Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1885-08-01
THE SLAYERS OF sORENsON.
The TidweIl Brothers and John
Anderson i'm the Pen Awaiting
New Trial.

The arrival of Thomas and Frank It'd
well and John Anderson from Provo las
evening, in the custody OF Sheriff Turner
brings to mind the arrest of those parties
last Spring as being implicated in killing
cattle man in Southern Utah, by the
name of Sorenson. The defendants were
tried before Judge Emerson, at Provo,
and the trial resulted in a conviction Of
murder in the second degree on the part
of the Tidwell boys, and manslaughter in
Anderson's case. Owing to Judge En-
ersOn's retirement from the Utah bench.
the motion for a new trial was not heard
( until few days ago, and the prisoners
were brought here fol- safe keeping pend
ing the new trial, to be heard before Judge
Powers at the September term of court.
AS near as we can learn, it seems that
the defendants met Sorenson and his
man TOedt, who were driving a band of
cattle towards the Colorado line, and
from all indications had paid for them
and come by them honestly. The de-
PENDANTS, who owned cattle in that neigh
borhood, had lost few head short time
before, and went through Sorenson's herd
to see If they could find any of them, and
it seems they could not
About this time heifer that had been
killed, or was supposed to have been
killed by Sorenson, was lying back on the
trail over which his cattle had been driv-
en-. The heifer was found to have had
her ears cut off close and the brands cut
out, and was quite fresh. Sorenson
claimed the heller to have been one
owned by him the preceding year, but
which had been lost
1t seems that upon their first visit to
Sorenson's herd the Tidwell who had
been informed that Sorenson had some
stray cattle, did not mention anything
about seeing this heifer. They went to
Blake City and in general conversation
mentioned to two men by the name of
Hall and Staples, that the cattle were all
right and the indications pointed towards
the correct supposition that Sorenson
came by them honestly. The following
day the Tidwells were accosted bv Staples
and asked if they were going out there
after the cattle again, and answered
In the negative, saying that they
were going in a different direction.
Shortly afterwards the Tidwell boys and
John Anderson, who claims that he went
with them merely as a witness, came
upon Sorenson and his man Toedt driving
the cattle, and informed them that they
had some of their cattle. Sorenson got
mad and told them that they were liars,
and that he did not have any cattle but
those which belonged to him. The It'd
well party apparently had come heeled
with firearms, with the intention of using
them IN any emergency, and though the
testimony was somewhat conflicting in
regard to the motive of the attack, it was
clearly proven that words led to a free
use of pistols, and that Sorenson was
shot from his horse and killed.
Frank Tidwell and Anderson having
bred at least one shot EACH Toedt, ac-
,ordlng to his version of the affair, had
been dismounted at the time of the firing;
DIS horse having run off and stopped |
about fifty yards away, was finally caught !
)y him, and he was ordered to 90 back |
1y the Tidwell party They also told |
roedt that Sorenson had fired at them |
hree times, and showed him the empty |
shells. The Tidwell party then rode |
iiough ciie pallu Vi catIle ana singled |
'ut heifer as theirs and drove it off.
Thomas Tdwell and Toedt brought
'orenson's body to the railroad a short
ime after the killing. The others brought
he heifer into Blake City where she was
Identified by Staples as being one that he
lad bought from Frank Tidwell and
which had been taken from him the
anne day and branded by Frank.
From all the evidence in the case, the
filing was done by the accused parties.
nd they were convicted on their first
rial, but in the trial some other facts
nay come out that will materially alter
he case.