The morning call., 1893-04-08
JAKE WAS HONEST.
The Corpse in Jail and the
Murderer Free.
WENT BACK To BE HANGED.
The Story of Jintown Miner Who
Came in on the Overland Train
Yesterday.

yes; locked the corpse In jail and let
the murderer 90 on his own recogniZance.
That's wha. said. You don't believe it?
Well. can't help that; but IFS dead true"
They tried the corpse for murder in the
morning. eh ?"
mo, sir; they did not. They tried the
murderer in the morning and hanged him
TO the tree in the evening"
And the murderer was free all Dight?"
Free as the air"
"Why didn't be run away?"
Because he had promised not to.
That's case of suicide on the part Of the
murderer" said one
mo, it wasn't. 1t was a dead case of
honesty. He shot his man in a quarrel and
made up his mind to face the music like
man. When you've said what it's going to
be I'll give you the particulars"
Four different kinds of poison" were
named. The man from Jimtown took his
straight. Then they went out into the hotel
office and filled four big chairs that faced
Montgomery avenue, while the man from
JimtowD told the particulars.
lie was tall man. and the boot-tops
over his trousers and his garb generally
seemed to belle the good English he used.
On the hotel register. along with the other
arrivals on the overland, was the name
"Jimtown, Colo"
sit was about the middle of March, as
near 8 l can remember it." began the
owner of this name. Jake Harris and
Seedy Smith had been quarreling all week
over n claim near the Lucky Third
The fight got TO be general in the after
noon, some Of the friends of both men taking
sides in it.
The first thing 1 knew shooting-irons
were blazing away, and the next thing /
C atxyx ag Ok uta O.
Smith with his revolver leveled at his head.
" I'm going to fire. says Jake, and
before any one could stop him there was a
bang! Then Smith toppled over on his
side and laid there.
"For moment or more no one moved a
muscle. 1t was the coolest thing of its kind
mad ever seen. JimtOwn was fairly para
lyzed by it. and for the time being Jake
Harris could have painted that town the
reddest kind of red without let or hin
dTance from soul.
mo one thought Jake was the man to
take advantage of foe like that. Ii he
had shot him in q fair fight or in the heat of
action no one would have had a word to
say. for Jake was popular man and Smith
the meanest and most hated cuss in jim
town.
after awhile when the others began to
stir around little aud relax thems elves l
began TO see what was my duty in the mat
ter. l was acting Sheriff then, and the only
officer on the spot.
Jake himself was more dazed than any
one after the shooting. lie just stood there
looking at his victim, and never moving a
bit
81 walked over to him, laid my hand on
his shoulder ana said. You're my prisoner
That's right said Jake. I guess L am
and turning his face to me handed over his
sho0ting-iron and then motioned for me TO
lead the way.
Il walked over TO the lookup with him
and the crowd followed us.
by the time | had turned The kew on
Jake they were bringing the corpse down,
What should they do with it? No one
seemed to know.
Now, in Jimtown the only public lookup
was little one-roOm shauty in the center
OF the town, one OF the old shacks, about
the only one left in town. There was no
morgne or place to leave the corpse over
night TIL the Coroner could get down from
Creed. Before this the lookup had served
the double purpose of Jail and morgue, it
having so happened that live and a dead
subject had never before sought shelter in
i t at the same time.
I'VE were in a pickle for some time, until
the Justice of the Peace came. He said
he'd solve the difficulty by putting the
corpse inside and letting Jake out If some
body would 60 on his bail bond for $4,000.
mo one offered to stand security for
Harris. Finally Harris himself spoke up
and said that If the Judge would parole
MIN tnae hlsnt hed turn up Tor til al In the
morning.
Now, you think that's pretty cheeky
statement for murderer ito make, don't
your But circumstances alter cases.
IT didn't sound so cheeky, coming from
Jake Harris, and the Judge took him at
his word. That night the prisoner slept
outside On his own parole while his victim
was housed in the lookup
Smiths few friends were active during
the night. They went up 10 Greed and got
crowd OF miners TO come down to the
trial in the morning
Sure enough Harris showed up at the
time agreed upon. He said he would waive
everything OF legal nature and plead
guilty. This would have saved him for the
time and he would have been sent to Dem
yer for trial before a regular court if it
hadn't been for the Greed miners.
They worked up the crowd. and the end
OF 1t all was that before night Jake Harris
was hanging by his neck to tree. That
was the first hanging we had in Jimtowp,
The second one hasn't come along vet, and
the folks who saw that one hope it never
will"