Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1894-02-12
A DISGRACEFUL EPISODE
Talk of Lynchlng Albright at Albu-
qucrque-A Newspapers Very
Bad Break.

Albuquerque and Silver City for the past
week eliminated in some rather tragic
scenes in the Duke city on Saturday
afternoon. On the 9TH inst. the Demo-
crat printed a scurrilous article relative
to two ladies of Albuquerque, late ar
rivals from Silver City, charging in effect
that they were leading lives not calculated
to impress the community that they we're,
like Cesar's wife, above suspicion, and
stating that the late chief clerk in the
Wells-Fargo & Cos. express Office, e. l..
Gilbert, i defaulter in the sum of some
50 900, had furnished the money to make
life interesting for these ladies. While
no names were mentioned in the article,
the poisoned shafts it carried were SO
plainly directed at a Mrs. Shipley and
her sister, Mrs. Obed Foote, that the
publication created a profound sensa-
ton, particularly as these ladies had
hitherto enjoyed the best of good names.
The Daily Times came promptly to the
defense of the accused ladies and es
poused their cause with so much arder
as to arouse the city to full realization
of the enormity Of the disgrace. There
was talk of dynamiting the Democrat
office and driving Editor Albright and
his assistant, s. II. Brownlee, out of town.
Mr.. Shipley and Harry Whitehill brother
of the ladies', armed themselves and went
cunning for the authors of the malicious
screed, but were prevented from doing
harm by the city marshal.
Then Mr.. Obed Foote, of Silver City,
came upon the scene. He met Editor
Albright on. the street, presented a six
shooter, and persuaded him to 60 to the
office of G.. T.. Brooks, where in the pres
ence of number of witnesses Albright
wrote out and signed the following:
Albuquerque, N. NJ, Feb. 10, l894.-I
herewith retract every word ana syllable
of the article that appeared in the Issue
of the Morning Democrat under the date
of the 7th inst, which msrepresented the
characters and chastity of Mrs. Shipley
and her sister. The article referred to
was a damnable, unmitigated lie. I, J..
G. Albright, further state that any refer
ence to the matter referred to is an un-
mitigated lie and without foundation in
fact. The article of the 10th inst, which
referred to the friends of Mr.. Obed Foote
is also retracted.
(Signed) 81. G. ALBRIGHT"
Then Mr.. Foote, still exercising his
persuasive powers backed up by SIX
shooter, marched Editor Albright to j. J..
Phelan's drug store, and, at Foote'S sug-
gestion, senta messenger for s. H. Brown
lee, assistant editor of the Democrat, and
Brownlee arrived in time to look down
the muzzle of Foote'S six-shooter and do
as he was told-sign the retraction.
Albright and Brownlee then departed
and appeared before notary where they
made affidavit repudiating the retraction
in toto and swearing that it was invalid
and of no effect because it had been
forced from them, made under duress, at
the end of six-shooter, and by Foote'S
threats to kill them if they did not sign.
Later, Foote was arrested at the in
stance of Albright and Brownlee, charging
him with assault, breaking the peace, ETC.,
and he is now out on bonds in the sum of
1915 to appear before the district court.
Thus the matter rests at present, in AL
buquerque. In Silver City, however,
there is quite as much excitement over
the affair as in the Duke City, as witness
this from the Enterprise:
"The dastardly and malicious lie pub
lished in the Albuquerque Democrat of
Wednesday, the 18th INST, in regard to a
respectable married lady of that city and
her much esteemed sister, who resides
here, stirred the community as nothing
has done for years. Had the villainous
author, and the vile paper which lent it.
self to the publication of such damnable
effusion, been located within reaching
distance they would both have been
treated to hearing at Judge Lynch's
frontier law court. The ladies have re-
sided almost continually from childhood
in this city, and their names have been
synonyms for purity and chastity. No
one has ever breathed word against
their fair fame until this brutally sour
rilous effusion appeared"
Then the Enterprise adds: "The pub
location of such horrible calumny is a
disgrace not only to the town in which it
was conceived, but to our whole terri
tory. A paper which would lend itself to
the publication of such an outrageous lie
is foul blot upon the profession Of
journalism"