San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1894-10-17
BROKE OUT FRESH
THE FRENCH - EVERS0LE FEUD
AGAIN.
RIFLE CRAOKED-JUDGE O00MBS
BITES THE DUST.
Some of the F. F. VS. of Virginia
Proceeding to Kill Each
Other Off.

BIG STONE GAP, Va, Oct. IT,
The French Eversole feud has
started afresh in Perry county.
Bob May, an eX-member of the
Kentucky legislature, and one Of
the principals on the Eversole side,
is here from Hazard, the seat Of the
county war. Judge Josiah Coombs,
the father-in-law OF the dead Ever
sole leader is dead. The leader Of
the French faction, whose name
was Frazier Fulton French, and
two others of his faction, have been
arrested for his murder and more
arrests will follow.
Judge Coombs was so years old
and lived at Hazard. Early on
Sunday morning two weeks ago he
stepped across the street where
young Cash Eversole and two 9TH
ers were talking. A rifle cracked
from the corn field just over the
fence and the bullet struck the old
man in the breast and he fell.
Cash Eversoln wheeled and saw
man with a BACKED face spring up
and dash through the corn field.
He says the man was Joe Adkins.
At the same time others Of the
French gang began firing and
shouting from another direction to
divert attention from Adkins.
Young Cash, with several others
ran across a little spur and hid
themselves in a ravine. Three men
with blackened faces soon appeared
who, the Eversoles said, were Ad-
kins, Frazier and Jesse Field. AS
they climbed over a bank, Will
Martin, boy in the Eversole
crowd, fired and killed Frazier.
The other two escaped but were
captured later. Adkins is said
to have escaped, but French
and Fields are held. They are
trying to get the county judge to
come to Breathitt county line, and
they are afraid to 60 to Hazard.
Only last night they received an
anonymous letter saying that they
would be shot the moment they
put their foot across the county
line.
Judge Coombs died in a few
hours. He had never taken part
in the feud, though he was man
of wealth and in sympathy with
the Eversoles, and he always tried
to get the French to trial. 1t was
his influence that was feared. Ad-
kins is a noted desperado. More
than thirty men have been killed
in this feud in the last half dozen
years. 1t began with the head Of
the confederate Gambrills, a strong
Breathitt county family, by the
union Eversoles during the war.
Soon the Gambrills killed the
Eversoie leader and desultory
fighting went on after the war.
The Fulton and French came from
Virginia to Hazard and taught
school and read law with Joe Ever
sole, the leader of the Eversole
faction. The Eversoles were the
richest and strongest family in
the county and they always kept a
store in Hazard which was the Re-
publican headquarters. French
rented this store from Joe Eversole
and opened it with clerk Bob May
and French disagreed and May
opened just across the street with
the Democratic headquarters of the
town. Freneh's year was up and
he was sent word to move. He re.
fused for some reason and on the
day the lease expired Eversole
drove to town with twenty wagon
loads of goods, moved French into
the street, and opened the store
himself the next morning. This
started the war, the Gambrills took
sides with French against their
old enemies. May joined with
Eversole and in time hun
dreds were lined up on each side.
French is said to have hired many
of his fighters. May has left
Hazard, he says, through fear Of
assassination. Trouble is feared
in the immediate future as men on
both sides are out cunning for their
pnemias