The Paducah sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1898-1906, 1902-06-23
No Case Made Out Against Buckskin
Bill Employees at vanceburg.
Hon. John K. Hendrick There to De-
fend Bob Hayes, . Paducah Boy,
Whose Trial Comes up Today.
SNOWMAN TELLS EXPERIENCE

taken in the case against the four
Buckskin Bill men in Jail at Vance
burg, KY, on charge Of criminally
assaulting Laura Belle Murray. The
examining trial of VIM. Patterson, one
of the men. took place Saturday, but
no decision was rendered.
The other men are Mike McCarty,
James Hardin and Bob Hayes, and
dispatches from vanceburg state that
IL is believed NO case can be made
against them. Bob Hayes is son Of
Mr.. NJ. L. Hayes. proprietor Of the
Palmer house barber shop, and Is well
known here. A vanceburg special re-
earding the trial says; The evidence
showed the girl to be q halfwitted.
unsophisticated country girl. She had
never been in but one town before and
that WAS Martinsburg, Elliott county.
1t was her first visit to vanceburg and
the first show she had ever attended.
She was sixteen years old last Febru-
airy and has never attended school and
is unable to write or read. She would
talk to any stranger she met and said
she went to the show with man she
did not know. She appeared. from the
evidence, to be somewhat infatuated
with Patterson. and she was an easy
victim to his wiles She was pleased
with Buckskin Bills Wild West show
and evidently wanted to join 1t.
The evidence against Patterson was
not strong except for his own admis-
sions to the railroad men with whom
he talked on the evidence Of the alb
duction Of the girl. The common
wealth failed to prove who it was that
placed her in the car or who was with
her in the car. One witness, how
ever. claimed he recognized the voice
of Hays one OF the accused. So far
there Is no evidence connecting Mike
Nc Carly or James Hardin with the
alleged crime.
Public sentiment Is strong against
the men. When the county attorney
was speaking he was loudly applauded
by those present, the first time such
scene has occurred in this court. The
u. and o. officials who were in charge
of the train. are manifesting great
interest in the trial
Mr.. Fletcher Terrell, who was for.
merly manager Of the Buckskin Bill
show, says that half the reports sent
out about shows are false.
Another thing" he said to . re-
porter, "any show always has hard
time. In every town there are . lot Of
jack leg lawyers and buzzard-like off,
cials who do anything to get money
out Of every show that comes along.
They arrest the men on any trivial
pretext and prefer some serious charge
with the hope that the managers will
put up Q bond and leave 1t for them
to divide.
1.-TWO years ago in Michigan our
boss hostler was arrested on a charge
Of assault, and mis- bond was fixed at
$4,000. The attorney came to us to
see If we would give it. and we Of
course did not. and the man went to
Jail. There was absolutely nothing
in the case, and the bond was reduced
successfully to $1,000, $500, $3.50, and
finally. after we had been telephoned
these various reductions to our next
stopping places for four or five days,
they notified us that IL we would pay
sl5 the man would be released. We
telegraphed it, and he soon rejoined
the show.
There are green country girls in
every place who become infatuated
with a snow or some OF the men in it,
and they sometimes cause lot of
trouble. One time. remember, girl
wanted to go with the show and We
forbade her getting on the train. She
slipped aboard ana we discovered her
about 40 miles out aud told her we in.
tended to stop Mt the next station and