Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1905-11-04
GIRL HORSETHIEF
SENTENCED TO PEN
Myrtle Upton, Who Masqueraded
as a Boy, Gets Two
Years

horesthief, pleaded guilty to the charge
against her in the superior court, and
was sentenced to two years in she
Walla Walla penitentiary by Judge
Chadwick
She is the person who, dressed in
male attire and with a smooth story,
arrived in st. John about three weeks
ago with five head of good work hors-
es. She disposed of them lat a good
bargain 70 a farmer, John Cheno-
weth, who lies near st. John. Cheno-
weth paid for the horses by a check on
the st. John bank, and when the
stranger wished to get the check
cashed identified the Supposed man as
a person he formerly knew in Dayton.
The stranger left on the south bound
train that afternoon.
A few days later some Indians from
the Occur d'Alene Indian reservation
appeared and, claiming the horses,
took them back to the reservation.
Inquiry developed the fact that the
girl and her parents formerly lived
for a couple of years on the reserva-
ton, but were requested to move off
by the Indian agent. The girl says
she spent most of the past summer on
Snake river, where she worked on a
fruit farm, but for a couple of weeks
before the alleged stealing she had
been working on the reservation doing
outdoor farm work. The girls father
lives near Prescott, and her mother is
said to be somewhere in California.
When first arrested Myrtle admitted
stealing the outfit, and to reporter
related her escapade as follows: 81
caught the horses in a field one night,
about the 10th of October, hitched two
of them to the hack and struck out. l
reached st. John the next day and
readily sold the horses for 1925. With
the money purchased a suit of boys
clothes, had my hair cut and went out
and had a good time until quite late
that night. | then secured a bed at
the hotel where | remained until the
train started for Prescott the next
morning. | was acquainted with the
Hardness family and have been visit
ing there since. | don't care if | am
sent to the penitentiary; | have a cur
iosity to see how they run such an in
stitution. l would rather go there
than be sent to the reform school,"
When asked why she stole the hors-
es and outfit she replied: "My father
has been farming some Indian land on
the reservation for two or three years
and has made me go out into the field
to pillow and do other kinds of work,
and would never give me any money.
| came down to Walla Walla to stay
with him this fall after harvest and
wanted him to give me money enough
to go and visit my mother at North
Yakima, but he would not do it so |
rode back. up to the reservation on
horseback, and, after staying with
some friends a short time concluded
that | would raise some money, and
that is why took the horses and out
fit"
Little is known of the family except
that they have lived for several years
in the neighborhood of Walla Walla
and that one of the boys was convicted
last week at Pendleton on a charge of
forgery and sentenced to two years in
the penitentiary, but was paroled by
the circuit judge.
The family has been farming land
rented from the Indians on the Occur
d'Alene reservation, spending a por-
ton of the year up there and the rest
of the time near Walla Walla. Some
two months ago the father and mother
separated and the mother with one
daughter is living in North Yakima.
1t is related by persons who have
heard of the family that to dress up in
boys clothes was favorite game of
the girl, and that she frequently went