Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-09-11
THE SWAMP ANGELS.
Oesperadoes Who Ruled Southern Arlkans
 sas for Many Years.


 sas for Many Years.
 Only a few years back, before the rail- roads penetrated the swamps of Southern Arkansas to disturb them, says letter to the St. Louis Globe-D Democrat, desperadoes from all points sought refuge in tho depths of these, the most gloomy and inaccessible swanps of this country, and it was only few years ago that the most notorious of this band of exile criminals first came here, and whose deeds of desperate daring were chronicled the world over in the papers of the land. This was Tom Mitchell, who started life as farmer boy, and who, by one bad deed to another, soon found him. self ostracised from the haunts of man. His first trouble was when mere boy of seventeen, when, in a drunken brawl, he attempted to kill a companion. He was ar rested and tried, but, through some legal technlcality, escaped the punishment of the law.
 At thatHtime, as it is now, the law of the State was to coniscate all small arms found on prisoners. This was done in MitcheI'S case, pistol which he prized highly being taken from him by the sheriff. This seemed to arouse all the latent fierceness in the young man, and he determined to recover his revolver at the cost of his life if neces- sary. Going to his home he armed himself heavily and returned to the jail. He called the sheriff out.
 "Sheriff, I've come for my gun, and I'll just give you five minutes to get it hyer."
 The officer, seeing that trouble would en- sue if he did not comply, returned the weapon. Matters, however, did not rest here. The friends and relatives of the man whom Mitchell had attempted to kill felt bitter toward him, and used every means to draw him into quarrels, which Mitchell was not slow to accept, and the consequence was that at last he was waylaid by three of his enemies about dusk at a lonely part of a country road Mitchell, all unconscious of his danger, rode into the ambuscsde laid for him. A shot whistled past him. With bound he reached a large cypress tree Another crack of a rife and his left arm fell powerless to his side. Mitchell caught a glimpse of one of the attacking party, at whom he fired three shots rapidly The last shot killed his man.
 Another of the men exposed himself and two shots laid him low. Then seeing the other man, 9 stranger to him, he called out |: "Say, pardner, if you will quit will'
 "rll be hanged if I do," was the reply. With that he fired at Mitchell, who, stepping from his place of concealment, raised his rife and shot his antagonist through the heart. Now it was the boy of seventeen became desperate man. Know luS IndI ue COu1u no longer i've at nome, A6 determined to retreat into the swamps Posse after posse was dispatched after him, but they found it impossible to capture him.
 Mitchell was shortly joined by two men who had been equally unsuccessful in re- strain4ng their ungovernable tempers. These were Campbell and Cummins. They banded themselves together, and, retreat ing into the depths of the swamps surround ing the St. Francis river, swore that no man should ever live between the St. Francis and the Mississippi rivers, and for a num- Der of years they kept their oath, styling | themselves the swamp angels.''
 About one hundred yards from the depot at this place is their old fording place, and upon large white gum tree a cross was cut by an axe to designate the crossing 2. 1 The most hardy woodmen still refuse to pen citrate into the depths of these forests of | cypress, and the dark swampy ground is seldom trod by human feet It is still the home of the bear and the panther, the wild turkey and deer.
 Some years have passed since the "swamp angels" were monarchs of the gloomy waste. Mitchell was at last captured, and died in prison. Campbell, who was consid- cred the most gentIemanly of the trio. is | farming not many miles from the marked tree, and CumminS is laborer Both o1 the survivors are now leading a peaceable l life, but rarely come to the settlements, and few who meet them would think they were once the famous swamp angels" who were the terror of the settlers of Southern Ar | kansas.