The record-union., 1897-08-15
SIX WEEKS AN OUTLAW.
EXPERIENCE THAT TURNED A
YOUNG MANS HAIR WHITE.
Life With the Dalton Gang
What a Detective Endured
While in Service.

Six weeks as an outlaw, scouting with
the Dalton gang in the Indian Terri
| tory, proved sufficiently exciting to turn
| Jack Dodsworth's hair gray. That is
why there may be seen in Joplin a man
! just past 30 whose snowy locks would
/ Indicate old age but for the youthful
| face beneath them.
/ Three years ago, while the Dalton
gang were at large in Oklahoma and the
Indian Territory, robbing banks, ex-
press companies, Postoffices and indi-
viduals efforts were made by the Gov
ernment and the express companies to
wipe out the band, regardlss of cost.
! Rewards aggregating $50, 600 were Of
| fered for the bodies of Bill Dalton, the
! leader. and Bill Doolan, his lieutenant,
dead or alive The Postoffice Depart
ment finally took a hand in the pur-
suit of the desperadOes, end several
inspectors We're sent out to help the
Deputy Marshals. A few months prior
to that time one of the POStoffice in
spectors had occasion to visit Joplin
on special business, and found Dods-
worth had displayed much skill as a
detective in assisting to capture a gang
of mail robbers, and the inspector
thought of him in laying plans to cap
ture the Dalton gang. Accordingly an
agreement was made by which DOds-
worth was to turn outlaw and spy on
the bandits.
| The first step Dodsworth did was to
| go to Perry, o. T., as clerk in the Post
office After remaining there for sew
eraI weeks he went to Guthrie and
worked in the Postoffice there until he
got acquainted with friends of the Dali
ton gang. The postmaster at Guthrie
was apprised of the scheme, and so was
United States Marshal Nix of Okla
homa, who issued a Deputy MarshaPs s
commission to Dodsworth and supplied
him with six-shooters, Winchester,
horse. saddle and outfit. DodWorth's S
next step was to gain the good will of
| the desperadoeS. In order to avert
suspicion and make himself acceptable
to the Dalton gang, Dodsworth had
postal cards printed giving a descrip-
ton of himself and offering a reward
of $500 for his capture for breaking
into the Postoffice at Mulhall." The
/ cards were mailed up in conspicuous
| places.
|
walked into the Postoffice at Ingalls,,
O. T.. and, upon seeing one of the pos
tai cards conspicuously displayed and
| a crowd reading it, remarked that he
| did not care to be advertised in that
way At the same time he drew one of
| his shooters and proceeded to shoot
| the card full of holes. The crowd
| quickly scattered. and the frightened
Postmaster beat hasty retreat. Dods-
worth mounted his horse and rode lei
surely out of town. A Deputy Marshal
was soon in pursuit. He found Dods-
worth before he expected to, for the
| latter was hidden in ambush near the
| trail in the woods, and before the Dep
uty- Marshal could draw a gun Dods-
worth had him covered with VIM
chester, and compelled him to throw up
his hands. The officer was disarmed
| and sent back to town. These two in
| cidents soon got abroad, and exagger-
! atAd stories of DodSworth's exploits
were told. Friends of the Dalton gang
advised him to join the outlaws, and
he expressed a willingness to do so. A
! ranchrnan arranged a meeting between
the new outlaw and the old ones, and
Dodsworth was accepted by the gang.
Dodsworth tells an interesting story
of his wanderings with these hunted
men, who were being pursued by
scores of Deputy Marshals, detectives
and others tempted by the big rewards.
| He remained with them for six weeks
and was all the time between two fires
being watched by the outlaws, who
We're suspicious of every stranger and
even of one another. The shooting that
ended Jesse James career seemed to be
! constantly in the minds Of Bill Dalton
| and Bill Doolan, both of whom We're in
constant dread of treachery on the part
of some member of their gang. During
| these six weeks the outlaws never
spent more than one night at one place.
| They were constantly changing their
| camp. and scarcely ever slept in a
house. The woods, prairies, and hills
were their only homes, and they slept
wherever night overlook them. One
of the gang would always act as sent-
mel while the others slept They never
permitted Dodsworth to act as senti-
mel. They were not absolutely certain
/ of his fidelity, and could not afford to
| take chances where it was a game of
life and death, and to be off their guard
d
sassination. While on the march, also,
| they watched their new companion with
/ a. certain degree of suspicion. He was
never allowed to ride ahead or behind,
| but was always kept in the middle of
! the gang So uneasy and suspicious of
! treachery had they become that Dali
] ton and Doolan were even afraid to
| trust each other. 1t was a life of con-
slant fear and dread, with officers and
blood money hunters trailing them from
place to place, and constant danger of
| betrayal.
They ate their meals very irregular
| ly-whenever they got hungry and were
| safe from pursuit They would cut
sticks with their bOwie~knives and i'm
pale a bird or squirrel or rabbit ON
them and cook it over a hastily made
| fire in the woods or prairie. Sometimes
! they would shoot a calf or a pig, use
what meat they wanted. and leave the
rest for the buzzards or coyotes. FIRE.
quently their meal would consist of but
/ a loaf of bread or a few crackers. Al
! thought some of their gang was always
on guard, these outlaws slept with
their arms close at hand. Their pistols
were under their heads and their Win
/ chesters We're at their sides, and even
! in sleep they kept their hands upon
/ their rifles Frequently while asleep
in the woods a bird or animal would
break a small twig or cause the leaves
! to rattle These light sleepers were
awake in an instant, their Winchesters
grasped. ready for danger. So accus-
toned were they to being on the alert
| for officers that they seemed to sleep
I with one ev Onpn