UNLAWFUL EXECUTIONS
IN THE ARMY AND NAVY
BATHE OVER A PIRATES ROOTY.
STORIES TOLD BY MEN
WHO CATCH HORSE THIEVES
General Otis, from the far-off Philip
pines, baa expressed bis wish that
President McKlnley allow the execu
tion of the sentence of death passed
by a court-martial upon two soldiers
found guilty of assault upon two Fili
pino women. Prom the nature of the
offense and In view of the command-
hig general's recommendation the be
lief seems to be that the president will
not interiere with the shooting of tht
two condemned enlisted men.
The articles of war in the regulation)'
governing the army and navy provid
that no death sentence shall be carried
out without the approval of the chief
executive. Times have been In the
twin services, however, when the ex I
gencles of discipline have seemed to
demand that soldiers and sailors should
be shot or strung up without awaiting
for word either of approval or dlsap
proval from headquarters at Washing
ton. A few of these summary execu
tions mark the last chapters of some
of the most thrilling tales of campaign
life on sea and land
One of the earliest of these "death
examples" set by commanding officers
In the Meld who constituted themselves
the last reviewing authority, was that
of a quarter-blood Seminole Indian,
who enlisting In the United States ar
my, endeavored to betray the brave
little band of Major Dade to the hostile
reds In the everglades of Florida. The
story of this execution and of the cir
cumstances leading up to It is but lit
tle more today than an army tradl
tion, the whole thing being Involved In
much mystery. Not long after the
hooting of the quarter-breed Dade's
entire command was annihilated by the
8emlnoles. Almost the only thing to
day which recalls that tragedy In the
wamps Is a plain white marble shaft
which rises at West Point, not far
from Kosciusko's Garden, to comrnem
orate the death of Dade and his 300
intrepid followers
If a man will picture to himself the
sensation that would have been in
the United States if Admiral Dewey
had strung up to the yardarm "until
be was dead" the son of Secretary of
War Alger on the charge of mutiny
and had done this without communi
cating with the authorities at Wash
ington, he may get some adequate Idea
of the excitement of the American peo.
pie In the year 1843, when It was learn
ed that Captain Alexander Slldell Mac
kenzie of the brig Somers had hanged
Ensign Philip Spencer, the son of Pres
ident Tyler's Secretary of War, John
C. Spencer. This execution took place
on the high seas and with Ensign
Spencer were hanged Ordinary Seaman
Small and Boatswain's Mate Cromwell.
Prior to being ordered to the Somers
Spencer had been on a vessel In the
Bouth Atlantic squadron and while
there had become Involved In some
practices which secured his removal
from his vessel. He was saved from
dismissal from the service by sheer
force of his father's political Influence.
When he was ordered to Captain Mac
kenzie's brig, that officer objected to
the assignment, saying that he had nn
use for the "base son of an honored
father,"
Spencer went along, however, and
for a while behaved himself fairly well.
There were twelve officers on the brig,
with a crew of twelve able seamen and
about nlouty apprentice boys. The
Somers' destination was the African
coast, where It was to aid in the pro
tection of American commerce. When
It was about half way across It was
noticed that Spencer was hobnobbing
with the crew: that he was giving to
bacco to some of the men and brandy
and money to others.
One night a seaman named Wales
Imparted secretly to Captain Macken
xle the details of a plot concocted by
Spencer to murder all the officers and
to seize the brig for the purpoae of
entering upon a career of piracy. The
story that Wales told was so horrible
in Its outlines that Captain Mackenzie
treated It at first with ridicule, but
the actions of certain members of the
crew soon showed that there was some-
VANDERBILT RODE WITH TRAMPS.
Young Alfred Gwynne Vanderbllt
hurried in a special train from San
Francisco to New York ten days ago,
that the will of his father, the late
Cornelius Vanderbllt, might be read
and the world know how the estate Is
to be divided. On the way, from Kear
ney, Neb., to Chicago, he had for his
guest, a tramp. In fact, the tramp was
on the train all the way, but young
Vanderbllt did not know It. He was
carefully stowed under the trucks In
a small hammock and got along nice
ly until Kearney was reached. There
he was found smoking a pipe. Thi
trainmen saw the smoke, thought I
was a hoi box and discovered him.
Young Vanderbllt thoUKht It was
great Joke.
He surveyed the outfit and askei
questions. The tramp tells It this way
"What is your name?" asked Mr
Vanderbllt.
