The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1889-10-15
A MOUNTAIN VENDETTA.

story of the DEADLY fued HelN een the
mcl.0y's notl the Hattirlds.
Catletsburg ,ky.,. special Ia the san Francisco
Examiner.
Aside from the killing Of Harmon Me-
Coy i'm 1ssSs by Ansc. or. as he is better
known. .sDcvil' Hatfield, the breaking out
Of the great fucd in 1ss2 can bc directly
traced tn n love affair between johnson
Hatfield aud Rosanna Mccoy. Since that
time the boundary line between West Vir-
Rinia and Kentucky on the jug river
has acquired "a fearful notoricty as
the home of desperate and shameless
crime. "Murlcrland'' is now the ordinary
and appropriate designation of these hor-
mountains. where the social
condition OF an evil state Of human nature
Ia at once the cause and the result of the
crimes which have rendered them az
cursed.
The killing OF poor Julia Ann Mccoy
and her young husband, John Hand. and
day. il is true, is but the logical sequel Of
the series of murders which have deci-
mated the Mccoy and Hatfield families.
and ID is tl.e McCoys who have mostly died
with their boots ON.
iResannah Mccoy. who was q daughter
lived with her father i'm Pike county, Ken
lucky. John Hatleld's domain was
.cro.. the state line in WEES, Virginia; He
call these little affairs marriages i'm West
Virginia, bsit they resemble NOR. the raJN,
CO ounsay Jo"se ...ook 81 up" with Rasan sms
who in 1ss2 was "a rosy.faced maid Of
eightssn., with regular features aud a
an election gathering in Pike county,
whittier she had ridden. pillion-fashion,
behind one Of her broticrs.
fatuated with Miss Mccoy and, in famed
with liquor, proposed that she should
elopc with him. She objected, he cap
tured her by force and terrified her into
compliance. Toward the close OF the
night he was seen by the McCoys crossing
u river. with R~osanna seated 6ehiud him
ran away with the bride of Mct'oys lac
was alrs,ady married. but the Hatficlds
of the Peace Valentine Hatfield, when
captured in 1Sss, confessed tn Attorney
James Lee Ferguson of Pike county KEN
lucky. that he had a. many as five living
wives and thirty-thrsc living children.
The Hatficlds have peculiar ideas of
polygamy. They do not marry their wives
aud apportion their time tvs them
just like any Mormon elder ar the Grand
. aarS; i R"-a ~ Sa~' h %na. %is iis' hi %n"' pre- RE
sentsd her to his first wifi, and forced her
to recognize this new leader as the head
Rosanna remained in bondage until the
end of the year. when. frightened 10y the
threats Of lsr family. she returned To her
not fors.Ro the romantic luxury of visits to
the Mccoy homestead. In one of these
trips he was captured and led out, AS .lto-
taken at I o'clock in the morning.
After this ''arrs.st" she Crawled out of her
bed. unfastencd a horse from her fathers
stable and started OFT in the blackest Of
black nights tai warn the Hatficlds. Old
"Ausc' immediately turned out his crowd.
came up in time to beat OH a party OF
nine who were Taking Jonsc to jail. The
Hatficldsc covered the Mc(oys with their
Winchc-tcrs and Jon~c was given up.
Ansc was in favor of killing the MrCoy
then and there. but was dissuaded 10y
peacemakcr Elias Hatfield.
Ellison Hatfield, Ellison, like Elias. was
arrested for being a p~caccmaker. He WAS
a strong. square. rssoluic man, always
anxious Ia avoid "a quarrel IL he could. He
came to- his death bs,causs. OF his inter
ference in N petty row bctwccn the MEM
beers of his family and one of the Mct'oys.
The ostcnsible cause of the row was "a
quarrel over "A ring. Three, of the Nfctoys
closed upon Deacon Ellison and stabilized
least twcnty-four different places. One of
these WAS a mere hoy of sixteen and he
did most of the cutting i'm the back. The
Hatticlds. led 10y Bad Ansc. of course inn
mesiiateiy rctaliatesl. They "arrestcd'-
the tcrIn not to bc understood in any legal
sense,thrs Mctoys, tied them tn bushes
and Randolph Mccoy Jr. thus met their
fate. jeff Mccoy next paid the penalty.
and after killing q man named
he paid Captain Hatfield a. visit and shot
one OF his hired men ia the hip. IL was ~
mere flesh wound. and no mountaincr lays
up with anything short of u death wound !;
therefore. the hired man did not desire
Jef's death. Wallace and Captain Hat
field decided To "arrs.st'' him. however.
and take him to Jail but when Jcfr came
10 the river lac attempted To escape, and
Was shot at more than twenty times while
crossing the stream. and finally killed by
Captain Hatfield just ss he was escaping
or the farther bank.
Their. now began ~ series of raids bG-
tween the states Of kenucky and West
Oirginia, in which the McS;oys were very
active. The respective governors of the
two 1T ates took "a hand i'm the vendetts,
and only made matters worse. The Hat
fields. exasps.ratcd by the state OF war
which reiRned about their mountain lairs,
did not wait to he captured OF killed. bat
took time by the forelock. planning and
executing one of the most ghastly Bnur
ders i'm history. One new Years nigh
they surrounded tho house of Randolph
Mccoy. where his beautiful daughter hac
been stolen by John Hatfield, and whs
had repaid his violence by extraordinar
love and DEVOTION, and fired into the de.
fenseless family.
A sharp volley was returned. and TIM
Hatfelds, seeing that they were likely get
AS good as they could give, set fire to ths
building and succeeded i'm driving the i'm
mates out. One OF them was Miss Ally
share Mccoy. a young girl Of sixteen: A
ehe stood pleading for mercy Elisor
. IN EEAlnfai Snu of the Inlirtlery.<