Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-02-26
HOLE IN THE w ALL.
BANDITS HAVE A fArunAL FORT
IN NoRTHlRHfwYoM1Na.
IN z6my Vou1u NUt VaPtu1e 1n1S
Abode of5Desperate Men
and Women.

andbWomen.
li---a
From the Brooklyn Eagle
Police officials throu1 bout the country,
but especially in 5pe Test and northwest
have recept-y had yheir attention attracted
to the ':rloie-in-thefWau the most notori-
GUS ard in many ways unique hiding place
for desperadoes in the world. Within the
grim granite walls Of the Hole are more
than two score of men, most of whom are
wanted for more than one murder. Without
are the peaceful farms and ranches Of the
rapidly growing northwest. II one OF the
men In hiding should venture beyond the
boundaries Of this strange place Of refuge
he would be shot on sight. And several
bloody and unsuccessful attempts to raid
the Hole have proved that it is just as dan
gerous for An outsider to try to enter.
The Hole-in-the-Wan is one of the most
remarkable OF the many strange freaks Of
nature In the Rockies. It, consists Of a
great wall Of granite, almost impossible
even for the nimble and sure-footed noun
tain goats. The wall is shaped like a rough
circle and forms natural fortress which is
practically impregnabie. Once. safely en-
sconced within. score OF good riflemen
land the men who have made II: their refuge
are among the best shots in the west) could
defy an army.
Near Yellowstone Park.
The Hole-in-the-Wall IS situated in the
northern part Of Wyoming, just south Of
the Montana state line, west Of the Big
Horn mountains and east OF Yellowstone
Park. There Is but one entrance to the
Hole. narrow gateway through the great
walls Of granite, where the Powder river
pours through. Probably there Is not in
the whole world another place that could
be more easily defended by desperate men
or where they could SO securely defy the
law. The pursuit OF Tracy would perforce
have stopped at the grim entrance to the
Hole.
Where the Powder river has forced its
way Into the Hole-in-the- Wall the cliffs rise
up precipitately on both Sides On the left
side of the river, and about fifty feet above
its surface, runs a rough pathway, which
could hardly be called q road. 1t Is SO mar
row thattwo horses cannot be ridden abreast.
Any person wishing to enter the Hole-in-
the-Wall must pass through this defile.
Even II no defense was made the journey
would be toilsome to the last degree. At
every step, however, the intruders would
be under fire from all sides and in a posi-
tion where 1t would be practically impossi-
BILE to retaliate, as the defenders would be
invisible. The character of the country
precludes the use Of artillery, and no troops
could hope to effect much with rifles. So
the jewellers in the Hole-in-t he-Wall have
though nearly every man in hiding there
has committed not one, but many crimes
that deserve the death penalty.
Refuge fol, Sioux.
Long before the Hole became hiding
and used by the Indians. A remnant Of the
Sioux band fled there after the Custer mas
sacre. Later an attempt to corral them
was made by United States troops, but
failed utterly.
A few years after the, Sioux had fled to
the Hole it began to be the refuge Of some
Of the most desperate characters OF the
gang known as the Belle Fourche bank
robbers fed to thesHole after one Of their
most successful raids They had broken
into several bankssand the posse on their
trail included sheriffs and their deputies
from four counties. The pursuit was kept
up until the Hole-in-the-Wall was reached.
Then the outlaws, having entered through
the granite walls, turned to face their pur-
suers. That ended the attempt to capture
them. A few shots were exchanged, blu:
no real assault made It would have been
simply useless loss of life.
An outlaw known as Laughing Sam"
Carey has well earned the title Of chief
Of the Hole-iIf,the-Wal desperadoes. For
years he def1ed pursuit and robbed and
murdered through South Dakota, Wyoming
and Montana. He is almost the sole SIR
vfvor OF the old-time western highwayman
who held up treasure coaches about Dead
wood. A truthful story Of his adventures
would be a more thrilling tale than the
history Of many dime-novel hero. In
fact, many Of the adventures of Deadwood
Dick, so dear to the small boy Of twenty
years ago, are identical with those OF
Laughing Sam Carey. 1t was his band
that rode into Spearfish, 8. D., about ten
years ago and robbed the bank, while fight
ing almost the entire town. So desperate
was the battle that every man in the gang.
with the exception Of Carey himself, was
killed. Carey was wounded, but succeeded.
after adventures rivaiing those Of Tracy.
in reaching the Hole-in-the-WaH. His
claim to the leadership Of the outlaws was
soon recognized, and he has kept the posi-
ton since.
Notorious Criminals.
Among the other notorious desperadoes
who are hiding in the Hole are the Taylor
brothers. who were under sentence of death
for numbering the Meeks family, at Car
rollton, Mo-, and broke jail; Hank Wilcox
and Bud Denslow, who are wanted for a
train robbery on the Union Pacific line,
where the engineer Of the train was shot,
and many other desperate criminals who
are wanted for every crime In the calendar,
from larcenv n triDle murder. But aa long