"Sam Marks," I said. It ain't tho',
for my name Is Kill Henderson.
"Well, Sam, what Is your business?"
"I'm a traveler. My health ain't good,
so I like a change of climate once in
a while. Frisco is rather chilly, espe
cially to strangers."
Then the young man laughed as he
took a quick look at me and again ex
amined my outgt.
"Who may you be?" I asked, as I
closed In on him. "May 1 ask why
you examine my outfit that way?"
"Oh, I meant no offense," he said,
waving off the train beys, who began
to reach for me. "I'm Alfred Vander
bllt. I'm a traveler, too. and a bit of
a philosopher like yourself. May I ask
why you ride there when you might be
In the car?"
I nearly fell dead ana mem rail
roaders looked as though they were
against It. Then I got myself together
Hnd said: "I reckon I'd a had a devil
of a time breaking Into that car.'
"Oh, I don't know about that, he
said, with a funny grin on his face.
"Hut we won't discuss that. This l my
car and we have an extra room or two.
Won't you Join us for the real of your
trip? I would enjoy hearing some of
your experiences."
"I think you, Mr. Vanderbllt." I said
as soon as I got my breath; "but Vm
more comfortable here. Tou see I m
perfectly safe and, d n It, man!" I
blurted, "we tramps ain't used to tble
sort of thing. Besides. I would not be
t all comfortable In there. 1 will take
off my rigging and wish you food
'""Not at all, Mr. Marks." said the
young fellow. "Conductor, thla man Is
my guest for tho rest of his Journey.
See that he la not disturbed. I m
aorry you will not Join us, but hop
to see yo at dinner." .
Then ho bowed to ana, tot aboard and
t .iwmI hrs ilk a fool. The brake-
man came along and told me roughly
M taenhle ta and not delay the train,
thing In the wind. The officers held a
consultation and agreed that Spencer's
arreet was Imperative. The crew as
sembled at evening quarters, when the
secretary of war was arrested. Upon
his persoD was found the details of the
plan for killing the officers, seizing the
ship and the throwing overboard of the
younger apprentices, whom the paper
referred to as useless biscuit con
sumers." The document was written
entirely In Greek, Spencer being a
classical scholar. Luckily there was
another officer on board who read the
language.
After the seizing of Spencer many ot
the crew became disobedient, sullen
and mutinous In action. Then Captain
Mackenzie ordered the arrest of Small
and Cromwell. After this the sullen
ones among the crew behaved worse
than ever. The officers held a consul
tation and it was agreed that unless
an example was set the Somers would
meet the fate of the bounty. They
signed a recommendation that the
three ringleaders be hanged at the
yardarm. The three culprits were
strung up. Spencer and Small confess
ing their guilt and saying that they
deserved their fate. When the Somers
reached New York Captain Somers
communicated with the department. A
court of Inquiry was ordered and he
was cleared from any blame. In spite
of this fact, his chief, the secretary of
the navy, ordered his arrest on the
charge of murder. He was tried and
acquitted by a board of officers and
President Tyler approved the verdict.
After the close of the civil war Gen
eral Custer was ordered to western
Kansas to check the ravages of the
Klowas, Comanches and Arapahoes. He
was then a lieutenant colonel In the
regular establishment, but he had an
Independent command In the field. Cus
ter was at a long distance from head
quarters and with no means of com
munication. During months of cam
paigning he wae. practically a law
unto himself. He crushed the Indians,
and, to use his own words, he expected
when he returned to civilization to at
least have it said to him, "You have
done well."
Instead of this verbal patting on the
back from his Huperlors, however, Cus
ter was ordered under arrest on the
charges of cruelty and of exceeding his
authority In the field. It was declared
at the time that Custer had ordered a
detail of men under a non-commlsston-ed
officer to go out from camp and
bring back some men who, having se
cured some liquor, were having a Jolli
fication at a distance on the prairie.
It was charged that he ordered the
sergeant to shoot the men In case they
refused to return. The men, being hi
larious with liquor, did refuse to return
and the order of death was carried out.
The army execution most pathetic in
detail and surroundings and yet which
was wholly justifiable apparently by
the circumstances, was the shooting
of Private C. H. Henry by order of
IJeutenant Greely in the far north.
Ureely's party was starving to death.
Its condition was getting more terrible
every day. A few shrimps and a. little
edible moss was all that the explorers
could get to sustain life. Someof them
were already dead from starvation.
