The Hunt for an Ex-Convict
A suspected horse thief vanishes into the hills after a crime, reviving fears of an organized gang operating across the border.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The disappearance of Ed Weston, the suspected horse thief, is as complete as if he had sunk into the earth. Rumors from different parts of the country as to his route of flight are heard, but nothing tangible can be found. The theory is that he escaped to the hills south of Pomeroy before pursuit became general and, after stealing the horse of Frank Rach, a rancher, made across the mountains to the Anatoine country where he would be well sheltered by friends. Weston is an ex-convict and is considered a bad man. He was but recently released from the penitentiary after serving eighteen months for horse stealing. It is charged the Weston brothers are members of an organized gang of horse thieves operating from British Columbia to Nevada with regular stopping places along the route. Horses stolen in Oregon and Nevada are brought to Washington or British Columbia and sold, while horses stolen in Washington and British Columbia are taken south and sold or traded off. 'The Rocks,' is one of the favorite resorts of stock thieves, the country, as its name signifies, being rocky and well adapted to hiding stolen stock.
“The disappearance of Ed Weston, the suspected horse thief, is as complete as if he had sunk into the earth.”
The 'horse thief' narrative was the 1903 equivalent of modern organized crime reports. The reliance on geographic features for criminal hideouts like 'The Rocks' mirrors how modern rural law enforcement still struggles with tracking suspects in vast, rugged terrain.
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