The Idaho Springs siftings-news., 1907-08-17


fessed at 4 O'Clock this afternoon and
stated that he committed the crime of
Friday night, which resulted in the
loss OF four lives. injury to forty more
and damages aggregating $3.50 900,
Reeves confessed to his crime after We
had been working steadily with him
since his arrest at O'Clock on the
morning OF the. fire. He attributes his
crime to drink. and stated that he had
never done anything like it before.
When he signed his confession he was
as composed a man as you would find
any place.
Before that time. when he saw that
We had him. he said, Boys. you've got
me. l did II, and am guilty of the
crime. want no attorney or trial.
Give me up to the men and let them
hang me-
Met in a Saloon.
according to Reeves confession.
he, with kiser and two other men.
whose names can not be divulged AT
present. met in A. Berger's saloon at
about 10 o'clock on the night of the
fire. All had several beers. and then
Reeves said that they ought to run
those scabs out of town and had bet
ter go down and burn them up. The
men then went across to Eek S saloon
at 1929 Twelfth street On the way
over Woodruff, one of the men. went
up to officer John Ivy and told him
that there would be something doing
at the freight depot and to look out.
Ivy said tonight: A few minutes
after Woodruff came up to me, Reeves
himself spoke to me and warned me
not to go near the freight depot, as
two men with guns were laying for
me-
Others Did Not Go.
in the second saloon several more
drinks We're taken. Reeves then told
the crowd to come on and they would
set fire to the cars and burn up the
scabs. At first all of the men started.
and then two of them backed out and
refused to go. Reeves tried to persu-
ade them to go along, but in vain, and
so, with kiser he started down
Twelfth street for the yards. When
they reached Water street they turned
up between two lines of freight cars
and Reeves pulled waste out OF the
journal boxes. On the last one of the
lines OF cars and the one that was
next to Twelfth street was caboose No.
239 in which Reeves thought the non
union men were sleeping. Reeves
tackled the waste on the west end OF
the car and set 1t atire. His greasy
finger prints were found on the car
next day and photographs taken of
them for evidence in the trial. After
lighting the waste the two men then
turned and ran.
In a few minutes, and just as the
car was beginning to ignite, they saw
Harold Bliss, Omar Woodbury.. Carl
Lindsey and Stanley Parson, -four
Boulder boys. who had been on beef
steak fry in the mountains. rush up to
the car and tearing down the waste.
put out the fire with dirt All this
time the two men were skulking in
nearby shadows The boys then ran
up the street, and. according to their
tale went after the police.
Threw Waste In Car.
Reeves and his companion ran up
the track to the depot a block and
half away, where some cars Of mer
chandise were standing alongside OF
the platform. At about the middle OF
the line of cars Reeves thought that
he found an empty one and ran into
it, although his companion told him
that 1t had merchandise in it. Reeves
said mo, it is an empty and gather
ing some straw and rags, threw them
into the car and set them afre. The
Two men tHeH IdH away anu uhtii
after the explosion We found Reeves
at four o'clock in the morning and he
has been in Jail ever since. He is the
most penitent man you ever saw, and
wants to be hanged at once.
Both men state they did not know
Of the existence of the dynamite and
we believe their story.
In the treatment of the men there
was absolutely no rawhiding. No ugly
spirit was shown to anyone. None was
brought in here to be convicted but
only to be given chance to clear
themselves. The evidence was so
overwhelming from the start that
there was not a possibility of doubt
in our minds but what we had the
right man.
"The men who confessed were
square with us and now want to do
the square thing. Neither had com
mitted any previous crime"
The first Information against Reeves
and Kiser was furnished, 1t is said, by
r. w. Woodward, a switchman, who
was arrested and held as a witness
following the fire. Woodward claims
to have overheard a conversation be-
tween Reeves and Kiser, while the two
men were talking in Burgers saloon.
Just before the fire.
Lets go down to the yards and
burn up those two d scabs," Wood
ward says he heard Reeves say.
You'd better not" was the reply
of Kiser, and the two men discussed
the project for several minutes, drink
ing all the time Reeves was in favor
of proceeding at once to the yards
and doing what damage he could;
| kiser was trying to dissuade him. But
they eventually left the saloon to-
gether
The two men them, according to the
| statements attributed to them, went
| to the wards and started the fires, as