The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1879-04-08
DOC"
The King Of Wyoming and Nebraska Cattle
Thieves.


'n'oVe'.
The name OF Doc Middleton. the no.
torious outlaw. is becoming somewhat
familiar throughout Nebraska and this
west, owing to his frequent bold ex.
ploits as a horse and cattle thief. NJ
definite accoup of this nan and his
various yillainies has aver been nub.
lisbed. The narrative Of the events NJ
his criminal career would aB a large
volume.
An Omaha exchange of recept date
deyotes considerable space IN n revieu
of his infamous career. SO far ma nor.
| tions of it have been brought 10 the
| light. His first appearance in tbe rolls
| of n desperado In Nebraska waa n,
| Sidney. in 1877. where in n saloo, q,
dance house he got into a fiobt with
some soldiers. one of whom , ver,
large and powerful man. threw him
down and commenced to heat him
when Middleton managed To draw hi.
revolver and shoot and kin his antago.
mist. for which murder he now stand.
indicted in Cbevenne countv
He made his escape and beino q
fugitive from Justice. he went north n
the vicinity of the Indian agencies and
gathered together a band of desperate
outlaws like himself. He formed this
organization for the purpose of theft
and Mt their head made ranaatad ,o;ds
upon the cattle herds of Wvomino and
eastern Nebraska.
In the fall of 1877 he and two of. his
men stole thirty.iye valuable horses
from a ranch near CHEYENNE. VIM @.
Lykins, of the cheyenne stock detec.
| tive association. accompanied nv two
| men, started out on his trail and over.
took him on the South Platte river
south of Sidney. Middleton and his
men abandoned the stock and rods
away to the hills. closely followed bv
Lykins and his party. A RUNNING
fight for twenty mi,es took n,oco ha'
tween them. and Middleton was 8na,,v
| captured nv I,vkjns Int tho otbars oot
away. Middleton cla;med that ba
would not have been taken had not n
cartridge got fast in his needle uun
| which allowed Lykins n good onnortn,
nity TO get the drop on him he r;d;no
up to him and covering him with :
revolver, thus making him throw nm
his bands.
Lykins did not Mt first know what an
important prisoner he had captpred
but during the two days, trim into Sid.
ney he found out who the CAPTIVE was
He had to guard him very CLOSELY 40 he
made several ATTEMPTS To escane Ue
was lodged in the little log iaiI at
| Sidney, but the next morning he was n
free man again. He had escaped dpring
| the NIGHT hv te,r,no M +ha eoo,..J
tunneling his way ont by means of an
old fire shovel, which it was claimed nv
the jailor had been accidentally left
| within his reach.
When the Spotted Tail Indians
moved down to the old Ponca reservo-
ton, Middleton and his men drifted
along the Niobrara country and estab.
| lished ranches and other places of rem.
| devious here and there in secIuded
| spots, ana then turned their attention
industriously to the stealing of stock.
1t is estimated that they stole three
thousand head of horses, and run them
off to various points in Nebraska
Dakota, Iowa, Wyoming and Colorado
and disposed of them. They did an
immense business, and had but little
trouble in selling their stolen stock
They also dealt somewhat in cattle.
About four weeks AGO the gang an.
peared at Olives ranch ON the Ionn
where they remained for soma l;ttia
M;aa,o.a, ., ,...,-
nearly sir foo, ,an ~. 49, o'a, :.
evos onh,rn 49, - F si"'