In opposition to the vigilante hysteria, Major Robert S. Neighbors, Indian agent, and one of the few Erath County residents not drawn in by conspiracy theories, Joshua R. Carmack (his cabin is on the Stephenville grounds). Together they gave affidavits for the arrest of Garland’s vigilantes. Then Judge Battle issued writs to Ranger Captain “Rip” Ford to arrest Garland and his men. Ford was afraid of Garland’s gang and refused, even when ordered to by Governor Harden Runnels. This part of the frontier slid into anarchy. The best remembered and most gruesome instigator of the chaos that stained this period of Erath County’s history was John R. Baylor. (Baylor’s uncle was the founder of the university by that name) It was Baylor that directed the genocidal purges conducted in the area. Baylor published a racist newspaper in Weatherford, called “The Whiteman,” which spread misinformation throughout the area. Baylor’s main justification for wanting to exterminate all Indians was his claim that the Indian agents aided the reservation Natives in stealing horses from the frontier and driving them to Kansas for huge profits. This charge was disproven and it was found that this traffic in stolen horses was actually carried out by Baylor’s operatives. But Baylor was above the law, protected by hundreds of followers that refused to believe the charges.

Dan Young. When the Bosque Ran Clear, unpublished manuscript, 2023.