The San Francisco call., 1896-05-15
The Rope Which Strangled the
Vaquero Not Owned by
the Defendants.
IMPEACHING WITNESS CLARK.
Declare the Lone Ridger's Reputation
for Honesty and Veracity
Is Bad.

terday, the twenty-thIrd day of the famous
Littlefield lynching trial, was marked by
excellent progress. The defense has
been putting its witnesses through with
great rapidity. 1t opened proceedings
in the morning with Henry Lance on the
stand. He was member of the first Coro-
ner's jury that investigated the vaquero's
death, and he testified TO the character of
the ground in the vicinity OF the lynching
and to finding tracks which indicated the
presence OF eight or ten men. He said
that George Kindred, one of the prosecu-
tons chief witnesses, had told him on
coming to the trial, that their testimony
would be identical. Kindred, on the stand,
swore to seeing only one track.
j. w. Van Horn, kindly old soldier,
who is father of the defendant, Bayles Van
Horn, told how his son and Crow came to
the house at 9 o'clock on the evening of
September 9th. Bayles wanted to go on
to Weavervil ie and notify the authorities
of the lynching, but he dissuaded his son,
and he himself rode through the night to
the residence of Justice Atkeson and
asked him to come at once and investigate
There was no rope similar to that with
which Littlefeld was hanged around the
the party when the shot test was made,
and the reports OF shots fired at the forks
of the trail where Littlefeld met his tragic
death could not be heard at the Red
Mountain House.
This test is considered very important
by the defense. as Walter Clark, for the
prosecution, said he heard three shots in
the nelghborhood of the forks of the trail,
himself being camped at the Red Mountain
House, and mainly upon the testimony of
Clark the case was brought.
Mrs. John M. Vinton, the pretty seven.
teen-year-old bride of John NJ. Vinton,
took the stand and testified to having ar
rived at the Hayden place on the after
noon of September q at 80 o'clock. She
saw party of seven men, among whom
were the constables, short distance from
the Hayden place. This is considered
important by the defense in fixing the time
at which the defendants left the Hayden
residence. Mrs. Thomas Hayden, pleas
ant-faced lady, corroborated Mrs Vinton
John Wathen, the 13-year-old son of
"Wylackie John" told OF Crows coming
to the camp in which he and Littlafeld
were in the early part of last summer, and
making them present of bear meat.
Crow took dinner with them and was on
friendly terms with LittIefeld.
10 Britain was present on Sunday, Sep
tember %, Of last year, at meeting be-
tween Crow and John Brown, in which
Crow stated that the mob fired about
twenty shots at Littlefeld. This contra
diets Brown, who had previously stated
that Crow said that 100 shots were fred
Thomas Hayden, to whose house Vinton
went after being shot, was recalled and
swore that neither Crow nor Van Horn
had any rope of the kind with which Lit
tletield was hanged.
Gordon Van Horn, brother of one of
the defendants, testified to the examina-
ton of the weapons on the return of the
constables. They were found clean, both
at the muZzle and breach, and there was
rust in the bore of Crows rife. Neither
had been discharged On the night that
Littlefield met his death. Crows rifle was
1882 calIber Winchester; Van Horns re-
volver 45 Colts, and the revolver taken
from Littlefield 3S Colts. Neither of the
defendants had any rope similar to that
with which Littlefeld was hanged. His
brother, Bayles Van Horn, returned to
him the same number of cartridges be had
given him when he started out to see Vim
ton the day before.
John GARNER, George o. Grist, ]. w.
Grist, P. K. O'Farrell, farmers and stock
raisers of Covelo, testified to the bad repu-
tation for truth, honesty and integrity of
Walter s. Clark, the chief witness for the
prosecution.
When the Littlefeld case was resumed
to-day at O'Clock, after an adjournment
fOr of IL
ceased Juror Benton, Joe Gregory, who
had been brought to the county on a
bench warrant. was placed on the stand.
Gregory has figured in Round Valley his
tory quite prominently for the last four or
five years, and he has his friends as well
as his enemies. He was arrested at the
same time as Defendants Crow and Van
Horn, and was held for trial by the Justice
of WeaVerville Township. Gregory was
discharged by the court on the ground that
there was not sufficient evidence to war
rant holding him for trial for the murder
of Jack Littletield.
His appearance on the stand drew a
crowded courtroom. as it was thought per-
maps the prosecution might have some
thing sensational in the way of a surprise.
However, nothing of a startling nature
was disclosed. The old story of time, dis
tances and trails was gone over again and
again without much effect. The trend OF
the prosecution questions seemed to be to-
ward showing that Gregory was one of the
mob. If this was their object they got but
little assistance from Gregory, who was on
the stand for something over two hours,
but nothing of any Importance was devel-
oped under the most searching questions.
Gregory testified that he carried a
58-caiiber Winchester rife and 44-caliber
Remington pistol on the day that Little
field was killed.
John Hayden, q brother of Thomas
Hayden, whose place has become his
torical, next took the stand, and testified
to conversation with Crow at Covelo in
AlecR Perry's saloon, some time in 1894,
at which time Crow said that Littlefeld,
Palmer and Gregory had robbed and
burned his camp, and that he would do
them up if they did not stop their rob-