The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-10-05
NEWS OF THE COAST.
Lynching of Littlefield
Planned by His
Enemies.
SLAIN WITHOUT CAUSE.
Officers Who Claimed to Have
Arrested Him Are Under
Suspicion.
NO TRACE OF A MOB FOUND.
The End of the Feud In Round
Valley Is Not Yet In
Sight.

numerous arrivals from Round valley and
the Mad River country during the last two
davs. and those who are bound to neither
faction in the feud that is being waged
confirm the theory that was first advanced
a few DAYS ago, after the excitement at
tending the shooting of Vinton and the
Ivnehing of Littlefieid had cleared away
that the shooting and the subsequent
hanging of Littlefeid was the CARRYING
into effect of a conspiracy on the part of
certain faction IN that part of the country
to kill Yes Palmer and all who had the
courage to stand by him in the protection
of his life and property. Alfred, alias
Jack" Littlefeld was Palmer's chief
aid-de-camp, and therefore considered as
the most important of Palmers friends to
put out of the way. Without Littlefield
Palmer is almost helpless among his enc
mics, and even now has been compelled to
call upon Sheriff Johnson of this county
for protection, which was granted him.
After J. NJ. Vinton was shot, on Monday
or Tuesday last, he made his way to the
house of I. B. Hayden, who lives about
mile from the county line in Trinity
County, and about two miles from where
Ninton is alleged to have been shot.
VintOn claimed that as he was riding along
the trail ne saw at distance a man and
a boy on foot, and that shortly after they
were lost to his view by an intervening
ridge of mountains, but that when he got
to the top of the ridge he again saw the
boy, whom he shortly overlook, and with
whom he conversed. This was John
Wathen, q stepson of Yes Palmer. After
he left Wathen he went along the trail,
IL ! IL
con fronted by Jack" Littlefield who shot
him, and then disappeared over the ridge.
He claimed that LittIefield was some hun
dred yards away when he shot at him.
An examination OF Vinton's overshirt,
and, by the way, this had disappeared
very mysteriously, until found in an out
of The way place by one OF Palmer's
friends, showed that the shirt was powder
burned, and therefore it is impossible that
Littlefield could nave been at the distance
Ninton says he was and still fired that shot.
James Wilburn is a well-to-do rancher
who stands well among his neighbors.
Wnburn saws that on the day of the shoot
ing, LittlefieId was engaged in rounding
up stock for him on his ranch some twenty
miles from the scene of Vinton's alleged
shooting, and that Littlefield remained on
his IanCh all that day and that night; and
in this Wilbur is corroborated by three of
his employees who saw Littlefeld there,
and who worked with him.
Littlefield, it is claimed by the officers
who say they had him in charge at time of
the lynching, was arrested on Friday by
two Constables, who are, as re port had it,
sworn enemies of Yes Palmer and all who
are connected with him. They claim that
while they were en- route to Weaver,
small town in Trinity County, they were
overtaken by a masked mob of twenty five
men, who demanded the prisoner, and
enforced their demands with threats to kill
the officers; that then Littlefield jumped
from his horse, and as he did so, score of
rife shots rang out, and he fell to the
ground, whereupon several OF the mob
fastened rope about his neck and strung
him up. The officers old not see fit to go
to Covelo and report the incident.
a curious matter in the affair is that the
ConstabIes arrested Littleield in Hum
boldt County and took him to Trinity.
where he met his death. They had no
warrant for his arrest, and no legal right
to take him into custody: and if Jack
Littiefeld had shot Vinton he would never
have surrendered so peaceably as he did
he would never have been taken alive. As
it was the Constables say that as soon as
they informed him he was under arrest he
manifested complete Ignorance of any
crime, and handed his brace of pistols to
his captors.
Each of the three men present, and who
had charge of Littefield, places a different
estimate upon the number of men in the
mob that hanged Littiefield. One says
there were twenty men, Constable Van
Horn says six or seven, and John Crow
says three.
Walter Clark was camped short dis
lance from the scene of the lynching, and
be says he is positive that he heard
only three shots fired at the time, and
that considerable time interviewed be-
tween the first and the last two. There
were three wounds on LIttlefield's body,
either of which was considered fatal, so
that when he was strung up he was either
already dead or dying,
George Cummings, a constable of Round
Valley, was in the hills searching for
Walter Clark 10 serve him with a subpoena
to appear before the United States court in
the Frank DOolittle case. As he was rid
ing along the trail be noticed short dis
lance away Littlefeld's horse and dog, the
horse browsing on the side hill. He dis
mounted, as this was to him curious
Circumstance and one worthy of inyesti-
CATION, when there was revealed to him bv
bend in the trail the body of Littlefeld
swinging from a limb Cummings soon
found Walter Clark and together they
returned to where the former had found
the body. Both are mountaineers and
trailers of long experience, and their first
thought was to discover the number of
men connected with the affair. They
searched carefully and could find traces
only of three men having been there. The
country is of such character that had
there been a greater number the fact could
not have been disguised. Crow probably
unwittingly told the truth when he said
there were only three in the mob.
Taken all in all it seems that the killing
Of Littlefeld was most cowardly murder
and the result of as black conspiracy as
has been uncovered in many a day.
There are those who claim that Vinton
attempted to commit suicide, and, after he
Ia