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Show LASINQ a Seeing thiel fif CjJ on a special l rain i;-. s a new feature just in- I trod'jced into detec- K tive work in Kansas, jw ,.: !. i- , rn cil to at- n j tract aiiention to the 15 J Anti-Horse Thief as- 16 1 sociation. which made use of that unusual i 855555555? mefhpd recently at (wR-Parsons, Kans. A po-liceman, po-liceman, in collusion with others, had burglarized bur-glarized a store, been arrested, and escaped from jail. His route was learned, and there heing no regular train soon, a special was chartered, and with a bunch of Antis, as the members of the A. H. T. A. are called, aboard, started in pursuit. When it returned a few hours later it had aboard the policeman-burglar. The Anti-Horse Thief association is rather a novel organization now flourishing flour-ishing in the middle west, having members as far east as Ohio, and as far west as New Mexico, and a total membership of 40,000. It is organized on the lodge system, and combines both protection and detection in its plan of operation protection, in that its members unite in guarding the person, home and property of each member against unlawful interference interfer-ence by others; and detection, in that the members will hunt and capture any persons who transgress on the rights of any member, and hunts for and recovers stolen property. The detective features are for the purpose of making the protective features more successful and effective. The order often spends ten times the value of a stolen article in recovering it, but it teaches thieves what to expect ex-pect if they molest the property of any member. Hiring a train to chase a thief is a heavier expense than any public officer will, or can, afford to incur, but that expense was small when divided among hundreds of members, and they consider it well spent. A big thief is in the penitentiary, peniten-tiary, and an impressive lesson has ' been taught to other thieves in that local ty. tn two two guns and each of the others with a gun, came to the rescue of their comrade, and before Weaver was aware, they had five ugly guns pointed at his head and his own hands and guns were extending upward toward high heaven. The leader of the gang told the others to get away while he took care of Weaver with his two steal from a member Thieves have been known to pass by the horse of a member and take that of his neighbor. The thief knew it was easier to elude one man than many. This unique, practical and useful organization was first organized in Clark county, Missouri, during the civil war. Maj. David Mc-Kee, Mc-Kee, a .brave soldier, was its first president, and his first efforts was to suppress bushwhacking in northeast Missouri. The disorganized condition of the country gave the order men much to do, and it grew and spread until it now extends over seven states. John W. Wall of Parsons. Kans., is the supreme president. presi-dent. Wall is a born detective detec-tive and a crack shot with a Winchester at long range. He lead the crowd that chartered the special train to seek the fleeing police- z&y- '. Wr ' . r-C ftXl came tin- command to Weaver in no ' 1 1 Jgk. Vl'iil N" In ncertain tones. A pause, and again ttt 'flSWi i g'm!; i vm ft the .-mraand was repeated. The two -El-t? " Wv-nl men stood staring into each otner's --sssasi eyes, every nerve at high tension. It Iffffr Ms&P' ' 'Jullllp was a try'ng moment, one in which lil ' mSJ menwould nave dropped the ------ Jlfik, grand lodge of the A 11 T A in Mis- OTPSk S0Ur' '"' been drill5llS others for &0!$y$Sl 'A&rfri A ?A J 1 must d0 his duty- He drPped t0 the iji -Jf-' '( "tL ground like a (lash, and as lie dropped 3?S?iV sf I l it sen1 two bullets through the body Ww ill -"d ei the stranger, while two others went 3Vjs 'Cfflmm ' " I -"V 'LV whizzing over his own head "I'm all 'a ty'' Tk - JjVS in," said the stranger. Weaver kicked 17 y 4g-&iy jfaba MNl' the dying man's guns beyond his SKESivy 1( 7 ?F sjpi ' reach and started aftet his first man. N-SiiVfe' (I tIIP1', )Usj and in a few minutes had him on the 'y Viii'ir Ss, I I II -5; way to jail. An hour later it became 3S t? and that NV:n,'r had Put an end lo feSSSrJlip -"Jr jT" f the career of two of the men who did fllllllllml S Bill Rudolph, the Ironton, Mo., 'Ill I 'ill 'llfni i S- ,,ank robber, who had eluded the Pinkertons for months and had killed one ol i uiameu ainerence between be-tween the A. H. T. A. and the old-time organizations organi-zations of that nature. The vigilantes, about whom our fathers sometimes speak, often set themselves up as judge, jury and executioners. They sometimes held "necktie" parties in some secluded spot in the woods on a dark night, and perhaps there would be a light-fingered gentleman missing from that community the next morning. The regulators, about which we have read, sometimes forced people to leave the neighborhood or "take the consequences." Their motives for such action were often questionable. ques-tionable. Not so with the A. H. T. A. It does not violate one law to uphold another. It imposes im-poses a strict obligation upon its members to obey the law themselves. It then commands others to do likewise or suffer the penalty the law provides. It catches criminals, but turns them at once over to the officers of the law. Some have styled the A. H. T. A. an officers-aid officers-aid society, and in fact its record entitles it to that appellation. It opposes mob violence with all of its influence, and has prevented more than one lynching. It has recently been making mak-ing its plans to prevent if possible the introduction intro-duction of "night-riding" in Arkansas and Oklahoma. "Protect the innocent; bring the guilty to justice." is its motto. A mistaken idea some people have of the A. H. T. A. is that it looks after horse thieves only. Every kind of stealing, as well as other violations pf the law, comes within the scope of its work. Cases are on record where the A. H. T. A. spent ten dollars to recover a dollar dol-lar whip. One such case usually puts an end to whip-stealing in that community. Its object in doing so is not the value of the whip, but the lesson taught. It convinces thieves it is not profitable, and is extremely hazardous, to man. i hrough the thoroughness thor-oughness of the organization Wall is able to call to his aid, by secret methods if needed, members of the order almost anywhere he may go, and with this assistance his work has . given rise to the saying "If Wall goes after them he will bring them in." Some of the experiences of the order read like sketches from Conan Doyle, but they are actual happenings. The work of William Weaver in capturing two yegmen at Carl Junction, Mo., holds the record for grit, daring and activity among the antis. Weaver arrested a man he knew was wanted, and started off with him. Four strangers nearby, one with the best detectives in the country, was captured cap-tured by the antis near Paola, Kans., not long after he made his daring escape from the St Louis jail by dashing through the jailer's house in broad daylight. The newspapers said he was captured by a bunch of farmers, but they were men who had been preparing for months for just such cases, and were acting under direction of their chosen leader. Bob Worthman, a noted criminal, who was sent to the penitentiary from the Indian Territory Terri-tory a couple of years ago, got gay, and he and two of his pals caught an active anti while on his way home from church one Sunday night. They started to hang this anti, but after compelling com-pelling him to take an oath of their own making, mak-ing, they released him. This particular anti dropped out of the hunt, but the other members mem-bers kept it up until the rascal was put in safekeeping, where he still remains. These are only a few of many cases, but they serve to show the work of the order. The A. H. T. A. is organized on. the lodge system the same as the many other fraternal orders, except that it has a different object in view. Its workings are secret only in so far as is necessary to its success and to protect pro-tect it from impostors. The cost of maintenance mainten-ance is a trifle. It seldom costs a member more than a dollar a year, and often less than that. The activity of the A. H. T. A. has a far-reaching far-reaching influence. It is a potent factor in the line of moral uplifting. It leads aright those who will be led, but lays a heavy hand on those who persist in their efforts to live from the fruits of other men's toil. It prevents crime. It is a public benefactor, for a thief in jail can steal from no man. An active A. H. T. A. lodge is a blessing to any community. |