The Elk Mountain pilot., 1880-11-04
THE JACKSON Ld TIER,

I
the press, but it may not be uninterest-
ing to refer again to the prominent
facts and circumstances elected at a
! preliminary examination Of Cline be
fore Justice Waller at Gunnisoa CITY,
together with some inquiries and
reasoning upon the sane by the under
signed, who was presnt at the exami-
nation.
The freighters Jackson, Young Jack
son { boy } and two Others at 3 p m
on the following day after the Indian
Johnson was killed, were arrested at
Cline's Ranch by Hoyt and Holmes
two white men, and two Indians
named Chaveno and Henry. There
were also present at the ranch some
twenty or thirty other Indians and
one Meacham white man, and in
the immediate vicinity there was force
of about five hunred U. S. troops
camped. .'.t
The Indians were excited and de-
manded the blood of the prisoners.
This was the condition of matters
till 8 8o'clock p. m. that day, when
Berry the Indian Agent at Los Pinos,
Capt. Stelle with a detachment Of
fifteen U. S. Soldiers and Cline the
owner of the Ranch arrived.
Capt Stelle and Berry came there
in consequence of the difficulty and
the Captain was ordered to obey the
orders of Berry, before they left the
agency.
Berry very soon ordered Captain
Stelle to take into his custody, the
prisoners, which was done and they
were, at night, taken to the camp
near the house and a guard of five
soldiers placed over them, part
Of which was composed of Indians, as
they insisted upon being represented.
During the night, or greater PCT
oft, there were mysterious and secset
meetings at Cline's house, between
Berry and Cline, and perhaps,the 9TH
er whites and the Indians. The Indi
ans were excited and talked violently.
From the tenor of the evidence,
rhere can be no doubt but that, the
whites named were In sympathy with
the Indians, and they bitterly con
den.ned young Jackson and the freight
ers in the mat ter 1t is a fair infer
ence that, they aoceded the burden
of the .dlficuityt as proven by he
Indians and rejected that Of the Jack
son party. In fact, the Jackson party
was treated roughly and as criminals,
so Jackson states, by Capt STEELE,
which statement is denied by Capt.
Stelle.. '' "..'.'f
On the morning after the arrest the
secret meeting between Berry, Cline
and perhaps others OF the whites and
the Indians continued. Finally Berry
the agent ordered Capt. SteIle with
his men, to return home, and ordered
him to surrender the prisoners to
Cline, Hoyt and Holmes 1t may be
said here that it appeared that Stelle
hesitated about the matter and de
manded preemptory order, when
Berry said, " i order you - At the
instance of Berry there was a pause
and all the Indians except one named
Henry, mounted their ponies and
rode away, and Immediately atterward
Berry and Capt. Stelle with his com
mand departed. The force ofsoldiers
which vas encamped there during the
night Lad left and taken the road to-
ward Gunnison and Saguache.
The parties left at the Rancho at
this time, were Cline, Hoyt, Holmes
and Meacham and Indian Henry, also
the prisoners, consisting of the elder
Jackson the boy Jackson, his nephew,
and two other persons, whowere team
tiers for Jackson.
About the time Berry left, or short
ly before, Cline, or some of his party,
asked Chayeno, the Indian, which one
he wanted and the reply, in Mexican
was, the little one, meaning the boy
Jackson.
1t must be remembered that the
shooting of Johnson was by the boy
but that another driver fired several
times at the other Indian, and that the
elder. Jackson, owner of the teams,
was the party who had the alteration
with the Indian Johnson, that fred at
him, and it was through Jackson that
the Smoothing was done, but it was all
done in self defense, but one was really
as guilty as the other, if there was
any guilt.
The fair presumption, from this
evidence, is that the Indians refused