Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1889-06-30

thew refused to be taken alive. The de
mand for their surrender was answered by
volIey from the house, and II
the battle that followed, Randall NC
Clovis wife and two children were killed
snd his home burned before his eyes. Th'
father escaped amid a shower OF bullets
rushed mn the mountain side, and iron
his concealment in the bushes saw Inc
work of the avengers below.
The murder of the Mccoy family tanned
the embers of hate TO a white heat, and the
McCoys had double reason to seek re,
venge. Randall Mccoy left his ruined
home and called on his relatives for help
With Phillips aid posse Of forty or nifty
men was recruited, and preparations were
begun for a sweeping raid into West Yir'
ginia. In the meanwhile the West Ylr'
einia authorities had not been idle.
Reports of the lawlessness on the
Kentucky border had come over the
Guyan ridge, and the sheriff of Logan
county summoned body of deputies to
resist the threatened onslaught from Ken
lucky. The Kentuckisns were first IN
the field, and in herald captured Thomas
Chambers, a well-knOwn citizen of the
West Virginia side, and held him a
prisoner in the Pike county Jail.
WI. DEMPSEY MURDERED.
On the seventeenth Of April, 1888, the
Logan county officers set out from Logan
C. H., and arrived on Grapevine creek.
On the nineteenth they moved down Grape
vine creek, and near Cap Hatfeld's house
encountered Phillips and force of twenty
one men, who Rad just crossed Tug river
Cap Hatield's wife was standing in the door
and two shots were fired at her. In the
fight that ensued the West Yirginians
were defeated and fed, leaving VIM.
Dempsey, one of their number, seriously
wounded on the ground. Dempsey
crawled into shuck pen, and
the victors found him, slowly bleeding to
daath. To one Of the McCoys he said: Il
am wounded and I know you won't kill
me-" The Mccoy turned away, and
Phillips came up with his gun, put the
muzzle to Dempsey's head and blew his
brains out.
On the Mccoy side, Bud, nephew of
Randall, was fatally shot. Phillips gatG-
cred his party together, and without wait.
ing 10 commit further depredations, re-
turned to Kentucky. On the way they
passed French Ellis house and shot at his
wife, who vas a daughter Of Anderson
Hatfield, but both bullets flew wide Of their
mark.
The country was now thoroughly alarm
ed and every member Of either family went
prepared for fight. Men carried their guns
to The fields with them, and women we're
constantly on the watch for an approach
ing foe. The efforts of the West Yirginians
were confined to defending their own Dor
ders and protecting themselves, while the
Kentuckians were the assailants.
In a few days after the raid in which
Dempsey was killed, the Phillips gang re-
turned. They crossed Tug and stopped at
the house of W. G. FerTall. Ferrall and
his son were both at home, and, although
they had taken no part in the feud, Phil
lips compelled them to accompany him.
The destination of the party was the
house of Cap. Jim Vance, and they made
no secret of their intention to kill him on
sight. Vance lived on Thacker creek, one
mile from the mouth, and his double log
cabin was situated on grassy knoll be-
tween TWO little streams, and easily &C.
cessible from all sides. The revengeful
Kentuckians surrounded it and crept up
stealthily, only to find it empty.
JIM VANCE SLAUGHTERED.
From Vance's cabin a mountain path
leads over the divide to Mate creek, and
M this PERCEPTIONS ascent Phillips lead mis-
men, expecting to capture and kill Gap
Hatfield. Both Vance and Hatfield were
over on Mate creek that day, and they
started to return shortly before Phillips
and his party left Yance's house. The
hunted men took the same path, and sat
down en- the brow of the divide to rest
few minutes. Mrs. Vance, who accompa-
MED them, walked on before. A hundred
yards down the mountain she caught the
CLEAN of light on a rife barrel, and grasped
the situation in a second.
Jim, here they come, she cried, as
she flew back to warn her husband and
friend OF their danger. Both men seized
their riff Is and dashed down the mountain
yelling, Charge, " Charge" A turn in
the road brought them face to face with
their enemies, and both opened fire. The
battle was short, sharp and bloody. Hat |
field and Vance were surrounded, but they |
made no effort to escape. At the fist fire, |
Vance's left hip was shattered. and al
though he aimed repeated at the Kentucky |
leader, his bullets went wide OF their mark.
He fell pierced by dozen balls. and Cap
Hatfield, who had sheltered himself be- !
hind a tree, fed up the mountain side,
turning to fire at his pursuers as he ran.
AS Vance lay on the ground be emptied
both revolvers at the Kentuckians, but
his nerveless hand could do little more
than pull the trigger As his last shot
was fired, Frank Phillips walked up to the
diving man. Without a word he put his
rife to his head, pulled the trigger and
scattered Vsnce's brains over the ground.
Mary Vance stood by the side of her muir
dered husband. She had not flinched
during the conflict, although her bonnet
and dress had been shot through and
through, and she did not beg for her hus-
bands life as he lay bleeding on the
ground, but when Frank Phillips turned
to her after his fendish deed her fury
broke forth and her eyes flashed fire as she
swore that she would have his life if she
ever met him where she could be avenged
DIED FOR HIS SWEETHEART.
This was the last outrage of especial
note committed by Kentuckians on West
Virginia soil, but the cup of blood was not
yet full A few weeks later one of the
Mccoy boys ventured across Tug river TO
see his sweetheart. Cap Hatfield and 9TH
ers had knowledge Of his coming and de-
termined to arrest him. A party lay in
wait for Mccoy and he was taken by sur
prise, and Cap and Ellison Mounts started
with him to the Logan county jail.
They came down Mate creek to it's mouth,
and as they passed along the path by the
river bank the captive made desperate ef-
fort to escape. His hands had been IN
loosened, and before Hatfield or Mounts
fully realized his purpose he had sprung
into Tug river and was diving and swim
ming toward the Kentucky shore. A mer-
ciless fusillsde opened up from two Win
- CHIT altar shot ufruotr the