The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1884-10-15
MONTANA VIGILANTES.
LAW AND ORDER TWENTY YEARS AGO.
The Conditions Which Prevailed On the
Frontier When the Country Was
Younger-How Crime Was
Suppressed.
TCor. N. Y. Graphical

prospectors of Western Colorado have
hardly their equal on the continent II u:
only twenty-five years since the first.
named region-Montana-w settled, and
it is to-day well-organized, civilized and
prosperous community. "The Land of the
Silver Bow" as the Indian name MEANS
has had wonderfully checkered history,
and we propose TO turn few of its leavei
for our readers.
Montana had an early era of pioneer
peace, turbulent era Of terrorism, q
swift and combative era, when the order
loving element rebelled, organized and in
short time hanged no less than twenty.
four criminals, and an era OF subsequent
social safety. 1t was in the year 1867 that
gold discoveries on the Salmon River led
hundreds Of hardy mountaineers from the
Wasatch and the steep Colorado ravines.
Other discoveries were soon made near
Deer Lodge and at Beaver Head Camp
1t was motley crew that assembled al
the new diggings. There were hundreds
from California and Oregon, where the
surface placers were in the last stages Of
exhaustion; others came by the way Of
Fort Hall and Sake River. Trappers
drifted In from the Businesses of the Rock.
les. There were even Mexicans from
Santa Fe and French voyageurs from the
Red River country among the early Mon
tana miners. Before the close OF 1862
large parties arrived from Minnesota and
other Western States.
The almost unquestioned rule which the
Plummer, Reeves, Moore and Skinner
gang of outlaws maintained for months in
the early days Of the Bannock and Vir-
ginia City settlements finds hardly par
allel in mountain history. The time Just
after the stampede to Alder Gulch in June,
1868, was when they made the most impos'
ing display, Plummer being Sheriff and
the administration of justice being in
their hands, while in secret they had a
road agent band, with officsrs, spies and
complete organization. They kept all the
roads through the Territory and all the
mountain trails under close watch, so that
miners or other persons with money were
robbed and murdered by the dozen, stages
overhauled and the region terrorized.
They went on sprees and "painted the
town scarlet" whenever they chose, break
! ing into stores, firing at, wounding or kill
ing men who we're obnoxious to them, kill
| ing Indians, and in some cases massacre
ing the inhabitants of an entire Indian
settlement. Their agents and spies ulti-
mately completed system by which, to
quote from Dimsdale's book on tho "Vig-
ilantes," published at Virginia City, NJ. T.,
in 1865, and q rare book: "The horses, men
and coaches we're marked in some under
stood manner to designate them as fit OBJ
jects for plunder." Their arms were a
pair Of revolvers, shotgun with short
ened barrels, and large knife; they were
mounted on the best of horses and dis.
guised with masks. There were men
among these desperadoes who confessed
TO having committed from five to twelve
murders; men who had been notorious
criminals in California, Louisiana or Mis-
souri,; there were those also whose lives,
before they came to Montana, had been in
every way respectable and hard.working.
There was no more atrocious crime om
mitted during the lawless era than the
murder OF the loyal Magruder party. This
! gentleman was deservedy one Of the most
popular men in the Territory, a merchant
, of Lewiston, Idaho, who had come TO Vir
, ginia City, M. T., early in 1868 with pacl
train of goods which be soon sold out
realizing about $4,000, and with thi
: money set out on his return to Lewiston
= with four frlends-Allen, the two Chalm
A ers and Phillips. The Plummer band o
road agents held a council and decided b
s kill the entire party and obtain the money
Four members Of the gang, Romaine
Howard, Page and Lowrie, offered thei
!. services TO Magruder, who had numbe
/. OF horses he was taking 10 Lewiston, an
4 they were treated with the greatest kind
4 ness. When the party was near the Cleal
8 water the murderers did their fatal worl
o killing four OF the FIVE while asleep an
:, Magruder while,watching his horses on th
d hillside. With that strange idiocy whic
d so often accompanies crimes they aftei
!. ward rode Magruder's horses throug
/, Lewiston, where the animals were recol
/. nized, and bold Deputy Marshal then 70
$ lowed them 70 California and arrested a
;, four; one turned States evidence, an
l. three were hanged. Crimes like this Ia
d 10 the simultaneous formation Of vigilant
It committees In Nevada and Virginia citic
Ie and in few days their rapid, masterl
3. and law-defending league extended ov
II the entire Territory. On January 14th, lSG
Il no less than five Of the leading desper
10 does Of the Territory were executed in VI
ginia City, and the hateful rule Of erin
y was broken, for only four days previousl
II at Bannock City, three OF the leaders Of Z
IN road agents had met the same fate. 4
al rapidity with which the vigilantes got
IN their work is startlingly shown by u
III dates Of the principal executions. o.
IN hanging occurred on December 2lst, lSt
OF two on January 4th, 1894, thirteen on ia
~ uary 10th, two on January 11th, FIVE
,y January 18th, one on January 18th, O
i'd on January 10th, one on January "a
he four on January 25th, and one on Janua
nd 28th. It is not believed by any pers
hit who has investigated tho subject that IN
es single instance the vigilantes abused thu
as power. The execution Of "Bill Hunter
ey February Sd, 1854, on lonely trail ne
ty the mouth of the Gallatin, completed [
he destruction of the defiant and power
ry "Road Agenv organization For thl
les months, in the depths Of winter, and unC
,s- extraordinary difficulties, the small |
iis determined band Of active vigilantes, s,
nd ported by the long terrorized communi
ch had gathered up evidence, pursued
nd crir,,inals unrelentlesslv fought the