Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1895-08-15

West.
The recent death at his hcme near
Bayou Bartholomew, Ark, of James
q. B. Faulkner, revealed & life history
which has scarcely a parallel any,
where, says a writer III the Globe
Democrat. Faulkner lived close to thei
line which divides Arkansas and
Louisiana. His home was a d0ubleI
log cabin, situated 200 OF 800 yards
from the creek, and thanked on every
side but one by forest Of pine and oak
trees. He had 4 clearing three acres
in extent, on which was grown all the,
vegetables he used or needed. He led
the life of a recluSe, living entirely
alone, and finding cOmpaniOnShip only
with his horses, dogs and cattle, Of
which latter he had a considerable
: herd. At the time Of his death he had
! reached his 5Oth year.
Faulkner was born in Albany, \. Y.
His parents were refined and culti-
waited people, and very wealthy. They
! fairly idolized their son and he was
given every advantage. He took law
course at Columbia college preparatory
to launching upon his career. But just
at this point the Waywardness which
had been frequently manifested dur
ing his school days took a new form
and he suddenly announced his pur-
pose of abandoning his studies alto
gether. His parents heard from him,
he writing them from Chicago, to the
effect that he had quilted the east for
ever and would hereafter reside in the
west. Soon afterWard his parents
died, leaving him a fortune Of $780,
l 600.
From that moment began his down
ward career. He went to Leadyille
and invested largely in an undeveloped
mine near that place. The property
: turned out to be worthless, and Faux
: ner, feeling that he had been duped
shot the man through whose repre-
: sensations he had been induced to put
up the money. The man was j. II
| Simpson. Faulkner was arrested, and
discharged on the ground of juStifiable
l homicide. On the heels of this affall
:. he was involved in another shooting
l scrape with a notorious Leadyille gam
i. bier. The fight was the OutgrOWth OF
l, a game Of cards, in which Faulkner
l claimed he had been SWindled out OF
; nearly $500. When the gambler drew
his gun Faulkner struck it, and the
l shot, glancing downward, passed into
} his right foot, making him a cripple
for life. The shot fired by Faulkner
; shattered one of the arms Of the gam
bier
/ Leaving Leadyille, Faulkner drifted
into Wyoming, where he secured en-
ployment with the Anglo-American
Cattle company, a corporation that
tlourished during the palmy days OF
the cattle industry in the west. Faux
ner speedily developed a capacity for
business that attracted the attention
of Harry OelrichS, of New York, who
was general manager of the company.
, OelrichS intruSted Faulkner with the
: care and management of the herds Of
beef cattle when shipments were be-
, ing made. This is position Of great
responsibility, but Faulkner filed ii
w
factorily. Oelrichs soon made him as
, sistant range manager at salary of
:, $4,000 per year.
For a year everything went well
-, with Faulkner. He had a good posi-
| ton, splendid pay, and was among the
most popular cattlemen on the western
range. But when the Anglo-American
| RI wind ,,,, l,,7c,i
ness he again got into trouble. He
was on the border of Colorado, where
he had gone to gather cattle. This was
in October, 1881. He was accompanied
t by half a dozen cowboys. The party
: encamped one night in a canon not far
/ from the Platte river. Some years ago
: party of emigrants had been killed
: there by Indians, and the canon had
+ the reputation of being haunted. The
= cowboys laughed the story to scorn
J Faulkner pretended to believe it. He
wagered $50 that Mortimer and Max
| we'll, two of his men, would not ven
ture into the canon together at i
: o'clock that night. The boys named
| accepted the offer. Mortimer, Max
, we'll and Faulkner sat down beside
the camp fire to a game Of cards
while waiting for midnight to come
the remainder Of the outfit retiring
AS the hours sped on the trio became
more and more interested in the game
: until Faulkner, who had been steadily
| losing, declared that his companions
were cheating. The accusation created
} a tempest. Faulkner tried to get his
5 revolver lying on the ground near him,
: but before he could reach it Mortimer
: and Maxwell had covered him with
their guns, and he was forced to con-
: fess that his accusation was IN
] founded. The three shook hands all
. around, and shortly afterWard Max
well and Mortimer started for the
canon, leaving Faulkner the only man
awake in camp.
Less than three-quarters of an hour
later the sharp crack Of a revolver,
, fired twice in rapid succession, rang
{ out on the still night air. awaking a
} thousand echoes in the canon and
arousing the sleeping men, who
rushed out of the tent to learn the
cause. They found Faulkner some
| distance from the tent facing the in
| terror of the canon. He held his re-
volver in his hand. and his face was
very pale. He declared he had seen
| the ghosts of the murdered family