The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-06-21

| with d slight minority OF general stores
| The motley collection of men who visited
| Dodge City ut al hours Of the DAY and
might, buffalo hunaters, scouts. soldiers,
| Indians. gamblers and the TiIfrah that
| invaribIy scents out such a headGuart-
| ers for crime thrOnged Texas street
and the other avenues of commerce.
Naturally, the maintenance OF order at
Dodge City was no light matter and the
election of marshall meant a good deal
more than the appointment Of police
captain in any city today. Probably the
best marshal Dodge City ever had was
Patrick Shugrue This little horse sheer
never found it necessary to kin a man,
although he arrested many notorious
gun fightres, some of them being taken
under circumstances which were deci-
dedly Illuminating to themselves. IL was
Shugrue's rule 10 seek out his man and
calmly say: You may consider yourself
under arrest" Apparently these words
had a hypnotic effect, for it was seldom
that there was any attempt TO resist.
On one occasion it is related Of him
that a bad man sent WORD TO Shugrue to
come and take him. Shugrue obligingly
went to the bad mans place of business
and as he opened the door a revolver
was discharged almost in his face. With
lightning quickness Shugrue knocked the
muzzie of the weapon upward, but the
powder fburn6d his face end hand. The
marshal quickly had the would-be assas-
sin on the floor, the bad man" naturally
thinking his days were over. But instead
Of fisehdrging his revolver. which was
held at THE towards head, Shugrue simply
SAID: "T ought to Kali you, but you may
consider yourself unoer arrest
Ben Daniels, who came into the public
/ eye. a short time ago on account of the
controversy over his appointment as
United States Marshal of Arizona, was
a prominent figure at Dodge City in its
wild days. Daniels was every inch a
gun fighter, and he made big reputa-
ton as. a killer when the people, follow
ing a happy custom. decided that it
would be better to have such a man as
a peace. officer than a peace destroyer.
DapieTas career at Dodge City gained
him suchhfone'as aseun player that when
the ieSS ard snOisy gold camp of Cripple
Greek began to loom up, Sheriff Bowers
Of FL Paso county, Col, sent for this
l.
brought up from Indian. Territory at the
same time and kid Wallace and
Grant and Lem Crumely We're also i'm
ported and all were made deputy sheriffs
at the time. Of the great Cripple Creek
strike In 1888. Grant Cruniely only a
short time ago shot and killed Sam
Strong the millionaire owner of the
Strong mine about which much of the
tragedy of the great strike was acted.
Daniels showed his nerve during the
strike in a way that recalled the Dodge
City days. The strikers. headed by veter-
ans of the labor wars of Occur q AIenes,
under command Of the mysterious Cen
eral Johnson and Jack Smith, were en-
trenched behind the earthwcrks on Bull
Hnl. They had cannons and their posi-
ton was considered impregnable, but
Daniels one morning organized a comp
any Of mounted deputies and started out
with the ayowed purpose OF capturing
and hanging General" Johnson. Just at
the time the National Guard under
command Of Davis T. Waite. of Bloody
Brides" fame. flung itself between the
strikers and Daniels and prevented
conflict which would have been nothing
short of battle on a large scale.
When the Spanish American War broke
out Daniels enlisted in Roosevelts Rough
Riders and went through the campaign
in a manner that gained him the personal
commentator of President Roosevelt.
Luke Short. another member of the
Dodge City circle. made his name famous
in the days of Masterson. Daniels et. al,
by the prominent part he took in the fes-
Invites along Texas street. Every gun
fighter had his peculiarities Of style like
every other individual who depends on
his skill and quicilness in living up to
his reputation. in short, unlike Dave
2Iather of Dodge City was an open
aud fearless fighter Mather. who was
undWsized. and who shufied along the
streets with his hat pulled down over
his eyes. had a trick of throwing up his
hands and whining and protesting when
some other fellow bad man got the
drop on him. Invariably Mather's oppo-
nent would neglect TO fire and his pistol
arm would drop on his side. Instantly
and the coroner Of Dodge City would
have another case to attend 10. Luke
Short never adopted this style of fighting.
He participated in some of the hottest
fights in the history Of Kansas, both in
Hays City and Dodge City. but no man
could ever say that Short took a meaH
advantage. His prowess as a gun fighter
gained him the appointment as sheriff
and marshal and like other bad man"
who rose to these official positions. he
made good officer. taking pride in his
ability to bring the worst outlaw to
justice.
Probably the gentlest Of all the border
characters of the stirring days of Dodge
City was J. B. Omohundro. better known
as Texas Jack" Omohundro was n
protege 10 buffalo Bill" He dressed
much after the style Of Cody and was
much in demand among buffalo hunters
as a guide. He was one Of the most
skilled Indian fighters that ever blazed
a trail through the wilderness and he
was one OF the first white men 10 uene-
trate Yellowstone Park entering that
great place Of natural wonders soon after
Jim Bridger made his famous trips into
the Yellowstone.
Probably the worst bad man" who
/ ever gave trouble 20 the marshals OF the
Southwest We're King" Fisher and the
/ Thompson Brothers. Sen and Bin Fisher
vas a The head 81 a sans Of cattle rust
7 lers and vas known as bad mar" gen
+ orally He was bully through and
/ through, fierce and asserJivc. When be
/ entered bar room MS eyes circIed round
/ te see who he could h-owb5at. one one
/ occasion Fisher Sc thoroughly buIlied
/ Bill Loneley. a bad man" OF no snail
reputation. that Lo2Eicy never asain
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