The Coconino sun., 1927-11-25

cowboys, John Paine and Hamilton
| Blevins, had been killed at the New
| ton ranch, while William Graham had
been ambushed and killed on the Pay
son trail. George Newton, formerly
a Globe jeweler, was drowned in Salt
river while on his way to his ranch,
and it was thought at the time that
he had been shot from his horse,
though this is not now believed. His
body was never found, though his
widow offered $4,000 for its recov-
cry. Sheriff O'Neill of Yavapai coun-
ty led posse into the valley, but
most of the damage then had been
done.
J. w. Ellison, resident of the Basin,
says that at first the Grahams had
the sympathy of the settlers, all of
whom owned cattle and appreciated
the danger to their range from the
incursion of locust-like wandering
sheep bands. But the fighting soon
became too warm for any save those
Immediately interested, for the fac
tions hunted each other as wild
beasts might have hunted.
At the end the Tewksburys were
victorious, with death list of only
four. One of the fleeing Grahams
was Charlie Duchet, fighter from
the plains. He had celebrity from an
affair in which he and an enemy were
provided with bowie knives and were
locked together in dark room. 1t
was Duchet who emerged, but per-
manently crippled by awful slashes
on his hands and arms.
The end of the war was the killing
of Tom Graham. His clan about all
gone, in 1892, he fled from Tonto
Basin and established himself and his
young wife on a farm southwest of
Tempe. He was hauling a load of
barley to town. When about opposite
the Double Butte school house he
was shot from ambush and his body
fell back upon the grain. This shoot
ing was seen by two young women
who positively identified Ed Tewks-
bury as one of the murderers. A. j.
Stencil. a Winslow cowboy, later de-
clared that he had met Tewksbury rid
ing hard along the Reno road, on his
way back to Pleasant Valley, 120
miles, whence a strong alibi later was
produced. Tewksbury and one of his
henchmen, John Rhodes, were arres-
ted and charged with the crime.
Rhodes was discharged at a prelimin-
ary hearing in Phoenix, after a dra-
matte attempt on his life by Gra-
hams widow. She tried to draw from
her reticule her husbands heavy re-
volver, but the hammer caught, CIV
ing time to disarm her.
Tewksbury was well defended, but
was found guilty of murder in the
first degree. His attorneys, however,
found that his plea of not guilty had
not been entered on the record of the
district court, and so the verdict was
set aside. There was a second trial, at
Tucson, on change of venue, result
ing in hung jury. Tewksbury died
in Globe in 1914, where for while
he served at peace officer.
Zane Grey has perpetuated the fame
of the Tewksbury- Graham feud in his
novel, "To the Last Man."
The following are extracted in brief
from the 1887 files of The Sun:
(Sept. 10, 1887
A shooting affray occurred at Hol-
brook Sunday last, in which Sheriff
Owens killed two men, one of them
a noted desperate named Andy Coop
er, and probably mortally wounded
another. Cooper is half brother OF
the Blevins family of boys, and has
been one of the most notorious of
the rustlers and dangerous characters
which infest Tonto Basin. There has
been warrant out for the arrest of
Cooper for a long time, but he has
kept out of the way or has been in
such position as to defy arrest when
he has been seen.
On Sunday morning last, Andy
Cooper was on the street at Holbrook
and stated openly that he had killed
one of the Tewksburys and another
man whose name he did not know, on
Friday and that those with him had
wounded several others. 1t was un-
derstood that Andy Cooper had come
in that morning and was stopping at
cottage on the north side of the
railroad back a little way from the
town, occupied by Mrs. Blevins,
mother of the Blevins boys. A short
time after Sheriff Owens was met by
some parties and told of what Cooper
had said. He Immediately procured a
Winchester rifle and started out to
arrest his man. On approaching Mrs.
Blevins' house Cooper was found
standing in the doorway. On being in
formed by the sheriff that he had a
warrant for his arrest issued at a
place named Taylor, for crime COM
mitted some time since,. Cooper re-
piled that he would not be arrested,
and knowing the desperate character
of the man, before he could make any
break, the sheriff fired and shot him
through the center of the body. At
this time the fight became general,
there being four men in the house.
John Blevins came to the door and
shot at Sheriff Owens but the ball
missed him and killed horse stand
ing near by. Before he could fire an
other shot the sheriff's rifle put ball
under his right arm and disabled him.
Hewston Blevins then came to the
door with a pistol in his hand. His
mother caught him and endeavored to
drag him inside the house, but before
she could do so ball from Owens
rifle went through his body at the