Virgil regained his feet and walked back to the Oriental, where he told Wyatt he had been shot. Wyatt hastened him back to his rooms and sent for Drs. H.M. Matthews and George Goodfellow. Parsons initially thought that Dr. Goodfellow had been shot, “knowing how pronounced he was on the Earp-cowboy question.” Parsons criticized the police, whom he described as “cowardly, apathetic guardians of the peace,” for their failure to pursue the shooters. By the time he reached Virgil’s room at the Cosmopolitan, the hotel and its halls were filled with armed men.35
Virgil’s left arm was shattered. Other shots had torn into his thigh and struck his kidney, liver, and spinal column. More shots had crashed through the window of the Eagle Brewery Saloon and passed over the heads of the patrons. Nineteen shots were counted in the outside wall and awning posts. The doctors wanted to remove Virgil’s arm, but he was adamant against that procedure, so they removed five and one-half inches of humerus bone from the arm. He told his wife, Allie, “Never mind, I’ve got one arm to hug you with.”36 George Parsons said, “Patient doing well. It is surmised that Ike Clanton, Curly Bill, and McLaury did the shooting. Bad state of affairs here. Something will have to be done.”37
In fact, Curly Bill’s whereabouts were unknown (assuming he had been released from the Lordsburg jail), and Will McLaury had gone home to Fort Worth. Virgil later said he saw Frank Stilwell entering the construction site as he left the Oriental, and Ike Clanton’s hat was found at the rear of the building. With Virgil wounded and perhaps dying, Wyatt telegraphed Marshal Dake:
Virgil was shot by concealed assassins last night. His wounds are fatal. Telegraph me appointment with power to appoint deputies. Local authorities are doing nothing. The lives of other citizens are threatened.
WYATT EARP38
Dake immediately telegraphed the appointment to Wyatt, “instructing him to spare no pains or expense in discovering the perpetrators of the deed.”39 Accordingly, Wyatt deputized a group of men including Doc, Morgan, Warren, Sherman McMaster, Texas Jack Vermillion, Turkey Creek Jack Johnson, Dan G. Tipton, O.C. “Charlie” Smith, and perhaps a few others.40 It was a hard group, but Wyatt wanted a tough crowd experienced in gunplay, and these men were. Doc must have smiled at the thought of being a duly appointed federal lawman. Now, his cause had legitimacy too.
The attack on Virgil was serious. The Epitaph offered its opinion without restraint, seeing in what happened more validation of its stance on the Cow-Boy question:
This further proves that there is a band of assassins in our midst, who, having threatened the lives of Judge Spicer, Mayor Clum, Mr. Williams, the Earp brothers and Holliday, have attempted on two occasions to carry their threats into execution, first upon Mayor Clum and second upon Virgil Earp. The question naturally arises, Who will be the next subject? And a further question, How long will our people stand this sort of thing? It is no fault of these damned assassins that several persons were not killed in their dastardly attempt to murder a United States officer last night; for there were many people in the Eagle brewery, over the heads of whom the passing shots flew on their course. A few inches lower and there would have been corpses prostrated upon the floor in place of frightened people wondering what had happened to cause the bombardment.41
The San Francisco Stock Exchange said that people should stop justifying the Cow-Boys as “a benefit to the town” for economic reasons, saying flatly, “it is time for respectable citizens to take the law in their own hands, if the officers are powerless to enforce the laws.… [T]his seems to be one of the cases in which a Vigilance Committee and a few hangings would be justifiable.”42 The Nugget, however, kept up its campaign against the Earps, with James Reilly now claiming that Bud Philpott’s death was “the result of a well-concocted scheme” to kill Bob Paul and to gain control of Tombstone’s criminal life. Reilly not only accused the Earps of stage robbery and murder but also of malfeasance in office.43 Oddly, then, the attempt to assassinate Virgil did nothing to bring Tombstone to its senses, but, on the contrary, divided the town even more.
