Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-03-10

order. 1t had been settled from the first
that a wholesale slaughter of the thieves
was the only efectual way to get rid of them,
but the trouble was in finding men to per-
form the CORY task. The Presidents order
solved the problem. Almost every cowboy
in the ''nation" was originally from Texas
and belonged to the old school; recruited
from desperadoes and border rufians of the
lowest class.
DESPERADoES AS REGULATORS.
drink. The Presidents order threw the
most of these men out of work by forcing
the immediate sale of the cattle they had
been herding. Here were exactly the men
the Montana cattle growers had been look
ing for. They thought no more of string
ing up a rustler" than they did of shooting
a prairie chicken. A secret messenger of
the Montana men was dispatched to the
Indian Territory, and in less than q week
had made terms with as blood-thirsty gang
OF upholders of property rights as was ever
banded together. Twenty-eight Of the
"stranglers'' were furnished with ten good
horses each and started overland in punches
of four or five. They were instructed to
avoid ali towns and ranches and make all
haste to the. rendezvous, about 30 miles
from Miles City, Montana. 1t was round
about Journey of nearly 1000 miles, but
eyery man of them showed he possessed the
requisite of hard riding by appearing at the
rendezvous within II days.
Within two days it became known that
Half Breed Jack had been hung near the
Tongue river The following day it was
learned that Turkey Williams and Broncho
Charlie were hanging in the cotton woods,
about ten miles above Miles City. The
next day it was Splayfoot Hartnett's turn.
1t was then asserted that Scarface Mosley
and Humpy Sack were lying dead in their
shack near Glendive, shot to death by the
STRANGERS" as they had already. came to
be known. Investigation showed that the
two men were alive and apparently as ready
to steal horses as ever. The next day they
were killed in exactly the manner in which
rumor had already disposed of them.
HORSE THIEVES BANIsKED.
Then for the first time it was noticed that
every man killed was notorious horse
thief From high-handeo law-breakers, the
"rustlers, - who had heard of the operations
of the Strangers, =" became the most abject
of towards. Many sought safety in immedi-
ate flight, never more to be seen in the
cattle country. A few, fool-hardy enough
to braTe the approach of their nemesis, paid
Ile w 6SIeru peudltI 4OH bucu CIlmSs, anu
others In their flight, rushed into the very
arms of the Strangers. After the be-
ginning of the reign OF terror caused by the
death of Scar-Face Mosley and Humpy
Jack, the Strangers" had divided into
seven parties, each under the leadership of
a trusty Montana cowboy, and striking out
in as many different directions, worked with
the energy of fends to gain the 5000 prize
which was ''hung up as added money" to
the most successful party in this terrible
man hunt.
The end was not long in coming In less
than two months. every man known or sus-
pected of being horse thief was either
dead or driven from the country. The
STRANGERS appeared to melt into thin air
as mysteriouslY as they had come into being,
and to this day it is not known, except by
the members themselves, the IL cattle men
and four outsiders, who composed the
famous band of men that absolutely freed
Montana and Western Dakota from horse
thieves by killing 63 of them and running
100 others out of the country.
A. 7. PACKARD.