Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1889-01-31
AN OLD HORSE THItF.
lie Has seen Seyenty-eight Years and Has |
Done Some Very Curious Work.

lie Has seen Seyenty-eigbt Years and Has
Done Some Very Curious Work.
The man who claims to be the most
celebrated horse-thief in she world Is now
under arrest in Louisburg, Kas. His
name Is Washington Waterman and ne Is
as years OF age. He Acknowledges the
theft OF 100 horses in Kansas alone, and
the authorities OF the state are willing TO
admit thas he has made on with five
times that msny.
The old man takes his present arrest
with great good nature. He IL near the
end OF his earthly pilgrimage and he do,s
not expect to be Jailed again in this
world The prisons of NJ ssouri, X usas
and Nebraska have each held him on diff
ferent occasions. In his earlier days It
was his custom to lead party of tremps
into a neig hborhood which he had pre-
viously prospeoted, and with a central
rendezvous, all would make circuit of
five or ten miles on a given night ard
round up before daylight at the
appointed place with all the horses, hsr-
ness, shoveis, ourrycomb b., chains, monkey
wreuches, whips, hammers, oil, screw
drivers and brooms that the region af
forded. Barns would be literally stripped
of everything of value.
After the prohibitory law went into ef-
feet ia Kansas, the country being more
thickly settled, Waterman found 10 ad-
visableto change his plan of operation.
He would visit towns IN Missouri and lay
IL large supply of whiskey IN quart bot
ties, and then, Is a secret dir penser Of
this beverage he would attack the Kansas
farmer on his weak side. When he found
one who properly appreciated the luxury
of having liquor brought to his very door,
he would tarry with him and open bottle
or two on his own account. After TIE
farmer had yielded to the effects of the
potaHons and had fallen under the table,
Waterman would help himself at the be:n
and disappear.
The OLD man also enjoys the rare dis
tipction of being the only man in The
world who ever stole horse white he was
an inmate of State prison. When he
was serving the last of his three terms in
the Missouri Peni.entiary, his conduct
was SO good that he was set down as a
"trnsty," and as such was on many occa-
sions permitted TO go outside the walls.
Ga one OF these excursions he was siezed
with an irresistible impulse to make off
with horse, and five miiutes later he
was astride a tine animal which he had
lifted from a convenient barn. Win this
exploit he seemed TO have been con
tent for hs presently dlsmounted, lett
the horse to browse at will by the road
side, aud hurried back to the prison,
Having had a taste of liberty Waterman
longed for more, and two weeks later he
stole team belonging to one of the
keepers and made for the country at
break neck pace. He found no difficulty
in disposing of the horses, and with the
money obtained he fled TO Canada, where
he pat SD several years without attracting
much attention.
Waterman who does not appear TO be
as old as he Is, talks freely of his exploits,
and seems to have no conception OF the
fact that horse stealing is not perfectly
legitimate persult. He told one of his
visitors the other day that he was getting
on in years, and that If any of the boys
wanted points in the business he would
give up at the rate of S. point.