The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-11-17
0LD-TIME LYNCHING.
INCIDENTS OF THE DAYS OF VIGIL
LANTEs IN LEADYILLE.
How Barber BOclShaus Encountered
the Highwayman, and How the Re-
suit of the Meeting Led to an In
formal Hanging-Bee.
From the washington Post.

suit of the Meeting Led to an In
formal Hanging-Bee.
From the Washington Post.
In the fall of 1873 Leadville numbered
among its mass Of heterogeneous citizens
a good-natured German barber named
Bockhaus, a young man, rather under
the medium hight, but of doughty frame
with a clear, blue eye, light hair and a
peach complexion, who still spoke Eng
lsh with an accent. He kept a shop on
! Chestnut street. one of the busy thor
oughfares of the camp. and lived with his
family at the corner of Maple and Main
streets. Society about this time was
very much unsettled One Of the princi-
pal industries was gambling, and on State
street dance houses, variety theaters and
places with faro lay-outs alternated with
resorts OF a still more questionable char
acter Law and order were. on shady
basis, and the festive footpad resorted TO
midnight hold-ups TO recoup his losses
over the poker board. Matters in this
line had reached a critical juncture with
all respectable citizens. who were clam
oring loudly for a reckoning with the
lawlessly element, and calling in vain,
when one Saturday night-it was Nov. Is,
1S79-the aforesaid Bockhaus, tonsorial
artist, locked his shop and sailed forth
in the storm 10 nestle in the bosom OF
his waiting family.
1t was a wintry night The snow was
coming down in large, white flakes, COW
ering the streets and obscuring the land
marks of travel The BARRIERS homeward
course took him through Pine to State
| and thence along State to Maple. The
| time as he locked his door was 1:l5.
When halfway down the sqaure below
| Spruce street and directly opposite the
New York hotel ne met two men. They
separated to let him pass between them,
but closed in before he had time to go by
and one. pushing pistol under his nose,
told him to throw up his hands. Book
haus held up his left hand, but still kept
his right in his overcoat pocket
D you, put up the other hand!'
shouted the robber, grabbing the barber
by the throat and pushing the business end
of his gun so close to his nostrils that he
could smell what the pistol had had for
II is dangled oop init der llningl Can't
you Wait leedle for feller?" gasped the
little barber, in broken English.
up with it, coat and all!' commanded
the highwayman, sternly.
The hand obeyed, bringing with it a six
shooter, which sent forth little stream
of fire when in range with the robbers
body, sending bullet between the third
and fourth ribs, which lodged against the
spinal column. The pad spun around and
fell, firing ball at the BARRIERS head as he
went down. He soon recovered his feet,
however, and started to run. About tins
time some four or five shots were fired in
rapid succession, one of the bullets lodg-
ing in the arm of the other robber, who,
in attempting to get away, ran into the
embrace of two policemen, who took him
to Jail. Another officer, who had been at
tracted by the musketry, escorted the
barber to his home.
The little knot of belated citizens in the
neighborhood, who gathered on the side
walk to discuss the shooting had dispers-
ed, and the affair, in the language of di-
plomacy, was regarded as closed when
the Leadville Chronicle, heard noise on
the back porch of her sitting room and
cautiously opened the door to see what was
the matter. The porch was covered with
snow and the lamplight revealed not two
feet from the door the PROSTATE body of
a man. He was lying face down and app
parently lifeless. Mrs. Atkins informed
her husband and after ascertainng that
the man was dead the body was removed
to the mOrgue, where on the Following
day the inquest was held.
On Sunday evening, Nov. is, large
number of prominent citizens met at the
Clarendon hotel and discussed the Ques-
ton of organizing a vigilance committee.
The mayor expressed his hearty approval
of the proposed measure; several council
men sanctioned it, and indicated their
willingness either to pull the rope or
start the wagon from under" while
one gentleman periodically offered to
deliver into the hands of regularly con-
stituted vigilance committee 100 men
whom he would prove to the satisfaction
of every justice-loving man to be rob-
bers and highwaymen of standard coin
age.
created by the killing of the foOtpad,
known as Harry Clifford, because he was
the nrst pro1esslonaI thleI thaI had come
to timely end in LeadVille. The papers
had published accounts of seVenty-five
different hOld-ups and street robberies,
and of all this number Harry Clifford was
the first to pay the penalty of his crime.
The brave barber was generally applaud
ed, and a motion that the citizens as
ISOLATION show its appreciation of his
efforts in the good cause in some substan-
tial manner met with such response as
ward of 500 had been pledged, the propo-
sition assuming tangible form int the
shape of a subscription list, by means of
which enough money was raised to buy
the barber a brace of ivory-handled
Colts pocket reVolVerS and a gold watch
and chain, which were subsequently pre-
At 4 O. clock Sunday afternoon a process
sion had formed on Harrison avenue, COM
posed of miners, merchants, professional
men and citizens generally, headed by a
large banner, on one side of which was
printed in bold letters; Terror to high
pad exterminatorw Behind this came
| Karl Bockhaus, the barber He was seat
ed in an easy-chair on a platform support
ed on the shoulders of twenty men Fol
lowing and surrounding this was a cheer
ing throng, including some women. They
marched through the leading streets to the
city Jail The marshal and organizer of
the parade was John Steele, the Lead
vile correspondent of the Omaha Bee
| Steele called halt IN front of the jail and
| from the steps addressed a crowd of 5000
people He thought now was the time for
| the honest, law abiding citizens of Lead
, vile to assert their determination to drive
| out the highwaymen and bunko-steerers
who had so long and successfully held
sway in the midst Of the camp. The ora
| tor was continuously interrupted with
! shouts of Bring him outr' Let's hang
the other oneI' Having finished his speech
| the following resolutions were unanimous
| ly carried:
Resolved, That the city authorities be
| respectfully requested to deliver TO the
citizens of Leadville one Stuart for i'm