Arizona republican., 1921-04-13

1 shotgun had was that when he was
 shot he pulled down the shotgun to
 shoot in the general direction of his l assailant, and the off mare was fatal ly shot in the rear, and both the
 mares stampeded and ran up the lit tie hill and about 20 yards from the top of the hill the off mare fell dead
 and the living mare. endeayor- ing to keep going, upset the buggy and threw out the bodies of 1 Immediately at the foot of the steep 1 declivity on the south of the Phoenix side of this depression, there was in 1 those days very small water course
 or gutter about one foot deep and 1 an average of about II inches in width, and, as is common where greasewood grows, the north bank 1 of this little water course had on il l a slightly thicker growth of grease 1 wood. On the morning of March g. 1888, some one had cut some other 1 greasewood, and had, on each side of 1 the road, inserted some of the cut l greasewood amongst the branches of l the sreasewood there growing and 1 thereby making a thicker screen for anyone who might choose to lie down in this little gutter and hide himself ! At least two men did lie down and hide themselves behind this grease I wood screen, and at least one other l laid down ina little rifle pit on the 1 west side of the road and about 200 yards from the top of the little de- l clivity. The out rider passed in safe 1 ty the ambuscade at the foot of the l deelivity, without noticing anyone 1 secreted there, and passed on up and on out onto the desert where he was shot by the man lying in the rifle pit, and Gribble and Johnson came along ! in the buggy and were not aSsailed
 until they were practically at the
 foot of the little hill. when they were
 both riddled with bullets, and the
 only effect that Mir. Gribble's shotgun l had was that when he was shot he 1 pulled down the shotgun to shoot in
 the general direction of his assailant and the off mare was fatally shot in the rear. and both the mares Stam- l peded and ran up the little hill and
 about 20 yards from the top of the i hill the off mare fell dead and the living mare, endeavoring to keep go- ing, upset the buggy and threw out l the bodies of Gribble and Johnson l Doolittle had borrowed Jim Ham, l mond's big horse and was riding him at the time of the tragedy. The bull | lion and the horse were both taken.
 | I regret to say that I am unable to i give the name of the first traveller who came along and found the dead bodies, but he lost no time in getting
 to Phoenix and giving the alarm to the sheriff's office. Immediately
 posses were organized, and I still more deeply regret to say that I am
 unable to give the names of all the men who immediately took up the chase of the assassins. Among oth- CTS, however, were Jim Murphy. then undersheriff under Jack Halbert, and Frank Cox. then district attorney.
 Frank Prothero and Tom Davenport , . nr.-& + |.
 they took up the chase they were at
 least so miles and many hours behind
 the assissins, for it is at least 40
 miles from Phoenix to the scene of
 the murders; the assassins, five il , number, as it afterwards developed headed due west from the scene oi the murder for the Hassayampa: when they arrived at the Hassayam- , ! pa two turned north up the bed ot the river. One was Francisco Vega ! again the ringleader in an appallina : crime, and the other is said to have : borne the name of Martinez Int ' other three crossed the Hassayampa | and headed in a general westerl, . direction, and here the story ought tt Q be told by James K. Murphy or som, X other of the supermen who pursued f the assassins across the Harqua Hal; desert. Again it will be difficult fol n the modern automobile driver to be Q lleye the speed with which the poss Q must have travelled from Phoenix t, e the scene of the murders and ther # took up the trail of the murderer y and. crossing the Hassayampa. ou = onto the desert, pursued them S, 9 closely that they were compelled t. abandon their plan of making tn Colorado river on the west am
 change their route and travel in general northeastern direction unti they came to a wood camp about 1
 miles west of the Vulture. Ther
 during the night of the second o
 third day after the murders it wa
 believed by the posse that they ha
 the fugitives surrounded, and tha
 their capture was but a matter of
 few hours when daylight would com.
 In the meantime, Tom Davenpol
 and some others came to the Vultur
 for achievements so that the crimi
 nals could not escape.
 They secured endorsements an
 returned to the place where they be
 lleved the fugitives were safely sur
 rounded only to find that they ha
 broken through the cordon and ha
 continued their flight over the yul
 ture mountains in the general direc
 tion of Wickenburg. Again the pun
 suit was taken up and in crossing tn
 mountains some members of th E posse came so close to the fugitive K that shots were exchanged. At lea. some members of the posse fire shots at some objects that they be lieved were the fleeing bandits Any how, the chase was so hot that on tf \ northern slope of the Nulture mour tains two of the fugitives abandone \ their horses and succeeded in escaI ing through the rocks, leaving I trail. But Innocente Nalenzuela. rit ing the stolen Hammond horse bacl tracked into the Nulture, where Il posse trailed him and found the pla, where he had sat under mesqui tree and had been supplied with har, boiled eggs and other food by a Me, ican woman friend. He was said
 have been the illegitimate son of ; old time Maricopa county pionee But neither in complexion nor sta
 ure did he bear out that Anfound E rumor. Immediately after being f \ in the Vulture he headed west to t
 wood camp where all three fugitiv
 were supposed to have been su k rounded. And here is where the C
 saying, that there is honor among
 thieves, which has almost grown
 be a proverb. received a body bio At the wood camp. where the thr
 fugitives were supposed to be su rounded, they had buried the bar
 bullion They ehad previously 2 tempted to divide it out upon { \ desert but had failed. For while
 bar of gold bullion from a oual