The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, October 23, 1898, Page 23

THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23, 1898. 23 HAS TRA CKED CRIMINALS FOR OVER A QUARTER OF A CENTURY. Sheriff Tom Cupningham of San Joaquin County, Who Has Been Continuously in Office for Twenty-five Years and Who ‘Rounded Joaquin Murietta, Black Bart and Others of the Most Notorious Highway- men in the History of California, Is Going to Retire to Private Life. = which in- desperadoes all of his days pass daring ar- ver rec blood. He is scharged convict after _completing ham was instru- 3 he time he > bid him prison m matic record of under both - “rogue: over the Pac ing to compare of the Rocky Moun- : number of pictures astounding figure of nd 42,000. These plc- rces of criminals past »m_all over the world. immured behind E: has had an exchange in pic gallery h: c The albums have b led. It has not been » could see them. There of men now living hon- ted lives, whose past is > by whom they For every picture telling of character- forger, ipal of ¥ to the albums look for his men. t rare collec- Cunningham heriff is not now known, e 10 probable that San Joa- 1 allow it to go else- if money can retain it here. visitor to Stockton has 1 the Sheriff the last qus is a remark- of grim articles with The museum occu- 1 in the spacious apart- weriff’s office in the is open to all who ask - Over one es, guns, apons uction to any > cunning criminal— is one of the old-time ap and bali, 1 on deer and red- gun which finished andit, Joaquin Mu- County many used by J. W. mber of Captain al round-up of rietta, ov years ago v Childs, who was a me; Love's party in the fi the cutthroat. The pirate on the Spanish main ived a | the | uglier_pistol than the It has an ugly shaped barrel, a shotgun hammer and a big handle with a nob on the end of in A dor in '49 there were ind they were hard gun was d and hion one night by a The gun went off It i : found on a stand s a | of mail” made of wire rings an | ven so closely and with such 1 genius that no bullet could T rate it. It will as completely envelop not tell. It . who in the ed it hist William C ufacty belonged to seventies Kkilled in Calaveras Cou hanged for his cri coat was found on him at the of his ar- rest. A ridiculous I ing weapon is an old ook slop bucke: istol, which was taken from Fred alias Dutch Fred, who departed this life in 1851 by the rope route. Chinese ingenuity and brutality are pretty -well represented in the collec- tion. Murderous looking Kknivi and | -kles, several with human Ii | for, are here found. and One Chinaman | s are crude in constructio calculated for murder. unwillingly contributed to the | lection what appears to be a fan. a spring and the fan c a keen knife is displayed. One old pistol which sawed off muzzle-loadl longed to George Bake ey,” who also went by in 1851 In the way of sandbags, the Sheriff has one made out of the leg of a pair of overalls. It is simply filled with sand and the ends tied with strong cord. A “nasty” looking leather club once belonged to Salter D. Worden. He pped the weapon in the railroad | vards here during the great strike. One of the most complete outfits used | by forgers s one which belonged to a | man known as W. E. Williamson. The ordinary person would not suppose that | the trade of a forger required so many tools. There are brushes, quills, knives | and whatnot. Checks partially finished |'and others on which large amounts | were collected are displayed. The case | devoted to counterfeit bills and money | is highly interesting. Some of the coin | is crude and others so well made that | the ordinary mortal could not detect | them. ’ The cleverness of criminals is illus- | | col- Pres looks like a g shotgun be- s AL “Mick- trated by an ordinary looking comb which Cunningham took from James | Winters at the San Francisco prison. | Concealed in the back of the comb is a saw four inches long and a third of an | inch ‘wide. To vary the list the Sheriff has a | ekull with a bullet through it—a man | murdered on the trail in the early pio- | neer days. His name or that of his murderer is not known. Every article | in the vast collection has a history, and | many of the crimes came under Cun- | ningham's officlal eye. A weapon which would have de- lighted the heart of Samson is a leg bone of a horse, handsomely polished | and with a string to swing it from the | wrist. | San Francisco toughs who came up ‘“‘to run” Stockton in the early days. | The *‘Nedina murder” is recalled by |all ola timers. The Mexican sword | which ended the life of six men is on | exhibition. | The most unique weapon in the en- | tire 