Arizona republican., 1905-03-06
CAVECREEKT TRAGEDY
The Suicide of Henry Car
 son, a Camp Boss
It Was Later Learned That He Had a Few Hours Before Murdered Two HexicanS.

A double murder and a suicide oc- cured on Saturday afternoon and evening in the Cave Creek country. News of it was brought to the city yesterday afternoon by J. D. Houck who had just come in from his sheep shearing camp and station. The name of the murderer and suicide was Henry Carson. One of his victims was a Mexican by the name of Ortiz. The other victim wos a Mexican but his name was not learned by MT. Houck The murder was committed at a lambing camp belonging to Hugh Campbell from twenty-five to thirty miles above Cave Creek. The suicide was committed within 100 yards of Houcks station.
 AIr Houck said that about o'clock on Saturday night the people at the station were aroused by the discharge of a gun. That is an unusual thing in | that vicinity for Mir Houck has forbid | den shooting about the place and vio- | lations of this rule are followed by arrests. He went to the door as soon as he heard the shot but he could hear no other noise nor could he be sure in l what direction the shot had been fired. | He supposed though that it was fired
 
 i the end of a strike on Saturday. the l shearers having knocked off work the i day before on d demand for increased pay. A compromise satisfactory to all i parties had just been effected in the evening before the shot was fired. Yesterday morning Mexican brought word to the station that he had found a dead man in the brush not more than 100 yards distant. It was
 
 Carson well known in that part of the country where he had lived and been employed in sheep camps for eight ] years Carson had been shot. The , bullet had gone through the head on the left side. A Winchester rifle lay beside the body. In the hand of the dead man was a stick with which he had evidently manipulated the hammer of the rifle. This strong evidence of death by suicide was supplemented by the circumstances that there were no other tracks than those of Carson in the vicinity. The body was visited by a score of people in the course of the morning and all of them were of the opinion that Carson had shot himself. His saddied horse and a pack animal were found tn a field near by.
 Not long after the discovery of the body 2 Mexican named Ortiz from CampbeH's lambing camp came. in bringing word that Carson about noon had murdered his brother and another Mexican at the camp. Not much could be learned of the Mexican about the double tragedy hut it was believed that Carson who was in charge of the camp and had a half dozen Mexicans working under him had found fault with the manner in which these two were performing their duties. In Q quarrel which followed he shot and killed them.
 , He immediately saddled a horse and taking pack animal left camp. It is surnised that by the time he reached Houcks station he was either over taken by remorse or saw the hopeless ness of escape and so determined to die.
 At the time MT. HOuck left the sta tion for Phoenix, Justice E. P. Me ) Cormick was getting ready to hold ar ) inquest on Carson. The deposition 1 was taken of the Mexican who brought , the word Of the murder and he was given an order by the coroner for the burial of t,.e bodies of the murdered
 men without any further formality The Mexican said that the lambine
 camp was forty miles from the station