In that environment, city elections were held on January 3. The Epitaph warned that a vote for Carr as mayor and Neagle as chief of police would ensure that the “ten-percent-ring” would control the city as well as the county. The Nugget proclaimed, “Doc Holliday and the Earps are solid for Blinn and Flynn. So is the Daily Strangler.” The Nugget argued that if Blinn and Flynn were elected, Flynn would resign and Blinn would reappoint Virgil Earp as chief of police: “The election will to-day decide whether Tombstone is to be dominated for another year by the Earps and their strikers. Every vote against the People’s Independent Ticket is a vote in favor of the Earps. Miners, business men, and all others having the welfare of our city at heart should remember this.”44 Its arguments apparently won the day, because Carr beat Blinn by 830 votes to 298, and Neagle defeated Flynn by a vote of 590 to 434, with Leslie Blackburn polling 103. Reilly, at least, was defeated by A. O. Wallace for city recorder.45 The Nugget crowed and the Epitaph acquiesced, but the troubles were not over.
Carr did make a strong effort. He beefed up the enforcement of Ordinance No. 9 and revoked a number of concealed weapon permits. His administration dropped the 10 percent surcharge on taxes to shatter that projection, and Marshal Neagle at least commanded the respect of the Earps and their supporters. The Earps no longer had a clear political presence, but they did continue to have a political base with the same “law and order” types who comprised the Citizens Safety Committee and some of the most prominent movers and shakers in the business community. The support was not as visible as before, but it was still there.
On January 6, and again on January 8, stage robberies reminded the residents of Cochise County that a city election in Tombstone had not cured all their problems. The W. W. Hubbard & Company coach for Bisbee was attacked on January 6. Even though Charley Bartholomew, a Wells, Fargo guard, fought the attackers, a horse was killed and the robbers took $6,500. Two days later, the Sandy Bob stage from Benson was hit between Contention and Tombstone. The robbers got little more than small change from the passengers (missing $1,500 that was hidden), but they humiliated James B. Hume, the Wells, Fargo chief of detectives, by stealing his two prized revolvers. Hume continued to Tombstone, where he met with Wyatt Earp, whose ties to Wells, Fargo were still strong. He now had fresh reason to support the Earps and to be critical of Sheriff John Behan.46
In fact, Wells, Fargo was so infuriated by the latest robberies that it temporarily closed its Bisbee run, giving rise to rumors that Tombstone would soon be closed as a Wells, Fargo destination as well. The rumor was not true, but the threat itself was enough to concern the business interests in southeastern Arizona, which gave Wells, Fargo influence and leverage in law enforcement, and that reality alone extended the life of the Earps in Cochise County. Wells, Fargo officials never believed the tales about the Earps’ involvement in stage robberies that surfaced after the Spicer hearing, and, on the contrary, saw them as the best hope for ending the crime spree.
The cause of the Earps with Wells, Fargo was boosted when Marshal Dake traveled to San Francisco. There,
[h]e called upon Mr. John J. Valentine, and represented that in the matter of the disturbance at Tombstone in Cochise Co., Arizona. A.T., that he, Dake, was powerless to do good as U. S. Marshal for want of funds, and if the Company would advance him $3,000, he would use in quieting the disturbance and return the amount as soon as the vouchers could be approved at Washington and the money could be gotten in return—upon which representation by Dake, Mr. Valentine advanced $3,000, taking Dake’s receipt for the sum.47
John Peters Ringo, the Cow-Boy leader who challenged Wyatt Earp to a fight on the street in January 1882, and was in turn challenged by Doc Holliday. The police intervened, but the incident would be used to imply a rivalry between Ringo and Holliday.
This support would be welcome. The Earps were feeling financial pressure as a result of recent events and, not surprisingly, began to look for funds. The Nugg
et soon reported that “Wyatt Earp has sold his interest in the Oriental Saloon to Ricabaugh [sic] and Clark,” and two days later the Epitaph reported that Lou Rickabaugh and Richard Clark had sold out to Milt Joyce.48 On the evening of January 10, Joyce took over the operation of the Oriental with the best wishes of both of the town’s newspapers. It would be only the first move in the gradual draining away of the Earps’ assets in Tombstone.
