The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1905-01-28
TELEPHONE 1874.

The feeling becomes more acute as each
ranging season opens, and as result Of
the continued depredatfons, many Of
the sheepmen have found it necessary
to dispose Of their herds.
Although the first organized bands OF
sheepshooters We're for the express pur-
pose Of protecting the range from So
called outside sheep. their efforts have
never been directed at anything but the
apparent determination OF home sheep,
that all public range could thus be con-
served for the individual use Of the cat
tleman, to the exclusion of all other
classes of stock.
At different times in the past the cat
tie interests have been accused of hav-
ing an organization which has been re-
sponsible for these depredations, but
each time the answerwould come back:
I'VE are not gpilty, and cannot posi-
bly, furnish YOU a clew, unless it is some
irresponsible parties who have wanton-
ly killed your stock without cause
This answer has been makeshift to
herald to the outside world, in lieu of
anything more definite, but the past
season has demonstrated that such is
not the case, but instead it has been.
proven that the counties of Cook, Lake
and Grant are the homes of organized
bands Of sheepshooters. organized from
among representative cattlemen, who
cooperate with one another in their de.
predatory acts
The Silver Lake shootings of last
spring furnished an example Of the dis
tances travelled by some in cooperating
with others Of the band, when cartridge
boxes were found with a Prineville
firms cost mark on them, although the
scene Of the shooting was one hundred
and twenty-five miles from here. AIT
that time two affairs followed each 9TH
er in quick succession resulting In the
slaughter of over four thousand head of
sheep. and were probably also response
Bile for the death Of Greed Conn, the
Silver Lake merchant, whose definite
knowledge Of the affair became known
and feared through his criticisms.
The writer has been fortunate in get
ting the story Of sheepshooting affair
from a participant, and the fact that it
was unsolicited enables him to give it
without any quaiins Of conscience. His
story follows:
About three o'clock in the afternoon
the scouts that had been posted during
the entire day had ascertained that the
herder was alone and unarmed, and
that we ran no chances in getting pos
session Of his band. This was done by
our party, numbering some dozen men,
after we had INDUCED in a few prelimi-
naries, such as firing off our guns and
giving vent to a few oaths, just to make
the poor cuss stand pat for If he had
attempted to run we would have had to
kill him. He was bound and gagged to
prevent his getting away and giving
the alarm, and was then placed by the
side of a tree.
The band of sheep, numbering about
two thousand, was then driven to a, cor
raj in decided land which was done for
a double purpose, as we could then
shoot without their scattering, and we
could also point to the carcasses and
say: Well, they were on decided land,
and whoever killed them did so merely
as an act protecting their own proper
ty.' We then knelt with our knees on
the ground, that every shot from our
thirty-thirtys might take effect in more
than one sheep, and thus save ammuni-
ton. In this manner more athan fifteen
hundred shots were fired, and as a re-
suit twelve hundred sheep were killed.
Those of the band that succeeded in
getting away were without a nerder for
two days, and many succnmbed to the
attacks of the coyotes.
Yes, we had our faces blackened, so
that we could not be recognized, and it
was veritable picnic. Had everything
our own way from start to finish.
You're id right, that sheepman will
never get within miles of our range
again, that's a cir1ch." ~
The shooting described was that in
WHICH MOTTOW U A66lldIl, OIL NillOW3
Creek, representative sheepmen of this
county, suffered a loss of about one
Thousand head of thoroughbred sheep,
and illustrates the methods pursued by
the sheepshooting crowd. do not
mean to say that all cattlemen are inn
plicated in these affairs, but there are
certainly few exceptions. 1t has been.
said that when a cattlenan refuses to
countenance their acts he incurs their
enmity and is rated with a sheepman.
Other cattlemen who do not care to run
the chances Of detection by active par
ticipation "show their colors" by con-
tributing cartridges, and sometimes in
formation, thus working in with the
gang" & y
Such acts are very naturally tending
to destroy a legitimate industry of this
section that has the full protection of
the law the world over, save in a few
isolated western localities. The past
season has witnessed over fifty thou
sand sheep of Crook county's total of
two hundred thousand pass into outside
hands, and if the attitude Of the.cattle-
men does not change, In another season
this number will be more than doubled.