Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1904-08-03
Murdered in Cold Blood.


sive, particularly denouncing the
boys parents. While the old man
was talking to Clark, Morris pick
ed up the neck-yoke and struck
him on the back of the head and
followed it up with three or four
blows on different parts of the head
until life was gone. The boys then
went through his pockets and took
his money and started with both
teams and the body for the Medi-
cine river, arriving at about four
o'clock, threw the body in the river
and struck out southwest.
Kings body was buried here in
the cemetery on Saturday after
noon. His wife and a nephew ar
rived from Great Bend Monday on
ly to learn that her husband had
been buried. The shock affects
Mrs. King very deeply. Later, af-
ter property matters are adjusted,
the body will be removed to Great
Bend. He had six horses, wag-
on and camp outfit besides between
$500 and $500 in money. His ef-
fects are now in the hands of the
sheriff. The boys claim that 500 of
the money they had was theirs. If
that is true, they stole $3.50 from
King after numbering him.
All day Saturday the young
hends were objects of curiosity. A
great many men thronged the jail to,
see them. They are arkably cool
and unconeet al, One Il fthe pub
fishers Of this paper talked B Both
Iof them at length concerning the
crime and they responded heartily,
hnztheirsstoFy does not aas,al zesy
sonable. 1t is almost incompre-
hensible that the denunciation of
ones parents is sufficient provoca-
tion to take human life.
In addition. to what we have al
ready quoted, the older one, Clark,
says that Morris always had bad
disposition, always wanted to kill
something or somebody and that
he was at all times a dangerous
character. Clark says that he had
no intimation that his brother was
going to strike the fatal blow and
that when he did it, it shocked him
so that for a while he was com
pletely stunned. He ran around
the school house and after regain
ing his senses, he exclaimed, "Why
Morris what have you done!" Nor
ris answered, 81 killed him and
want you to help me hide him.
AT this Clark claims he remonstrat-
ed but his brother, he claims, threat
ened him, saying "Do as | tell you
or will fix you the same way that
| did the old man." Morris then
ordered him to hitch up both teams
and load rhe corpse. They drove
north and when they came to the
jog at the Springer ranch six miles
south of town, Morris remained
there with the dead mans team
and horses while Clark drove to
the bridge with the body, threw it
IN the river and returned south,
joined Morris and both headed
southwest. They say their inten-
ton was to go to Beaver county,
Ok, where Clark has claim. They
deny that King was killed for his
money. They say they did not
know that he had any money, but
after he was killed they thought
they could not add to their troubles
by taking what he had. The mon
ey was found on Clark but he de-
nies having taken it from the dead
mans pockets. He says Morris
took the money and compelled him
! I(Clark) to take care of it under
penalty of death. This story is
confirmed by Morris. Asked as to
whether he really would have kill
ed his brother if he had not obeyed,
ne replied that he probably would
not, but he knew he could scare
i him.