Henry was detected on several occa
sions stealing more than his share of
the food. He was warned three times
and his offense was condoned. The
other members ot the party saw Henry
gaining In strength day by day, while
they weakened with starvation. Then
once more he was detected stealing
food. Greely wrote out an order of ex
ecution, loaded three rifles, two with
ball and one with a blank cartridge
and gave the weapons with the death
warrant to three men. An hour later
from far over the Ice floe came the re
ports of three rifles. Henry was dead.
After the rescue the reort of the ex
ecution was sent to Washington. One
of the shortest orders ever butued from
the war department was the answer:
"No court of Inquiry necessary. R. C
Drum, adjutant general."
I dove in under the car and sung out,
"All right!" and off we went. We got
to Omaha before I got my senses back.
To tell the truth, I don't know much
about that run-in across the big MIs
rousl. Then I received a message from
tho porter to come In and take dinner
but my nerves had gone back on me. I
was wondering what next, when I
heard this:
"Mr. Vanderbllt done sent thee to
you all, but what fur I declare to gra
cious I don't know."
I peered out andthere stood the por
r with a roast fowl, some nice bls
jlt, a pie which I think was bought
t the station and a big red-topped
iottle. I can face a porter all right,
I reached out and got the things.
Then I looked the colored man over
irefully and said:
"To eat and drink, my boy. My com
pliments to your master and say Mr.
Marks hopes he will enjoy his dinner
and a pleasant rest tonight."
Well, I wish you could have seen
that darky. It was the best thing of
the whole trip.
Once In awhile, when we made a
stop, the conductor or some brakeman
would call on me and ask after my
health. They wanted to know If they
hadn't better bring out a pillow and
some more blankets. I thought they
were Joshing and about 10 o'clock at
night told the conductor I would be
grateful for a pillow. I hope I may be
struck dead If that coon didn't bring
me one with the compliments of hit
boss.
CONNUBIALITIES.
According to a romantic story a man
who was married In Chicago last week
got his fortune in the Klondike and
his wife In Ireland. He will decide
later as to which place furnished him
the greater treasure.
A New Jersey man who sued a
neighbor for $10,000 damages for the
alenlatlon of his wife's affection has
been given a verdict of 126, Of course
the plaintiff Is disappointed, but think
of the feelings of the wife whose affec.
tlone are thue marked downl Is then
anybody aha can aue for damages?
The young countess of Cromartle,
whoae engagement has Just been an
nounced, la the oldest daughter of the
Duke of Sutherland! deceased young
er brother, who succeeded to the titles
of hla mother, heiress of line of the
great Scottish lawyer and antiquary,
Sir Oeorge Mackenzie of Tarbat, cre
ated earl of Cromartle. The queen by
letters patent In 195 confirmed the
youthful heiress In the title she bears,
one her majesty re-created In favor of
Anne, duchess of Sutherland, with llm-
listtnn to her second son.
Cincinnati, O. (Special; With trees-
ure trove as the motive and with stage
settings of exceptional interest and ro
mance two men have commenced a
legal battle In the county court at
Jackson, O. The suit recently com
menced Involves the ownership of a
large amount of treasure found in on;,
of the group of Islands in the South
Atlantic known as Tristan d'Acunha.
The plaintiff to the action is Howard
F. Summers, a young man who claims
the treasure as son and heir of Cap
tain William H. Summers, while the
defendant is Captain Charles A. Hen
derson, old, grizzled and determined.
Young Summers alleges that he is
the only son and heir of Captain Wil
liam H. Summers, who before the war
was master of the clipper-built bark
the Lark. At that time she was a
muggier, but during the. war she
turned privateersman and was so suc
cessful that her captain and crew
grew rtcn.
The captain was especially fortunate
and succeeded in amassing a fortune
of 1175,000, all of which he kept In gold
and notes In a heavy chest In his cab
In. In 184 the bark ran into a terrific
hurricane and was blown away Into
tne bouth Atlantic, near the Tristan
d Acunha Islands, where she was sigiit
ea oy a man-ot-war and was run
ashore and scuttled by the crew. All
of the crew were taken prisoners with
the exception of Captain Summers and
Bis first mate. Charles A. Henderson
who succeeded In getting the chesW
with the fortune In It ashore and con
cealing It.
