Newport weekly independent., 1901-08-09
DENIES RESISTING ARREST.
Letter From w. w. Kidd Relative to His Arrest Made by Deputy
 John Dye.
DIAz, ARK, August 5. 1901

EDITOR NEWPORT INDEPENDENT.
 I notice in your paper of August 2, under the head line "Kidd Has Re turned," "W. w. Kidd, formerly a merchant of Diaz, who was shot through the breast Thursday, June 9th, by Deputy Sheriff John Dye, when resisting arrest" 1 wish to cor rect the impression that I resisted ar rest. In order that l may place my self in the proper attitude before the public, l will explain briefly how the whole thing occurred.
 It seems that those men from Ala bama, armed with requisition papers from the governor of that state, pre- sented themselves in the presence of MT. Randy, the sheriff of Jackson county, Ark, with the information (according to his statement) that I was a very dangerous man, that al ways went heavily armed, that when l left Alabama I stood off three or four hundred men and also eVaded pack of blood hounds and therefore he would have to exercise extreme caution in arresting me.
 The sheriff, with that information, decided according to his statement to me), that it was not best for himself or any one of his bonded deputies to undertake to arrest me, notWithstand ing 1 was ill Newport almost every other day in my shirt sleeves transact ing business.
 So he sent for one John Dye, a farmer who lives about fifteen miles from Newport. When Dye came, it seems he was given about the same information as had been given the sheriff, but before Dye came to Diaz to arrest me, they entered into what would call a school boys trade about the matter.
 The sheriff said to the men, who came for me that Dye was farmer and made his living that way and that he thought twenty dollars would not,
 
 So it was agreed that Dye should be paid five dollars before starting on his dangerous errand, that he was to have said five dollars whether he suc- ceeded in arresting me or not, but if he should arrest me, in that event he and the sheriff were to get fifteen dol 1o My Nf the men who came for me, paid Dye five dollars as agreed upon. Mr. Randy got the other fifteen the other day through the mail.
 So thus armed, Dye proceeded to Diaz to make the arrest. He put up his horse at MT. Hawley's, went to MT. Vests for dinner, waited in two hundred yards of me till about 1 o'clock till I started to the field, when he followed me. When he was in about forty or fifty feet of me, he drew his pistol on me and told me to put down my hoe q was hOeing cot ton), which I did; he said, hold up y OuI uctuuS1 WlllCu UIGIl uG SuOU me, the ball entering near the pit of the left arm and coming out on the other side. There was no resistance made nor anything said than related above.
 When fell in the field he tried to get MT. Reed to handcuff me, and while lying in that helpless condition, cursed and abused me and said he would shoot my G. d-h heart out, if I attempted to make a move. Dye shot me within quarter of a minute of the time I saw him, or he came to me, furthermore, he kept me lying in the hot sun two hours and made no attempt to carry me to the shade till the doctors came.
 Many other things have been pub lished in the papers derogatory to my personal character, but will say to any one who might feel so much in- terest in the matter, to write to any reliable citizen of Marshall County, Alabama, for any information about me. w. w. KIDD.