The relative peace did not last, however. On January 17, George Parsons wrote in his diary:
Much blood in the air this afternoon. Ringo and Doc Holliday came nearly having it with pistols and Ben Maynard and Rickabaugh later tried to kick each others [sic] lungs out. Bad time expected with the Cow-boy leader and D. H. I passed both not knowing blood was up. One with hand in breast pocket and the other probably ready. Earps just beyond. Crowded Street and looked like another battle. Police vigilant for once and both disarmed.49
The venue was Allen Street near the Grand and Cosmopolitan hotels in front of the Occidental Saloon. For a few seconds, a fight between the two most feared men in Tombstone, John Ringo and Doc Holliday, seemed certain. Everyone who was there remembered it as a tense moment almost certain to erupt in gunplay, but contemporary accounts were cryptic at best, especially about the preliminaries. Over time, a web of recollections developed that reflected the interests and prejudices of the various factions. The tale that emerged from that morass of accounts was pure melodrama, with Ringo offering to fight a handkerchief duel with Holliday, who was all too willing to oblige him, declaring in one version, “I’m your huckleberry. That’s just my game,” before the authorities stepped in to prevent another gunfight on Allen Street.50
Some accounts, especially those partial to the Cow-Boys, had Ringo publicly berating the Earp crowd and challenging Wyatt to settle things one on one. Billy Breakenridge claimed that Ringo approached Wyatt Earp and said to him, “Wyatt, let’s end this row. It has gone on long enough. Let Holliday and me get out here in the middle of the street and shoot it out. If you get me, the cowboys will go home and consider the feud ended. If I am the winner, you agree to do the same and it will be all over.” Ringo then turned on his heel and started for the middle of the street, but, said Breakenridge, “This arrangement… was not acceptable to the Earp party, and they all went into the saloon.” Other old-timers would dismiss the entire Earp crowd as cowards for walking away and portrayed Wyatt cringing with fear at the very thought.
Still other versions portrayed Wyatt as coolly and wisely refusing to fight in order to defuse the situation, but, as Wyatt turned away, Doc stepped forward to accept Ringo’s challenge. In Wyatt’s own accounts of the affair, he claimed that Ringo’s challenge was made directly to Holliday, who responded by preparing to fight. He claimed that Chief of Police James Flynn grabbed Ringo by the arm at that point and that men in the crowd shouted, “Turn him loose!” Wyatt said he then stepped through the crowd, took Doc by the arm, and led him away. Billy Breakenridge even claimed that the crowd broke up after the Earps went into Hatch’s Billiard Parlor and that he later arrested Ringo himself.51
Doubtless, Tombstone narrowly avoided another shootout. George Parsons recalled that as he passed through the crowd, he heard Holliday tell Ringo, “All I want of you is ten paces out in the street.” But the credit for preventing further trouble went to Chief of Police Flynn, who had not yet turned his duties over to newly elected David Neagle. It was his moment in the Tombstone story. The Nugget recounted:
A difficulty occurred yesterday afternoon in front of the Occidental Saloon, Allen street, between John Ringo and Doc Holliday, that very nearly terminated in bloodshed. The parties had been on bad terms for some time past, and meeting yesterday morning words were exchanged and both parties stepped back, placing their hands on their weapons with the intention of drawing and using them. Fortunately Chief of Police Flynn was at hand and placed both parties under arrest. They were taken to Judge Wallace’s court and fined $32 each for carrying deadly weapons. Some little feeling was evinced by the occurrence, which fortunately died out before anything serious occurred. The streets were crowded at the time, and had the shooting commenced it is probable that more than one life would have paid the penalty and another serious tragedy been enacted in our streets.52
Actually, Flynn arrested Wyatt Earp as well as Ringo and Doc for carrying concealed weapons, which suggests he was involved somehow, but Wyatt was released because he was a federal officer with the right to carry a pistol. The other two were fined and released.53
Lou Rickabaugh’s encounter with the Cow-Boy partisan Ben Maynard was also clearly related to ongoing troubles. Rickabaugh was himself a feisty partisan with a quick temper who had been involved in more than one scrape in Tombstone. On November 15, during the Spicer hearing, he got into an argument with C.D. Dill during a faro game. Dill struck him on the head with a six-shooter, which discharged. Chief Flynn arrested both men, and Judge Wallace fined Dill $20 for carrying concealed weapons and Rickabaugh $15 for “using profane and indecent language.” Rickabaugh’s fight with Maynard on January 17 let everyone know where he stood. Maynard, for his part, had not seen the last of the Earps.54
