The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-01-30
HORSE THIEVES MUST GO
Montana Growers Determined to Rid
the Range Country Of tho
Rustlers.
An Organization Being Perfected
Which viii Take IN Every
District

Portion OF the Gang Located with > Thou
sand stolen Animals In Their Pos
~session-Hoavy Losses.
During the year 1891 the stookmen OF
Montana, Idaho and eastern Washington
lost a great many thousand dollars through
the operations OF we'll organized gangs OF
horse thieves in the ststss mentioned.
prominent horse grower living in tine east
arm section of Montana. talking on the
subject yesterday, said the evil had grown
to such an extent. and the thieves had
become SO bold that it had come down to
the question. "Shall the horse growers and
stockmen have their business wiped out. or
shall they wips the thieves out!" Inc
ockm have dstsrrainsd to accomplish
the latter, and are now organizing to carry
il through. It will he remembered
that four or five years ago this cattle grow
AZ. Of Northern Montana suffered heavy
losses from the depredstions of cattle
thieves. Finally they organized and IN one
sum nsr hunted tho cattle thieves to death.
hanging or shooting a score or more OF
them. Since that time there have been but
few cattle stolen from tho ranges.
But it 10 much more difficult to run down
the horse thieves. Horses can be driven
faster than cattle, can be c~orraled to bet
ter advantage, and unless there is a we'll
organized system, extending over alsrgs
area, it is almost impossible to 1un the
thieves down. During 1891 the r~ustlers
became so bold and 40 desperate that it
was worth a mans life to run across them
with 4 band of horses in their possession
and mako any inquiries. In the same way
thew have tsrrorized settlers along their
drives, SO that honest and law abiding citi-
sens. ghe know what is being done, fear to
tell the authorities, lest the thieves burn
them out of houss and nome or shoot them
down like dogs. II is believed that there
are not less than 100 men engaged in the
Wholesale stealing of horses in Montana
and adjacent STATES. Their method OF 90
ing business is something like the follow
ing: A portion Of the gang will run a
bunch of horses out of Washington down
into western Montana. There they will Do
taken in hand by another portion Of the
gam and run through northern Montana
down to the Wyoming border. The
members of She pang who do ths ship
ping receive them there, and they are sent
down into Iowa or Illinois on the cars and
sold. Sometimes, when there ls a dsmAnd
for horses In Dakota. they are sent there
and used. This was illustrated in the ease
OF Lafayette Wright, residing near spraRus.
Wash. In Oetober, 1880, thieves drove off
fftesn head Of fine horses belonging to
him. Last fall l neighbor OF Wright's
vent down into North Dakota with a band
Of horses. While there this n%eighbor got
on ths track Of the horses Mr.. Wright had
lost. The latter, with : sheriff. went to
North Dakota, and At Valley City he found
his horses. After some trouble Wright re-
ceivod something over $1,000, but he never
was able to fnd who the thisyes were.
hut the ~rustlers do not always sell IN
North Dakota. II they think there il . sur
plus OF horses in any section of that state
they Immediately set about TO reduce it.
the depredations Of horse thieves. Edward
Deakin, of Pierre. s. D., a %ranehman, in
talking of the evil in his state, says: "You
western horse thief il no petty criminal.
He does business OF q wholesale basis and
deals only in large lots. Within the last
few weeks not less than 500 horses have
been stolen from ranches in the vicinity OF
Pierre. The thievsry is not difficult, be-
cause the horses are loose and grazing over
the range The thieves, who work in com
panies of four to si1, ride on to tbs range
just about daylight, and getting as many
of the horses as possible into q drove. drive
them on a dead run till they reach a safe
distance from the locality whsre the horses
are owned. Then this tired animale
are tethersd in 'strinRs'-that is, a num-
ber Of them are tied together-and ths
march to the thieves quarters is resumed.
The gang that is working around Pierre
now has a rendezvous IN the mountains
Here they keep the stolen horses for A while
when they take them to some town and sell
them, pretending TO be ranchers. One gang
that was rounded up q couple OF years ago
used 4 big cave in the side of q mountain as
a barn, and in this they could hide l.O0t
horses. The entrance was barely large
enough TO adrnlt a single morse, and was
concealed by a heayy growth OF underbrush.
Another gang dug , cave in a bluff over
looking a stream. They used to lead the
stolen horses a mile or 80 In the water Oi
the shallow river. and by that means throw
pursuing parties off the track of tho herd
the trail ending abruptly at the water!
edge. The present gang is strongly In
trenched in the mountains, and will figh'
desperately when attacked"
A wear or SO ago D. A. G. FloWerree, o
this city, lost 400 head of horses at one
time, and not a trace of them has he evsl
had. The past summer the complaints
have come from all ovsr Montana. esps-
cially from growers IN the eastern part o
the state and in Custer county. Advice
from that section say that ON Kent, (;
w%ell-known grower. lost 400 head last sea
son. Other growers also los. largely.
But the end il rapidly drawing nigh. De
~teetives have boen with tho gang, and the'
are now located, together with LOCO heat
of stolen stock. A posse OF thirty stock.
men struck their trail the other day, ant
news of an engagement may be expected a
any time. but this is only the %beginnin.
of the war of determination which will b
waged az relentlesslv against the hors
~rustleFs as it WAS against the cattle thieves
To carry it gut, each roundup district vii
have a separate organization, but all work
ing i'll harmony. A fund of 100000 i
being raised. aad with this the growers be
lieve they will be able to put a stop.t
horse stealing in the state. Agents will b
kept at all the shipping points in Montana
Idaho and Wyoming, and every possibl
outlet guarded. Uniess the ~rustlers 500
dispose of the horses they have corralled i
Wyoming. near the Montana line. an,
scatter, a big force will be upon them, an
tho result will DO a pitched battle, for whic
the steckmen will be prepared.
The celebrated jackson correct waist in blac
and colors for sale only by Butcher Il Bradley.
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