River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1888-10-18
EARLY HORSE THIEVES.
Their Complete Organization aud
Work.
How One BOY Helped 20 Break Up
the Fraternity-ETe successfully Plans
and sets Three Traps to Catch
Horse Thieves.

ana sets Three Traps To Catch
Horse Thieves.
Nowadays when YOU compare man
10 a horse thief you wish to degrade
him. Thirty years ago a first-class
horse thief excited certain amount of
admiration and respect. In those days
Of rapid transit. telegraph, telephone
and police, one can scarcely realize
she success which horse thieves won
before the war. They were the dread
and the scOUrge 81 the farmer and
village They were better organized
than amy other class Of criminals. and
not only stole with nerve. but with
system. In 1886 there was a gang
with headquarters In Ohio. which
number..t lt least tifiy members. and
which had agents in almost every
State il the Union. I have seen legal
documents To prove that horses stolen
In New Hampshire found their way to
Georgia. and that horses stolen in
kentucky wcrs traced 10 points in
Maine. II was no haphazard bust
ness. Spies We're sent ont 10 locate
horses. and then men followed
90 steal them. When "a horse was
taken hc was sent To a certain agent.
2 farmer or livery man. kept a certain
length Of time. disguised. If necessary.
Bnd then forwarded 10 a second agent
-'ill further away In this manner he
MAS pas ed out OF the State and hum
!rcds Of miles beyond, aud not one was
recovered. where tive were successfully
run OF While the crime was made a
very serious one under the law of al
most every Sta =. it was never looked
upon by participants as being any
ching compared 10 burglary. highway
robbery or arson. This accounts for
the fact that men who were honest in
ali else, were caught passing along
stolen horses
The years Of 1878 were the palmy
days Of the horsc-thief. In 1858 a gem
eral movement was made against the
fraternity all over the country. break
ing up and scattering organizations.
and the beginning Of the war finished
the business. Except i'm the far West.
the hOrse-thief acts Independently and
alone. and it is raro that one gets safe
" of with his prize. During the two
years / have named, my father had
farm in Central Indiana. was fifteen
years old. and my health was 80 poor
that | could do no work. Between
1853 and 1857 We lost six horses by
thieves, not one OF which was re-
covered. One day "A sheriff who was
on the trial Of a thief visited our
place and gave me some pointers, and
he was no sooner gone than |
began 10 plan and scheme. We had
az that time seven good horses, and
among them was a span OF grays which
had taken a State fair premium. The
sheriff said we would have 10 stable
them in a bedroom in the house to
Keep them. and the impending peril set
my wits 70 work Father had "A large
mercantile business in the village
three miles away and the farm was in
my charge all day We had good
barns and the best Of locks and we
also had couple Of watch dogs. but
our horses had been stolen Just the
same. Indeed when the last horse
went, the thief cOaXed away the best
dog. The stable door was double
locked. but lie had used skeleton keys.
On the third day after the sherifT-s
visit couple Of strangers drove up in
"a buggy. One of them came in and in
troduccd himself rs the agent Of a
cincinnati lightuing-rOd company. and
asked the privilege of inspecting the
rods which had been put on tn horse
barn tho year before. He said they
We're his cump3uy's rods. but did not
seem 10 bc properly affixed. This was
one day in May and the span of grays
were In the stable The strangers
seemed honest and straight. but the
sheriff had warned me 10 look out for
all corners, and ! therefore had my
pycs open. IIc NOT only looked at
The rods, but he inspected the
stables and examined the doors and
locks. Several things occurred 10
satisfy me that he had come To spy out
the situation. and after the pair had
driven away began preparations for
a visitor Thcrs was what might be
called e vcstiluss To the stables. As
you opened tho door there was a space
Of about 9N13 feet before YOU reached
the first stall 81; piece Of green
hickory six feet long and shaved it
down Is the size ~ an axe handle
One end was pushed into a hole bored
Trrr efssHs -
az piece of cIOthe~iiue ! drew the
other end back until The wood would
stand no more. IN front 81 this bow
or sweep I rugged a cord running
across the ve-tihule Il ran up
partition ana then down 10 the end OF
the sweep. where l rugged catch.
When tho trap was set The cord was
about four feet inside the door and
across the way to the stalls. The cord
ran across knee high, and moderate
pressure against il pulled down the
catch and let the pow spring back,
This how was arranged at height Of
i've feet from the door. and. after n
fcw experiments. was satisfied that
IL would work all right. From the
end az tho bow. a. IL was bent back.
ranastriuC over the hen-house and pig
pen o. my chamber window. two hun
dred feet away. ] there fastened Il - a
bell. and a ring of the bell would mean
that the bow had been sprung The
hired man slept near by. and both Of
u had firearms NJ father. who
drove home each night. was quite taken
with the invention. and was Ia turn
out with Us az the alarm.
Four nights passed without an alarm.
On the nth night it was dark and
sainy.and I felt % sure that some body
would come that ! did not undress.
Neither did the hired man. We sat
reading when. at a qua ster 10 twelve.
the rcli suddenly rang and lifted US
OF our chairs. We seized our guns.
ran dos n and awOse father. lighted
the lantern, and in four or five min
utes Tie three o. Us were AZ the barn