After living the Uvea ot Robinson
Crusoe there for some time they finally
managed to escape, but could not take
their treasure with them. On the voy
age home Captain Summers caught the
smallpox and died, leaving Henderson
tne sole possessor of the secret. Hen
derson finally reached home, but was
unable to secure the money necessary
to nt out a vessel to go after the treas
ure. For thirty-three years he labor
ed to earn money, eating hie heart out
with knowledge of the great fortune
that lay beyond his grasp. After many
failures It was not until last year that
he finally started from New Orleans in
the Rover. He reached the Island In
April without mishap and secured the
money, amounting to $173,320. He got
home safely and since that time has
been living quietly, enjoying his for
tune.
It was not until a few days ago that
any one aspired to dispute his owner
Rhlp of the money. Then a man about
40 years of age, who gave his name as
Howard F. Summers, reached Jackson
and after a Rhort Investigation anck a
conference with Captain Henderson,
filed the suit noted above. He asks for
the sum of $S6,600, or one half of the
amount secured by Henderson. He
claims that Captain Summers had a
wife and son at Baltimore; that the
wife has since died, and that he Is the
son.
His father sailed away on what was
to be his last trip in 1S03 and his fam
lly never heard anything more of him.
It was known that the bark had been
caught in a violent gale and it was
supposed that Bhe had foundered. Mrs.
Summers knew that her husband was
possessed of a large fortune, but sup
posed that It had gone down with him
She died in Ignorance of his fate, and
It was only recently that his son has
learned of what had become of the
money and at once took steps to re
cover his share of it.
Captain Henderson says that Cap
tain Hummers never mentioned hli
family an dwants young Summers to
prove his claims, which the latter al
leges he can do without difficulty.
The island where the treasure was
so long secreted and but recently un
earthed is situated about half way be
tween the coasts of Africa and South
Amelia in latitude 38 degraes 71
minutes oouth, longitude 64 degrees 32
minutes west, and has been Christen
ed Summers Island. He was transact
ed several years before the rebellion
one of the most exciting dramas of
the high seas.
While yet a mere boy Captain Hen
derson ran away from home and ship
ped before the mast. In IR.'iS he had
Just returned to the United States after
a cruise to the West Indies and in
Philadelphia fell In with Captain Sum
mers. He said he was shipping a crew
In his clipper-built brig, the Lark, en
gaged in the fruit and spice trade with
the West Indies and South America,
and offered Henderson a position as
mate. Henderson accepted the offer.
Just about the time the civil war
was opening the Lark started home
ward from South America and ran
into a violent hurricane, which blew
her out of her course eastward and
southward for over a week. During
this time there had been no oppodtun-
FEMALE
Guthrie, O.T. (Special.) Two womei,
bandits are now awaiting trial In the
United States Jail at Oklahoma City.
Both were members of bands of out
laws, and the story of their exploits
is interesting as part of a chapter of
history which will soon be closed.
Mary Smith, the last of the young
women countefeltere to be taken Into
custody, was formerly a Missouri
school teacher. She formed the ac
quaintance of Huffman, the leader of
a gang In the Indian Territory, and
forsook her home and friends to come
with him to the Indian Territory. In
a short while Miss Smith fell In love
with another member of the gang and
eloped with him. Huffman vowed ven
geance upon the man who had sup
planted him In the girl's affection, and
the taking of his revenge led to the
discovery of wholesale counterfeiting
which the outlaws had carried on.
Two weeks ago the rivals met In a
saloon near Caney. Kan., and when
the smoke (cleared away, two men
were lying bleeding upon the floor.each
holding an amnty six-shooter. They
were placed under arrest. By telling
each that the other had confessed tne
ofttrers got the prisoners to talk ana
the fact was disclosed that they were
members of a counterfltlng gang, and
that Mary Smith, the ex-Mlssourl
school teacher, waa the person relied
upon to get the money Into circula
tion. In the meantime Mary had de
camped, but officers located her here
In Noble county. Over $100,000 of spur
ious money put out by the school
teacher and these men has been locat
ed and seized.
