Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-03-05
Cattle Kate S KIan.
Some Further Information from
Sand Creek Ranch.
WILD LIFE OF A FEMININE TERROR

Few More or Her LawIess Proceedings
ana Their Probab Q =" Roundup "-BeeI
Stealing Likely To Be the Misdoing O,
the Gang-How sn Indian Raid Wound
Up Horse Race Her Handiness with
Gun.
CHICAGO, March, 4.-The Herald has the
Following from Cheyenne, Wy. T., in relation
to the noted Kate Maxwell:
Trouble may be expected over in Carbon
county about "Cattle Kate" Maxwell, who
recently so thoroughly q" cleaned out" gam
bling house at Bessener The woman's place
isa retreat for lawles4 characters like herself
Her men are 'rustleri' and beef thieves, and
She advises and even aids in the raids upon
the herds of her neighbors One of two
things must occur before summer. either
the gang will be broken up by violence, or
hate and her retainers will be legally pro-
eeeded against by the Wyoming Stockgrow-
ers association, the powerful organization of
cattleman
Mrs Maxwell is altogether most remark.
able woman. She is native of "a small Mich
igan town. In 1883 Maxwell met her in
u.
ried and brought her 20 his Sand Greek ranch.
one of the finest on the plains. The woman
took kindly orancl life, but made MANY
startling innovations She built fine gym.
nasium with shooting gallery and bowling
alley and interested the cowboys and her
neighbors in athletics She imported bull.
dogs aud game chickens, bought running
horses, and presided at boxing tournaments,
foot races, and shooting matches: taught
club swinging, turnbling, and fencing,
aud III every way sought to improve
the physical condition of those about her.
Kate precipitated a snort but bloody Indian
war before she had been in Wyoming six
mon hs At u memo rable meeting her black
mare threw dust in the eyes of the Arapaho
pony Flying Spot, ovned by Chief Sharpnose
himself The Indians lost everything but
their brass noserings and, though they usu.
ally accept defeat with good grace, for some
reason cried foul and declared war against
the white squaw. Tie redskins were driven
from the Maxwell range with loss of three
braves, and for revenge murdered half a
dozen white settlers while en route to the
reservation.
Handsome Tom Mason, ex gambler and
top" cowhand, became foreman of the Max
we'll ranch and made love to his employers
wife. Kate reciprocatsd the affection, and it is
believed that her pas sion for the adyenturer
caused Maxwelps dea 5h. as his friends stoutly
aver that he was poisoned and the woman
herself has limited that she put him out of
the way Three years ago the cattle business
had setback Mrs. Maxwell lost nothing,
however. She fooled Il poor market by ship
ping more cattle, while her herds grew in.
stead of diminishing That she or her men
were stealing soon became known but there
was no help for it. The gang was large and
powerful, and included many desperate char
aters. The stealing las been going on ever
since, but 1t can not continue much longer
Kate has been the tssaulting party in two
shooting scrapes and numberless minor en-
counters. Without thinking twice she shot
down u drunken Mexican, who offered her an
insult. No serious consequences followed
this murder. In measure it was considered
justifable and then live Mexican
amounted 10 but little, while dead greaser
was nil The mans lame was Juan Medino
Mrs. Maxwelrs subjects objected to a prece-
dent she established curing the roundup last
fall. Tue cowboys had trouble with bunch
of wild steers. The woman rebuked one of
the riders-Frank Eckles-for some fancied
error. In demonstrating he inadvertently
called her katie" She resented the famil-
iarity by sending u ball from her six-shooter
crashing through his shoulder Eckles was
favorite with his companions and they pro-
tested rgainst his naltreatInent All were
silenced in short or Ter, but Kate carefully
nursed the man back TO health.
Kate played brilliant engagement In
Cheyenne a couple o. years ago She cut a
dash at her hotel and was out horseback rid.
ing every afternoon Once a gambler sig
nailed her from the sidewalk She rode up.
gave him several GUS across the face with
her whip and followed him to the door of a
saloon before desistins. Kate's last escapade,
the raiding of the Bessemer gambling house
and rescue of the cheating gamblers from her
own mob, has brought her into almost ma
tional prominence 1t is certain that the
theft of money from herslf by her own men
neryed her to the deed, which was a most des-
perate and daring one. 1t is wonder that q
bloody fight did no5 ensue when Kate de-
Inanded the return OF the money won from
her men by Farley G. Boden
These men, by the way, reached ciyiliaa-
ton in safety They are in Salt Lake, where
they relate almost incredible tales of the do
ings at the Maxwell ranch. A prolonged
drunken orgy has been in progress at Kate's
home since the recovery of the 50, 900 from
the "skin" gamblers There is always large
stock Of liquor at The ranch, but no one is
permitted to drink to excess except ON rare
occasions The place is Il veritable den, be-
ing enlivened by the presence of half score
of disreputable women. A fatal row is liable
to occur at any mopsnt, and a messenger is
hourly expected to reach Rawlins with the |
intelligence that there has been a killing or
two at the Maxwell ranch One of Kate's |
men was killed Tuesday, when Ben West |
phaui downed Jack Cooper in duel to the |
death over a maverick Both were thieves |
and bad men
Did the Prince Write the Spaech9