Los Angeles daily herald., 1890-03-01
BOTH MEN DEAD.
They Fall From Fire From
An Ambush.
G. W. WALTON AND D. COOK.
Reported Killed in a Land Dispute
by VIM. C. Charmicle and w. A.
Gardiner in Castac Canon.


News arrived in the city last night at
O'Clock, when the Santa Barbara trair
came in, of terrible affair which tool
place in the Oastac canon yesterday fore
noon at II O'Clock. In the bloody affray
George w. Walton and Dolores Cook
were Killed, Walton falling instantly dead
at the crack of Winchester rifle, aud
Cook dying in three hours from similar
canse.
The Castac cafion lies along the creek
of the same name, which flows from the
mountains southerly and empties into
the Santa Clara river in the Newhall val
ley. 1t is northwest of the town of New
hall, and lies on the west side OF the ridge
of mountains that forms the divide bs.
tween the Newhall valley aud the Santa
Clara valley, that stretches west ward to
the Pacific ocean. w. w. Jenkins lives
on the section of land just adjoining the
place where the killing took place yester-
day.
The affair is the outgrowth of land
quarrel, and this is the way the story is
told to the HERALD by person who
came in on the Santa Barbara train
VIM. G. Charmicle claims, or rather
his wife claims, section of land in the
caflon, under contract with the rail
road company. 1t is said to be of the
Atlantic and Pacific lapsed land grant
which the Southern Pacific lays claim
to. The road gives contract to any one
who wishes so to buy, this contrac
binding the company to deed the prop
erty to the buyer, provided they ever get
title themselves. 1t is q provisional
thing. Mrs. Charmicle is possessed of
the land under such contract, and un-
der this the land is fenced. Walton and
Cook considered that the railroad had
no right to hold the land in this way,
and that therefore the Charmicle claim
was not good. They held it to be
Government land, and as such they un-
dertook to pre-empt it. They offered to
file on the land in the United States Land
office here, but the officials refused to
take filings. In spite of this Walton and
Cook undertook TO settle on the land.
With this in view they proceeded to
take possession of the land and build a
houee on it. With this purpose in mind
they loaded wagon with lumber and
drove toward the section where they
wanted to build the house. In getting
to the land they passed near the door oi
w. w. Jenkins, and Just beyond it they
cams to the Charmicie fence. They pu,
the lumber over the fence and wen,
around by gate further up the fence, for
some reason or other. As they were
handling the lum Der at this point, ii
is reported that Charmicle and
w. A. Gardiner came up and
fight ensued, over the right of Cook
and Walton to invade the premises
claimed by the other men. The fight
was terminated, and Charmicle and
Gardiner retired to shanty on the land
in dispute. Walton and Cook proceeded
to haul their lumber to spot beyond
this shanty, and perhaps half a mile
from the fence over which they had put
this. They had hauled one load to the
spot, returned to where the rest of the
lumber was and were proceeding again
to the place where the house was to be
built. There was the load of lumber in
front, on which sat Walton and Mexi
can named Jose Alme, who was to help
them in the building Of the house. Be
hind this drove Cook in buggy. With
the two men in the hut was third
named Riley, and also Mexican. AS
the load of lumber was passing along
just beyond the hut the crack OF riff )
rang out, and Walton fell from the
wagon knocking the driver Alme
off the load. Alme ran back, his
own horses having run on, and sheltered
himself behind the horse that Cook was
driving. Meantime second crack of a
rife was followed by the fall of Cook.
Several shots are said to have been fred
in an attempt to hit Alme, and one OF
these took effact in the shoulder of the
horse behind which he had taken refuge.
AS soon as the killing had been done
Charmicle and Gardiner are reported to
bave left the hut, and gone back short
distance to where they had horses, on
which they took to the mountains. The
Newhall constable went ont after them
but, at the time the Santa Barbara train
passed Newhall,. they had not been
brought in. During the later part of the
evening the constable telegraphed to the
Chief of Police of this city an inquiry as
10 whether Gardiner had given himself
up for murder. He had not done 30 up
to the hour of going to press. 1t seems
from this as if Gardiner may not have
been concerned in the shooting. 1t is
difficult to see why he should have been
as he seems to have no personal interest
in the quarrel. Yet he is reported tc
have been armed as we'll as Charmicle
at the time the quarrel began at the
fence.
The affair drew together all the neigh
bors, who are few and far between there.
Several picked Cook up and took him to
place to rest, where he expired. He
was undressed, and rifle ball was found
to have pierced his left arm near the
shoulder. 1t probably ranged inwards
and downwards and entered the thoracic
cavity, as he had not yet come abreast ol
the window when the shot was fred, and
the ball would take effect in frontof him
Walton's body was removed to spot
where it would be safe from the attack o
animals. but was not undressed nor ex
amined, 80 that it is not yet known
where he was shot.
At the hour of going to press neither
man had been heard from.
The whaling Case.
This afternoon the case in which
Michael Whaling, member of the Boart
of Education from the Eighth ward, il
charged with having disturbed the peac.
~ - ztxook eohorI xr,.n o1x~.. :.