Weekly journal-miner., 1909-07-21
INDIAN CLAIMS THE
 UNwRITTEN LAW
From Thursdays DaIly)

Sheriff Walter Brown or MohaVe county brought to the city yester- day "Beeeher," the Wallapai In dian, bound over to the grand Jn<y on the charge of killing MOy Soon, Ia Chinaman. The deed occurred at Chloride, last week, and the county jail in this city was selected as the place of confning him, owing to the poor facilities on hand at Kingman, the county seat of Mohave county.
 In the preliminary hearing of this case some important developments are shown hat led up to the shoot ing. The Indian came to the front and advocated justifable grounds for the act by saying that the unwrittsn law was his motive. He would nok support that plea, however, by having his wife brought forward as a wit ness, and maintained the utmost in difference as to the termination of the legal hearing. He gave his evi- denee, nevertheless, in a straightfOr- ward manner, accusing the Chinaman of endeavoring to alienate the af~ feetions of his wife, his recital being of the raeiest nature, and which he says his wife informed him of in de- tail. Beeeher, a few hours before the matter eliminated, met the Chinaman near where his squaw and children were living, and a wordy war fol lowed, in which the MOngOlian sand he would win her over, anyway. This ineensed the Indian, and he went to his house, secured his Winchester, and shot the man through the left arm, the bullet passing through the body and coming out at the same point on the right arm. Death was instan- taneous. When the Indian shot the Chinaman, the latter was in his cabin at Chloride, reading an account from a Chinese newspaper of the EIse Sigel crime. two white men being his audience. and translating it as it was viewed from Chinese sources.
 Beeeher is said to be well educated and is a man over fifty years of age. He has eight or nine children, and has been married to his present wife for nearly forty years. When he was arrested he said that the white men advanced the unwritten law, and why should it not apply as well to him as to his pale faced brethren. He is known as one of the most ex- pert trailers in the territory, and on many occasions in past criminal do- ings of northern Arizona, where this class of man hunters were necessary, he has been the first chosen to per form the work of trailing the fugi- tive. He has been to this section several times. and his alertness and capabilities in this line are pro nonneed as of the best. After his preliminary examination, he said that the Chinaman was of the most de- testible of humans. and that it was traditional among his tribesmen to do away with them, recalling many massaeres that took place in the ear Her days. when his tribe were on the war path, and reeiting several cases in Nevada where the MOngolian bit the dust at the hands of the Piute.
 The slain Chinaman had been a resident of Moahve county, also, for over forty years, and enjoyed an ex- eellent name among the white peO- pie. He was warned, however, that if he persisted in paying attention to the squaw. trouble would surely fol low. To this advice he paid not the least attention, and speaking the Eng fish language fluently, said the squaw liked him more than her buck, and money did the talking these days.
 Beeeher secured his name from Gus Beeeher, for over thirty years a prom inent merchant of Mohave county. Mir. Beeeher adopted him after his father and mother were killed on the Santa Maria, in a big fight with the military under the late General Crook. In that memorable battle the Indians lost over 300 souls, and Beeeher was found under a clump Of bushes by Al Seiber and Charley Spencer, two famous scouts, near the place where the fight took place. He was very yonug. and later was re stored to his tribe when the Walla-