Jessie K, Flndley, the second woman
nvtlaw, Is only 17 years old, but Is one
of the most desperate criminals In th
country. She Is an unarring shot with
a revolver, a dashing horsewoman.and
absolutely fearless. The present In
dictment against Jessie Flndley ta
based on the fact that ahe Introduced
weapons Into the county Jail of Okla
noma county last June, to assist the
Christian gang In making their escape,
which they accomplished June $0, re.
suiting In the killing of Chief of Police
Jaaea of Oklahoma City.
ty of taking an observation and Imp
tain Summers had no Idea of his loca
tion. On the ninth day the weather
cleared and an observation showed that
the vessel was far out in the Atlantic,
only about thirty miles south of the
Tristan d'Acunha group. That same
afternoon the lookut dlHcovered an
American cruiser stea f.ng at full
speed, apparently dirediy for them.
There were lively limes on deck when
Captain Summers gave orders to put
the ship about and try to run away.
It was evident from the first that the
brig was no match In speed for the
cruiser and the captain and his crew
were fast losing hope of escape when
land was sighted straight ahead. As
a last desperate effort to elude the
cruiser the brig ran Into a little cove
shi'ltered by a long reef. The cruiser
couid not enter the cove, but hove to
outside and prepared to lower her
boats. The only refuge for the crew
WaH On the Ixlanri nnH thra thv ivum
Safely landed In a. hurrv tt wu at thi.
moment that Henderson learned the
secret which had puzzled him. Captain
Summers took him down Into the cab
In and cloning the door, said:
"Henderson, I have here a chest con
taining nearly tl7!,000. I want you to
help me take it ashore and hide It. If
we succeed In getting away we will
divide the money. If one of us dies
the other shall have it. We can find a
piace on the Island to conceal it."
Henderson agreed. After the crew
had gone aHhore he and the captain
lowered the chest into the boat and
rowed toward a part of the beach as
remote as possible from where the
crew had landed. Although Si) thla
had been done in less time than it
takes to tell it, they were none too
soon, for a moment later the boats
of the cruiser dashed Into the cove.
Henderson and the captain Jumped
Into the luxuriant underbrush which
grew down to the water's edge, drag
ging the heavy chewt between them.
After traveling a considerable distance
they stumbled upon a natural cave,
and, entering It bb far as they dared,
concealed the chest and lay down to
rest, not, however, before hiding the
entrance as well as they were able.
They remained there the rest of that
day and all the followtng night, and
It was not until the afternoon of the
next day that they ventured out. Then,
creeping cautiously down to the beach,
they discovered that the cruiser had
disappeared. They also saw that the
Lark had been scuttled and sunk in
the waters of the cove. Soon after
ward almost all the members of the
crew Joined them, and it was evident
that the crew of the cruiser had made
only a superficial search for them. That
night the captain and Henderson care
fully prepared two accurate charts of
the location of the cave, each taking
one.
An exploration of the island, which
was made the next day, showed '.ow
small It was, and Captain Summers de
termined to try to reach the Tristan de
Acunha group, which he calculated
were only about thirty-five miles to
the north. So the captain and the
mate set sail in the small boat and the
crew In the larger one. The treasure
was left behind, as the officers did not
dare to let the crew suspect Its exist
ence. The boats were separated dur
ing the night and the larger one was
never heard of again, but on the morn
ing of the second day the captain and
Henderson sighted land and finally
reached the largest of the Tristan
d'Acunha group. Here Summers con
tracted the smallpox and died and aft
er several months' delay Henderson
was picked up by a passing vessel and
landed at New Orleans.
Henderson returned to Jackson and
managed to save enough to buy the
Louisa B. at New Orleans last Janu
ary. He overhauled her and rechrlst-
ened her the Rover. Claude Thompson
of Jackson was taken along as mate,
being a man upon whose honesty Hen
derson could rely.
February 22 last the Rover started
from New Orleans. Her departure and
the purpose of it were noted at length
in the New Orleans papers. The Lou
isa li. had formerly been the Frolic,
one of the fleet of the Southern Yacht
club, and was a staunch little vessel.
On April 12 the Tristan d'Acunha isles
were reached, (m April 14 Captain
Henderson landed on the treasure Isl
and, and with but little trouble discov
ered by the aid of hjs charts the cove
and the treasure che;-.. The latter had
t been touched, and scarcely showed
a trace of the years it had passed in
the depths of the cave. Its contents
were found Intact. The wreck of the
Lark still lay undisturbed at the bot
tom of the cove.
One thousand dollars of the treasure
was distributed among the members of
the crew.
ROBBERS.
About four years ago Bob Christian,
the leader of the "Christian gang,"
stopped for dinner at the home of Jes
sie's mother In Pottawatomie county.
