The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-03-18

John Owens Story.
Il was broke and was soliciting aims
IN the street when / met Sullivan he
said Il had lost my position with the
san Pedro railroad and had spent all my
money. About O'Clock on the afternoon
Of Tuesday, Dec. 10, l met Sullivan in
the street. l had never seen him before.
asked him for the price of something
70 eat. As he handed me the money,
three officers approached and ordered me
out of town. because | was begging
walked around the next co1Rer. Sullivan
| followed me and told me not TO mind what
they had said. He invited me into sa-
loon, where we met two guards from
the state pententiary, Taggart and Irvine.
We had a drink together and Sullivan
introduced me to the guards, saying that
| was friend of his"
He then told of going to the CONT
mental saloon with Sullivan. but was not
permitted TO relate what happened there.
1t was in this saloon that Sullivan and
Owen attempted to rob Peter Peterson.
drunken man. Sullivan, according to
Owen, struck Peterson upon the head with
his revolver The weapon exploded and
the would-be robbers fled. The butt of
the revolver was covered with blood from
the wound inflicted by Sullvan's blow
upon his intended victims head.
Where They Went.
Owen was made to take up the thread
of his story from the time OF their de-
parture from the Continental saloon.
I'VE went to Commercial street, where
we were arrested" he said.
He was again stopped, Judge Armstrong
| ruling that testimony concerning the ar
rest of Sullivan and Owen as suspicious
| characters, on the night of Dec 10. would
not be admitted. But Owen seemed de-
| termined to tell of the arrest. At last
Judge Armstrong cautioned him to cease
his efforts to give testimony that had
\ been ruled out.
This had the desired effect. owens
| a To
| Sullivan disappeared for the moment.
"Where did you go from Commercial
street?' asked Mr.. Hanson.
Owen smiled. 1.-THE court cut that out
| he said.
where did you go?" repeated Mr.. Han
son.
owen remained silent
For the third time Mr.. Hanson asked
1 the question. Then an eNuitant smile
| spread over owens face.
| I'VE went with the officers to jail >
he answered, hastily glancing toward
| Judge Armstrong.
we left the city Jail at 10 O'Clock on
| the morning of Dec 49, he continued.
Then he described their wanderings from
saloon to saloon and finally trip. TO
| the cathedral, where Sullivan begged -
| cents from Father Ryan.
Leading Up to the Murder.
| There were other wandering among
saloons. At the Jubilee bar In CONNER
]
bartender who gave Joe Garcia. the porch
| climber, hiding place. and Doc" Glib
| son a former convict who was acting as
| a stool pigeon" for the sheriff. At last
| they met Garcia and went with him TO
| Belcher's room in the old kimban resi-
dence where Mrs. Belcher served them
| a lunch of eggs, coffee and pie 1t was
| then about 1 o'clock on the morning of
! Dec. IA.
| In the hour and a half that followed,
I sal N
the w. s. Mccormick residence, the Al
| bany saloon hold-up was committed and
Policeman Ford was shot.
Owen told of Garcia's giving revolver
to Sullivan and of the whiting of bullets
| to make them fit the weapon. He identi-
fled the revolver taken from Sullivan az
the time of his capture in Portland, as
the weapon given him by Garcia.
| when we left the Mccormick house,
said Owen, we walked to the Contnen-
tai saloon. Sullivan asked me where the
/ Albany bar was. | told him that ii was
down near the ID. & r. G. track. He
told me to crop behind and watch to see
if we were being followed. They got con-
siderably ahead of me. When l overtooa
them they were standing across from the
Albany saloon. Seeing two men who look
ed like policemen enter the barroom, we
hid under q tree in Fifth West street.
came out. We then walked southwark in
Fifth West sstreet. passing the Albany.
then turned and returned to the tree
which we had left, 1 was sent to LOOT
into the saloon to see how many men
were there. / saw three or four iounS-
ers inside.
Hears Shots and Runs.
Sullivan told me that he was going tc
stick up the place and advised me to try
to find my way back to the room we had
left. | walked northward.
when ! heard the shots fired. | be
gan to run. | crossed the viaduet Ovel
the railroad tracks and. on the east side
continued to run northwardly until | was
overtaken and arrested
= owen admitted that he had served
three years in the Ohio penitentiary be
fore coming west.
In the cross-examination. Mr. Vickery
| asked Owen number of questions call
ing for admissions that Sulivans story
| of parting with Garcia and Owen befor,
the hold-up and murder was true. To al
of these questions owen made denials
| some Of them very emphatic but tn,
7 convicts nerve left him when the law
yer's question reached the killing of IN,
, policeman.
When you left the saloon after tn,
hold-up, Garcia walked past Policenla,
Ford and you shot him. Isn't that true -
demanded the lawyer.
NO, sir" gasped owen. He tried :,
: make his denial more vigorous than 9th
: ers he had made. but failed. The terro
I IluIUG
! flung in his face was plainly visible
An Alleged Confession.
: Mr.. Vickery then asked owen If he ha
| not had the following conversation witt
r John Feury. a convict now in the sta.
penitentiary. in the presence of Ton,
! | Smith, another convict:
: Owen-I- had to put up some kind of ;
story or they would have tried me 70
murder. ] was afraid of that bartender
He kept watching me all The time"
' Feury-Are you going to testify agains
your partner?
Owen-Sullivan was not my partner.
! Feury-He was not your partner?
Owen-I had to do something to protec
myself or they would have tried me TO
murder.
Owen denied that any such dialogue ha
: taken place. He also denied that whel
Joe MunrOe, convict who is serving
I sentence for robbery, asked him if he wa
: O @ O q q Q o 9 oo00e