The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-06-08

beyond the Indian BORDERS. She was as
suredly young, and she rode as wildly a
the men,-btt beyond this, report sal
that she was a crack shotfwith the riff
and pistol, that she rode ''a-straddIe,
and that she was, in truth. a. queen o
the bandits" Sombrero- topped, boote,
and spurred like the men. erect IN car
rage, simple, graceful. beautiful-the pic
ture Of Belle Star graced the pages of TIL
Illustrated papers. And it were. ate
all, better to think OF her so than Z
broken. consumptive woman dying in Z
dingy Jail where she was sent with hei
mate when a determined little posse o.
United States deputies swooped down OF
the gang unannouneed and carted then
away to Fort Smith.
| Then KEEP" Queen. after long period
Of inaction. took up the intangible wand
| OF leadership in train-robbing. He was a
daring, and. for time. a successful lead
| er. but he had the temper of a fiend and
the carelessness of a transient criminal.
He or some of his men robbed a local
store. and post-office. killed a highly re-
spected citizen, and by his unwise act
exposed his men 1.-the vengeance of the
natives. He was caught in a kind of
general drive made UP of the friends
Of the murdered man, railroad detec-
tives, and United States deputies. To
the number Of half a hundred, they rode
cut in the middle OF the night. surround
ed Queens camp. fought pitched bat
tie. and dragged the surviving remnant
off to the yawning penitentiary and stern
old Judge Parker of Fort Smith.
Next appeared the Cook brothers, about
eight years ago. who selected the newly
built Arkansas Valley Railroad as their
prey. but after a single successful hold
up they met 4 posse made up Of Usage
Indians. Oklahoma farmers, Greek Ma
ton Cowboys and United States deputies.
who scarcely left enough of the gang to
tell the story Of their brief career. The
youngsters, hardly more than boys. had.
drunk in eagerly the tales of the James
boys and the Younger gsing. and had
launched out in good faith to eclipse all
former records of outlawry. Their high
purpose made them reckless.
The latter Dalton gang. four brothers
and as many more brave and intelligent
associates, came nearer to reproducing
the real flavor of romance than any who
had preceded them In the business of
pilfering express cars. The Daltons came
into the Territory trained to the trade,
three of them having worked with the
famous Evans. Sontag, and Sontag tr1o,
in Southern California. The spectacular I
ending of the Eyans-Sontag partnership,
after an all-day duel between a housefuI
Of deputies and two of the outlaws be- \
hind a stack of stable refusey sent the !
Daltons packing from California to the /
Territory. Here they lived quietly for /
! time, winning friends all over the coun- I
Try, working as cowboys and winning I
regulations as haiI-fellows, good rifle |
shots and stauneh~ friends. one or two
cleverly managed, carried /
through without hitch, sent people to
who the robbers were. Still |!
he Daltons held their jobs and were
lot suspected.
But the hold-up of a train on the Mis-
ouri, Kansas and Texas, near Adair. on
which half-a-dozen well-armed guards
we're posted and from which an unusual
y large haul was made, served to rouse
he officers 10 an extraordinary activity.
robbers who could sweep the length
f a train with a fire that kept even
Vinchester-armed guard inside. who could
ncouple the express car from the pas
enger coaches. run away with it into the
Foods, crack it open, take it back to
he train, and send the whole on to the
ext station, without exposing themselves
, a single shOt-certsinly these were ,
I an extraordinary cleverness. Finally.
he officers picked the Daltons as the ]
riminals, but the community was in I
T..
ne brothers former reputation. So COM ,
letely had these genial fellows won the Y
onfidence of the ranchmen and cowboys c
lat the officers for d long time dared not I
y to arrest them. {
A sense of security embroidered them; 7
ley mussed an attempt on the Arkansas '
allied road. Bob was wounded. and the I
immunity had indisputable evidence Of t
leir guilt. But still public opinion shield y
them-the railroad could. in the opin- r
n of the countryside. easily afford their a
sses. and the boys had made them t
Ives popularf and pleasant 10
One day three OF the Daltons. accom-
inied by three others. rode leisurely up c
Coffeyville. Kan. four miles over the o
rider. of the Indian country. hitehed r
cir horses and walked over to rob the II
INK. An obstinate. faithful cashier de- II
yed them unduiy. the town woke out Of {,
-hargy. and when the boys made rush "
r their horses, shotguns. rifles. pistols, s.
pped at them from all sides. These
ere annoying but not fatal. until a calm a
livery-stable helper climbed Il
to the barn loft with a winchester. z
retched himself comfortably on his o,
&.
s as they mounted and <tarted 10 m
lie away. Two of the brothers were 81
led by the livery-stable man. the other n
IS wounded and captured. and but q ii
lgle member Of that band reached the :,
rritory TO tell young Bill Dalton Of the II
te Of his brothers. 81
Bob Rogers. an insignifcan looking. II
ght-limbed. little cowpGncher who had n
own the Dalfons. induced tEo Of MS y
npanions TO run on with two carloads Sc
cattle from the Indian Territory 20 ST
Insas in the night, The cattle were 81
d. the buyers shipped them 70 Kansas
&. where the Territory ranchman's III
utter saw them, and the theft was soon %
lrged to Rogers. This made him an "a
law. and with his companions he tried sh
in-ro5hlng. one success and one faH- nl'
within year made him talked about ri'
but he was never regarded ta
2 clever leader. When the United States -
,uties we're ready. after the railroads ~
.red rewards had mounted to re- -af
ctable figure, they were led b. Heck ~
amer. who was a blacksmith bv trade. q
Rogers rendezvoux- Here. ia the mid ha
OF the night. freezing wlrter viud ga
Wing outside. they fefi upCn gang ge'
sep in the cabin KILLED two and cagtur- ius
the other three aE