The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-03-26
MURDERED FOR A MINE.
TRAGIC REMINISCENCE OF THE
COMSTOCN LODE.

ness, Who Was Then BOy-Mur-
derers Compelled Him to Act as "A
Guide and to Assist Them In Their
Encape From Justice.
From the San Francisco Chronicle.
Dead men tell no tales and men of hon
or do not inform on their comrades. espe-
cially where they have been partceps
criminis, but after careful inquiry the
writer of this article believes that he IS
the only survivor of tragedy that excit-
ed the mining camps of Virginia city.
Gold Hill and Silver City in the year 1874
and that no person can now be troubled
by relating the facts Of a tragedy that
have never been told before. When the
big Bonanza excitement was at its hight
In 1874 every person and company that
owned claims between Virginia City and
Silver city mad fabulous statements
about the prospects and showing Of their
properties. At the lower end of the Gold
Hill canyon the Justice and Weller De-
Feat Mining Companies owned adjoining
and contiguous properties. Each company
had erected hosting works. sunk main
shafts, and had run drifts that connected
both mines The indications were that
the Waller Defeat mine was tapping the
lower end of the great Comstock lode and
would be a bonanza. The Justice stock
holders secured all the Waller Defeat
stock available, and claimed the control
of both mines, the Justice mine being
managed by the Smith crowd and the
Waller Defeat by the kellogg party. one
day in the summer of 1874 the Smith
crowd took possession of the Waller De
feat HOSTING works and Smith employed
a man named Prentice who had killed
man in the Piute Hotel in Gold Hill in
1870 and a man named Evans, who had
killed a noted desperate in Phoebe in 1859,
10 hold the hosting works and do all
things necessary thereto. Prentice and
Evans went up TO Virginia City and en-
listed two more men to assist them, pro-
curing four shotguns and a considerable
quantity of ammunition and the four men,
armed to the teeth, drove down to the
Waller Defeat about O'Clock in the after
noon.
The writer. then a mere boy, had been
employed in the two mines and was ac-
ouainted with all the shafts, stations and
QrlItSt ana having utdAh ALeit AAAN AN~A'So5
party would try TO regain possession of
the hosting works that evening, managed
to have business unkering around the
hoisting works of the Waller Defeat that
afternoon, with the expectation of seeing
some fun, but never realizing that he
was to witness a terrible slaughter of
five men When Prentice and Evans, ac-
companied by two men whose names l
never learned came into the hosting
works they were armed to the teeth, each
man being supplied with a muzzle-loading,
touble-barreled shotgun and a revolver.
The whole preparation and armament i'm
pressed the writer that the Smith crowd
~pere making a big bluff to intimdate the
Kellogg people.
Killed in Cold Blood.
About o'clock in the evening five men
armed with shotguns were seen coming
down the road and when they reached
point opposite the Waller Defeat hosting
works they halted and held a short consul
tation. The man that appeared to be the
leader was a brother of Superintendent
Kellogg, and soon left his companions
standing on the road about thirty feet
above the hosting works. Kellogg, gun
in hand, came down the embankment and
walked about fifteen feet TO the door of
the hosting works, and in loud voice de-
manded admttance. Prentice commanded
the writer 10 open the door and let him in.
The door was then unbarred. kellogg
was entering when Prentice took deliber-
ate aim at him and empted both barrels
of his gun and Kellogg fell in the doorway
riddled with buckshot.
The next moment Evans and his two
companions took aim at the men stand
ing on the road and fired, whereupon three
men came rolling down the embankment.
Evans then took aim at the remaining
man, and as the report of his gun rang
out, the fifth man of the Kellogg posse
fell dead. When the killing began the
writer wished that he was some where else. |
Prentice threw Kellogg's body out of the
doorway and closed and barred the door
again. hurried consultation was then
had, ana il was decided that they would
go down the shaft and remain in some
drift until the next night, and then go
through drift that had been made con-
meeting the Silver Hin and Waller De-
feat shafts, a distance OF an eighth of a
mile, and go down to the Carson river,
and then overland into California. Each
of TIE mon was wen provided with money,
as mine fighters received $50 per day pay
able IN advance, but they had no food.
Forced to Act As Guide.
The writer had tin can full OF lunch
that they conlscated Evans requested
hlS ~ 30 Gown the smart Nltn tnG party
and to act as a guide 20 lead them to the
Silver Hill shaft 1 refused to go with
them. whereupOn Prentice, who was real
~ the most determined man of the party.
drew his siX-shooter and leveled ii al nv
head and commanded the TO take my din
ner pail ana lead the way down the lad
DER of the shaft. l had no discretion in
the matter because ! had seen that Prem
uce would kill. l therefore obeyed the
command and led the way down the lad
der 70 the 6y0-foot level and then into a
drift leading to the Silver Hin mine. until
We came 10 room that had been used
10 store giant powder, where the party
halted and prepared to remain all night.
l divided the lunch that was in my can
among the party and they were generous
with cigars, with which they were wen
supplied. l listened TO their conversation
about their past lives, and they did NOT
hesitate to relate about desperate fights
they had had and the men they had kill
ed in the territories.
The TWO strange men each claimed that
they had killed men in Montana and
Utah Some of these stories were thrill
ing but the murders they had Just com
mifte0 seemed fna to