Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-02-09
BELLE STARR.
Her Nearest Neighbor Charged With the
Assassination by Her Husband.
Jim Starr Has a Theory Of His Own--The Details
of the Murder as Related by the Husband
of the Deceased.
Special to the Gazette.

Special to the Gazette.
Fort SMITH, ARK. Feb. 8.-Jim
Starr, husband of the late Belle Starr,
arrived here to-day having in custody E.
A Watson, whom he arrested as the as
sassin of his wife, killed on Sunday last I.
Watson was lodged i'll the United States
jail to await examination. Starr gives
the following details of the murder:
"Last Saturday l started from home
to this place and Belle accompanied me
as far as Sans Bots, Choctaw nation,
twenty-nine miles this side of
Younger Bend. Here we remained
over night, and on Sunday morning
Belle started back home, while L came
on to Fort Smith. About ) o clock
Sunday afternoon Belle took dinner at
the house Of Jack Rose, two miles from
her home When she rode up TO the house
several men were sitting around i'll the
yard, among them e. a. Watson, whose
home was about loo yards away. A few
minutes after Belle arrived Watson
left the crowd and went home.
About half an hour after
he left Belle mounted her
horse and started, the road leading
around the field of Watson. AS she
turned the corner at the back of the field
her assassin was inside the fence, where
she must have seen him, as there were
no bushes or trees to conceal his person.
After she had passed by he shot her in
the back with load of buckshot, knock
ing her from her horse. He then jumped
over the fence, and rs she lay pros
trate III the mud he fired
a load of turkey shot into her side, neck
and face and the frightened animal she
was riding dashed off home where he was
caught by Belle daughter, Pearl
Younger, who Immediately mounted him
aad set ont to SEQ what had befallen her
mother and soon arrived at the spot
where she lay in the thrOes of death. She
spoke two or three words to the
girl and expired. [ arrived home,
Tuesday afternoon and learning the above
facts caused the arrest of Watson. We
tracked him from his house TO the spot
where he murdered Belle, saw where he
jumped over the fence and shot her the
second time, and then tracked him by
circuitous route to his house. He is now
wearing the same shoes he had on when
he murdered my wife.
Being asked what motive Watson had
for committing the dastardly act he said
81 don t know further than the fact that
they had a falling out sometime previous
about Watson getting her mail from the
office. and l believe Belle knew more
about him than he cared to be divulged.
He had been Iivingthere fourteen months
and came from Florida. l think he was
a fugitive from Justice, and knowing her
reputation for friendship to outlaws he
had dtvulged TO her his true character,
and having incurred her dislike he muir
dered her. This is my theory of the
cause. -
"Did she have no other enemies in the
vicinity?''
''None that I know of. She has had
no trouble lately and was on good terms
with all her neighbors. I think Watson
murdered her, and win use every effort
to prove it on him -
A visit to Watson at the Jail learned
nothing further than denial of his guilt.
He says he was on friendly terms with
Belle and attended her funeral on
Wednesday, being arrested after it was
over at his own house. Belle was killed
about one hundred and fifty yards from
Watson Is house.