Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1889-12-01

One evening an Eversole fred on French
man, who was standing near the court house.
Both men were soon joined by Others of their
faction and lively fight ensued, in which two
Eversoles were killed Then came lull, af-
ter which B. F. French entered the town
with re-euforcements. The next morning at
daybreak the fight was renewed from behind
breastworks After about an hour the Ever
sole party retreated, leaving their dead on
the field. There were two Eversoles killed
and several wounded. One French man was
wounded AS the Eversole party occupied
the court house the court vanished when the
firing commenced.
The Hatfieid-McCoy vendetta, in West Vir-
ginia, and the French-Eversole vendetta in
Kentucky, have RACED for years. Both par
ties have defied the state authority. Gov
ernors have attempted TO bring the civil
power to bear upon these factions without
avail But about year ago trial Of per-
slasive force was made, in which hsop's
fable Of the contest between the wind ami
the sun found a pointed illustration. That
fable, it will be remembered, says that the
wind and the sun made trial to see which
could first make a man take of his cloak.
The wind first blew a terrific blast. The
man only wrapped his cloak the closer about
him. Then the sun came out from behind q
cloud and diffused pleasant warmth, where
upon the man took OFF his coat and carried it
ON his arm What the strongnrm OF the
law could not accomplish by force, two I'M
armed evangelists succeeded in doing by
pointing out the sin.
The feud, it is said, began Though ac-
counts of its origin are conflicting) several
years ago, upon the story of a young man
named May, who was employed by an Ever
sole. The story is that May suspected his
employer of intimacy with Mrs May. The
husband did not take the law into his own
hands and shoot the man who had injured
his domestic happiness, but he told a man
named French about it. French kept a lit
tie store In the same town as Eversole, and
he and some of his neighbors used TO sit
around the stove and talk over Mays injury,
Soon after, the Trenches and Eversoles became
arrayed against each other and frequent
ARRAYS took place French hired small
army, which he paid and fed and armed.
There were forty or fifty men in his rank:
armed with Springfield rifles and revoivers
Most Of the people of the town, however
sympathi1ed with Eversole, and he soon had
as large an army as the opposing general.
Their stores, which were the headquarters Of
each, were at either end of the town, and
pickets were thrown forward on the roads in
tervening These pickets would amuse them
selves firing at each other. but no one wal
hurt till farmer, an Eversole, after drink
ing heavily, declared be would kill any
French man who interfered with him, ant
then rode out through a ravine TO receive
French bullet.
This set the country in a turmoil. The
courts took the matter up, but were not pow
erful enough TO make an arrest Murders oc
CURED continually after this. The humble,
of killed steadily increased until thirteen meT
were slain. though with so much firing why N
were not killed does not appear. French, th'
leader of bis faction is a little man witt
shrinking manners and STOPPING shoulders
His chief Of staff was one Shade Coomhs
called Rebel Shade to distinguish him from
four other Combs Yankee" Shade
Black" Shade. Young" Shade "a boy, anC
"Blinky" Shade. who has been killed IN tn
war Of the factions All the families a
Hazard but one sympathize with the Ever
soles But the town is very sInSil and th
people very ignorant Hazard has about 50
inhabitants brick court house and a iog
Jail, though what use either Is nobody cal
tell There is neither n church nor u school
house
After an ARRAY during the latter part o
,.st year. or nesr tire Isl ai j. 'rry. 1852