The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-04-30

4 u.
in room with their backs to calico
curtain, and while Kate Bender. the siren,
entertained them ''old man Bender" hit
| them in the back of the head with
| Ratchet or an ak. When night came the
| family buried its victims in the garden
| and took care of the travellers teams in
| some manner, generally driving them ever
| into the Indian Territory and selling the
| horses and wagons for what they could
| set
A number of mysterious disappearances
| gave the Bender tavern a bad name, ard
| finally, after a brother of State Senator
York was seen TO enter the place and
never appeared again, vigilance COM
mittee visited them and advised them to
leave the country within twentyfour
hours. The friends of York were not sat
| lsned with the report Of the committee,
| and when the Blenders packed up and
started On the western trail followed them
! INTO the night. Nobody knows what zap
pened, but the popular impression is that
the entire family was buried in the sand
of an Island in the Arkansas river, AMI its
outfit burned. The Benders used 70 turn
up occasionally in distant places all ever
Tic tOUAtIys out lit9 WcIC 'iOsCA
| factorily identified. and several men new
living in independence know the reason
why.
Seator York Is the man who defeated
Subsidy" Pomeroy for reelection GurIng
the winter 1S74-1S75 and sent John James
ingalls, to the United States senate. There
had been bribery rumors floating about
the state house at Topeka and the public
was in very suspicious mood. So one
day just before the last ballot was taken
York, who was a man OF dramatic man.
ners, arose, and, placing a roll of 5000
in greenbacks on the speakers table de-
clared that he had been paid that money
by S. c. Pomeroy as the price of his vote,
and that he knew of other members who
had received similar amounts. Several
statesmen b.ushed painfully, and there
was an immediate stampede to ingalls,.
A similar trick was attempted in the
Montana legislature last winter, when
one Of the supporters Of Mr.. Daily shook
a ''wad" of $4,000 in the face of his col
leagues and confessed that he had been
bribed by the agents of Mr. Clark, but it
didn't work, and the money now lies I'M
claimed in the hands of the state trea-
surer, who will add it to the revenues of
the treasury unless somebody calls for it
before he makes his next annual report.
There are few tough towns in Kansas
these days. Hard times and vice do not
go together, and the long period of de-
pressios drove the sporting Classes to more
profitable fields. When the Dalton gang
was disposed of in 1892 Highway robbery
stopped, and there has not been single
''hold-up' for several years. 1t was at the
thriving little town of Coffeyville that the
Daltons closed their eventful career. Two
brothers and one of their allies were
killed, and another brother, a mere boy,
was captured and sent to the penitentiary.
where he now remains. and is asking for
pardon on account Of his youth and ir-
responsibility when the crime was COM
mitted There is so doubt that he was led
into the raid by his older brothers. but
there is little sympathy with him in this
part Of the state.
'Bill'' Dalton and his gang who had
terrorized Indian Territory and Southern
Kansas several years, rode into Coffey-
vile one morning in 1892 and attempted
to rob the bank. An alarm was given
and they attempted to escape, but livery
bic keeper named John Kloehr, with a
good nerve and a good gun, picked off
three of them in less time than it takes to
tell It.
The bankers of Chicago It will be re-
membered gave him a big gold medal,
which he still, wears on his waistcoat, and
when he came up to the worlds fair the
next summer he had the freedom Of the
oil t1a
many other famous men, Those three
shots gave Kloehr an international repu-
tation and his picture was printed in the
illustrated papers of half the countries Of
Christendom. Although he has since been
and still is the chief object of interest in
Coffeyvi.le, nOtoriety has not spoiled him.
He still keeps livery stable asd has been
so prosperous during the hard times that
he is now one of the wealthiest men in
the community.
As a safeguard against raiders the bank
era in Southern Kansas still have alarm
bells in nefghboring stores and other con-
venient places by which they can summon
help simply by pressing a button in the
floor under the tel,ers window. When
the bell rings every man in the neighbor-
bank, but there hasn't been an alarm in
this section of the country for a long
time-not since the Daltons died.
Mr.. Ellsworth vice president Of the
bank al Moline, was telling me story
the other day to illustrate how the rob
bers worked. He says he was standing
in front of the bank some years ago when
a well-dressed man with pleasant manners
introduced himself as a cattle buyer. said
he should have occasion to deposit a good
deal of money in few days, and asked
what interest he could get for It. Mr..
Ellsworth replied that they did not pay
anything on temporary deposits. Then the
stranger inquired if the vaults were per-
fectly safe. Mr.. Ellsworth replied that
they were not only the safest in that
part of the state. but were fitted up with
time locks, and that the only time they
could be opened was at certain hourswhen
the cashier took out or put away the cash
that was needed for the business of the
day Furthermore, he said they had alarm
bells running 10 all the stores in the
neighborhood. and that If a robbery was
attempted everybody in the town would
know il in five seconds.
Inc stranger eNpEeSss" MS saLiSi6Ctioh
in what seemed to Mr.. Ellsworth an m
gracious sort Of way. and said ne would
make q deposit at once. But he did not
turn I'D again. and within few hours
farmers who came to town reported that
a gang Of desperate looking men had been
seen riding toward Indian Territory with
rifles slung 10 their saddles II was later
discovered that the party had concealed
themselves behind barn on the edge Of