Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1888-03-14
some BORDER TALES



Made Tombstone Famous.
According to writer in the st Louis
Republican, Tombstone, mining center
in Southeastern Arizona, is the grave Of
more romance and adventure. hairs
breadth escapes and deeds of daring than
any other region in America perhaps.
Tombstone Is about sixteen miles from the
Mexican boundary line, and for four or
i've years was the headquarters of all the
leading desperadoes of the West The
four carp brothers, toughs all, Doc Halli-
day. Frank and Jack Stillwell, Ike Clan
ton and his brother Billy, Jack McLowry
and his brother Bob, Jack Ringo, Bill
Dodge and several gentlemen known as
Curly, Slim, Shorty, Texas, Buffalo and
similar cognomens were frequently seen
on the streets together. All had a repu.
tation TO sustain, and some were so eager
TO do themselves Justice that they would
not rely on the ordinary 44-caliber re-
volver, but had the barrels of shotguns
cut of to about foot in length, and thus
abbreviated, that terrible engine of de-
sfruction, when properly loaded. became
part OF their personal adornment. There
were two factions in Southeastern Ari-
Eona In 1879, one being known as the
stage-robbers and the other as the rus
tiers. The Earps and Doc Halliday were
the recognized chiefs of the stage-robber
faction, and Ike Clanton and Jack Ringo
were the acknowledged bosses of the rus
tiers. The factions came into frequent
conflict One day the McLowrys and
Frank Stillwell rode into town and put
up their horses at q corral on Fremont
street. just as they emerged from the
corral the Earps and Halliday confronted
them, and in a minute the two McLowrys,
Billy Clanton and Stillwell were dead.
~ A<.x.rI -. 81.
camped in the Huachua mountains, and
they prepared to march to Tombstone in
force to clean out the Earps. The Earps
recruited and fortified in an adobe
building in the west end of the town.
The rustiers, thirty strong, under COM
mand OF Ike Clanton and Jack Ringo
marched to town and took up headquar-
ters in corral at the extreme end of the
town. Here were the honest people Of
Tombs tone between the hostile camps of
desperadoes, but Tombstone went right
along about its business, and rather en-
joyed the sensation. The saloons and
gambling-houses did a thriving business
twenty-four hours daily. The banks were
open, and in the evenings four churches
were jammed with devotees. The mines
were operated by three thousand hard
workmen and more than one thousand
men and three hundred mules were en-
gagged hauling ore from the mines TO the
reduction mills at Contention, eight miles
distant. The stores were all open, the
CLERKS az klsY. and the only nervous peo-
pie seemingi; in the city were the re-
porters of the two morning papers, and
they were only afraid of SCOOP The
writer of this was the city editor Of q
tombstone paper at the time, and he Wis.
tied both the camps daily, and was made
the medium of communication between
the leaders. The rustlers circulated
through the town, and the carp, or stage.
robber faction, confined themselves to
their camp. Ike Clanton, the rustler
leader, sent several messages to Wyatt
carp, the leader of that faction, daring
him to come out and show his nose. Earn
sent back invitations to Clanton to come
and visit him. This thing continued for
three days, and at last the Earps began
to get tired-in fact, their liquor was ex.
hausted and they were on the verge
OF thirst famine. Warren Earp.
one of the brothers, heeled himself
properly with two revolvers and a shotgun
and walked uptown one evening about
eight O'Clock. He went into a saloon, took
drink at the bar and walked back to the
faro department in the rear. He hadn't
bucked the tiger in five days, and his an.
petite was whetted. He sat down in front
of the dealer, pull led out handful OF
twenty-dollar gold pieces and coppered
the queen. just as he did so a report was
heard and Warren carp fell Off his tool
dead. A bullet had penetrated his brain.
When the report of his death reached his
friends they rallied out in force. Thev
were met by the Clanton party on Allen
street and an exchange of shots took
place. The casualties were meager-only
three killed and two wounded. The Earps
retreated and skipped the town. When
they had left, and there was no hope of
catching them, the sheriff of Cochise
County became energetic. He organized
posses to give pursuit that subsequently
cost the Taxpayers of the county seven
thousand dollars. The Earps being abb
sent, sympathy, of course, was against
them, and they went to Colorado, where
they remained for some time, and then
went to California. The rusters then had
supreme command of the tough element
of Tombstone, and they held it until the
leaders quarreled and gradually killed
each other.