1ot is one which was found in the cabin of a recluse known as ‘“Bis- narck,” who resided near Sonora many | vears. It is a combination dagger, pis- tol and brass knuckles. The brass knuckles form the handle, the bullets are fired directly from the chambers, | there being no barrel. The position belonging to the barrel has the dagger attachment, which can be closed back under the handle. Cunningham has handled numbers of |the most distinguished criminals. | Many of the bad men of our State owe thelr removal from business to Cun- ningham. comes off and | vas en from ang of | L gan ke T e BarE s | had caused it to be announced that the | | at a moment’s notice. that accomplished road most original m ods, was nered, more the of Tom Cunningham than man. Black Bart was a wonderful ped Stockton from San Francisco on the morning boat and by nightfall would have walked forty miles into the moun- The next day the poetical robber rn his usual trick. Old-timers 11 with what frequency th stages were robbed. Cunningham W always on the ground as soon as poi ble to look for some evidence. His sta ing qualities were finally rewarded. Ar- riving at the point where the stage had last been stopped he examined t ground closely. Suddenly he reache down and picked up. a cuff. That find marked the end of career. Cunningham examined cuff closely and the officers were with him eagerly awaited to see what he would say. Finally Cun- ningham exclaimed: the “At last we have a clew,” and di- rected the officers’ attention to the mark “FXO07” On the border. The cuff was taken to San Francisco and after a long search similar marks were found on other linen in a laundry. Bart was lo- cated and then inveigled into a room where the officers were walting. He was under the impression that he was going to negotiate the sale of a mine. | As quick as his eyes fell on his ex- pected purchasers he merely threw up his hands and exclaimed: “Gentlemen, I pass.” That was the end of his clever days of stage robbing, and it was brought about by the handkerchief which Cun- ningham found. When the State determined to rid its borders of that terrible bandit Vasquez Tom Cunningham and Harry Morse rode at the head of the posse. They pushed the murderers and their notori- ous cut-throat leader further and further to the south and finally drove them into the trap which was sprung by waliting officers. For weeks the posse was in the saddle ready to fight TFhere was no place Cunningham would not explore in quest of his prey. There is a story that one day while out on a little Independent scout he observed a man riding over a little knoll whom he took for a cowboy. As there was nothing suspicious about the man Cunningham did not hail him. ‘When capturea Vasquez told him he could have got the drop on the officer. When asked why he was so merciful he made his most winning bow, placed his hand over his heart and with the mock courtesy so characteristic of the villlain said in Spanish, “T could not kill the brave young man.” A few years ago there was a stage robber at large named Dalton. He first officer who laid hands on him was as much as signing an immed.ate death warrant 1or himself. One day during the fair in Stockton Cunningham ob- served a man whom he was sure was the robber standing on Hunter Square Bart's | who | | watching a game., Without a moment’s | hesitation Cunningham walked up to | him and covering him with a pistol | said quietly, “Don’t move!” He then called a citizen who relleved | !lhe man-eater away, a most doclle | | prisoner. So quietly was the arrest | { made that only those in the immediate | vicinity witnessed the exhibition of cool nerve and prompt action. ~ One day an escaped convict, a Span- iard, who for the want of a better | name is called Lopez, was located near Stockton. Taking a young man as driver Cunningham got into a spring | wagon and started in pursuit. He got over into the foothills and knowing that the man was in the immediate vicinity he gave the driver particular instructions to turn the wheels so he | could jump out should they see the | man, Cunningham preferring to fight | on terra firma. | The first thing the Sheriff knew he was face to face with the convict, who was mounted and armed. The Sheriff | saw it was fizht, and throwing up his gun he tried to cover the man and at the same time climb out. At the critical moment the driver turned the | wheels the wrong way. The Sheriff | tripped and was sent sprawling on the | ground. | | “Realizing even in his plight that the best gun would win he rolled over and | before the astonished convict could get | his gun into action the Sheriff let drive a;\d shot the