Arizona weekly citizen., 1882-10-22
Sfark sinaIiny-

Nr. II. B. Callahan, who for the past
 two weeks has been in Tucson ia at-
 tendance uu court, is the owner Of a
 ranch aui vas, ti.i short time ago, the
 owner ol a Eue band ot cattle in tine
 neichborLood of La Noria, but from the
 marauding deprelations of cattle thieves
 he now owns scarcely a hooi. His loss
 in cattle Is about one hundred ana eighty head exclusive Of a number of horses. The thieves generally are
 Mexicans living on the opposite side 5i
 the border. The hu ses are taken to . Sonora ana soid. The cattle, because of au excellent law, cannot be disposed Of m that country without the tueff coming to the Knowledge of the auth critics an0tne offenders being punished,
 and consequently are driven and sold % the butchers of Charleston, Conteu- non, Tombstone and BIsbee, who, IL IS sad, are frequently m coliuslon with che robbers, for tue pCrpose oi purcuGs- ing their cattle cueap.
 Emboldened by their successes the
 lLelvls raIdcd some cattle on the Elm
 pIrc Ranch drove and sold them to some Charleston butchers and got away with thelr c0iE without detection. Several of the cattle Lad been slaughtered be-
 fore the rghtful owners had a knoTl- edge Of what was being done. \ few
 nights ago tLe thieves also stole eleven
 head of horses from Mr. Ihos. Hughes
 on the Sono!ta. So faras known the horses have not been recovered.
 Such persistent and systematic rob Dery of horses and cattle, more partIcu-
 lariy or the latter, IS made possible unls
 through lack of necessary legislation on part of the State. The law now In force, but not enforced, compels all butchers, under pain of heavy penalty, tO keep a record of the brands on all
 cattle killed by them, would seem to be sufficient. That it IS far otherwise IS evidenced Uy the daily slaughter of stolen stock m the towns named.
 A butcher was arrested at the instance of Mir. Callahan who detected hIs own brand among the drying hides. Before arrest the butcher showed Mir. 1 Callahan the record Of the brand in question. But on coming into Court ! he produced another book in which Mr. ! Caliahau'5 brand was not Co be found and swore to 1t being his regular record and that he kept no other, and as he had in the meantime got away with the tell-tale hides, no proof could be brought against him, he consequently
 was discharged.
 The great fault m the law IS that each butcher Is allowed to keep hls own record which he can safely falsify or correctly keep, according to the scruples of hIs nature.
 h Mexlco the law is far difTere2;, more effective and better calculated Co protect men ID their hard earned gains.
 The country Is divided into districts
 and over each district Is appointed an inspector whose duty 1t Is Co certify officially Co the ownership of cattle. and before allowing them killed ro brand them with hls own official
 stamp. Parties found in the possession
 of cattle hides Tot bearing said official
 brands are punished as the law provides.
 Until such law be made and enforced iu
 Arizona it must be confessed that for security of property We are far behind our neighbors.
 The stealing is not confined Co rene gade Mexicaus, masmUch as IL is 4uss-
 tiouable II they hold their own aEaIuSt
 the thieves that depredate from tu,s
 side of the line, and who openly and
 Unblushing walk from our courts uu-
 whipped of justice, not one conviction iu ten cases against th0m being secured.