Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1893-02-10
THE CITIZEN
A Romance Of Arizona.

One Of the most peculiar cases ever lit
gated in the west is now on trial before
the supreme court of Arizona, sitting al
Phoenix. II is the will contest of John D.
Walkers estate. Walker went to that
country from Illinois, IS years ago and
took up his residence among the Pima
Indians. finally to be admitted into all the
tribal secrets, assuming the dress and
Ian guage of the Indians. and afterward
made their war chief
Through them he learned the locality Of
the famous mine which he afterward
named the "Vekol," Pima word meaning
the mother Of silver. When the country
began to be settled he opened 1t and mil
lions of dollars were taken out II q ie"
years. As a natural Consequence his rela
tives in the East heard of it and came on
70 help him spend it. though fortunately
they were but two brothers. IL seems
that in his earlier days, when adversely fol
lowed him. they had cast him of. and they
did not get along well after they came to
the territory. He finally ran them OF, cu'
they stayed ir the country, presumably
waiting for death to leave them his heirs
When Walker left Illinois be also left
sweetheart, fer whom he was going West
20 make a fortune After he reached the
Pima settlement she received no letters
from him, and she finally married After
living with her husband about 20 years
and becoming the mother Of several child
ren, all of whom died, her husband LEFT her
widowed. and she remained in the old
home town
When Walker became millionaire he re-
membered the girl sweetheart Of his youth
and wrote to some friend asking her where
abouts. Upon learning it he wrote to her
offering. after so many years, to make
good his word and send for her. She ae-
cepted the proposition, but the brothers
found il out about that time, and, seeing
their prospective fortune slipping out Of
their hands, theyIkidnapped him and took
him into California, where they preferred
charges of insanity against himand had
him confined in private asylum. he f.
nally escaped, came back to TuScon, met
his prospective bride and they were mar
RED. The brothers were still on his trail
and, finding him, took him back TO Cali
| ifornia under the old charges, and month
later he died in the insane asylum at San
Bernardino.
The fight over the property, which was
worth about $4,000, 900, thus began be
tween the widow and the brothers. She
succeeded in getting appointed administra-
Tx, and the case was taken to the supreme,
court and reversed on some technsiity
This caused the entire litigation to be
gone over again, but about the time the
suits were well filed in court third party
appeared as claimant. She is no less than
Juanna Walker, half Pima, and the
daughter Of the original discoverer of the
Yekol She is 90 years of age, and was
reared among the Pimas, after their style
and customs.
During the peDdency Of the first suit
some white men in Phoenix who were ae-
quainted with the Pimas Iearaed of her ex
istence, and, explaining the matter to the
chief, he forced her to attend the Indian
school, where she is now being educated
in the English language. Nothing was
said about the matter until the case was
reversed, when the probate court appoint
ed guardian for her and formal suit was
filed for the entire property.
There is no doubt about her being Walk
er's daughter. All the older Indians. and
especially the present chief: say they were
at the marriage, which was performed ac-
cording tc the Pima rites, and that during
the several years they lived together Ju-
anna was born. The revelation came like
a thunder clap to the other claimants.