The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1903-06-19
BAND Of RUsTLERS
Al LAST C0RRALLED
"Circle Society,"" West OF the
River, Terrorized the
Range Country,
INDIANS CONFESS
c. II. WiIkie Of the stockman's Asso'
citation Discovers Interior Work
ings of a Desperate Bunch of
Stock Thieves. Z

OdCOildy p. L., JUNE ~ SAo ~
fessions of Claude Eagle Pipe, Henry
Pipe, William Black Bull n Moses
Goodvoice, a quartet Of Indians against
whom from two to three charges OF
horse and cattle rustling have been
lodged, the officers Of Lyman county
have secured evidence involving a large
number Of rustlers who are members
Of an oath bound secret organization
called the Circle Society," which has
for Its object wholesale plundering OF
stockmen.
The disclosures are sensational in the
extreme and 1t is believed now that the
band is approaching an end.
The confessions were secured by De-
tective c. H. Wilkie. a special officer
OF the Stockmen's association, who dis
gutsed as a rustler, got in touch with
the gang and learned the innermost
secrets OF the organization. When the
time was propttious he bore down
hard on the Indians and by taking
them unawares and giving them no op-
portunity to communicate with each
other he secured confessions which
doyetail together in a chain of evil
dence which it appears nothing can
break.
One Of the Pipe brothers has already
been convicted at this term Of circuit
court now being held by Judge Smith
OF Mitchell. and the three other Indians
will likely be found guilty. for h evil
dence is practically h same in all
cases.
Forced Honest Men In.
In the Circle Society" men were re-
CURED to take an oath Of secrecy and
l0yyo1fu 0nGEir m " = inctornoG yn-
spectacle stockmen were compelled to
join for self protection, some of them
being Threatened with assassination
il they did not.
The headquarters Of the Circle
were at the ranch OF a prominent stock
mar eighty-f1ve miles west of here. The
plan adopted in stealing is substantially
as fQlloWs:
"A member of the society after steal
ing an animal would run it to the near
est point" in the circle where the
brand was worked owe and the animal
rushed to h next. point" and sold
for a small sum to another member of
the gang, the thief giving a bill of sale
for 1t. The last purchaser would hurry
the animal to the next ranch and sell it
for a sum a little larger than tile first
and so on until the ANIMAL eventually
was disposed of. to an innocent pur-
AAd0S ~ "a y oo ENStS L AIS
money was afterward divided proper
%tionately among the members of the
society.
If, during the process of underground
railway thieving, an official got or the
trail Of the thieves, he was passed
along the line from n member to an
other until he had arrived perhaps at
had stolen the animal. This mar would
refer the officer to an Indian, who in
turn would pass him on to another.
At length, after many delays, the officer
would get to the Indian, who would
claim the animal had been brought to
his place during the night by somebody
unknown to him. The official having
got to the end of his string would have
to quit. All this is told by the four
prisoners now on trial here for cattle
rustling.
Shoot and Mutilate Stock.
Frequently when hard pressed by the
n or officials, the thieves would
shoot he stock and then cut off the
ears n the brands, thus destroying
the evidence against them.
Frank McCluskey, a ranchman near
Bottle Creek, has lost seven head of
horses during the past few weeks. His
ace horse, slim Neck" was recently
stolen and Detective Wilkie and an as
- SaIt lAS oiACSo vi Tic AMI
NAL in a creek. The animal had been
put in mourning as a special warn
ing to McCluskey. for whom the gang
entertain the bitterest hatred.
RanchHan Richardson has lost TWEEN
sty-four horses. Six OF them were shot
and the ears n brands removed by
the rustlers, who We're in danger Of
being caught. Colonel C.5gP. Jordan.
Indian trader at Rosebud has
lost about $50 cattle the past year. as
well as a number Of horses. Postrnas-
ter Custer of Rosebud is also a heavy
loser. Recently thirty-fve head Of
horses were poisoned.
The thieves have become desperate
of late. They have placed a bounty of
$500 on the head of one OF the Hanson
brothers, who have lost much stock the
past year. The brothers have fought
the gang and defied it and refused to
join the circle society"
The information in possession Of he
officials here hasn't been given out in
full. as they expect to arrest a LARGE
number Of rustlers within the next few
days. Many OF the rustlers, it is said.
learning the Indians have ~"peached.s
are fleeing the country.
five LIVES LOST