One day not long after that Jessie was
missing. She had run away with the
outlaw. She remained with him for
several months, riding with the gang
on several forays, but usually staying
at the cabin and acting as housekeep
er and cook. Hob taught her to shoot
and U ride, and she soon became profi
cient tp the use o .' the revolver and
rifle, aod a bold h wee woman.
About thla time Bob and Bill Chris
tian were arrested for killing Deputy
Sheriff Turner of Pottawatomie county,
Oklahoma, who was attempting to ar
rest them for cattle stealing. This was
the first murder that could be brought
home to them, and the prosecution
was thorough and prompt. They were
convicted of the crime and sentenced
to a long term in the penitentiary and
brought to Oklahoma City to await
transportation to prison. Jessie suc
ceeded In smuggling three revolvers to
them with thirty rounds of ammuni
tion, and they escaped, killing t
chief of police.
A posse of men was sent out to Bob
Christian's cabin to capture Jessie, the
authorities believing that she would re
veal the whereabouts of the men If she
could be once got from under the Influ
ence of her lover. The friends of the
desperadoes received word of the In
tentions of te authorities In some man
ner, and at once spirited the girl
away, passing her from merr.Nsr tn
member of the gang In different
of the territory.
To facilitate her escape Jessie we,
dressed In a cowboy costume slouch
hat, high-heeled shoes and storm coat.
In Ave days they rode 250 miles, doub
ling and redoubling on, the track. The
officers finally captured the girl In a
lonely cabin In the woods, and by a
forced ride of fifty miles at night
reached the railroad and landed their
prisoner safely In Jail at Oklahoma
City. Since her Imprisonment Jessie
has grown to be a great reader and
admirer of Hall Calnc'a werka.
There was a convention in East St.
Louis last week of an organization
which haa done more than the consti
tuted authorities to prevent horse
theft and all other forma of theft in
Illinois, Missouri, Kansas and Okla
homa. The organization Is the Anti
Horse Thief association. It waa an Il
linois state convention which met In
East St. Louis, but the organization Is
strong and flourishing In all of the
states named.
The organization la what Its name In
dicates and more. It to an anti-horse
thie association, but It la also an
anti-association to every other kind of
thief.
The association waa organised to
make war on horse thieves. That was
Just at the close of the war, when the
middle western states were overrun
with marauders. In the northern part
of Missouri they were particularly
troublesome. It was so easy to drive
oft horses from the northern tier of
counties and run them over Into Iowa
or swim them across the Mississippi
to Illinois that It was next to impossi
ble for a man to keep a horse around
the place.
The situation finally became so seri
ous that some sort of united action
waa necessary. A meeting was held in
Kanoka, the county seat of Clark coun
ty, and an organization waa effected.
As Its primary object was to run down
herse thieves It was called the Anti-
Horse Thief association.
It did such good work in Clark coun-
ty, which was then the stamping
ground of one of the most dangerouB
gangs of criminals which ever Infested
a section of the country, that Its
fame scon spread and Inquiries were
made about the form of organization
and the modus operandi.
Grandually the organization spread
over Missouri and Illinois and Kan
sas and Oklahoma. Wherever It spread
stealing practically went out of fash
ion. It Is said that in the old days
when a horse thief was caught it
often happened that he was never
heard of again. Anyway, it came to be
understood among the fraterrilty that
it didn't pay to steal horses from the
members of the association, and in
later years the efficacy of the organiza
tion has been chiefly In the line of
prevention.
The members of the association are
so relentless In the pursuit of a thief
that it is next to impossible for one
to escape who has stolen anything
fro mone of the members. Each sub
ordinate order has special constables
sworn in and eexrcislng all the func
tions of regular officers. Besides these
all of the members are subject to be
ing called out for a chase and It fre
quently happens that a whole order is
on the trail.
While In recent years exciting chM?s
have not occurred frequently In Illi
nois there were a number of old men
at the East St. Louis convention who
had been In some of the very warm
pursuits and the reminiscences they
exchanged were full of Interest.
A. R. Long of Prairie City, III., told
one which illustrated the thoroughness
of the work of the organization In
that vicinity. He said: "During the
life of the organization in my county
there have been only two thefts of
horses and they were both from the
same man. We recovered the horses
each time. William Orrin owned a pair
of pretty matched horses. One Sat
urday night he used one to go some
where and left the other In the sta
ble. When he returned home he put
the two together In the stable and
gave them some food He went to the
house and went to bed. Before he fell
asleep he heard one of the horsets
neighing and knew that the two had In
some way become separated. He went
to the barn and found that one of the
horses had been taken out.
