The Savannah morning news., 1904-07-15
WOMEN OFTEN ASSISTED OUTLAWS
Gangs of Desperadoes saved from
Trouble by Feminine WiIes.

Gangs of Desperadoes saved from
Trouble by Feminine WiIes.
Muskogee q. IT, Correspondence of the
Fort Worth Record.
A study of the records and intimate
acquaintance with the marshals long IN
service proves that there were few of
the notorious bands of outlaws which
were not carefully guarded by female
friends, who would risk their lives and
homes for them at any time. The cum
ming of the women in keeping between
the United States officers and their out
law friends, and the fearlessness with
which they exposed them If they be-
came suspicious that their friends were
not acting in good faith, is without
parallel.
From 1896 to 1898 there was a band
of outlaws that had for headquarters
the Green Leaf Mountains, in the
Cherokee Nation. Nose" Miller wan
tonly killed Tom" Maddin, and when
the officers got after him he went into
the Green Leaf mountains Here he
gathered around him Charles Great
house, "Bill' Knave, Andy Petit,
Cherokee" Johnson, Bill Coulter and
two others, who We're afterward killed
by members of the same gang because
they were suspected of betrayal. The
bank of Mayesville, over the Arkansas
line, which they looted They next at
tempted to rob the postoffice at Mel
vim, and Zach Taylor, the postmaster,
was killed. The next sortie was at
Checotah, when an attempt was made
to rob the bank. There young Petit
was killed and Greenhouse captured by
Frank Jones' deputy marshal and
the death of Petit was the beginning
of the end. Petit had a sister, Lu-
ellie Petit She believed that her
brother had been entced from home by
the rest of the band and that they had
caused his death in the Checotah bank
robbery. From that day she began to
make overtures to the officers to assist
in capturing the rest of the band.
Two years and the best efforts of
two marshals and their deputies had
been spent in useless effort to capture
the outlaws, but from the alliance with
Lucille Petit results came. She was
slip of girl II years old. and a
halfblood Cherokee. She was born ana
reared in the Green Leaf Mountains,
and there was not a path or trail she
did not know or could not follow day
or night. She had assisted the out
laws to eVade officers before, and she
knew their habits and haunts. But
even with this assistance it was diff
cult to trap the outlaws, and they had
TO be caught unawares, or it meant
that the officers would be wiped out or
every outlaw killed Every man, wom-
an and child in the mountains was
their friend either from sympathy or
fear.
Nose Miller was the leader of the
gang, and every mountain home was
a place of refuge for him. Many times
the officers have gone to these houses
and made inquiries for him, and been
told that such a man was unknown,
and had never been heard of in that
section. Later developments would
show that he had slept in the house
and been gone less than an hour. The
outlaws, had a friend in the ferryman
who ran the boat on which the Off
GERS had to cross the Arkansas river,
and the minute an officer crossed into
the Green Leaf country the outlaws
We're notified They knew the track
of every horse in the mountains, and
if a stranger passed in the night the
tracks of his horse were a telltale, and
no time was lost in ascertaining who
and what he wanted.
Bud" Ledbetter, the oldest and most
trusted deputy in the territory. cross
ed the river alone one day and went
into the mountains He took his life
in his hands, for every outlaw in the
territory knew Ledbetter. By good
fortune he got close enough to the Mil
Ter gang to learn a good deal of their
movements. For two weeks he re-
manned in the mountains, living with
his finger on the trigger of his Win
chester, and sleeping on the ground
often covered with snow; for to go to
a house was to go to the enemy s camp,
and besides, houses were mighty scarce
at that time.
When Ledbetter returned he had
complete mental map of the country
| in which the outlaws were, a knowl-
edge of the operations and the conf
| dence of Lucille Petit. posse of
men who could shoot was organized,
| and, following the path that Ledbetter
| led, they got into the Green Leaf by
! a narrow gulch which Lucille had
shown him and which the outlaws had
left unguarded as a path within their
own knowledge alone. The officers
were on a still hunt, and for four days
not a single soul saw them save this
one girl, who brought them food from
| her cabin, coming and going in the
| night, her eye keen and alert and
her heart crying for vengeance for
the murder of her brother. A single
sign, misstep and the girl knew that
| her life would be whitfield out like
snuffing a candle, for outlawry de-
manded sincerity; but she never fall
tered. The fourth day the officers had
been brought their food before day.
/ light as they lay surrounding a sus
pected house. The sun had just burst
over the mountain top and the officers
ell f1xy r. don ~ nc