The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1902-01-10
UNDER SHERIFF TELLS STORY
OF FIGHT.
REFUSED TO SURRENDER
Outlaw Was Surprised, But Stood His
Ground-Hoffman's Brother
In Posse.
From Wednesdays Daily Gazette.

The body of the late Lon Kilby, who
was killed last Sunday by a sheriff
posse, while resisting arrest in Snoll
coulee, about so miles northeast of
the city, is now at Smiths undertak-
ing rooms and will be buried this at
%ternoon, having been brought in by a
brother and sister of the dead man.
Under Sheriff Sayles, who was in
command of the posse, returned yes
terday morning at about l o'clock.
He had but little additional to relate,
the main facts connected with the
affair having been reported by him
to The Gazette Monday night, while
he was on the Musselshell. He was
accompanied by Roy Hoffman, the boy
companion Of the dead outlaw, who
was with the latter from the time they
broke Jail, December II, until the
fatal ending of Sunday afternoon.
Strike the Trail.
Mr.. Sayles gives an interesting, but
modest account of the fight and the
work OF the posse in trai.,rg the two
fugitives ~ where they made their
last stand. The trail was struck at
Herly & Lamotte's ranch, from which
a couple of saddles and a pack saddle
were stolen last Friday night. Sunday
morning the posse took up the trail
and followed it all day, sometimes
without p,,,oh III fE o,,14r a M +l0, n o;o
it would be almost lost. Three places
were found where the fugitives had
made camp. From the last the tracks
made by then. led UP to the coulee
where the fight occurred. After salts
flying themselves that the men they
were ioo!ing for had followed the
coulee toward Us head, the pursuers
divided into three parties, one fol
lowing the tracks of Kilby and Hoff-
man, the other taking to the right
and along a ridge overlooking the
gulch, while the third, under the i'm
mediate command of Mr.. Sayles, took
a course to the left and which led
them along a second bench and gave
them an unobstructed view of the
bottom Of the gulch, or coulee, as it is
locally known.
Hoffman and Kilby had selected a
shelf or rim rock in a bend of the
gulch for their camping place and
were protected by rocks Of great size
in all directions. A few yards distant,
in a basin in the gulch, they had
picketed their horses, three in num-
Der. AS previously published, they
were preparing to break camp when
the posse came up to them. The talk
ing of the middle party, the one fol-
lowing the trail made by the fugitives,
was overheard by Kilby and he told
the boy to take refuge in a hole under
a shelving rock Immediately below
the rim on which they were camped,
while he took his gun and crawled
around to a point where he command
ed a full view of the men who were
approaching, unconscious of any dan
ger, while he himself remained hidden
behind a rock and safe.
The Fight.
Meanwhile Mr.. Sayles and his party
had ~unobserved gained a position op-
posite to that occupied by Kilby. Just
as Kilby was in the act of raising his
rifle to open fire on the men below
him, Mr.. Sayles' men covered him
with their guns and commanded him
to throw up his hands. This was the
first intimation Kilby had of their
presence and he instantly swung
around and began shooting at them.
He fired four shots and had reloaded
his gun and was in the act of firing
the fifth when he was struck by a
bullet and fell.
The firing fastened the movements
of the two other parties and thew i'm
mediately ran to where they could Join
in the fusilade, but becaues of the DO
sitions they occupied their bullets
could not reach Kilby. After Kilby
mad fallen some of them walked to-
ward MIN, but We're cautioned by Mr..
Sayles to be, careful, while he and his
companions kept their rifles on him,
as the under sheriff was fearful that
the fellow was playing possum and
merely feigned being injured, while
awaiting a favorable opportunity to
Kill some of them. Finally he was
heard to groan and then it became
evident that he had been really wound
ed. By this time the others had ap-
preached close enough to observe
that Kilby did not have hold of his
gun and one of them secured the
weapon, which was cooked. The
others now closed in and after the
lapse Of five or six minutes Kilby