The Dickinson press. (Dickinson, Stark County, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1883-1927, 1913-05-31
Stolen Horses
New England
Farmers Giving Up Horses to Lawful
Owners in S. D. "SIim"
Left Country. n. A.
Gilbert Suspected.

"a uuulUcI u 1dEucIS AROUND new
England recently learned that they had
purchased stolen horses from South
Dakota parties and now they are turn
ing their backs to the lawful owners.
1t looks as though local men at New
England who handled some of the
stolen property or the notes, might be
out a considerable sum of money.
The Herald of last week had this to
say Of the affair:
1t was reported in the Herald last
week that Charles N. Davis, deputy
| sheriff from Harding county, South Da-
knta. was in this vicinity for the pun
pose of hunting horses which were
stolen from that county and sold to
farmers in the New England territory.
From all reports Mr.. Davis has succeed
ed in locating twenty head of the miss
5nE horses and has line on several
l,more. Sheriff Fred Doten and States
! ! Attorney George H. Jackson of Harding
county and A. E. Herrala, a horse
owner from South Dakota, arrived
here the first of the week to make
further investigations.
l. seems that New England, having
gained quite reputation as horse
market, has been the town selected by
an organized bunch of horse rustlers as
a most favorable place of converting
the stolen animals into cash. In the
early winter man, familiarly known
as Slim, with no rating that could
zoe ascertained, rented one of the local
a:Gvery barns and stated that he was
:leping to Montana for carload of horses
s,and would conduct regular sales
Fstable in New England. He left town
for few days and returned without any
horses. However. a few days later, the
bunch of horses drifted in from the
south. slim" claimed them as his
Montana bunch, and commenced ped
ding and trading them out to the
I farmers. The horses didn't sell very
! fast at first and 'Slim,'' operating
with party from South Dakota. sue
ceeded in selling the bunch to two local
BUSINESS men. The local men had no
: trouble in selling the horses to farmers
in this vicinity.
Deputy Sheriff Davis claims that 50
horses missing from South Dakota were
sold to farmers in this vicinity and
that he expected to locate all of them
before the summer is over. The local
men, who bought the horses in good
faith, are assisting in rounding them
up and are reimbursjng the farmers who
are turning over their teams to the
South Dakota officers. This man ''Slim'
has been out of the country for some
time, presumably thinking that ii
might be too confning for him if he
remained in the Dakotas. MIR. Davis
claims that he has line on the whole
bunch of rustlers. 1t is hard matter
to catch these fellows. One gang will
stert with a bunch of horses and ruI
them out of the country to the next
outfit and so on. The suspicious parties
can always be found at home wher
horses in their territory are missing
When the stuff is turned for cash, all
come in for share Of the spoils. The
original owners or innocent purchasers
pay the bills.
The Citizen published at Bowman
says:
H. A. Gilbert, former county jud 6.
at Belle Fourche, S. Dak., was placed
under arrest yesterday at the instan G.
of his bondsmen. Gilbert was arrested
last March charged with having extortet
$500 note and mortgage from Andrew
Byers by threats of criminal prosecu
tion. He was bound over to the dis
trict court and has been out on bonds
since that time. His bohdsmen recent.
ly learned of the confession of a man a
Buffalo. S. D.. who stated that he was
i a confederate of Gilbert's and that he
had sold 19 head of horses at New Eng
land which Gilbert had stolen. anG
fearing that he might jump his bon,
they turned him over to the authorities
He was taken to Dickinson Yesterday t
be RENTED to Jail unless he can fur
nish other satisfactory bonds.
According to the Bowman County
Pioneer, Palmer T. Peters and W. J.
Ouinlan of Bowman were the .bondsmer
who became uneasy and surrendered
Mr.. Gilbert, a resident for short tim
of New England. The Pioneer ais
stated that the Live Stock association
of Harding county, S. D.. are after tn
horse thieves.