The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-01-24
HE HAD A BIG TIM
JACK HAMILTON TELLS OF HIS OK
LAHOMA EXPERIENCE.

Permit He was Shot by Deputy United
States MarshaIs aud for Two Weeks
Hauled Over the Country and Finally
Released, But was Laid Between Life
and Death for Five weeks-He Says the
Deputies Would be a Disgrace to Hades
How Federal Prisoners are Kept.
Jack Hamilton, the fish man, who has
been reported dead more times than he
has fingers and toes, arrived in Wich-
tia yesterday and says he has ammuni-
tion enough 10 send two-thirds Of the
deputy United States marshals Of the
Territory to the penitentiary for the
rest of their natural lives, even though
they should live to be as old as Methu-
selah.
While this is true he does not hold any
Of his treatment which he received a.
the hands Of the deputy United States
marshals 10 Marshal Nix, but holds the
opinion that all the trouble which the
marshal is now in was brought about
by the horrible gang he surrounded
himself with.
Jack says that when he went 20 the
Territory to fish and ship his catch 70
Wichita that he first went to the council
Of the Cherokee nation and also the
Osages and secured from both nations
q permit to fish in the streams That
fortune smiled upon him for time and
he shipped many pounds Of fish to
Wichita, but his good fortune was all
ended one day when a gang Of deputy
narshals swoped down upon him, led
by Jack Oberly, and while he was sit
ting on his grub box mending his nets,
that they opened fire upon him hitting
him in the side and on top of the head.
He declares that the marshal never
asked him to surrender or asked for
his authority, but in their greed yank-
ed him across the prairies for seven
teen days, took from him 4,300 fish, and
then took him before a United States
commissioner where he was cleared.
But that his wounds and lack of care
came near killing him, and for five
weeks he laid between life and death
in the hospital at the federal Jail. He
said that if he had died the scoundrels
would have entered on the register,
Death produced by resisting an Off
GER" Continuing he said:
81 got onto lots of things while I was
at the federal jail. One is they have a
standing rule not to let the boarders get
below 20. The way they manage this
is by the old whisky route. 1 saw one
of these cases myself, and you will
hear of it in court soon. Old Lem
Platte, who has done nothing else but
peddle whisky to the Indians for years,
was pulled and fined 81. OF course his
whisky was taken in charge by the
deputies and they not only filled up
their own tanks, but their TASKS as
Ior-
traveller in the Usage country on Gray
Horse by the name of Patterson and
one Of the gang slipped up and drop
ped two bottles in his wagon. In a
short time two more deputy marshals
came along and asked the man if he
had any whisky, TO which he said no.
They told him it was their duty to
search as complaint had been made Of
persons taking whisky into the Usage
country and the only way TO catch
the guilty was to search every body
They made the search and found the
whisky. The man was arrested and
fined $50 and given 90 days in the feder-
al jail, and he is in there now. When
he gets out he wont have a cent.
This thing is done every day. Il
see that the Eagle says l got mixed
up width a woman, but such is not the
case; but did get mixed up financially
with certain men in Wichita to whom
shipped my fish, and who wrote and
denied they had ever received them
Today I went to the express office in |
Wichita and found where they had re-
ceipted the company for $13S worth |
(which they said they had never re-
ceived.
II filed a suit today in Justice Wal |
ker's court against the parties and if |
you will watch you Will get some hot |
stuff.
u have brought suit against the |
United States marshals and the govern |
ment for my treatment, and you will /
get some hot stuff when il comes to /
trial. have my evidence down pat"