The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1916-06-22
Following Weeks Of SIeuthing Officers
Capture Alleged Hide Thief When
He Calls for Mail al
POslOGce
ORGANIZED BAND is
OPERATING is BELIEF
Stolen Stuff is Shipped from Small Station
and is Discovered al ArdmOre
in Transit to Fort Smith
Firm

When Sheriff Hodge Haileg turned
the key on A. r. Meeks and G. r.
Meeks yesterday alleging that one OF
the prisoners was thought to be d. Z.
Mullenhouse, .the hide shipper" it is
thought that he completed the prelim-
mary steps in what will, should the
state secure conviction, possibly
break up one of the best organized
small bands of wholesale trouble max
ers who have operated in this section
since the old cattle-rustling days.
May 80, or some time during the
night OF that date, thieves broke into
the slaughter house OF w. H. Catteral
near the Chickasha city limits, and
'carried off $500 worth of hides A
wagon had been driven into a freshly
plowed field which abutted the sIaugh-
ter pens, there loaded and driven
away Driving back to Chickasha the
wagon trail was lost on the asphalt
streets. 1t was late the next morning
when Sheriff Bailey was advised Of
the theft. Immediately he began a
systematic search for the thieves He
caught their trail and followed it to
near Lawton where for time it was
lost.
1t was then that the sheriff assisted
by c. H. Bailey, special inspector for
the Oklahoma-Texas Cattlemens as
sociation called off the direct search
for the parties and started in to locate
the place from which the loot might
have been shipped All shipments of
hides from any point in the southern
part of the state. were watched Es-
pecially did the officers watch for
shipments from small stations on
branch roads, as past experiences has
taught all officers that wholesale
produce thieves are prone to ship
from such places, considering the
small stations less liable to be watch
ed than are the larger railroad points
Last week this theory was proved
correct when the officers found that
a heavy shipment of hides had been
made from Lone Grove. billed to Fort
Smith. The shipment had been made
over branch road, to be transferred
to main line at Ardmore. In Ard,
more the hides were soon located in a
box car in the railway yards.
Lone Grove is located nine miles
from Ardmore on the o. N. NJ. & p
Ry. It is very small station. located
IN farming and fruit growing belt.
The fact that very few cattle are
known to be raised in the Lone Grove
community led to the hides being
stopped at Ardmore and Sheriff Bailey
notified Accompanied by Mr.. Cat
teral, the sheriff went to Ardmore and
positively identified the hides as be-
ing those stolen from Mr. Catteral.
The hides were consigned to the
Western Hide and Fur company, at
FIT. Smith Catteral and Special Off
Ger Bailey went to that place and Wis
tied the fur company's place of bust
ness. There it was ascertained that
since last fall the company had been
receiving shipments of hides from
points in southern Oklahoma and
western Texas from the same parties
and that during that time some thir-
teen checks had been mailed to d. G.
in payment for those
Most Of these checks had
been sent to Mullenhouse at Sulphur.
Okla. although the shipments had
been made from different places. as a
rule each shipment being made from
some smats Sc tion ON an unimportant
branch road It was also ascertained
that the commission company had
fro.4f....oa -, r,a~o r,h~..