Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1903-06-06
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SILK HATS ON THE FRONTIER.
How tho Wearers Of tho Early Ones
Wore Greeted and Treated.

Wore Greeted and Treated.
Recently the kilograms brought from
Pagan, Texas, a story of how the town
roughs had set upon and killed Bible
agent whose sole offense was that he
wore a long-tailed coat, patent leather
shoes and a plug hat. Commenting
on this story, the wellington, Kan,
Mail declares that "a similar incident
occurred in the early days Of Caldwell"
However, the plug hat shooting in
Caldwell was a different affair from
that of Pagan. In April, 1872, one NC
Carty, a local bad man." entered q
store in Caldwell and found there DR..
Anderson, who was known throughout
the southwest as "the plug hat man."
because he was usually adorned with
that kind of headgear. Anderson was
not "tenderfoot." He had been a
prominent member Of the Butler coun-
ty vigilantes. and 1t was known that
McCarty had a grudge against him.
When McCarty entered Thompson's
store and found Anderson there he
pulled six-shooter and said: watch
me put a hole through that hat" He
did put a hole through the hat, and
when Anderson protested he fired
again, this time putting hole through
Anderson's head and causing his in
slant death. McCarty was pursued by
the indignant citizens Of the town and
took refuge at the ranch OF Curley
Marshall. When the ranch house was
surrounded he refused to surrender and
then the house was set on fire. In the
running fight which followed he man
aged to escape, after wounding sever
al of his pursuers, but few days later
he was overtaken and his body was
left on the prairies.
There is no Observation-Disclosures ac-
count of a killing In Kansas on account
Of the wearing Of plug hat, though 1t
is popularity supposed that the Incl
dents were frequent 1t Is quite true
that when a stranger appeared in one
of the border towns wearing this kind
of head covering, he was always greet
ed uproariously, and the hat came to
grief, but the affair usually went off in
the best Of humor The first plug hat
worn into Hays City, for example, was
on the head of the late Connell Hen
ley, who died at that place few years
ago. In 1858 he went to Fort Hays to
be a clerk in the quartermasters de-
partment. He was good dresser, and
when he stepped from the train he
wore tall silk hat. At once the town
loafers and joshers, and killers congre-
gated at the depot. They said nothing
at all to Henley, but they formed close
behind him a procession, and wherever
he walked they walked, keeping up the
lockstep. The foremost man walked so
close to Henley that he could not even
turn around to see his tormentors and
it was a sight-that procession SOL
emnly moving along, each man with
his hand on the shoulders Of the one in
front of him and all keeping step.
Henley tried to shake the crowd on
by walking around the block. He
did not succeed. On the contrary,
the crowd kept augmenting un-
til pretty much everybody on the
townsite was marching. Then an in
spiration seized Henley, and he steered
straight for Tom Drums saloon, the
most popular place in town. Walking
up to the bar he set his silk hat down,
bowed politely to the barkeeper. and
said: "These are my friends, and they
are all drinking with me-"
1t happened that there was a big
bowl Of tom and jerry on the bar.
Some one emptied it into the plug hat,
and some one else got a dipper and
passed the drink around. Presently
the liquor soaked through the top Of
the hat, and thereupon it was placed
on the top of post, and every man In
the crowd took a shot at it, riddling
it into rags.
Henley came off from the encounter
with every man his friend. He had
met the rude introduction Of the west
with good nature and his place was
made.-Kansas City (Mo.) Journal.