Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1885-1890, 1885-09-26
R0p TADTEp
Something About the Bold Cattle and
Horse Thief Who is the Terror Of
Three Territories.

Three Territories.
Bob Tarter, famous in the stock
thieving annals of the borders of
Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming, says
a Lander (Wyo.) correspondent OF the
Chicago Tribune, has been identified
as the chief Of the Teton Basin gang
OF horse thieves. He has been arrest
ed time and again fer crimes, bnt
such are his intelligence and shrewd-
ness that he always escaped when the
legal proof was called for. As an os-
tensible stockman, he has been located
on the outer edge of one of the from
tiers OF the three territories. His real
occupation has always been, however,
the stealing of his neighbors' stock.
Passing for a legitimate cattle breed
er, he has had the best of o%pportuni-
ties in the theft line, and has never
failed to improve them. Always in
league and communication with open
thieves, he has now thrown off the
mask himself and put in motion one
OF the most dangerous bands of vii
lains that ever t~errorized a mountain
border. Tarter has a genius for com
bination, and the desperate ruf1ians
who acknowledge his sway work on
systematized plans. Order and regu-
larity characterize the pillage and
the disposal Of the plumber. Tie
band he been largely reinforced from
the desperadoes whose flight last year
saved them from the Montana cord
and bullet. The lawless from all parts
of the frontiers have gathered to him,
however, and his band is the aggre-
cation of all that is desperate and
dangerous. The success that has at
tended his infamous operations, and
the apparent immunity he enjoys, has
made his name a tower Of strength
to the lawless element, and Teton
Basin is looked upon as a IRE refuge
and haven Of security. In the basin
itself is quite a settlement. Tarter is
a man Of family, as L also some OF
his followers, and the basin has not a
few ome and children within its
limits. Grain is raised, and garden
vegetables, hay is cntand comfortable
dwellings, have been erected.
This Is the stronghold Of the band.
All its approaches are guarded by
mountedmen, and the defenses OF the
place itself have been carefully streng-
thened. II is said to be so strong that
half a dozen men Of the desperate
stamp Of the gang can hold it against
all assailants. The basin is the point
to which all stolen horses are driven
at once. Here have been built cor
rails for convenience Of applying the
hot iron that obliterates the owners
brand and replaces 1t with one better
adapted to the thieves peculiar meth
DDS Of stockraising. On the rich
grasses Of the basin the stockrun I'M
til recovered from the burning opera
ton, when they are ready for sale.
The thieves have been known to seek
a market as far as Colorado. The
internal affairs of the colony" are
also systematized. Supplies are regu-
larry laid in from some railroad point.
Green River, on the Northern Pacific,
saw wagon loads hauled out by the
thieves last fall. This season they
propose to purchase on the Northern
Pacific.
An incident is related of Tarter's
life that shows his character in a strik-
ing light. In 1880 he was operating
on Snake river, having a ranch there.
In that year the Indian department
shipped a large number Of wagons
and farming utensils to the Shoshone
reservation. The wagons were loaded
at the railroad with the .other proper
ty and sent to the Pacific Springs, a
point on the old Colorado & Wyom-
ing Stage line. Here they wer park
ed for some business reason for some
time. Tarter wanted a wagon and
harness, and came over to the Springs
after them. He selected his wagon,
saw that it was loaded with harness,
and one night hitched to it and drove
off, telling the watchmen they had
better not say anything until morn
ing. They followed his advice. Tar
ter vas pursued the next morning,
but no trace of him could be found.
He had driven until daylight, when,
unloading his wagon, he took it to
pieces. He then dug a broad and
shallow pit in the ground and buried
therein both wagon and harness. In
dian Agent Hutton made a trip to
Snake river a few months afterwards
and recovered the harness-ffteen
sets.
NEWS OF THE WORLD.
Archdeacon Farrer will lecture in