, 1902-04-10
side of his coat. He would then lay
down on the sofa and sleep all day.

side of his coat. He would then lay
down on the sofa and sleep all day.
Horn then vent away and was alb
sent for probably two or three weeks"
continued Mrs. Bell. When he re
turned he kept in the house very close
only going II to the blacksmith shop
in which by husband worked a large
portion OF the time. to talk to him.
One day my husband came in and
told me that he was going to buy a
ranch and that Tom Horn vas going to
pick one out for him. Later he told
me that Tom knew OF a fine ranch on
Horse creek in the Iron mountain
country, a mortgage on which was 60
ing to be foreclosed and that if he
wanted to buy he could get the ranch
cheap II he had the money at hand.
Horn told Fred that he had killed the
owner Of the ranch because he persist
ed in stealing cattle after he had warn
ed him not to.
Shortly afterwards my husband
went to Wyoming station and receiv-
ed back pay which was coming to him
amounting to $500. due from May 9th
to October 9th. he not having drawn
any money since he had went out to
the ranch. He also about this time
sold the mortgage on the ranch in Mis-
souri, to two men in that state for $2.-
900, through Bell lie. a real estate
man in Laramie. and put the draft for
$4,000 in the bank at Laramie, making
over $4,000 then in the bank.
When my husband came back he
told me what he had done and said,
Now. when Horn comes back l will
go with him to buy the ranch he has
found for me-
1T was on Saturday, the goth of
October. 1899, that I saw my husband
for the last time" continued Mrs. Bell,
a coming in her eyes. "On that
day he got up early in the morning and
seemed ~preoccupied and listless. He
did not eat any breakfast and felt a
strange premonition of impending dan
ger. After breakfast he put on his
coat, went out of the house. and then
came back and put on his o%vercoat.
He said he was going up to the dam
to see II he could locate a leak. l was
surprised at this, as this was not his
work, but he went away and have
seen him since.
1T vas two days before | came to
the realization hat he had actually
disappeared and then l investigated
and found out in Laramie that he had
gone to Laramie the day after he left
the ranch and drawn the entire sum
out Of the bank which was deposited
there. The cashier warned him that
1t would be unsafe to carry around so
much money but Bell said he wanted
the cash and after receiving IL left the
bank. walking down the street, and
that is the last trace : have ever been
able to get of him.
Some time after that I met Horn
and he said he had met my husband
at Rock Springs. that he was broke and
was doing some prospecting work, but
would tell me no more Since then l
have written several letters to Horn,
asking him about my husband. one
while he vas in the Denver hospital.
but he failed to answer any of them.
After staying on the ranch during
the winter we moved Into town and
my sons went to work in the rolling
mill at that place. Joe wanted to learn
a trade, however, and SO we moved to
Cheyenne about two months ago and
Joe is working in the shops here.
we have never given up our search
for my husband" concluded the poor
woman, but nothing has ever come of
1t. Last year my husbands father and
brother came out to Wyoming and
spent several weeks trying to find
some clue by which the mystery could
be solved, but they had to return with
out anything"
The woman ended her story with her
eyes swimming in tears, and added:
Fred vas one Of the best husbands in
all the world and 1 know that he did
not desert me nor go away and stay
voluntarily"
Mrs. Bell called at the First Ma