The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-08-06
Will be Heard at Vernal On
Monday Next.
OTHER CASES OF NOTE.
GOOD WORK DONE BY UNITED
STATES OFFICIALS.
But For the Existence of Fort Du-
chesne, the Military Telegraph
and Efficient County Officers, East
ern Utah Would Soon Become An
other Veritable Robbers Roost.

Vernal, Utah, Aug. Son Monday
next the criminal court for this district
convenes, Judge Dusenbury of Provo,
presiding. This session of the district
court is perhaps one of the most i'm
portant ever held here for the reason
there comes before the trial court the
cases of several alleged notorious
criminals who have recently been cap
tured in this vicinity by the sheriff's
officers, and by the help of the United
States military officials at Fort Du-
chesne, and by the help of the United
States military telegraph, which covers
the line from Fort Duchesne to Price
a distance of nearly 100 miles. Were it
not for the military post at Fort
Duchesne, the unlawful elements of
cattle thieves, highwaymen and the
worst Of wouldbe murderers would
practically have control of this country,
away out here beyond the bounds of
civilization, so to speak. There are
several serious cases to be tried before
the coming session of the criminal
court here, but the most important case
which is docketed for trial is that
against
THE MKEE BROTHERS,
charged with cattle and sheep stealing
and slaughtering. There is not to be
had within the confines of the hotel
accommodations of Vernal at this
writing, vacant room, or cot, or mat
tress after next Saturday. Every
sleeping apartment has been engaged
by telephone and telegraph by at
torneys and by prominent cattle and
sheep raising men from not only Utah,
but from Wyoming and Colorado, in
fact from as far away as Idaho. The
cattlemen and the sheepmen seem to
have pooled their grievous issues, as
against the Socalled thieves and
slaughterers, and it would seem that
they are determined to rid the country
of the pests. The representative cattle
and sheeJgnen of the aforesaid dis
tricts are en- route here to see to it that
the recent raid made upon the stock
will be the last for long time to come,
if not the last of all which has here
tofore been so disastrous, and that a
lesson in simon pure punishment is
meted out to the guilty parties, who
they claim are now in custody and
others will soon follow.
The Mckee brothers, said a lawyer,
to the Associated Press reprOter, to-
day, have a great deal to disOrove.
They have left nothing undone towards
employing able counsel, and let me
tell you right here, that they have en-
ployed L. r. Rhodes of Salt Lake City
to defend them. Attorney Rhodes is
one of Utah's big lawyers. He was
formerly a resident of Denver; was
the county attorney of Arapahoe
county seven years ago, and made an
enviable reputation in criminal prac-
tice. Lawyer Rhodes is on his way here
to defend the Mckee boys. The Utah,
Wyoming, Colorado and Idaho cattle
growers protective associations are go
ing to supply the prosecution with able
counsel to try to convict those recently
arrested
HOW IT ALL HAPPENED.
For long time past, the cattle and
sheeprnen on the ranges have been
troubled by depredations upon their
stock by maliciously inclined outlaws,
to put it mildly. Post Trader James M.
Mease, at Fort Duchesne, has been one
of the largest sufferers in financial
point of view. For months past efforts
were made to capture the miscreantS.
On Thursday, July %, last, posse of
men COMPOSED of sheep owners left
Vernal for the purpose of capturing,
dead or alive, the Mckee brothers,
against whom it is said sufficient evil
dence has been secured to convict
them of having recently bound the
Erickson brothers TO a tree, and then
maliciously killed a large number of
sheep. The four Mckee brothers,
James, George, Joseph and Thomas
are under arrest here, and as before
stated, there is TO be tremendous
legal fight on hand in the district
court next week when their trial be-
gins.
From indications today, the AS