"That was about 11 o'clock. He
spread the alarm and at 1:30 o'clock
the next morning there were 104 men
at the lodge room. The president, T. I.
Nebergall. reported that he had had
1,000 postal cards printed and they
were ready to go out In the morning
mall.
"From the lodge room all but eight
of the older men took the trail. By
daylight there were men at the bridge
at Keokuk, at Beardstown and at a"
the other surrounding towns where It
was possible a trace might be obtain
ed of the fugltlv.
"They got him cornered so closely
that he had to abandon the horse and
hide In the brush on the river.
"A year later, on Decoration Day,
both horses were left standing at a
hitching rack at Bushnell. It hap
pened that J. W. Bushnell, who was
the president, lived In Bushnell then.
In a very little while he had sent nine
men out to ride the neighborhood. By
an hour past midnight we were again
convened In the lodge room and bv
daylight the men were scattered all
over that part of the country.
"A few of the older men who could
not do hard riding went to Bushnell
in the early morning. They learned
that the authorities had been after
two dissolute women who had been
draw nto town by the Decoration Day
celebration and that they had fled from
town in company with Clayton Cleve
land. The vehicle In which they had
gone away answered the description
of the stolen one. Two men started In
the direction In which Cleveland had
driven. After following him eightec
miles they came In sight of him. Hi
lashed the tired horses Into a run and
drove them until they were ready t'.
A WOMAN HELPED BUILD IT.
Had It not been for a woman the
Oceanic, leviathan of the seas, would
never have been built. The wife of
William J. Plrrie, designer of the big
gest steamship in the world, and not
Mr. Plrrie himself, 1b directly responsi
ble for the mighty ship. She kept him
from going to parliament, where he
might have spent the rest of hla days.
"Don't go to parliament, Willie," said
good Mrs. Pirrle. "You can build boat
better than you can make speeches."
"By Jove, you're right, my dear," re
sponded her husband, and so the Oce
anic waa built.
At least that was the way Mr. Plrrie
put It Friday, seated in a big arm
chair In the lounging room at the
Waldorf-Astoria with Mrs. Plrrie at
hi side. The firm of Harland Wolff,
of which he Is the head, built the
Oceanic at Belfast
"Yea," laughed Mr. Plrrie, "it la my
wife who la responsible for our big
beat. In fact, she konwi aa much
about It aa I do. She followed the plana
as keenly as I did for the two and a
half years we took In designing and
building the Oceanic. It waa aha who
auggeated many clever thing about
the arrangement of the ahlp, lb sug
gested all the decoratlona"
Mrs. Plrrie la a handeome woman of
the blonde type, with fair Mm tyaa
and a rosy complexion. She to young
and full of Ufa and vlvaoitr.
drop with exfcauatloii aVeing that
he would be overtaken, be jumped oat
of the vehicle and took to tne eorn-
flelds.
"TLs association had him indicted by
the graad Jury, he was located at Oar
den City, Mo., some time after, brought
back and sentenced to six year In the
penitentiary."
There haa been only one horse sto
len In the vicinity of Bast Carondelet
In the seven years that there haa been
an organization there. "That was In
18)4," says Oscar Adelsberger. "The
horse was stolen from Dr. J. Bmiser.
It was recovered by quick work. Two
men were sent to Waterloo, two la
Chester, two to the Eads bridge, two to
each of the ferries and two to the sales
stables In St. Louis. Telegrams were
also sent to all the orders In the state.
The two men who went to the sates
stables had not been there long when
a young fellow presented himself with
the stolen horse. He was placed snder
arrest He was Steve Simpson. Be
said he had only taken the horse to
ride it to St. Louis. He was sent to
the reform school."
"We have never had a chase after a
horse thief In my part of the eoun
try," said William H. Rowe of Jack
sonville. "We canght a man once, the',
with a piece of cloth. He had gone
Into a grain bin and taken a lot at
grain. In climbing out his coat had
caught on a nail and a piece of it had
bee torn out. We hunted until we
found a man wearing a coat with a
hole in It which that piece of cloth
' fitted and with the piece of cloth wa
; convicted him."
