Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-12-30
A JAIL DELIVERY.
Prisoners Condemned to Death at
Ozark, No., are Liberated.
Among Them are Couple of the Fa-
nous Bald KnObbers and
Five Train Robbers.
History of the Bald Knobbers' Organization.
The Cause OF Its OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
ling 0aths-Terrible Penalties.


Wiley Mathews, two of the condemned
Bald Knobbers; W. p. Habensaben,
Frank johnson, William Bedford,
Thomas Rooney and William Sassin, five
train robbers, escaped from the jail here
last night. Some, at present unknown
person or persons from the outside cut
through the brick wall of the prison, I'M
locked the corridor and cells and released
the prisoners. Dave Walker, leader of
the Bald Knobbers, and his son William,
also under sentence to hang, and young
man named Runcer, refused to leave
and were found in their cells. When the
discovery was made there was great ex-
citment among the people.
The four Bald Knobbers who were SEN
fenced to hang for the murder of Charles
Green and William Ebens on March IL,
1887, were David Walker, better known
in Christian county as "Bun Creek
Dave,'' chief of the Christian county
Bald Knobbers; William Walker, his
son; John Matthews and Wiley Matthews,
his nephews. None of the condemned
have reached their fftieth year, and
William Walker is not yet nineteen years
of age. The condemned were to have
been executed on May IS, 1885, but on
an appeal to the supreme court escaped
the gallows temporarily. Last October
the supreme court affirmed the decision
of the Christian county circuit court and
fixed December 2S as the day of eXecu-
ton The sensational trial turned atten-
ton to the Bald Knobbers from all quar-
tiers, and the
HISTORY OF THE ORGANIZATION
was made public. fancy county, Mo-,
is noted as the birthplace of Bald Knob
bism. The early days of lawlessness
caused the formation of leagues tor the
protection of life and property in this
wild country. The regulators first came
into prominence when the notorious
Frank and Jubal Taylor entered the
home of Mr. Dickinson, in Forsythe,
Mo. and murdered the inmates. They
were captured by the new law and order
league and lynched. Captain Nat Kin
ney, who was killed by follower atN1
Ozark not long since, stood at the head
of the organization ut that time
Christian county, which adjoined fancy
first adopted knobbism in 1856. Dave
Walker was the first leader, and the
membership soon reached between
800 and 400. Each new
conner to the county,, wac
invited to join the order and the majority
did so. There was a fearful ordeal fo1k
the candidate who, expecting to be in
Quoted into some fraternal society com.
posed of neighbors, found himself in the
dark recess of some lonely wood or ravine
surrounded by hundreds of masked men
who imposed upon him
BLooD-cURDLING OBLIGATION,
the infraction of which was punishable
by death. Once in he could never get out
and remain in that section of the country.
The first work of the Bald Knobbers to
attract attention was the Chadwick raid.
Chadwick is a small town situated at the
terminus of the st. Louis and San Fran
cisco extension from Springfield south
east. A saloon was started there and
utter generalization ensued. After due
warning from the Bald Knobbers, which
was disregarded, one bright night in the
summer of 1856 the famous regulators
entered Chadwick and emptied the
liquors belonging to the saloon into the
streets. Later on this was repeated and
the traffic was broken up. There wereA
numerous visits by the band to PEI
offenders, but nothing occurred to atty
widespread attention until
THE GREEN-EBENs AFFAIR
which terminated in the downfall OF
Bald Knobism. The Green-Ebens killing
occurred in March, 1887, at point eight
miles southeast of Ozark near the Ebens
dwelling. John Evans was whipped by
the Bald Knobbers for misbehaving in
church. Old man Ebens, a friend of
Evans, interfered and received four
blows with the whip before Chief Walker
could interfere. This so enraged Ebens
that he fearlessly condemned the Bald
Knobbers, and on the night of March 10,
1887, the band met to consider Ebens'
offense There were twenty-six present,
and after brief deliberation they pro-
,ceeded to the Ebens residence to punish
the inmates. They were met with re-
sistance and fred several volleys into the
house, killing william Ebens and
Charles Green, his brother-in-law, and
seriously wounding old man
Ebens. In the melee young
Walker was shot in tho leg.
The outrage brought about a elimination
of public indignation, and lack Johnson Z
the fearless sheriff of Christian county,
with picked posse, started
AFTER THE MURDERERs
and within forty eight hours had all save
Bill Walker under arrest. He was cap
tured three weeks later in Douglas
county, where he had gone for safety.
At the time there was no jail in Ozark
and the prisoners were taken to Spring.
field, Mo-, for safe keeping. a jail was
promptly built, however, and the Bald
Kno5bers were transferred to Ozark from
which place two of their number escaped
last night.
The first hearing of the Bald Knobber
cases was in August, 1887 but Chief Wall
ker was not tried until April, 1885, In
March, 1887, three of the prisoners con-
fessed, so the trial of Dave Walker was
merely formal, he admitting the assault
of the Bald Knobbers in the Ebens
home, but pleading he did
not arrive until after the shooting
had ceased. One of the most prominent
features of that organization is that tina
majority of this prominent members of
the band are deyout church members.
Especially is this true OF Chief Walker,
who was an exhorter, temperance adj,