The St. Charles herald. [volume] (Hahnville, La.) 1873-1993, 1917-06-02

keehan failed to support her. Inc
two men had travelled down the river
on different households. Mckeehan
was known to have money, and fire.
quently lent small sums to his com
panions, taking their watches and
other personal effects as security, and
charging them a high rate of interest.
An agreement was made among the
members of the party to stop at Paw
paw and steal some sorghum cane.
On the way to the field McKeehan
dropped behind the others. Harris
also stopped, according to Trumbly' S
story, alleging that he wanted to get
burr out Of his shoe. Harris let
McKeehan pass him. and then, creep
ing up behind him, he struck him
on the back of the head with an iron
bolt, knocking him down, and after
ward struck him twice more to make
sure that he had killed him. Harris
then took $40 from Mckeehan's clo-
thing and threatened to kill Trumbly
unless he remained with the body
while he went for a sack. He got
the sack, and the two men put the
body in the sack, weighted it with the
iron, and sank it in the river. Then
Harris took his step-daughter into the
boat and started for Eufaula, while
Trumbly and his wife drifted down
the river to Fort Smith.
Trumbly was placed in the county
io;1 70
for his wife and find out what she
knew about the murder. Mrs. Trum-
bly, had not been in the shack at the
time of her husbands arrest, and did
not know that he was in Jail. Watts
and Henderson accordingly went back
and found her, informing her that she
was under arrest. She stoutly denied
having any knowledge of the matter.
A few days previously Watts had
sold McKeehan pair Of shoes. and
on the way to the Jail the party
passed the goods that were marked
for shipment to Harris at Eufaula.
why didn't you leave McKeehan's
shoes on him when he was muir
dered?" inquired Watts of Mrs. Trum-
bly,. Where are they?"
my husband is wearing them" an
swered the woman.
Mrs. Trumbly was then asked
whether she had seen Tate and Mar
tin at Fort Smith She said she had
Shrum, who had Joined the party,
then informed her that he had been
lying just outside the cabin and had
heard her and her husband discussing
the murder, and the way in which it
was committed, and added that Trum-
bly, had already made a complete con-
fession. Mrs. Trumbly then admitted
her knowledge Of it, telling the same
story that Trumbly had told. Trum-
bly, and his wife were then taken to
Judge Edmonson's office, where they
repeated their story.
Watts then called up the authori-
ties at Sallisaw, detailed the story OF
the confession, and asked for writ
for the arrest Of Harris. The Salli-
saw authorities, however, insisted that
an affidavit would have to be made at
Sallisaw before a writ could be issued.
1t was then decided to call In the
chief marshal of the Northern district.
Meanwhile there was great excite
ment at Fort Smith on the arrival of
the pair: William Eugene Johnson
happened to be in town at the time.
He was planning the series Of sensa-
tioual raids upon the Indian Territory
bootleggers which were to make him
famous, and he was not intensely in
terested in this news until somebody
mentioned that Harris and his party
had been peddling whisky on their
journey down the river.
Instantly Johnson was a changed
man. He buzzed to and fro like a
bee, always in the thick of things,
and, meeting Watts, offered to call
up Marshal Bennett and secure writ
for Harris arrest, and that of the
woman who was with him. Warrants
we're accordingly issued and sent to
Eufaula, and officials of the govern
ment gathered there and began scour-
ing the country to discover the where
abouts of the fugitives.
Meanwhile Johnson. having secured
photographs of Harris and his STEP
daughter, joined the throng Of search
ers. 1t was at first believed that the
murderer and the girl had gone to
San Antonio, Texas, and this report
led to a slackening of the pursuit.
Johnson never slackens. He had
started out to find the man who was
debauching his Indians-and, Incl
dentally, had murdered his son-in-law,
and he meant to get him. While trav-
cling on a train between McAlester
and Muskogee, Johnson heard a cas-
ual remark dropped which led him to
believe that the fugitives were still
near Eufaula He got of the train at
the next stopping place, and started
out alone in a southeasterly direction,
until he arrived, late in the afternoon,
at a ferry station on the Canadian
river. Just before he reached this
place he met a bootlegger in a rig,
conveying a two-gallon jar OF whisky.
Johnson let him pass. He was in
search of larger game, and the we'll
trained hound never abandons his first
quarry to take up another trail. Be-
ell Johnson nTNb-