The copper era and Morenci leader., 1918-10-25
HOW DID HE KILL
 TWO MEN ARMED?
M. E. (DAD) KING HELD TO AN SWER TO FEDERAL COURT FOR KILLING DENYING BOYS ON RES- ERVATION.
MAKES PARTIAL CONFESSION ALLEGING SELF DEFENSE, BUT FAILS TO EXPLAIN IMPORTANT POINTS.

POINTS.
 M. B (Dad) King, accused of the killing of Arthur Bean and Paul McCurray on Black River two weeks ago, was this week taken before United States Commissioner Hinson Thomas at Globe and waived the pre- liminary hearing. He was held with out bond on charges of murder and his case set for the next term of the ] federal court, December 2.
 Before Deputy United States Mar shal Haynes, Deputy Sheriff Hi Elam, Deputy Sheriff Bud Armer and 1 Court stenographer Roy Watson, King made what is believed to be a par | tisl confession, admitting the killing but practically alleging self-defense.
 One point, however, puzzles all who have studied the case. Admitting
 that he is telling the truth it is diff cult to understand how an old man
 Che says he is "A years of age) could
 kill with an axe two active young
 men, both of whom he admits were
 expert marksmen when it came to the l -llnS OI llhC uONOo anu dSteAih,
 (and both of whom were prepared to
 shoot him) provided they were wide
 awake and well able to defend them
 selves during quarrel.
 According to Kings story, he
 heard the boys ask one of T. J.
 Lcng's men at Longs feed store at Globe about buying team of burros
 and offered to sell them his outfit
 For several days he bargained with the boys and finally consented to drive them to the Black river, charg-
 ing them at the rate of $1.25 per . day. Both parties agreed to quit at
 any time they saw fit. King said the
 outfit was heavily loaded and the boys
 agreed to get out and walk whenever J they came to a hill or sand wash
 which they did / He said the boys were very good to him and gave him
 plenty to eat The party got alone
 all right up to the time they camp
 ed near the Black river. One after noon King turned the burros out to craze. but McCurray and Bean brought them back to camp and told King they were going to ride the bur ) ros to the White river. King said he objected to the boys riding the burros, and told them he would die before the burros were taken fror the camp The boys turned the burros loose, but King says they sulked for awhile all evening. Just
 about dusk young Bean started tc
 repair his shoes and McCurray laid down on the bed to rest. King say: the party was very jovial up to thi: point While Bean was repairing hi: shoe. he kept telling King, that he 1 had a notion to shoot him full o hcles" " King said, '1 knew he wa: . good shot; I never moved so fas 5 in my life. The axe was lying be tween me and him; not exactly be l tween us, just 'sorter' between us King says that Bean drew a pistol
 q grabbed the axe and hit him or l the head. Just as hit him, heard the other boy make a noise; I looked around and McCurray was reaching l for his gun, and I swung at him, bu l I guessed wrong and hit him in thu l stomach knew it didn't hurt him g and pecked him on the head; h. s fell across the bed. Bean started t, t get up again and I hit him anothe
 blow on the head. They lived fo
 quite a while"
 f From this point King went on t' tell how he debated with himself , whether to report the trouble to tn , officers at the government post O - to the men working farther up tn river. After thinking the matte
 over. King said he didn't think any ., thing would help the boys, so h. ? hitched up his burros and prepare' . to leave camp. King says he mad
 some coffee, dumped the bodies int the river and went on his way. H said he didn't sleep very well tha .. night, so he kept travelling. H :. didn't bother about the killing an ;. further and camped out each nigh f on the way to Magdalena, sleepin Il on the bloody bed that McCurra
 fell on after he was struck. Whel
 questioned regarding the boys out
 fit, King told the officers he wa
 an honest man." and if anythin '. was missing from the outfit
 must have been lost. He said:
 could just as well claim the goo
 quilts as the bad ones, but I am a
 honest man. I could have kept tha y s1O in the purse, but I didn't" t Lucky Nimrods-