The daily sentinel., 1914-03-19

SHOT 7 YEARS
AGO, VICTIM
Former Local Cowboy Comes
Back Without EItraditiOn
Papers; No Trouble.

Charged with being Implicated in
the murder Of Peter Swanson and
arrested under u grand Jury indirt-
ment, Claud TimbrelI will arrive in
Grand Junction tonight in the custo-
dy of tndersheriff Jeff Watson.
Tlimbell was arrested March I3
in Twin Falls, Idaho.
The murder of which TimbrelI is
accused of committing occurred on
Indian creek near the Ponsforri
ranch. swanson was driving u herd
OF sheep belonging To himself and
\. T.. WeatherwaN Of Montrose to the
Utah line. He was shot through the
stomach.
The killing of Swanson was one of
the most sensational in the history
of Colorado, and the elimination OF
n bitter war between sheep and cat
tie men over the possession of the
range.
The story of the bloody killing as
told in the files of The Sentinel nt
that time, April, 1907, was unusually
dramatic. The crime was committed
on the evening of April %. 1907. On
the afternoon OF that day, swanson
with his brother, Al. and Grover
Cornett appeared in the kannnh and
Indian creek section with 1000
sheep. with which they were ON their
way To rnuge, requiring them to pass
Though Mes, county. rhey were
headed for Montrose and prepared so
came for the night on the desert
about mile from the W. j. Pons-
ford ranch.
While Al Swanson and Corneft
a.,N..
seized by number of armed men,
and tied hand and foot. A moment
later they heard Peter Swanson nc
cost, the cattlenien, who had ridden
into camp 1T dusk. Some are said
to have been masked. Fifteen men
were in the party and they rode down
the sheep camp abreast. Peter Swan
son, who had been afraid Of trouble,
had been left 10 guard the sheep, and
WINS on duty, Winchester in hand.
As the cowboys drove up one of them
shouted:
"Throw down that gum"
mo. | won't" replied the lonely
guardian of the sheep.
Then the shooting began. A dozen
shots were exchanged and the horse
men then rode off. leaving Peter
swanson mortally wounded on the
ground.
II was some time before the two
me-, who had been bound and gag
ged, were able to secure their liber-
w, and they then went To the Pons-
ford ranch and teiephoned to this
city for medical assistance. Br. Tay-
lor of this city responded and re-
moved the wounded man to the
Ponsford ranch. where he was given
medical attention. Swanson was still
alive. and told the physician that he
coulL not identity his assailants.
Swanson's brother and his compan-
ion continued with the sheep to Mont
rose, but returned as soon as they
had gotten rid of their fiocks. At the
time the theory was advanced that
the three men might have been quar-
reling among themselves. hut this
was disproved by the reappearance
of the wounded mans brother.
DIES AT RANCH.
Swanson failed to recover from the
effects of the bullets, whic, had
ploughed through his abdomen and
intestines and died on the evening Of
Thursday, April %. The remains
were brought to this city for burial
tiit iotioNih- bhN.
Al Swanson returned to the Pons-
ford ranch the following day and
gave additional details of the shoot
ing. He said that ii was dark when
the men rode up. and they could not
identify any of the hor-emen. Un-
dersheriff Charles Wallis made n
trip to the scene of the shooting,
and made u thorough Investigation.
He reported that from the appearance
of the camp, the men who did the
shooting had ridden into camp
abreast; that there were eleven OF
them, and he followed the trails for
some miles, but finally lost IL again
in the spot where big cattle round-
up had been made. The horSemen
had carried away Swanson's gun.
Al Swanson returned to Grand
Junction for the funeral and declared
that the murder was entirely unpro-
voked. He said that the man who
killed his brother dismounted from
his horse. and took aim deliberately
and shot Swanson down. He said
that there WAS no question but what
the cattlemen had intended to tie up
all three of the men and then shoot
their sheep, but that the tragedy put
m end to that plan. Swanson said
that one Of tho men who united HIM
had light mustache. hut that was all
the description he could give of any