"Six years ago," said R. B. Gardner
, o Christian county, "a' mare waa
i stolen from W. B. Beaton, now county
treasurer. The theft occurred oa a
( Saturday night. The mare was nursing
a young mule. The mule manifested
uneasiness In the night and Mr. Seaton
went out to see what wag the matter.
He found the mare gone. He gave the
alarm and a party was quickly got to
gether to chase the, thief. He waa
overtaken southeast of Taylorville.
When he saw that he would be cap
tured he Jumped from the mare's back
and took to the woods. Men were
sent to Assumption, to Pana, to No
komls and other places. Two men
were sent to Pana. They learned that
an excursion train would soon be due.
They thought the thief would try to get
on the train at the station. They call
ed a policeman to their assistance and
waited at the station. The train stop
ped at the Baltimore & Ohio crossing.
The thief got on there and rode past
the policeman and our men on the
platform at the station.
"We caught him afterward, though,
in Jasper county. We learned that he
waa in a community twenty miles from
the railroad and some of our men went
down there. We located him through
a postal card. He had written on it
to his folks, but had failed to put the
address on it. The postmaster was
holding it ffntll he should come to
the postoffice again. When he learned
who we were looking for he showed aa
the postal card. He not only confessed
to taking the horse, but that he had
stolen a buggy near Decatur. He con
fessed because he thought we Wire
going to hang him. We took him to our
hall, questioned him, drew a complete
confession from him, drew It up in
writing and he signed it. He got 26
years In the penitentiary."
Edward Dunn of Calhoun county
said: "One of my oddest adventures .
had to do with a female horse thief.
There had been a number of thefts in '
the neighborhood. Suspicion fell upoa
a woman who lived In a houseboat oa
the Illinois river. Men were assigned
to watch her. One night she left the
houseboat. Our men followed her. She
went to the barn of one of the pros
perous farmers, a member of the as
sociation. She brought out one of the
best horses. The men who had been
following her ran forward to catch her.
She Jumped onto the back of the hone
and dashed off down the road. The
men did not want to Are on a woman
and she got away from them.
They got their horses as soon as
they could and went In pursuit. She
waa cornered at the mouth of the
Wood river and the posse swooped
down on her. They thought they had
her. She fooled them. As they dashed
up she forced the horse into the water
and swam it across the Mississippi
river. The current was swift and il
seemed almost like sure death, but Bhe
got across all right and disappeared In
the underbrush on the other side. The
posse, either through fear or secret
admiration for the woman's bravery,
did not attempt to follow her across
the river.
"A week later the horse was recov
ered In the southern part of Missouri
through the efforts of the association.
Three years later the woman waa ar
rested in the northern part of Illinois.
A strong case was made against her.
but she was a good looking young wo
man and the Jury acquitted her. She 1"
now married and is living a reepecte l
life In central Illinois."
There was one sub-order not repre
sented at the East St. Louis conven
tion. That was because there are
financial difficulties in that sub order
A horse was stolen in that vicinity :
while ago and one of the members was
put on the trail. He followed the thief
1,000 miles and Incurred an expense of
$1,000. As this had to be paid by the
members of that sub order there was
no money left for sending a delegate to
the convention.
"Why shouldn't I have helped with
the Oceanic 7" ahe laughed. "I knew aa
much about the big boat aa any one.
Mr. Ismay, you know, used to come
over to see us at Belfast, and we three,
Mr. Plrrie, he and myself, talked It
over for six months before the keel
was laid. But when It came to sug
gesting comfortable things for the ahlp
and in devising decoratlona I waa glad
to help.
"I spent months thinking It all over.
The American people know now what
has been done. I'm proud of the ahlp,
too; for I'm a shareholder myself In
the company. We are very proud, too,
of her amall coal consuming ability.
Why, do you know, she burns 880 torn
a day, when some ot the smaller lin
ers burn 660 and (00 tons?
"I auggeated something else, too
building a ahlp that would be abso
lutely certain to keep to her time
schedules. Ton will see the Oceanic
arriving every time at I o'clock Wed
nesday mbornlnga Had we put In coal
bunkera big enough to have her beat
all records we would have taken up all
the room which la now given ever to
the comfort of the passengers.
"We were offered the chance ta build
the Shamrock. If It hadn't beea for the
Oceaale wa would have dm It, tao.
Would It not have bean toe f we (Mil
have built both? Bat that WM ta-aiiaaltita."