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Caddo County Newspapers - The Anadarko Record
Feb. 28, 1902
Friday

BERT CASEY'S MEN CAPTURED

Several of the noted outlaws captured and others killed in a severe
conflict with officers at Wewoka, I.T.

To a correspondent  of the State Capital two of the younger of the
famous Casey gang, who now to the murder of fourteen are waiting behind
prison bars until the courts have time to give them each his just
deserts, have confessed.

It appears that a few days before the killing of Smith and Beckett,
Williams and Mobbley of the Choctaw country came to the latters farm
where they met Bert Casey. Casey proposed to go over into the Kiowa
country and do some work. Their destination it appears was the National
Bank at Mountain View, O.T. This being agreed they came direct to
Lexington, Cleveland co., and then to Anadarko, arriving the day before
the fight west of town. While securing liquor in Anadarko this gang
accidentally ran across Walter Sufford who has a brother living about
ten miles west of the town. In the meantime they had all secured plenty
to drink and they started west. On the way they robbed our old gentleman
who came on to town and reported it to Sheriff Smith who immediately
with two deputies started in pursuit of the gang. The robbers were
overtaken about twelve miles out and a desperate battle ensued in which
Smith and his deputy Beck were killed. The outlaws had all the advantage
of position being inside an old house and were armed with savage rifles
and steel balls. Two of the sheriffs men were killed and the murders
escaped to the Kechihills. Here the four divided into two parties,
Mobbly and Williams remaining in that vacinity and were shortly captured
by Bobbett. Following capture of Williams and Mobbly came the fight at
Wewoka and capture of Bill Watson and others there and the death of
Swafford.

Bert Casey and Walter Swafford (spelled Sufford above) after stealing
several horses and mules last Thursday went to Asher and shot up the
town. Several Pottawatomie county deputies among them Milner, Jones,
Stone and Mallory started in pursuit, and located them on the Johnson
farm eight miles south of Wewoka about four a.m. Friday. After leaving
horses a few hundred yards from the premises, they cautiously approached
the place and took position in a stable fronting a tent about one
hundred feet away.

About 6:30 two men came out presumably to feed and were promptly
disarmed. They were Brown and Simmons. This was done so quietly that the
inmates of the tent were not alarmed. A few minutes later two more
outlaws, one the notorious Bill Watson, and an unknown, both armed to
the teeth approached without suspecting the nearness of officers. Upon
being told to throw up their hands they did so, but shouted to the
officers not to shoot. This ruse alarmed the real outlaws, Cassey and
Swafford, and in a few seconds the latter appeared at the door of the
tent, Winchester in hand and fired. Casey followed an instant later.
Swafford and Casey sprang forward and dropped behind a rail fence. Then
a terrible fusilade followed.

Swafford fought bravely and played a tattoo around the men firing at
him, but the officers aim was the more deadly and they soon riddled him.
Casey lay low a few feet from him and saw his plucky companion die. The
officers were led to believe that Casey was dead with Swafford as he had
not been seen to move. Two of the deputies then began to disarm the
captured men, while Deputy W.A. Jones was watching the fence. He was
preparing to withdraw his rifle when Casey crawled to the corner of the
tent and sprang into the thick brush a few feet distant and escaped.
During the fight Casey sent a shot through the corner of the barn. It
was a steel bullet and after penetrating two ---- it struck Deputy Jones
in the ---- dangerously wounding him.

Sheriff J.D. Thompson and Deputy ----chett came down on the first train.
Thompson went out to the  scene of the fight. He is loud in his praise
of the brave men from Pottawatomie county, and thinks that the reception
was a hot one, to say the least. He is much pleased with the progress of
the chase. The whole thing has been a combination of shrewdness and good
fortune. The opening wedge was the trailing and learning the personnel
of the gang by Neil Morrison of Hobart. Gus Bobbet took up the trail
where Morrison left off and captured Mobbly and Williams at Ada, I.T.,
February 3.

Four horses, four mules, four sets of harness, eight saddles and two
buggies were recovered. Two of the mules were taken on the thirteenth
from Anadarko; There is no doubt but that Casey, when cornered, is a
coward and is as craven as it is possible to be. He, with posing as the
leader of the gang, made each take a solemn oath to fight until the
death, and yet in the pinch he was the only one to sneak away on all
fours in the brush leaving his brave and nervy partner, Swafford dying
with six bullets in his body. The last bullett struck Swafford in the
heart. On the fence in front of him were the marks of a dozen bullets,
showing the desperateness of the fight while it lasted. On the logs
behind which Casey was lying were the marks of fifteen bullets. Had the
deputies had steel bullets, they would have cut Casey into atoms.

In the tent which (with) Casey and Swafford were two women, soiled doves
of the vicinity. Notwithstanding the fierceness of the fight and the
fact that the tent was riddled with bullets the women remained there
until the battle was over. An examination of the tent afterward and the
remarks of the women proved that the bullets had not missed them only
from six to eight inches.

To Nell Morrison, as stated above is due no little credit for the
results of the affair. He is at present city marshal of Hobart and he is
an ex-sheriff of Washita county.

He was one of the first to take the trail. Shortly after the fight at
Anadarko two men were arrested in that neighborhood who were suspected
of being the murders(murders) of Smith and Beck. It was with difficulty
that Sheriff Thompson kept them from being mobbed. They were two of the
four fellows mentioned above, who were going in with Walter Swafford to
rob the saloons in that locality. When he, as their leader, did not come
back with the amunition, having joined Casey, these four pals were left
at sea. Then the murder of Smith and Beck followed and these fellows,
fearing they would be suspicioned, stole four horses near Anadarko to
use in getting out of the country. Of the four, Gus Conger was the
leader. He is said to be the toughest looking man of the entire outlaw
gang. After stealing the hores Conger and Bill Mobbley were arrested and
jailed at Anadarko. The same evening Neal Marrison (msp) returned to
Anadarko from a trip to the  Choctaw country after Casey and his
partners. He learned of the arrest and made up his mind to get the
confidence of the two in jail. He postponed his visit to them until
dark. Then posing as a friend he asked what he could do to help them.
Conger asked only for a gun, saying he would do the rest. Morrison
agreed to get it for him and returned to the sheriff's office where he
got a revolver and told Sheriff Thompson of his plans. He then returned
to the jail followed by Thompson. Just as he was pretending to give the
gun to Conger the sheriff slipped up, arrested Morrison in the act and
threw him in the jail with the outlaws. He remained in jail all night
with the two and got from them the story, as much as they knew. The next
morning he was released presumably on bond. In this way he got next to
many important items that materially helped in the closing results. By
the brands "SB" on the ponies left by Casey and his gang at the hut,
Morrison knew the country from which the real murderers had come.

Concerning the efficient efforts of our Sheriff J.D. Thompson and his
deputies all vie in giving them unstinted praise. They have been active
and untiring in their efforts to locate and land every member of this
murderous gang. But such organized lawlessness as this can not be met
and conquered by one county organization however efficient. And in this
case some of the shrewest and best men that this country afford were out
to break up the organization and secure the rewards. Among those Neil
Morrison of Hobart, an ex-sheriff of Wahita county where he served three
terms and captured more horse thieves and murderers and demanded more
respect for organized efforts than had ever before been dreamed of in
that, then a new country. Such men are needed here to run down the rough
element that must ever be a factor in a new country.

Submitted by Sandy Miller