Marshal Le!ebvre pass I
cd through Wichita last Friday on his
way home from the Cheyenne agency, /
where he is at present located-at
which time he favored Us with mach
that was interesting from the stamp
ing ground of the red man.
The Indians have gone through with
q rough experience the past summer,
losing thousands Of their ponies. few
braves and much of their personal eff
fects. Al one time fourteen hundred
ponies were shot by The military while
horse thieves are continually depicting
| their herds
This has proved the coolest and
most Indictment fall ever experienced
in the Territory. and a cold winter Is
! feared.
II is the universal desire of the au-
thorities and officers in the Territory
that new judicial district should be
made of the Indian Territory alone. or
in connection with the southern conn-
ties IN Kansas. Nine-tenths of the Of
! tenders escape because this time of
the year it is almost impossible to
reach Fort Smith.
About three weeks ago four horse
thieves, under cover of darkness, drove
away between eighty and ninety heal
of ponies belonging 10 the friendly
Arapal:oes aud Cheyennes, from King
fisher creek jast north of the agency.
The thieves fastened off in the direc-
ton of Summer county, Kansas. but
such large number Of horses proving
unmanagable. and fearing pursuit,
some thirty head of the poorest ones
were dropped on the CiEaron river.
The L. :. marshal and Interpreter
Morrison followed the thieves until
their horses gave out, when Morrison
came on to Wichita, took the cars and
made for Fort Dodge, expecting to IN
tercept them. The thieves had cross
ed the railroad and the officers at the
Fort furnished two small attachments
to aid in the arrest. Gen. Sheridan
happened to be at Fort Dodge when
the first detachment started, and after
urging the officer in charge TO do
everything in his power to catch the
thieves. told him that in case he should
get them to plant them on the prai-
ric." The Lieutenant, upon reaching
the point on the a. T. Il 5. F. road
where the stolen ponies had crossed,
took up the trail and followed it. We
understand that he followed it during
two or three days, when the pursued
were sighted. Then "A race commenc-
ed the thieves driving the stolen stock
before them at Il Ercak-ncck pace, the
soldiers on their large ponderous
horses laundering after them. The
race lasted for fifteen miles during
which time the pursuers steadily gam
: ed on the pursued. Finally the thieves
feeling convinced they could not es'
cape. halted and having selected q
suitable point for ''stand off, dis
mounted and prepared TO fight. And
fight they did, too, with valor wor'
: thy of better cause. But the soldiers
were TOO much and too many for them
: Ia the engagement two of the horse
thieves were killed, one cflecting his
escape after his two comrades had
been Knocked over There were only
three in this party, one having sepa
rated from the origina. quartettt
somewhere south of Hutchinson
Fourteen head Of ponies were recov
cred and taken charge of subsequent,
bv Mr.. Morrison a short time after
wards the officers at Fort Dodge learn
l cd that the thief who had made hi
escape had been wounded in the iigh
and had died of his wounds. Wha
. became of the one who cut off soutl
: of Hutchinson is not known TO the OF
= ticers. The next day Mr.. Lefebvre say
there was a private dispatch sent t.
: some one in Wichita detailing the re
S suit of the fight but he did not know
: to whom the dispatch was sent.
4 delegation of braves called OF
: Sheridan at Dodge. He told them h
e had started to whip them into peac
: and he expected to do it if it took tc'