, 1902-04-10
MYSTERY
SURROUNDING DISAPPEARANCE
OF FRED BELL FROM HALEY
RANCH YEARS AGO.
Cheyenne Paper Has Story That Be-
by Tom Horn, With Whom He
Left to Buy Ranch and Has Not
Been Heard Of Sinee-LoeaI Fea-
lures.

The Cheyenne Leader OF yesterday
afternoon has a nearly two-column
story of the disappearance OF a man
named Fred Bell, who formerly lived
in this city, and who disappeared about
three years ago, and his wife, who now
lives at Cheyenne, intimated her belief
that the man had been murdered by
the notorious cattle detective, Tom
Horn, now in the county jail at Chey,
enne to answer for the killing Of Willie
Nickel last summer.
A part of the Leaders article fol
lows:
Did Tom Horn kill Fred Bell?' is
the question now being asked by the
authorities who are investigating the
past history of the notorious cattle de-
tective now imprisoned in the county
jail in this city charged with the muir
der of Willie Nickel last summer.
The circumstances surrounding the
mysterious disappearance of Bell three
years ago surely point the finger OF
suspicion at the cattle detective but
all efforts to secure anydirect evidence
in the case have been ~unavailing and
the disappearance of Bell may possibly
go down in criminal annals as one of
the unsolved enigmas.
Three years ago Bell drew out of the
bank at Laramie the sum OF $4,000 in
cash, presumably to take a trip with
Tom Horn to buy a ranch, and has
never been heard Of nor seen from that
day to this. He has disappeared as
entirely as IL the ground had opened
and swallowed him up.
There is residing in Cheyenne at the
present time in a pretty little cottage
just north of Lake Minnehaha, at 908
East Twentieth street, a woman who
does not know whether she is n widow
or a wife. II her husband Is dead she
is a widow, but II he still lives. and
she fondly clings to the hope that he
does. she is a wife who has not seen
her husband for three long years.
With her live two IONS and a daugh-
ter. a bright little girl of eight or ten
years, whose father has so mysterious
ly disappeared. The two sons are
from . former husband, and one Of
them, Joe Smith, is employed in the
car shops in Cheyenne. learning the
air inspector business.
Four years ago on October 31st Mr..
and Mrs. Bell and three children sold
their ranch at Conception, Mo-, re-
ceiving $1,000 in cash and a mortgage
for $4,000, and with the proceeds from
the sale of a blacksmith shop and 9th
er property came west to Wyoming,
and located at Laramie. where they
rented a house from Mr.. Lehman, the
clothier.
The money received from the sale
of the ranch was placed in the First
National bank at Laramie and after
living in the city for seven months.
Mr.. Bell accepted a position on the
ranch of Ora Haley, near Wyoming
sation, and moved his family out to
the ranch to live.
Shortly afterwards, and while Mr..
Bell was still putting down carpets at
the ranch, q man rode up on horse
back, and introduced himself as Tom
Horn, a cattle detective. and stating
that he wanted to put up at the ranch
for a while. This was the 4th day of
May, 1899. Horn said he would be no
bother to the people ct the ranch, as
he had his blanket with him and was
used to sleeping on that and would
bunk down on the floor anywhere.
"Mr. Horn remained with us at that
time for two or three weeks" said
Mrs. Bell. continuing her narrative to
the Leader representative. land was
out every night. coming In about our
breakfast time. When he arrived at
the ranch he would take of . big PTS
toll he had in his pocket and two small
er revolvers from pockets in the In