Polk County observer. (Monmouth, Polk County, Or.) 1888-1927, 1911-06-23
AT REVOLVER'S POINT
TWO POLK COUNTY MEN HELD UP
BY DESPERATE CRIMINAL
Fred Huber and George 4. Bootilby Of
Monmouth Have Hair Raising
Experience.

Monmouth Have Hair Raising
Experience.
AS a probable result of Governor
Vests idealistic humanitarianism a!
| applied to convicts, two men were
held up in Polk County at the poin
l'of revolver Wednesday by an out.
law. supposed to be an escaped
"trusty, and a desperate man hunt
headed by the sheriffs of two counties
has been in progress since then witt
every certainty of bIoodshed before
the quest is over. Jess Hall, CON
firmed criminal and convicted desper.
ado, taking advantage of the executive
| leniency, is thought to be the mar
sought, and the purpose of the pursu-
ing officers is to take him, dead OF
alive. "A battle Of bullets was fought
Wednesday night, near Wren, in Ben
ton County, and news OF anothersan
perhaps fatal encounter is expected
at any moment. A report received
yesterday morning. shortly after
O'Clock, said that the outlaw had been
surrounded at Peak, a point on the
Alsea road, in Benton County.
Appeared at Monmouth.
Tuesday night the criminal is sup
posed to have held up and robbed a
man in Corvallis The next heard of
him he was riding into Monmouth
Wednesday evening with Fred Huber,
rural mail carrier. His appearance
excited the suspicious of Huber, who
mentioned it to Postmaster 0. A. VOL
verton when he arrived at Monmouth
The latter had received message &c
look out for Hall, and when showD
the photograph, Huber quickly recog.
nized it as that of the man whom he
had brought into town. While this
investigation was going on in the post.
office the outlaw had passed through
town and was making his way along
the road to Dallas. Huber, Wolger-
ton and the city marshal of Mon
mouth jumped into Huber's buggy and
started in pursuit, but when theJ
overhauled the criminal at the brick
yard about three-quarters of a mile
this side of Monmouth, he held them
up and ordered the postmaster and
the marshal to get out and return to
Monmouth, which they did.
Climbing into the buggy alongside
of Huber, he ordered him ON penalty
of death to whip up and get out of
there as soon as possible. From there
the journey was continued up hill and
down dale at full speed the desperate
man threatening Huber and the latter
urging the tired horses to still greater
exertion, until they had covered a
long distance in a short time. Their
route followed the Monmouth-Dallas
road, through Cooper Hollow and
along the road to Bridgeport past
Chester Gardeners place.
Boothby Robbed.
Shortly after passing the Gardner
home, George 7. Boothby, a Mon
mouth resident, was met in the road.
The outlaw halted him and compelled
him to turn over his watch, $18 in
cash and a pocket handkerchief, and
wanted to take the horse which
Boothby was driving to buggy, but
the latter convinced the outlaw that
the horse was soft" and so escaped
with the animal.
From there the journey was contln-
ued to Wren, where about dark the
fleeing criminal and his enforced COM /
panion were intercepted by a Benton
County posse, A number of shots
were exchanged. Using Huber as
shield the outlaw backed off into the
brush and disappeared, after ordering
Huber back. As it was then getting
dark, he managed to make his way
through the encircling lines of pur-
suers, and was not heard of again un-
hi Thursday morning, when he took
breakfast at Peak, about 10 miles
from Wren, on the road which leads
TO Alsea. Hall's father lives at Wald-
port, on the Alsea, and II is believed
his outlaw is headed there, as his
Indicate familiarity with
ihe topography of the country EN-
route. II is thought that when ne
started out OF Monmouth he was pe-
vildered and took G direction different
rom that which he intended.
Sheriff Grant Ia Pursuit.
A report of the hold-up was re-
'eived by Sheriff j. NJ. Grant of this
ity, ABOUT 5:15 Wednesday evening.
quickly getting his 25-s5 Winchester
epeating rifle from his office vault,
lie started In hot pursuit, in company
With Coroner II. l.. Chapman in the
alters automobile. They tried to
Iead off the criminal on the Mon
nouth road. but owing to mislnforma-
ion as to his movements, they were
idetraeked and sent on a wild-goose I
hase down the road toward Dixie !
rom the fork of the roads at the I
ieorge Whitaker place. BY the time
hey recovered the distance lost, the
utlaw was too far ahead to be over
AIKEN. and as dark came on sheriff d
irant gave up the pursuit and re- /
armed To Dallas, meeting Deputy
herif J. c. Richter. Lynn Elder and
G. uglow In the latters car. at
uckiamute.
In the brief time that sheriff n
rant and Coroner Chapman were A
at they travelled about SO miles 81
wing 20 lack OF cool-headed informa-
on to be obtained along the route,
nd the failure OF patrons TO yield
he quick use OF the telephone as
eedcd, they were handicapped az v
fery turn. Otherwise the result OF Il
lr chase would have been different. {,
, IL is dollars 20 doughnuts that P
'uld the Polk County sherin have
,tten within rifle distance OF the
.spcrado there would have been no
ed Of a warrant. M
Halls Description. A
jess Han Is described inthe circu- 80
n ot reward Of $50 sent out by Su- r
James. of the pcniten- c.
lry. as being 2s Years old. feet SA
chcs IN height Weighing iSs pounds
ID Is ~ occupation a logger. Tie
as received az the state prison Octo- r.
q 9 1895. 90 serve sentence of 20 "a
ars On a charge of assault aud hat Al
- armed with a dangerous weapon. an
E escaped while working az the r.
lme fer the Feeble Minded az Sa- ~
!. June 1s. while ENJOYING the priv