Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1898-12-23

see that none of the pictures was printed,
and with his three younger sons he set ont
to keep his word.
The photographer declared on his sol
emn cath that he had sent the plate away
| TO be developed. lie was lying when he
said il, and il was good thing for him
that it was Devil Anse'' and not Cap
that he tried t. fool. Ansc and his boys
found the plate and destroyed it. Then,
as lesson 70 the photographer. they
smashed his cameras and wrecked his en-
tire establishment. Then they went back
70 the cabin on Tug river. But the pho
toGrGpher lad struck off q proof before
Devil Anse' arrived.
Although the McCoys shed the first blood
in the famous feud, the history Of the
affair shows 10 such atrocities credited 10
them as TO the HatlClds. Anything more
horrible than the revenge CT - Devil Anse'
and his sons for tine murder of old Deacon
Ellison Hatfield could rot be imagined
The murder Of Mis- Allaphare Mccoy by
Ellison Mounts who only committed the
deed because he was quicker with his gun
than Cap Hatfield, was the most das-
tarCily crime Of the whole fcud and reused
the whole country at the time. Ihe Nc
Coys have shot and killed, too, but there
are no such terrible crimes against them
as against the Hatfields, unless it bc the
murder Of Deacon Ellison Hatfield, who
was StnDDHl - times IN "a Clasp hIllle uuci
with Talbot Mccoy, and was beating his
man when Farmer Mccoy shot him in the
back. And these two bewhiskcrCd indi
yiduals in the picture, who would look
like peaceful mountain farmers if il was
not for their weapons, have been the chief
actors in tic crimes of the Hatflclds. Dca
con Ellison was always reaceInaker up
TO the time of that fight with Talbot Nc
Coy.
In hn IaY Cf writ i.N hlC
compiled some interesting facts about the
feud, The trouble all began over two
long nosed, raZorbackcd, elm peeler
hogs" Old Randolph Mccoy lived on
Pond creek, in Pike county, Ky, and
Deacon Ellison, Devil Anse" and the
rest of tho Hatfelds on the Logan county
side OF Tug river, West Virginia. Floyd
Hatfield. n brother of Devil Anse," lived
in Kentucky near Randolph Mccoy. The
McCoys accused Floyd Hatfield OF stealing
these two hogs, and the case came up for
trial before Matthew Hatfield, who was IL
justice of the pence. Floyd Hatfield won
the case and the hogs because he had the
best witnesses
Floyd's principal witness was old Bill
Stayton, his brother in-law. Stayton,
with his son, young Bill, ard several of
the Hatficlds were fishing in Tug river
shortly after the trial when Randolph Nc |
Coy and two Of his sons came along kan |
dolph opened up the hog question and
finally called old man Stayton perJurer,
whercupon young Bill who was only IS |
years old, hit Randolph on the head with |
a stone. 4 few months later Parish and /
sam Mccoy murdered young Bill from /
ambush bus they were acquitted in n |
Kentucky court The Hatiields were get
ting ready 20 do some killing themselves, |
when election day rolled around, and the |
two families, being interested in the same
candidate, patched up peace which was
Kept for several years.
johnson Hatfield, known as Jonce, was
an outlaw in Kentucky at this time, and
he opened up the bad feeling again by
running Rose Ann Mccoy, a daughter OF
Mccoy. Then when Talbot and
Farmer Mccoy took advantage of their
sisters intimacy with JOnce Hatfield to
follow her to the outlaws lair and arrest
him in order to get the rewards offered
for his capture there was more trouble.
:. Devil Anse, - Cap and the rest of the
Hatfields, warned by Rose Ann, rescued
.Ionce from the McCoys, but the feeling
was not allayed, and there would have
been a heap Of killing but for another
election in which both families happened
TO bc interested in the same candidate
The candidate was Thomas Stafford,
blood relation of the Hatfields and related
by marriage to the McCoys- and on that
election day the families declared peace
once more and sent down for buckets of
in which to seal the compact.
1t was on that day that Deacon Ellison
was murdered, and only n few days later
that Devil Anse'' and his sons took their
revenge, that revenge being the most fear
rul tragedy of the feud- The McCoys and
Hatfields drank Inoonshine TO each other
until they got TO feeling ugly Then Tai
bot Mccoy remembered that young Elias,
who is No in the picture, had once bor-
rowed SI.75 from him and had failed TO
return it. Elias, who was a mere boy
then, called Talbot a liar, and Talbot