Year: 1866




EDIroR STATESMAN - In your issue Of the 9th
inst. 1 noticed an article headed g Murder on
Snake River" You also stated that you heard
a different statement just as your paper was 20
ting to press, which would appear ia your next
issue, but see you have said nothing AboaE the
matter in your paper Of the 18th. As this mat
ter has found its way into the newspspers, I fee
it my duty as = friend of Joseph Herring to IL
the public know the true state of affairs. Ttn
statement IN 'yous paper Of the 9Th Is false "a
every particular. In the iirst place, the trou6le
did not occur on Snake river, but on the Spt-
kane, one hundred miles from the nearest poitt
on Snake river. Kellogg, instead of sending
the negro after i bottle Of whiskey, seat him with
an insulting message 70 Herring. was present
when tue message was delivered. Ga lhe same
evening Herring sent note to Kellogg, which
was answered by Vulgar and insulting note
from Kellogg, tending to aggravate Herring
On the day of the killing the negro, after deliy-
ering his message to Herring, staid arohud our
place for two-thirds of the day. The hands
that were at work on the bridge were paid off
the day before, and were all on a drunf. The
negro got into an alteration with oni Of the
meI and struck him. The negro then ran across
the bridge, when another one of the men told
him to come back and apologize, which the me-
gro refused to do, and the white man ssot him.
The negro then went down to Kellogg 5, and the
hisfd pan and Herring started snuta ma after
he bsd armed the negro, and 1t would bes9Ss1.
ger0us ruem 10 approach hiH, whereat Her
ring and Kellogg had some words, when they
both went after their pistols about the same
time, but Herring was too quick for him, and
shot first, after which they both clinched, Her
ring holding Kelog's right wrist with his left
hand, and again shooting him with his right.
Both shots took effect in Kellogg's breast In
the meantime, the man who went dewn with
Herring to Kellogg's, andHwho was drank at the
time, fred and hit Herring in the arm, and also
hit Kellogg in the back Of the neck. This
have from Herrings own lips, and he has never
told me lie. The article in your paper stated
that the difficulty originated in an old quarrel.
will state as briefly as possible how it origin
ated. The parties bad never seen each OTHER
until last fall when Kellogg came on the Sbo-
kane with the intention of building bridge one
mile below ours. He built house and COM
menced selling whiskey to the Indians With i'm
punity. The Indians were drunk all the time,
and made it dangerous for quiet residents Of the
prairie. Herring, at the request of the Indian
chiefs, wrote to the Agent at Colville about th e
matter. The Agent answered Herrngs letter,
telling him to warn Kellogg, which he did.
Kellogg said the Agent could go to HI. There
was also horse stolen from our ranch belong
ing 10 Waldron L Co. s express, branded with
our ranch brand and the express brand. Her
ring accused him of taking the horse, and Kel-
logg acknowledged that he had got the horse
but bought him of Charles Lee, a man who
was working for him at the time, and who left a
short time after, taking with him three other
horses that he picked up on the prairie, as some
of Kellogg men assert. And to cap the climax
Kellogg ran of Herring's Indian womaa ahd
took her to live with him. Now Kellogg did
this for no other purpose than to aggravate Her.
ring and cap him into fight, or else he did not
care much Tor the reputation Of his wife and
family.


By publishing the above facts you will confer
an act of justice to Herring, and afford conso-
lation to the widow and orphans,


Yours, truly, TIN LEE,