St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1882-04-21
The James Brothers.

In view of the recent death of Jesse
James, the noted outlaw of the West,
the following facts, given by Chicago
paper. will not fail to interest our read
ers:
The James brothers were the pro
duct of frontier civilization heated to
white heat by the civil war. They
were the sons of godly clergyman
but their mother, a large, handsome
woman, six feet high, and of mascu-
line frame, would seem to have been
of IA Lady Macbeth type, with no other
ambition, however, than to nurture i'll
her sons Il reckless, brave, murderOus,
lawless disposition. They detested
school and the ordinary restraints of
social education; loved the woods, and
hunting, were fond of horses and feats
of horsemanship. What little good in
fluence their father might have exert
ed was ended by his abandoning his
wife, whose life, conduct and treatment
of himself were more than he could en-
dure.
When the war broke out in Missouri
chiefly guerrilla Wharf.-The oldest
son, Frank, was barely 30 years of age 4;
the Youngest only IA. The first join
ed Quantrell's guerrillas; the youngest
was kept at home by his youthfulness.
The conflict in Missouri between Con-
federates and Union men was truly
savage i'll character, all laws, includ-
ing those of war, being abandoned
The summary hanging of his step-fa-
ther, one DR.. Samuels, for being Sc
cessiOnist, and his own punishment 10y
whipping for the same Otfense, ended
in Jesse's joining Quantrell. In this
service both acquired that blOOdthirst-
mess which distinguishes them, much
to their disadvantage, from the pOpu-
lar heroes, Turpin and Claude Duval
with whom they are frequently com
pared. They were with the gang who
JIlt toN IL vi W Manassas
and murdered nearly all of the male
inhabitants. lnSeptember, 1864, they
with Bill Anderson, comrade, killed
thirty-two invalid soldiers in colo
blood at Centralia, Missouri, rObbine
the train passengers of their money
and Il few hours after killed forty low;
soldiers, with their own hands empty
ing pistol after pistol as they shO
them down.
| At the close of the war they went t.
Texas, and nothing was heard of then
for three years. In 1868, with tw'
Shepherd boys and one of the Young
Ell brothers, they robbed a bank a
Russellville, Kentucky, of $4,000, i'll
timidating the inhabitants with fus
ilade of firearms. In Gallatin, Nilsson
ri. they robbed the bank and then, i
cold blood. shot down the cashier
At Corydon, Iowa, they robbed ban
of SAC, 900 in broad daylight, and on
of the Younger brothers, riding up t
il political meeting, cOOlly informe
the citizens of the fact and then rod
away, laughing at the astOnished in
habitants. Two years after they rob
bed ii bank in Columbia, Kentucky
but obtaining only 5000, wantonl
killed the treasurer and wounded on
of the clerks who was escaping. Tn
fall of the same year they rode up
the gateway of an agricultural fair g
Kansas City and compelled the casE
Ter to hand them over Sl0,000-the re
ceipts of the day-and, in spite of til
large crowd, they succeeded in gettin
away. A few days afterward the
. rode into Sedalia, Missouri, called tn
editor of one of the newspapers theI
on to the street and presented hiI
: with IA gold watch for the fairness ,
his treatment of them. The polio
knew of their presence five minutes a
terward, but they escaped. A fe
, days subsequently they robbed ban
of "a, 900, but this time killed no on
l At the head of six men they robbie
1 the express messenger of $4,000 on tt
Chicago & Rock Island railroad,
June, 1873, and shortly after train O
the Iron Mountain railroad, at a pla6
, by curious coincidence known {
r Gadshill, was robbed by them of SIS
900. After this they led for two {
three years a life of adventure and e
; cape, while under pursuit of men b,
longing to PinkertOn's detective ageI
7 ley of Chicago. At one time they wei