horse from under the con- vict. It was a lucky shot, as the robber had to look out for himself instead of turning his gun loose on the Sheriff. | Cunningham got his man, however, and | returned him to prison. | Advancing age never diminished the | veteran’'s actlvity. If the office was called on to bring in a desperate man he would get his sawed-off shotgun and start out. Less than two years ago he went after Williams and Slagal, the young desperadoes who attempted to wreck a train and rob it a few miles from Stockton. Willlams was an ex- pert with a gun, and when the at- tempted crime failed the youths es- caped to the San Joaquin River bot- toms, sending word that they would shoot the first officer that came after them. They were hunted several days and finally driven out on the open country. Coming over a ridge one day Cunningham came on Willlams, who was carrying his rifle ready for action. The veteran called out in a fatherly way: “Drop the gun, Williams.” And the gun was dropped! The robbers are now doing life terms in prison. In running down Green, Smith and Jones, the confidence operators who had done Farmer Brack out of $2000 in this county, the Sheriff got a trio of men, whose career had been one long line of successful swindles, He cap- tured them at Portland. It 1s said they offered him $2000 to permit some scheme of escape, but he held on and convicted them. After he was sure they would get their deserts he solic- ited, so far as was proper for him to do, the mercy of the court. ODDEST WAGERS EVER MADE. The history of foolish and eccentric bets contains no, story of more reck- less folly than that of a gambler of a generation ago who made the fall of a bowl'accomplish his ruin. After a long night's gambling in which evil fortune had pursued him, he made a hasty calculation of all that was left to him of a princely fortune. | He then sefzed a bowl from a table, | and, poising it aloft, said: “Odd or even | pleces for $75,000?” *“0Odd,” coolly said one of the men who had won his money. | The bowl fell and was dashed to' = A Comnem in CunninaHA™M Sy pleces. The fragments were collected and counted, only to find that the num- ber was odd, and that the gambler’s last sovereign was lost. The Presidential elections are the oc- rian. He would reach | Dalton of his guns and the Sheriff led | casions of some of the most eccentric | easily wagers which ingenuity can devise. A " the chier thoroughtares of New man who lost his bet at the last elec- ton found himself in the undignined position of having to aci as the win- ner's dog ror a fuil day. He had to follow at his heels through York, iie down when bidden in the most un- pleasant places, bark at strangers and lick his master’s hand. When he complained of hunger he was supplied with an allowance of dog’s meat and a drink of water, and had to lie under the table while his master fared sumptuously at a fashionable restaurant. For some hours the loser pursued this undignified routine to the amusement of thousands; but the savory odors of his master’s dishes, which assailed him in his hungry solitude under the table, were too much for his resolution, and he bought his freedom by paying a heavy forfeit. Many mad feats have resulted from wagers, but surely none so foolish as that of the Fre: carpenter, Paul Par- mentier. Paul was drinking with some boon companions a short time ago, when he made a bet of 5 francs that he would jump, unhurt, from a fourth floor window. s The bet was taken with amused in- Paul ran out of the wine shop, climbed to the fourth story of an adjacent house, and threw himself out of the window, with a sickening thud, into the street. When he was picked up it was found that he had broken his left leg and seriously injured himself in- ternally, while he had not even the sat- isfaction of having won his 5 francs. Some very astonishing gastronomic feats have sprung from wagers; but the fame of Nicholas Wood, the Kent- ish glutton, has never suffered eclipse. On one occasion Nicholas made a bet | that he would eat an entire pig at one | | sitting. This feat he accomplished so | that he called for three pecks of | J‘damsnns, which “proved his dessert,” credulity by one of his friends, when | BARTS BLACK == and followed in the way of the pig. It was a wager that induced a New York financier to dispose of 228 oysters in half an hour, merely as a prelude to a substantial dinner; and a gourmand of the name of Edward Manning has swallowed seventy-two eggs In one minute for a wager. Franz Friedrich of Willlamsburg was prepared, for a suitable bet, to make a | meal of & goose, five pounds of German | sausage, one pound of cheese, a loaf of bread and thirty-two glasses of beer; | while at Civita Vecchia lately, Signor Beraccio swallowed a mile of macaroni for a wager, and beat his rival by over 100 yards. Mr. Huddy. an Irish postmaster, when he was within three years of his “‘centur; was the hero of an eccentric wager. He made the journey from Lis- more to Fermoy in an old tub drawn by two cats, a hedgehog, a goose, a badger and a pig; and to complete the eccen- tricity of the “turn-out,” he wore a red nightcap and flourished a whip in one hand and a horn in the other. TRIED TO CIVILIZE A “GHOST DANCER.” Tragical End of a Young White Woman Who Married an Indian Chief. Epecial to The Sunday Call. ICHITA, Oct. 19.