Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1881-07-30
THE JOURNAL NEEDS TO STUDY
LAW AND DECENOY.

AH
LAW AND DECENOY.
The Kansas City journal, of last
THURSDAY, in a long editorial, among
other thugs. Say:
ut is matter OF common notoriety that had
the ofncials OF Jackson. Platte, Ray. Saline. La
fayette, st. Clair and a few other counties, had
any sympathy with the pursuers of the robbers
they would long since have been taken. These
men should be made to understand thst the laws
against criminals are made for them to execute,
and if they are unwilling TO do their duty, lei
the governor snap off their heads and appoint TO
their places honest men who have no affection
or friendship for any of the robber gang. Sach
a course on the part of Gov. Crittenden would
meet with the hearty appreciation OF all good
citizens"
We cannot answer for the officials
of the other counties, because We are
not in = position to know, Dut the
assertion l IL the first sentence is un-
true as to the officers of this county.
The recommendation to the governor
to s'snsp Off" the heads Of sheriffs is
unique, in view of the fact that he
has no such power. He is not q ear.
W. agree that the heads of all such
officers as the Journal describes should
be snapped of, but this must be done
by the people. 1t the governor were
to follow the advice of the Journal
he would. himself. become an outlaw,
which he is not apt to do.
That Gov. C%rittenden will meet
with the hearty appreciation of good
citizens i'll taking all. possible mea
urss to apprehend the outlaws is
true. Let him leave no stone unturn.
ed in that direction.
What we desire to deal with here
lie the assertion that the officials of La
fayette county are void OF sympathy
with the pursuers of the kind of rob-
bers III question, whether the Jameses
or others. So far is this from the truth
that the only time they were given
the opportunity the officers of this
county not only sympathized with,
but themselves became the pursuers.
In 1873 when the express robbery on
the Rock Island road occurred III
Iowa, the outlaws came to this coun.
ty. Mr.. Dan Bringhoff, the sheriff
from DesM oines, 10 wa, followed them
here, and the sheriff Of this county,
now Judge VIM. Young, organized
possess and the Two secured tho couu-
try in every direction, night aud day,
almost continuously for three months.
One squad of 80 or 40 men went 40
far as st. Clair county. Another
squad of 80 men twice came very
near to capturing the outlaws,s so near
once as TO find warm beds aud to get
one Of their horses. They LAID ont Is
| nights surrounding suspicious places
end houses and the pursuit. was only
given over when the officers money
ran out.
Sheriff Young spent for the ex-
penses of the men, an account of
which was kept. $715 of his own
money. not II emit of which was
ever repaid to him by the state. The
men who served in these squads did
SO without expectation of pay, and
Judge Young says be could have got
a thousand men as easily as fifty,
many more applying than he could
use. The large majority of these
men were ex-confederate soldiers.
They were meu of undoubted courage
and determination in the cause In
which they were then enlisted, and
spent their money freely. There
was not, during the time of the ex-
petitions, less than 5000 spent by
Young, Bringhef and their volun.
teers.
There was nothing lukewarm about
this, aud there will not be at any time
That Lafayette county is called OIL to
do any duty to suppress outlawry,
notwithstanding her traducers' stories
to- the contrary.
The expeditions Of Young aud
Bringhof were we'll planned. There
were men III this county then, as there
are now, who would harbor thieves
there are everywhere-iu every state
men who have criminal instincts if
they are not themselves overtly Grim.
inals-these men we're known, spot
ted aud watched, and there were just
two things that prevented the cap
ture of the outlaws-one was the
lack of money to continue the pur-
suit. and the other was the babbling
Of fooA who told what the officers
were doing that it might be printed
i'll the newspapers to notify the rob.
bers, and other fools who saw them
behlud every bush in the road and
gave the officers much trouble in con
sequence. When Geo. M. Mountjoy
was sheriff (succeeding Sheriff Young
and serving three terms) he captured
outlaws not only in Missouri, but in
other states-he rarely went for one
that he did not, sooner or later, lay
his great big hand Oh his shoulder,
and tell him that he wanted him. Nc
county, anywhere, ever had a better
officer. He never brags about what
he is going to do, but be- goes and
does it. Mr.. Mountjoy says that there
never was a time during his incum'
bency that he could not get as large 6
posse as he wanted in any township
i'll Lafayette. county to pursue the
James boys or any other outlaws
posses of brave, determined auc
thoroughly reliable men. If thu
Journal desires to see the truth il
will retract what it has said abou,
the officials of this county, but We
! have NC idea that it will do so.
We are not Of those who jump to ad'
verse conclusions regarding the acts o.
Governor Crittenden. We would thanl
him to treat the officers OF Lafayett,
, county with like forbearance. Sheriff
Benjamin Elliott is a man who in tn.
+ discharge of his duty knows no fear o
favoritism. The reason he did no
'take prompt and decisive means to ar
rest the men who crossed the Missouri
river near Lexington a few days ago.