Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1903-10-06
INTERESTING CAST.
SUIT IN LINCOLN COUNTY OVER
ALLEGED ABDUCTION or
TWO GIRLS.
The Jury Disagrees, Although the Evil
dence Of the Territory Was Very
Strong.

District court at Lincoln adjourned
Tuesday Seven convictions on Grim
inal charges have been mad at the
eession of the Lincoln county court
held 81 Judge Parker, Ave of them
for larceny of live stock and two for
assault with deadly weapons. Ro-
maldo Fresquez was acquitted Of the
clarge Of murder. In the case Of
Bradford l.. Hurst, Leonia Hurst and
Blanche Norman, for the abduction OF
two 16.year=old girls from Nogal, the
jury disagreed. The latter Ease at
tracted wide attention in the county
at the time of its occurrence, and
great Interest Is manifested in the
trial. The territory made out a very.
good case. The young girls told a
very straight story and were absolute.
ly mistaken BY the cross examination.
Their story was that for about three
months prior to June 18th the defend
ants, Hurst and wife, had systematic
ally pictured to them the fine time
they could have ii they would leave
their homes and live with them, that
they would furnish them all the
money ami clothes and other things
they desired, send them off to school
and make fine ladies Of them; the eff
forts were continued until the girls
heads were turned, and finally, on
Sunday, June 18th, about 5 O'clock,
they went to the house of the defend
ants; upon arrival they We're prompt
ly concealed in the cellar of the Hurst
home and shown a prepared place nn-
der the floor where they could crawl
in case of a search. Later they were
| visited by Hurst, who attempted to
| kiss them. He told them he must
90 TO work, being employed at a mine;
he instructed them to leave the house
at 8 o'clock in the morning and go to
and conceal themselves in a certain
isolated deep canyon, where they
would not be discovered, and that he
would bring their breakfast in the
morning and later take them to Tu-
larosa. where he had made prepare
tons for their concealment until the
search was abandoned, when he would
send them to Oklahoma; they We're
| given old clothing with which to dis
guise themselves by Mrs. Hurst, who
at 3 a. m. started them off with in
| structions to 60 to the place directed
by Hurst. The girls had become
frightened by that time, and instead
of following instructions, went in a
different direction and concealed
themselves In the mountains until the
next day, when they started to their
respective homes and were met on the
road by relatives who were in search
of them. The prosecuting attorney
entered a nolle as to Blanche Nor
man.
Testimony Of the Defense.
The defense interposei that the
girls complained that their parents
didn't furnish them with good clothes
and treated them in a cruel manner.
often Furnishing them severely, and
that they came to the house Of defend
ants and announced that they had
run away; that they Immediately vol
unfairly secretei themselves in the
cellar; that they, defendants, tried to
dissuade them from their purpose,
but they persisted.
A significant fact, however. tending
to d%isproye the statement Is that both
the defendants denied any knowledge
of the whereabouts Of the girls when
the parents and others came to their
house and inquired about them, the
girls being at the time secreted In
the cellar.
A slight sensation was caused when
a boy named Fernandes testified that
one OF the girls told him afterwards
that she had run away for the pur-
pose Of marrying a young man named
Russell. On cross examination the
witness was thoroughly dissected by
the district attorney; he admitted that
he had used morphine, also that he
occasionally got drunk, and that he
had asked to marry the girl and had
been kicked out by the girls father.
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