—~ Ten years ago Miss Lydia Lyons, a pretty 19-year-old white girl, graduated from the Illinois training school at Chicago. She had taken a course to become a nurse, and had also studied some missionary work un- der private tutorship. Her father, the only one left of the family, was Major Lyons, a hero of the Mexican War. He had given his consent that his daughter should go among the Indians as a missionary just as soon as she graduated. In 1889, Miss Lyons, a tall, dark eyed beauty, passed from school life into an entirely new fleld of labor. She went to Oklahoma among the Sac and Fox Indians as a missionary. A friend of her father’s, Captain Galbraith, had promised to look after her. At this time ghost dancing as a re- ligion was just beginning to fiercely spread among the Indlans. The medi- cine men taught them to believe that a Messiah was coming . and would sweep all the white men from the earth. The Kiowas, Comanches and Apaches were holding dances when Miss Lyons arrived among them. She ‘attended these dances and made speeches, ask- ing them tq forsake such superstitious practices. ~ One by one the redskins dropped from the dance at her plead- ings or commands. = The agent praised her. Nothing like it had ever happened Kans., before. The whites thought surely she controlled some strange magnetic power. But there was one tall, handsome In- dian who refused to yleld to her per- suasions, and he caused her many a heartache before he consented to be half way civilized. This was Fixico. Being a chief, he thought it due his high position that he should be more cruel than the rest. One day Miss Lyons went to him with tears in her eyes and begged him to reform, for Fixico was a.bad Indian and had a bad reputation. He drank and played poker. He danced weird dances and all that. After long plead- ings, Fixico promised to reform, but upon a promise: That if, after three years, he had proven that-during-that time he had b?en»stricUy sober, she was to marry m. : Not.a word of love was spoken—not one sign of affection. She gave her promise just to civilize him. Surely a human being was something, and Miss Lyons was willing to do anything to completely reform a redskin. The three years passed at last, and Fixico had kept his promise. So did the paleface girl. The two were married with all the pomp surrounding his position as a chief in the tribe. Hundreds of In- dians came to witness the ceremony. It was a gala day for the Kiowas and Comanches. All went well in the home of Chief Fixico and his paleface bride until a baby boy was born to them. Fixico did not like the little papoose because he was almost white. Very little trace of its réd skinned father could be found upon the little one. But Fixico sald nothing. His wife knew in her heart, hosever, that all was wrong with her chieftain husband. He would go away and re- main for days. She tried to regaln his affection, although she did not love him. She felt it her duty. There- after all went wrong in the house of Fixico in the little town of Darlington, Oklahoma. Last Sunday Fixico came home drunk, having been out on a long spree. His wife fell at his feet and cried. Li- guor made him insane and he cursed er. Then the hopeless wife sought her room and drove a dagger into her bo- som. Fixico found her a few minutes later with the baby crying upon his dead mother’s breast. A sudden fit of anger seized him and he drew a revolver and shot his own baby dead. Indignation ran high among the In- dians for a time. Fixico was flnally arrested by the Indian agent and taken to the jail at Tecumseh, where he now Hes awaiting trial. He says now he is sorely grieved over his heartless act. Fixico is nearly a fullblood Indian and is well educated, having been to school at Carlisle, Pa. MRS. CHIEF FIXICO (Miss Lydia Lyons). From a photogiaph taken at the time of her marriage to Chisf Fixico, three yoars ago. CHIEF FIXICO. From a photograph taken st the time he left the indlan School at Carellis, Pa.