The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1892-04-14
RANChMEN SLAIN.

Western Cattlemen Engage In . Bloody
Battle with Stock Thieves Eight of tho
Former Reported Killed.
HELENA, Mont, April "a dispatch
from Dillon, in the southern part Of the
state on the road to jackson, in wy
oming, announces that q battle &C.
CURED two days ago between band of
thieves and cattlemen on the Montana
side Of the Wind river country. The
news was brought in by a ranchman
who talked with one of the partici-
pants.
Ranchmen from southern Montana,
northern Wyoming and northern Idaho,
exasperated by the depredations of an
organized band of thieves of the Teton
section, assembled by agreement at a
point somewhere west of Blackfoot and
began the search for the robbers and
found large body intrenched in win.
ter quarters.
F They attacked them and were re-
pulsed, losing eight killed and many
wounded. The robbers also lost heavily.
1t is known that the ranchmen had been
contemplating this action, and that fact
gave color to the rumor. The place
where the fight is said to have occurred
is isolated and news of the fight would
not reach the outside world for several
days. This encounter is supposed to
have occurred on Green river, where
the outlaws have winter quarters.
News comes from Billings, Mont,
that the body of a man, as yet unidenti.
fed, was found Wednesday evening in
a secluded place about 10 miles from
there. He had been shot in the head
and had been dead, it is conjectured.
about ten days. Two dead horses, also
shot, with brides on, were lying near
by. There have been two other mys.
terious disappearance of Wyoming
rustlers who were en- route to Canada
within the last two weeks.
This band horse of and cattle thieves
is incorporated under the laws of Wyo-
ming under a high sounding name.
Plans for war of determination have
been under formation since last fall.
Besides party of twenty-five that
started out from Billings it is
learned. that a party left Big Tim
Der March 10, under the lead of Sim
Roberts. The party composed thirteen
men, all of them frontier and mountain
men. They loaded two cars with
horses, pack mules, guns, ammunition
and food. Their departure was kept a
secret as far as possible, the news
papers being asked to withhold all in
formation for the present. One hun
bred thousand dollars worth of beef
was raised for this expedition and the
men are paid 1000 each. The leaders
get $4,000.
Bloody war is expected. The out
laws are determined not to yield to ar
rest. There is still great deal of snow
in the mountains and it may be slow
work for the cattlemen to reach their
headquarters, but they have the salts
faction of knowing that the thieves
will have no chance of getting away
! from their mountain Businesses and
! snowbound basin. Every road from
the basin is guarded.
1t was in 1884 that the last expedition
of this kind was formed. The men
| started out in June and cleaned out the
last thief in December. They hanged
sixty men and followed some of them
into Canada. The biggest killing took
place on Big Bend of the Missouri,
where the cattlemen had battle The
Marquis de Mores figured in that raid.
He contributed S., 900 and afterward left
| the country on a vacation.