The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1905-06-16
HAD BAD RECORD
OVER THE STATE
Geo. letcher, Sentenced to Pen
in Ohio, Fleeced Many
Dakotans.
HOMESTEADERS VICTIMS
Those Who Fell Into His Clutches Were
Defrauded in Many Ways by This
Smooth FeIIow-Father a
Government Official.

Chamberlain, S. D., Jun S.-Informa-
ton from Columbus O., to the effect
that George Letcher, the rcputed leader
of the Williams county. Ohio, gang Of
"irebuss,' who was arrested in Cali
fornia last fall and taken back to Ohio
after an absence of over twenty years,
must serve his en-year sentence in the
Ohio penitentiary, the state supreme
court having just refused to review his
case, is of great interest to many of the
residents of South Dakota.
This is due to the fact that LetCher
was for some years a resident of what
is now South Dakota. He was a resi-
dent of Mitchell for a period of about
hv years. His father, william Letch-
er--for whom the town of Letcher, S.
D., was named-was prominent in Ohio
politics, and was an intimate friend Of
James A. Garfield.
Because of his high standing he Sc
cured the appointment to the position
Of register of the United States land Of
ice which had recently been eStab-
liShed at Mitchell, and Ssumed the du-
ties of the position in 1881, when the
present state of South Dakota formed
a part of Dakota territory.
In 1882 a brother of George Letcher,
named O. T. Letcher. followed the ia
Their and secured a position as clerk in
the land office. AT that time it was re-
ported that this brother Of George
Letcher had secured a large sum Of
money by the sale of several carloads
Of dairy products from a Williams
county. Ohio, factory, but had been
robbed of about $40, 600.
The knowing ones said the alleged
erobbers' were George Letcher and an
acquaintance of himself and brother.
george Letcher and the acquaintance
came to Mitchell a few months after
the arrival of o. T. Letcher.
1t was alleged that they Immediately
embarked in the business of covering
up government land by petitions, fill
ings n in every fraudulent manner
possible, and by this means forcing
thousands of men who were then home
stealing government land to pay them
tribute before they (the homesteaders)
could secure titles to the tracts en-
braced in their entries.
1t was said that George Letcher and
his comrade We're able to bleed" the
holnesteaders to a finish and the reg
lister and receiver of the United States
land office, both being men Who were
quite aged. We're unable to protect
the settlers against this fraudulent
Work of George Letcher NC his fell
low conspirator.
After leaving Dakota. George Letcher
was engaged in business at Minneap-
oils for a period Of about five years.
From there he went to San Jose, Cal,
where he resided up to the time Of his
arrest last fall.
His arrest and return to Ohio was
no without it's sensational feature.
Upon being indicted in Ohio. officers
from that state who lac located him
at San Jose. Cal. proceeded to that
place and had Letcher arrested. The
prisoner resisted the Issuance Of ex-
tradition papers, and was in a fair
way to defeat the purpose of the Ohio
officers, when they resorted to desper-
ate and unusual measures to get their
prisoner out of California.
While Letcher was in San Francisco
lighting against eXtradition the Ohio
officers kidnapped him, placed him on a
launch n transported him by this
means to Martinez, where the triumph
ant officers and their prisoner boarded
n train for the east, sOo being be-
You'd the jurisdiction of the California
courts