The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1900-04-28
STORY or BILL COOK
RECORD OF the Fnmops andtnn Terrir
tory Outlaw Who DIED n
Albany Prison

Albany PRISON.
The recent death # Bill" Cook, the
famous territory outlaw. at the 8IBIny
ra~aitentiary, where he was serginw a
As years sentence Tor train robbery,
removes With a possible exception the
lass Of the dcspemdoes who ran the.
gaantlet 6sscriHo In the Indian ter9i
org Tor q 1FEabe9 Of years. The in-
habftGn5s Of Eoz5 Gibson wcHteul
be- "BHl" Cook, the boy VINO worked.
On q farm near that piece he a
Industrious lad and avea bis s1au
aEnings.
The territory at th iRe was ia q
bpleRt ate GaTa oimes were
Is 1tequent thatthe inha bitanfs guard-
ed their homes against the v%iolators Of
with sbotguns end WinChesteTs.
Sin Cook disappeared from Fort GLIB
soa ono day; yet nothing strange was
thought Of this. 1t was common for
nen then to drift from cne place to
arother. Young Cook returned to
near Fort Gibson, and his services were
slwcYs "a demand. He was q hard
working Young man, ana bis delicate
physique and pale face won for him
the sympathy Of the hboTs. He
disappeared on several Gee ons, but
would always return. 1T was AZ this
time that two or three gangs 81
laws made life a burden on the high
ways. The robbery Of mails and stores
AL nAbo7s o-s-,oe n1oruoad Aha IaoDTo
greatly. Deputy marshals were un-
successful in their efforts to extermin-
ate the gang, but, on the other hand,
some of the uarshals fell by the way
side, victims OF TIE treacherous OUT
laws Winchester. Never in the his:
tory of the territory were the people
co terrorized. The Starr gang was
among the first to haunt the people
and commit desperate deeds. They
were considered the worst set Of Grim
mails that ever invaded the Indian
country. simultaneously with tie
deeds of these men Q gang Of organ.
lied criminals appeared.
Young Cook, who had made frequent
trips no one knew where, was e
suspected of being a member of a gang
of wen-organized outlaws. One day
Cook left the farm. He ~afterward
turned up in several fights and was
recognized. The report was circulated
that the heretofore frequent trips Of
Cook werettp participate in crimes, and
then return to his work to avoid sus-
pieion. It may be said IA passing that
Bill Cook was the leader Of a gang that
stopped for nothing in the way OF
crimes. His partner, Cherokee BILL
was for q long time a feared outlaw and
It was with relief that the people of the
Indian territory learned of Cherokee
Bills capture. He was tried at Fort
Smith on a charge of murder andwas
sentenced to be hanged. He paid the
penalty of his crime on the gallows.
The capture of "Cberokce Bill" led
70 the breaking mp Of the Cook gang.
Cherokee Bill and Bill Cook were great
friends and much attached to one an
other. The balance Of the gang was
captured and are to-day paying the
laws penalty. Afterward Bill Cook
was arrested. Many crimes were laid
at his door, but it is said that the gang
was responsible for Q great many OF
the deeds credited To Cook. He was
tried at Fort Smith, That court thea
having jurisdiction, on a charge OF
train robbery and was sentenced to
IS years imprisonment, which has
just been cut short by death. The
story of Cook is a sad one. He never
profted by his deeds, save to make a
reputation as a daring criminal. The
Dalton, Nice and Hart gangs have long
paid the penalty they so richly de
served. The criminals Of late days WHO
infest the territory cannot be com
pared in class or methods to the former
outlaws. The days of criminal success
are about over.LSt. Louis Globe-Dem,
ocrat.