Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-08-19
AFTER THE C00LEYS.
A Fayette County officer Hurrying
to the Hiding Place of
THE NOTORIOUS GANG OF THIEVES.
Jack Ramsey Alleged to Be the Leader Of
the Band.
HARMLESS AND ELUSIVE AS RABBITS

James Bowel, deputy sheriff of Fayette
county, passed through PIttsburg last night
in pursuit of the notorious Cooley gang
Bowel is a courageous young officer. He is
a robust, hearty fellow. He is about 2S
wears of age He was born and raised in
the Fayette county mountains and he went
TO school with the Cooley boys He is
familiar with all their haunts, and he is
confident that the gang is not now in Fay
ette county.
81 have been Industrious and untiring in
nv efforts to overtake the gang, but they
have fooled me Just as they have fooled
others more competent to catch them. The
killing of Jack Cooley while he was at
tempting to rob hen roost was but the
natural end of a sneak. He never was
above a chicken thief He was not the
leader of the gang as was published He
was a follower of cowardlv crowd just as
hard to catch as lot of rabbits, and not a
whit more dangerous if once overtaken.
Ramsey Is the Leader.
"The leader Of the alleged Cooley gang is
Jack Ramsey. His crimes have risen proba-
u
all his work he has been assisted by Jack
and Frank Cooley, but they have only been
his assistants Jack Cooley, who was killed,
was even more cowardly than his brother
Frank.
"But we will land the whole gang
sooner or later" Officer Bowel went on.
''Since the shooting of Jack Cooley we have
searched every possible hiding place in the
Fayette mountains / have been through
most of West Virginia and Ohio and only
yesterday 1 got the first clew OF their
whereabouts. From the information sup
piled me yesterday am convinced the fel-
lows are in hiding in the mountains of
WestmoreIand county, near Jones' Mills,
and will be very much surprised if we do
not land the whole gang before Saturday
morning.
The Sheriff viii Join Him.
"I have been travelling alone for two
weeks, but 1 have telegraphed home for
help. Sheriff Mccormick. and others will
likely join me in the Ligonier Valley to-
morrow, and if we locate our game there
will be no difficulty in landing the gang no
matter how we'll they are prepared for a
fight
Officer Bowel is fighter. In the coke
riots of 1890 Sheriff Mccormick refused to
allow the militia to assist him in suppress
ing the uprising. The troops had been
sent into Westmoreland county, and much
of Sheriff Mccormick trouble was within
sight of the soldiers, but he refused to allow
them to cross the county line. Bowel was
with the Sheriff through all that trouble
and was wounded several times by the law
less Hungarians He is determined to over
take the Cooleys and their gang.
May Be the Gang.
A telegram from Kingwood W. Va, saws:
Prosecuting Attorney Fortney received a
telegram from Rowlesburg at / o'clock to-
day stating that the three men supposed to
be Cooley, Ramsey and Yeager had passed
there on their way toward the Pennsvlva-
mia line. He immediately organized
posse and went to Trowbridge's Ferry. In
short time the three came along and were
apprehended and brought here. Very little
credence was given to the report that they
are the Cooleys"
After supper the Sheriff of Tucker county
and deputy arrived here, and after some
consultation the three were locked up to
await the arrival of Sheriff jackson to-
morrow. Jackson's description to the
Tucker county Sheriff corresponds to that
of the men here, with the exception of
Yeager's Roman nose.
The descriptions are as follows: Ramsey
"A large man about 6 feet tall, dark COM
plexion, short black nustache, scar on chin.
Frank Cooley-About feet 6 inches tall,
light complexion, light mustache, rather good
looking. Another man, Yeager-Rather
heavy Set, Roman nose, light mustache,
sandy comple1ion-all from 30 to 35 wears
of age. The gang had no arms aud made no
resistance. They claim they are miners
from Brownsville, and that they had come
through to Coketon in search of work. One
man gives his name as jenkins. The other
two will not give any name, claiming they
do not want their friends to know they were
taken for the Cooleys