The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1897-12-19

and got about every vote in the coun-
ty.
Masterson took office about the time
the cattle drive commenced and as he
had been elected for the express pur-
pose of subduing the unruly element
that followed the drive, he started IN at
once to enforce order. 1t was a bat
tie royal from the start for the cow
boys had never known what 1t was to
be compelled to have respect for the
law and one after another ran amuck
until the wild punchers came TO the
conclusion they had met their match
for the new sheriff always came out
on top of the heap, and sent his man
to jail. He succeeded in maintaining
order as no official the cowboys had
ever encountered had done and with
out finding it necessary to Kill anyone
during the first two years he was In
office, although he was frequently
obliged to MAIN some especially ugly
individual to keep from being killed
himself In such emergencies 1t was
his custom to shoot his antagonists
gun out of his hand, always making 1t
a point to have the drop, and then
nail him before he could pull gun
with the other hand. not so difficult
thing to do as it might seem, for his
aim was never known to fail and his
head was always clear while the ele-
ments he had to deal with were gem
orally loaded to the brim with "tangle-
foot
During ~ Masterson had an inter
esting encounter in which, as usual. the
charm seemed to have preserved him. A
cowboy named Frank Shaw went on a
tear, and Masterson felt called on to
disarm him. He had not know Shaw
to be of an ugly disposition, and there
fore did not take his usual precaution.
when suddenly Shaw pulle his gun
and fired pointblank and a short
range. The bullet missed, but it went
to close that it singed Masterson'
clothes as it whistled past min. he
unruly puncher was not given time
TO pull the trigger the second time .e
fore he fell with two bullets in his ana
tony. Shaw was not killed and even
tually recovered from the effects Of his
wounds.
Masterson's next killing occurred in
1878. In that year his brother, Id
Masterson, was 2popntcd marshal at
Dodge City, and two weeks after TAX
ing office was killed by ALI Walker and
Jack wagner, two of gang of cow
boys who had made up their minds
that Dodge was ssettin-g altogether too
prosaic and concluded to ruin things
themselves for a while. They went GA
roaring drunk and We're following the
bent of the punchers of that period, dis
charging their guns right and left when
they met the city marshal. He tried
to disarm them, and Walker and Wag-
ner deliberately killed him. Bat came
On the scene just as his brother fell
mortally wounded. Without any ado he
pulled his gun and shot both of the
ornery citizens down in their tracks.
His first bullet pierced Wagner's heart
and he then fired two shots into Walker
and the thing was done so quickly that
neither had time to return Masterson's
IRE before they We're both dead The
killing was thoroughly investigated and
Masterson exonerated. The other four
who We're implicated in the killing of
Bats brother were arrested. but as
they had fired no shots, Masterson be-
came instrumental in securing their re-
lease.
The next man TO yield up his life to
Masterson's unerring aim was James
Kennedy of King & Kennedy one of
the best-hnown of the old-time cattle
firms OF Texas. Kennedy was a young
fellow and fairly wei educated When
sober he was considered a pretty good
fellow, but his mother was a Mexican.
and when he was filled up with bad
whisky the gTeaser blood cropped out
and he was ugly and treacherous He
came 10 Dodge in the drive of 70 with
a band of his fathers cattle. and while
there bowled up and got into trouble
with James Kelly. the mayor of the