Arizona republican., 1920-12-28
RANGE FEUD MURDER
 TRIAL HERE IN 1692
 IS FULL OF THRILLS
Court, Attorneys, Jury and Spectators Given Thrill and Murder Is>Prevented Only By Merest Chance

Perhaps the most sensational mur- der and trial ever recorded in The Re- publican was that of Tom Graham near Tempe in August of 1892. The greater interest lay in the fact that it was the closing tragedy of the Tonto Basin or Pleasant valley war otherwise known as the Tewksoury Graham feud in which the number of victims was re- ported from 30 to 75 odd. Tom Graham was the last of the Grahams and Ed Tewsbury, the last of his line.
 The feud had it's origin in the usual clash of cattle and sheep on the range. The Tewksburys were sheepmen and the Grahams were cattlemen. It was not really a war. Most of the victims were killed from ambush or else over powered by numbers and the barbara ties practiSed upon some of the victims were almost unbelievable.
 In July of 1892 Tom Graham, ac- companied by an adherent, Charles Duehet, went to Tonto Basin to gather cattle. One day word reached Phoenix that the two men had been waylaid and killed and as the story seemed prob able, The Republican printed it. The next day Graham called at the office Of The Republican and proved by his presence that the last of the Grahams had not yet perished.
 But he was killed a month later. He was hauling wheat from his home southwest of Tempe to the railroad. About 10 o'clock in the morning shot was heard and Graham was found lying on a load Of wheat, unconscious. with d bullet through him. He was taken to his home where he recovered consciousness when he made a state ment: Ed NTewksbury and John Rhodes shot me- He died soon after. Rhodes was one of the sTewksbury clan, but was living in the valley. Tewks- bury was not known to be in the valley and seldom visited it.
 Rhodes was arrested and was given preliminary trial which was held in the courthouse and lasted for a week. There was general belief at first that
 Rhodes had been present. at least, at the shooting, but the testimony of the
 witnesses for the territory made it quite clear that he could not have been He had been seen by several persons at great distance from the place of
 the shooting about the time 1t oc-
 cured. He was discharged.
 Tewksbury surrendered himself some
 months later and was tried in the dis :
 trict court of this county. The jury
 brought in a verdict of guilty and he twas sentenced to be hanged when it
 was discovered that the record did not show that he had been allowed to
 plead. There were several persons who
 were in court at the time who said that
 they remembered distinctly that he had pleaded not guilty
 A new trial was ordered and the case
 was taken on change of venue to
 Tucson where jury disagreed. Tewks-
 bury was admitted to bail and the case
 was never recalled Tewksbury died at Globe not long after that
 He is said to have made a statement as to the manner in which Graham met his death. He said that he had come
 into the valley in the night time for
 the purpose of killing Graham. He was
 told that he was hauling wheat to Tue
 son. Tewksbury rode into a thicket by the roadside and waited until his enemy appeared. Without dismounting from his horse, Tewksbury fired and Graham fell back on the wheat sacks.
 Said Tewksbury: T rode out and looked at him to see whether I would have to waste another cartridge. de : ] ! cided that I needn't"
 In the same statement he said that in coming to the valley he had care fully avoided John Rhodes inNorder that no suspicion might attach to him Rhodes, he said. was not even apprised
 that he was coming.
 ' "A the last day of the preliminary trial oi . Rhodes. Several of the witnesses for the territory had been constantly il : attendance upon the trial% There wa, , one group consisting of Mrs Graham her mother, a Mrs. Hedenburg, and an : other woman. They always occupied the same seats in the court room, Mrs Graham inside the bar next to the gate I Mrs. Hedenburg next to her. then tho mother of Mrs. Geaham. Rhodes, the defendant, sat on the other side of tn, gate midway between the bar and the
 judges bench
 : Several of the witnesses were on tn, . stand frequently throughout the hear . ing. After noon of the last day thes. = four women entered the court room ane ' took their accustomed seats. Mrs. He ' ldenburg was recalled and when she wa u dismissed and while she was going i, r her seat Mrs. Graham was called ant
 left her seat Mrs. Hedenburg, insteaS
 of taking the seat she had/vacated, tool = that which had been occupied by Mrs : Graham next to the gate. When Mir . Graham was dismissed instead of tax : ing the only vacant seat, she motionet - Mrs. Hedenburg but and occupied 1t : A weary Republican reporter whC - had observed this play wondered wha
 difference it could make to Mrs. Ora . ham what seat she had. But he Wa
 soon enlightened. The dreary repeti . tion went on and the reporter as wei - as half the other members of the aud 7 fence were sinking into a doze when al ' at once a black streak seemed to shoo - across the floor toward Rhodes. Whel ', the senses of the crowd had been re W stored, Rhodes was seen to be standing
 with his hands raised. Mrs. Graham
 had the muzzle of a revolver presse
 against his abdomen and was trying {
 fire the gun. Sheriff MontgomerS
 father of the present sheriff, with othe ' officers of the court seized her, but sh
 held the weapon with both hands, pull ing furiously at the trigger and scream f ing. She was at last dIsarmed. Wha -t saved Rhodes was thls-Mrs. Grahar
 had had the revolver concealed in
 black velvet bag. She began drawin
 it out as she sped toward Rhodes, an
 as she reached him and pressed tn -e muZzle of the gun against him an edg e of the bag caught the trigger.
 Is Excitement ran high throughout tn
 trial of Rhodes. There were scores C " angry partisans on each side and tn VI peace officers were momentarily on th
 alert against q bloody out break