The St. Johns herald., 1889-11-14
White Caps in New Mexico.

uEudV COnlallS Ine IOilOWllS uTtCIe
 relative to doings of "fence cutters"
 in San Miguel county:
 Last night sixty-three horsemen
 armed to the teeth, suddenly made
 their appearance on the streets of
 Las Vegas about midnight, and af-
 ter making various demonstrations, left without doing any damage.
 There is secret organization of
 fence cutters in the country south
 west of Las Vegas, and it is sup
 posed that it is this organization
 that made its appearance here last
 night. A number of murders have
 been committed in that community during the past six months and q
 large amount of fencing cut, and the grand jury has been investigat- ing those lawless acts and trying 10
 bring the perpetrators to justice, and it is likely for this reason that tn White Caps attempted to ter roriAe the community and thus put d stop to the investigations of tine grand jury.
 On the opening of the court this morning Jndge Long called in the jury and addressed them, saying that information had come to him of the appearance before the jail at midnight last night of large body of mounted men armed and mask
 ed and making inquiries for the sheriff. and otherwise acting in a menacing manner. Mir. Bunker, the clerk of the court. Mir. Salazar, prosecuting attorney, the jailor and his assistants were called to make their statements of the demonstra- tions they saw, from which 1t ap- pears that about midnight a body of about sixty-three men on horse back, in long black coats or slick CTS, armed with rifles and pistols. and wearing long, white masks of some light maternal, covering their faces, suddenly appeared and drew up before the court house. The clerk, thi:,king it might be intend ed to take forcible possession of records in his office, turned out the light. After deliberating a few minutes the body moved over to and around the house of Miguel Salazar, prosecuting attorney, an,i remained in consultation awhile. They afterward advanced to the jail and fingered some little time, and then disappeared as suddenly as they came,
 Judge Long proceeded recount ing to the grand jury the circum stances recently occurring, where certain party of San Miguel coun- ty was warned to leave his home and property on pain of death, a similar body had come in the night to his premises to make sure Lc had ubeycd their order That later on William Rawlins of Las Vegas had been similarly terrorizrd, lI;s fences cut, and his herder shrt through the leg, and he driven away from his home to take refuge in Las Vegas. That another man had been attacked at his home in the day time by a similar armed body. He recalled that several persons are now in jail from those neigh borhoods, charged with participant ing in these crimes, and that this demonstration could not be con- strued otherwise than as an intent To menace and Overawe the prose eating attorney and other legal au- IhoriIies.
 He expressed his view that the sheriff should ot once organize a stronge posse, and follow up this band upon their fresh tracks, and SO far aS possible ascertain who they are, and present their names to the grand jury. He declared the circumstance as one of great gravity, demanding from all the