The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-04-29
STORY OF HORTON MURDER.
DENIAL THAT THERE WAS EITHER
TORTURE OR INDIGNITIEs.
United States Commissioner sehI-
brede, of skagway, Gives Version
of Affair and Says Report That
Mrs. Horton Was Abused Is False.
Special Correspondents.

Special Correspondence.
SKAGwAY, Alaska. April 1s.-Charles
A. Sehlbrede. United States commissioner
at Skagway, had his attention called to a
dispatch from Vancouver. B. c., published
in the ost-Intelligencer April 10. and
which gave some of the details in connec-
. ton with the recent murder of Bert Hor-
ton and his wife by the Indians. Mr.. Sehl-
brede says the dispatch contains errors
some Of which are seriously misleading.
The statement that there was an at
tempt to rescue any of the captured In
dams at the Hanes reservation by a hun
dred or any other number of young bucks,
or at all, is absolutely without any founda-
tion," says Mr.. Sehlbrede. 81 accompanied
the marshal and his posse at the time the
capture was made, March 13. There is no
reservation for Indians at Haines or at
any other place in Alaska. The Indians
when captured were at once brought to
Skagway and placed in jail
There was no attempt to resist arrest
or to escape after the arrest was made.
The troops were not called out either to
repel the Indians or to prevent their being
Ynched. 1t is true that on March IA. the
day that went to the scene of the murder
to hold the inquest. / took with me the
coroner's jury from Skagway; also Deputy
United States Marshal Tanner, who Sc
cured the attendance of half dozen of
the soldiers for the purpose OF assisting in
digging through the snow tc find the
bodies. The snow where the bodies were
buried was seven feet deep. Jim Hanson,
the Indian who confesses that he shot and
Killed Bert Horton, accompanied us on
both trips, but the. ground being so deeply
covered with snow he could not with GER
tainty locate the exact spot of burial.
hence we knew that we were likely to
have to move a considerable body of snow.
1t was for this purpose that Capt. Hovey,
or the military command stationed here,
n tufI ..Rl ILL.,
on our second trip. At the time of our
second trip nearly all of the parties in any
way implicated with the murder were in
jan. and as the place where we were going
after the bodies was fifteen miles from the
nearest Indian village, there was no
thought OF danger of being disturbed by
the Indians.
menced the inquest upon the ground The
whole scene was examined by the. fury and
measurements taken. We then took the
bodies to skagway, where they were
est ever held In this place.
Neither Torture Nor Indignities.
The statement that 1t was shown upon
the preliminary hearing that the Indians
who killed Bert Horton subjected him to
many tortures before killing him, and then
kept Mrs. Horton a prisoner for week.
repeatedly ravishing her before killing her
ana that an attempt was made to lynch
the prisoners, and that the attempt was
prevented by calling out the soldiers, is
absolutely and unqualifiedly false. II the
person who made the report did not kno v
II to be false he was willfully ignorant of
the facts.
'"rhe preliminary hearing was held by
me and was public. There must have been
thirty or forty people present. Judge II.
a. Day, At the request of the district at
torney. who could not be present. appeared
for the prosecution. But one witness was
sworn, viz: the deputy United States mar
sinai, and only sufhcient testimony was
fh0 -
crime. tho identification Of the bodies and
the connection the defendants had with
the death Of Mr.. and Mrs. Horton. The
sci, but they offered no testimony and the
order for holding the prisoners without
ball was made. The counsel appearing for
sey, r.. w. Jennings and ]. ]. Faulssl.
The Horizons Killed Quickly.
AT the inquest. before the preliminary
hearing and since have made careful in
vestigation OF this whole AFFAIR, and from
all OF the facts and circumstances gath
cred, not only from the defendants but
others. IL IN clearly established that the
party OF Indians who were connected with
this awful crime left Haines In search of
some missing Indians, and were gone from
Haines less than four days. covering but
three nights. The first night ont from
Haines they camped several miles aboya
the place where the Horizons were camped,
country
There is no doubt In my mind, from
what have gathered In this matter that
when the Indians went ashore thew
thought that the Horton camp was in
charge OF two men and did not know that
there was a woman there at ALL Horton
was shot and instantly killed some forty
yards from his tent. At the time he was
shot Mrs. Horton was I'm the tent. the door
of which was at the opposite and from
whore the shooting OF Horton took place
At tho sound of the shot Mrs Horton
came out OF the tent. partly obscured from
the view OF the Indians by overhanginx
brush. The moment she came into siebs
she was shot. and in less time than n
takes to tell IL her throat had been ctt
The fact that these defendants are VET n
be tried forbids my giving to the public the
details OF the investigation at this time.
Mrs. Horton Not a Prisoner.
That tho killing OF these two Young
people was most outrageous and coward
W murder. for which the perpetrators
should be hung, there Is no question But
being in position to know that the state
ment In your article that Mrs Horton was
even held as a prisoner at ALL much less
outraged. Is not in accordance with the
facts. and feel II my duty to make this
statement God knows that the horror OF
TINS foul ana cowardly murder il awful
enough Tor the hereaved family and
friends OF Mrs. Horton TO Contemplate
without adding 70 II the sensational report
or such horrible Treatment. by the side OF
which death would he not only a mercy.
but matter for rejoicing"
IN