Ringo’s arrest on January 17 was sufficient to remind Judge William H. Stilwell that Ringo had not been tried for the Galeyville robbery, and the judge decided that, given his behavior, the bond in his case was insufficient. On Friday, January 20, Ringo was taken into custody and lodged in the county jail, where he remained over the weekend.55 During the same day, Dake deposited the $3,000 he received from Wells, Fargo in the Hudson & Company Bank, minus $15, for use “to arrest all parties committing crimes against the United States.” The following day, John Thacker of Wells, Fargo went with Wyatt to the bank to authorize his use of the account.56
The Earps and their friends were quietly making plans to track down the men who had shot his brother. With his new authority as a deputy U.S. marshal, Wyatt sought and received warrants through Judge Stilwell, and Mayor Carr issued a proclamation calling on the citizens of Tombstone not to interfere with his efforts.57 Some people were surprised at Carr’s stance on the matter, and the Nugget placed the proclamation with other legal notices rather than give it prominence. It also editorialized that “a large majority of our citizens believe that the recent killing in our streets was a murder in reality, but done under the cover of a city marshal’s authority. To again place such power, in a slightly different form, in the hands of the perpetrators of the former act, is an outrage upon the public that could only be committed by a stupid or vicious magistrate.”58
Judge Stilwell was neither stupid nor vicious. He was one of a growing number of citizens who were put off by the failure of Behan’s office to deal with recent criminal activity in Cochise County. The warrants were issued to duly constituted officers of the law. On January 23, Wyatt left Tombstone with a party of men including Morgan and Warren Earp, Doc Holliday, Texas Jack Vermillion, Sherman McMaster, Creek Johnson, and two others. Wyatt carried warrants in his pocket for Ike and Fin Clanton and Pony Deal, but his destination was not announced.59
Ringo was still incarcerated when the Earp posse left Tombstone, so he called for his attorney, Briggs Goodrich, to expedite his bail. Goodrich advised Sheriff Behan that bail would be granted shortly, and Behan released Ringo before the judge had officially acted. Ringo immediately left town to warn his friends of Earp’s posse. James Earp, seeing Ringo leave, filed an affidavit calling Ringo “an escaped prisoner” who left “the custody of the Sheriff of said county without the approval of any bond.” He charged, further, that Ringo’s purpose was “to intercept Wyatt S. Earp, a Marshal entrusted with the execution of warrants for the arrest of divers persons charged with violations of the laws of the territory and duly issued for the arrest of said persons and deponent believes that the purpose of said Ringo is to obstruct the execution of said warrants.”60
At that juncture, a second posse was formed under John H. Jackson for the specific purpose of rearresting Ringo; th
ey departed on January 24 at four o’clock in the morning. Ringo reached Charleston in plenty of time to raise the alarm about the Earp posse, but when Jackson’s party arrived, he agreed to return to Tombstone with the posse. His attorney arrived after that, however, and, following a conversation with his client, told Jackson that Ringo would surrender to the authorities in Tombstone. Ringo then rode back to Tombstone and was again lodged in the county jail.61
The following day a party of more than thirty riders from Tombstone led by Charley Bartholomew, the Wells, Fargo guard, joined the Earp group that had been reconnoitering the backcountry, and together they descended on Charleston. En route they met Ben Maynard and forced him to return to Charleston with them to help locate the Clantons. By then, because of Ringo’s warning, the Clantons had left town. The Earps controlled Charleston overnight and the following day returned to Tombstone with nothing accomplished, except having created more ill will toward themselves.62 That day, Sheriff Behan received the following telegram:
CHARLESTON, A. T., January 26.—TO J. H. BEHAN, Sheriff of Cochise County—DEAR SIR: Doc Holliday, the Earps and about forty or fifty more of the filth of Tombstone are here armed with Winchester rifles and revolvers, and patrolling our streets, as we believe, for no good purpose. Last night and to-day they have been stopping good, peaceable citizens on all the roads leading to our town, nearly paralyzing the business of our place. We know of no authority under which they are acting. Some of them, we have reason to believe, are thieves, robbers, and murderers. Please come here and take them where they belong.
CHARLESTONIAN63
On January 30, Ike and Fin Clanton surrendered to a posse led by Bartholomew and were taken to Tombstone, where they were surprised to find that they had not been arrested for armed robbery as they supposed but for “assault with intent to commit murder, the specific offense being the waylaying and shooting of Virgil Earp some weeks ago.”64 After some dilatory moves to delay any action, the Clantons reversed their tactics and boldly decided to face the charges at once.
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