News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1886-10-14
10. ANDERSON'S COMPANY.
SHE LOVED HIM, AND DID NOT KNOW
HE WAS A DETECTIVE.
He Learned, as He Started Out to Do, that
She was an Incendinry and Horse Thief
and has Told the Authorities About Her.
From the New York SUM-

| 1CH ulllCS lIOl1 Ills GONu. ~ ulIG away
from that is mine owned by one An
deTson, who has daughter named Josie
The country round about is given VI
generally to stock raising. For some
time previous to the first of April last g
good deal of cattle and horse stealing
had been done in the vicinity. The
people who lived on the New York ranch
were suspected, but as the family con-
sisted only of a widow and her sons.
both young, it was thought at first that
the suspicious were unfounded. At
length, however, absolute proof of their
guilt in one case was found, and the
mother, a Mrs. Clifford, and one Of her
sons was arrested. Their trial soon fol-
lowed, and on their conviction the
woman was sentenced to one year in
prison and the young man to five years.
As soon as Mrs. Clifford was placed in
custody she made an arrangement with
a man named Rothman by the terms of
which the latter was to live on the ranch
during her absence to take care of the
property. Mrs. Clifford had only been
in the penltentiary a day or two when,
one dark and stormy night in April, the
New York ranch was destroyed by fire.
Rothman's family were on the premises
and were awakened from a sound slum-
Der by the roar of the flames. Escaping
in their nights clothes, they were unable
to save any of Mrs. Gitford's property
and but very little of their own The
next morning ROthman found a girls
straw hat near the ruins of the ranch,
and in the soft earth were the footprints
OF horse leading up to and away from
| one of the rear doors of the burned
building.
AS Mrs. Clifford had an insurance of
| 5000 on her property in the State In
surance Company, the agent of that cor
| poration In Denver was soon on th4
| ground, and to him Rothman make
known the facts which had come to his
| knowledge. Satisfied that the ranch
had been burned for the insurance the
agent returned to Denver, and a day
later detective made his appearance.
After careful investigation and close
| inquiry into the antecedents of Mrs.
| Clifford he came to the conclusion that
| that woman had had as a confederate
in her cattle and horse stealing opera
| tions, and probably in the conspiracy
against the insurance company, no less
person than Miss Josie Anderson. 1t
therefore became his duty to make the
acquaintance of the RI.
Pretending to be the agent of wealthy
! Engli b spectators. he called at the
| Anderson place to negotiate for the pur-
| chase of the old mans mine. He found
the owner willing to sell, and after a
prCtracted dicker the sale was made,
the detective agreeing to pay Anderson
So, 600 for the property. During all this
time, however, the detective had ! OF
given his who time to business. He
found Josie Anderson to be a sprightly
and vivacious girl of eighteen, with a
stout body, a round, rosy face well
bronzed, clear bl eyes, and an abund-
ance of wavy brown hair, and it was
not long before the mountain girl and
the gay agent were making love most
industriously. Josie coul 1 ride horse
as well as any man in the State, and
her cleverness with the rife was amaz-
ing. Together they took many long
rides, and before the mine had been
purchased the agent and Josie were en-
gagged to be married.
On one or two occasions the girl in
conversation with her lover referred t.
the fact that she had been suspected of
burning the New York ranch, but her
companion cleverly turned the subject
oil by pretending that it was too painful
and preposterous for him to hear. He
liked the wild free life that she led, he
said, and thus in each others company,
they were seen day after day n noun
tain and valley, until in every household
it was common talk that Josie Ander-
son had made great catch, and that if
Oh hah in ha f,,t,,
she might be somebody after all. In
the course of time the girl referred
once more to the New York ranch fire,
and evidently with the object of increas-
ing the admiration of her suitor, said
that a detective in Golden had accused
her of the crime, and that she had put
him to flight by raising her six shooter
on him
"You are brave girl, " said the agent,
stroklng her hair, land l am proud to
be loved by a woman like you"
81 never loved anybody but you,"
she answered, land | never will.
The agent then said that detectives
were scoundrels, and at great length he
recOunted some of mis- adventures with
them, showing in every case how he had
outwitted them in their attempts to
familIariZe themselves with matters
which concerned him alone. The girl
approved of his course complimented
him on his shrcwdness, and mentioned
the burned ranch.
"But you didn't burn the ranch, did
you p he asked.
"Weli, L did," she replied, looking
him straight in the face, and then on
one of their rambles she gave him in
detail all the Circums tances. For two
or three years she had been actively
engaged in stealing cattle and horses
The cattle were all driven to the New
York ranch and butchered, but the
horses were sold at various places
When Mrs. Clifford and her son were
arrested, Josie visited the former in Jail
at Golden and learned for the first time
that the ranch was insured Mrs. Gift
ford suggested its destruction, and
Josie agreed to bring 1t about, first
going there to remove from the room in
which Mrs. Gifford's goods were stored,
those that were of most value. This
room was accessible from the outside,
and the key to the door was placed in
the girls keeping. The next night.
without assistance, Josie rode to the
place, and, gaining an entrance, put
Mrs. Gitfords silver and best dresses
INTO bag and carried them off The
night following this, while heavy
storm was IN progress, the young wo-
man again rode to the ranch for the
purpose of destroying it. On her sad
die, besides a brace of revolvers, she
carried a suit of male clothing, securely
rolled in bundle to be used in case of
pursuit. On nearing the ranch she
found the lights all out in the portion
occupied by the Rothman family, and,
riding up to the door of which she had
the key, she quietly dismounted and
entered Once on the inside the girl
ripped open a straw bed, scattered the
contents around, and fired them. Then
going outside, she mounted her horse
and waited until she saw that the flames
were spreading satisfactorily, and pres
emily dashed away. On leaving the
place her hat blew off, and as she could
not find it readily, she continued her
flight without it. Instead of going
home, she continued on to the Berry
ranch, where she arrived at o'clock in
the morning, and where a bed was given
to her
When the detective lover heard this
confession, which Tailed exactly with
his own theory of the case, that he ex-
pressed renewed admiration for the girls
bravery, called her by various terms of