The morning call., 1893-04-20
EVANS AND SONTAG
Another Fight With the
Bandits.
THEY GET AWAY UNSCATHED.
The Desperadoes Return to Evans
House at VisaIia and Are Dis
covered by the Sheriff.
Special to TUE MoRSINa CALL


| VIsALIA. April 19-Evans and Sontag.
! train-robbers, muTderers and all-around
desperadoes, came down from their noun
tain lair to-day ana passed several hours
within the town limits of Visalia.
| Notwithstanding the fact that there
| is price upon his head. Chris,
with his amiablc friend, John. paid visit
I to his family and communed with his wife
and offspring under his own vine and fg-
| tree. Later he met Sheriff Kay and his
| deputies. had spirited engagement with
that gentleman, but finally rode eff un-
scathed to his mountain fastness still with
| friend John.
Late this evening neighbOr of the Evans
| brought word 10 the Sheriff that q short
time alter dark buggy had been seen to
| drive into the stable-yard of the place 1t
WAS occupied by two men. whose features.
owing to the growing gloom, 1t was impOs-
! sibe TO distinguish
They hitched their horse in the stable and
| proceeded TO the house, where their ad-
vent was marked by the fitting Of lights
| from window to window, the opening and
shutting of doors and other signs Of COM
motion.
! While the Sherif's informan. was unable
| TO say that the visitors to the Evans domi-
| cile were the master thereof and his partner
| in crime, still all the evidence pointed
to that conclusion. and the Sheriff
! decided to run his suspicion to
| earth. Selecting eight men in whose
coolness aud obedience he thought lie could
rely, Kay proceeded to the Evans home
| stead in the suburbs. He first ascer-
tained that as his informant had
told him, a rig had lately been
stabbed in the shed, and that as a
matter Of fact 1t was still there. A light
was burning in the house, and now and
again the form OF man OF woman would
| be outlined against the white muslin cur
| tans Of the windows as the occupants
| of the room passed to and fro.
\ One of these figures, from the
size and contour Of the form, Kay decided
was that of the head of the house of Evans.
and assured now that he had the brace OF
| bandits caught as tightly as a mouse in
/ trap he proceeded to take measures for
| their capture.
| Suddenly the light In the room in the rear
| of the house where the figures had been
| seen was extinguished. and shortly after
there was movement In the stable. Evil
| IDENTIFY the robbers had slipped out of the
! house and were making their preparations
| to return 10 the mountains before daybreak
| should reveal their presence.
| Kay. though certain Of his quarry, TO
make assurance douby sure. erawled on his
breast to a slit between tile pine boards of
I the Stable and through the opening saw the
two men who during the last year have
been more in the public mind than the
| Governor of the State.
| To call upon them to surrender would
mean to invite death and the Sheriff. after
hastily turning over the situation In his
mind, determined to bag his game by con-
] centrating the fire OF his eight men upon
! the pair as they issued forlhfrom the barn.
Working his way back 10 where he had
| left his deputies the Sheriff explained to
them his plans, and then assigned to each
man his post, instructing them that he
would give the signal for the fusilade by
opening fire himself.
Then ensued the wait for the doomed
men, for to each of the guards who lay
covering the stable door, which could but
be family seen, it seemed as though the rob-
bers had got to the end of their tether.
The men as stationed by the Sheriff had
under cover every square foot of the stable
yard, which has been the scene of so many
desperate encounters between the bandits
and The authorities, and in one OF which the
dying form of deputy was picked up after
the smoke Of battle had cleared away.
The watchers had not long to wait. The
night was dark, though eiear and it was
impossible TO distinguish objects at little
distance But presently the door of the
stable creaked on its hinges, the wheels of
wagon crunched the dry earth and the
motion of a horse was heard.
Then mans voice clucked to the horse
to move on, and the sibllant sounds of whis.
pering voices came across the yard to where
the Sheriff was stationed.
Kay thought The supreme moment had
come, and drawing bead upon the dim out
fit in the distance he fred-once, twice.
three times.
1t was the appointed signal for the posse
to open the ball. and after a moments de-
lay the barking and flashing of rifles hegan.
butio the Sheriff's vexation and chagrin
not from the points where the men had been
stationed.
During the wait they had shifted their
places and their fire was no longer concen-
trated upon the designated point. Still the
fusilade was maintained, and had Evans
| and Sontag hesitated as to what was
the proper course for them to pursue
under the circumstances there would
have been some cold bandit on exhibition at
the C0roner's tomorrow. But they didn't
Without tarrylng TO reply to the Sherif's
surprise party they laid the whip vigorously
10 the horses back and passed from the
storm center as rapidly rs they knew how,
In much less time than it takes to tell 1t
they were gal;opng away in a westerly
direction, the barking of the rifles keeping
up an ugly accompaniment to the clatier of
the horses hoofs.
In few moments they were beyond the
reach of even random shots. and Sheriff
Kay and his eight deputies were left undis-
! puted masters of the field
But the sheriff had not calculated on such
an outcome 10 his cleverly-laid plans, and
there were some sharp passages between
the chief and his subordnates as to who was
10 blame.
They quickly decided, however, that
whatever blunder might have been made,
there was no correcting it then, and the one
remaining hope of redeeming the honor of
the shrievalty of Tulare County was by
chasing off into the night after the bandits,
which they did. They are still after them.
The episode of last night simply con-
firms reports that have been current
in Visalia for months, namely, that
Evans and Sontag have from time to
rme come into town under the very noses
OF the authorities, stocked up with provis-
ions and ammunition and then driven leis-
urcly away to the mountains.
HOW THEY GOT AWAY.
Officers flowed From the Stat on
Given Them by the Sheriff.