The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-02-13
a BLOODY RECoRD.
Arizona SheriT who Has Killed
Fourteen Men.

Fourteen Men.
Denver Republican: THE sheriff of
Navajo county, Ariz, has killed "A men
since &c has been in Office said John
Aulkey O. Jerome, Ariz. al the Brown
Palace hCtc: last evening. i guess
that IS u record that has not as yet
been eclipsed by any other sheriff in the
United states. The man in question is
named Cwens-Commodore Owens. He
came TO that section of the state total
Stranger some years ago. saying he had
parted with his Old comrades for the
purpose Of reform lie tells OF the
gang of tough characters he used to
associate with. ana is not reticent in
Cilating upon earlier exploits. such as
d. umnlng whisky, rustling horses and
planning to Iob-trails. But this is all
IL the past, and now Owens is leading
q moral 1ite. He does not know what
the word afraid is, rs IS proven by the
fact that on two occasions he killed
four men single-handed. When he came
to our section of the country he said
il was tor the sole purpose of aiding
in u general reform movement, and that
is The way he SGT the appointment Of
sterim. lie is without doubt the nnest
shot il the west. He does his fancy
shooting with ball cartridges, Whine
BQffalO Bill and others use cartridges
hlled with shot.
The first wholesale killing Owens
was the prime mover in, consisted in
tie shooting of Andy Cooper. u bad
man generally, two young men
named Bleven, and another man whose
name 1 can't remember. Cooper was SO
tough that people were afraid Of him,
and one day some men twitted owens
be cause he had never arrested him.
That got his dander up. and without
saying a word he picked up his Win
chester and started for the house where
he knew Cooper and his pals were.
When Owens knocked at the door,
Cooper opened it a little ways, but
closed = when he saw who it was.
At that Owens fired through the door
at random, killing Cooper, the bail
striking him in the side. After the
melee was over, it was found that Ow-
ems had killed four people, one being
I3-year-old boy, who received his
death wound while seated in his moth
er's lap. The killing of the little chan
was accidental The federal authori-
ties refused to prosecute him for that
affair. The next quadruple killing was
that Of four Navajo Indians. The In
dams did not like Owens. because he
was constantly arresting some of them
for violating the laws. One day about
20 of them came into town for the pur-
pose of taking his life. When he ap-
Deared upon the scene the bravery of
the redskins Oozed out of their finger
tips, and, instead of killing him, it was
found that he had sent four to the
happy hunting grounds, and had also
wounded the fifth.
Talking about killing reminds me of
the Tonic Basin war which occurred in
Arizona about ten years ago. 1t lasted
about two years. 1t was a fight between
some stock men and sheep men. Before
the feud terminated so men had bitten
the dust. The most peculiar thing
about that war was the fact that ii
came TO a natural end, owing TO the
fact that most all of the leaders were
killed off on both sides. The chief sur
vivOrs Of that affair are Jim Roberts.
town marshal of Jerome, Arlz., and the
Tuksbery brothers. They are alive to-
day, and live in jerome. The trouble
originated over a dispute between the !
sheep men and cattle men concerning
the rights of each to the use of the !
ranges. Words led TO blows. which led !
up to the spilling of blood"