Artifact #65: "You stood your ground in Skagway and now have the people’s confidence and respect."

Letter to Soapy Smith
From John J. Shay
June 28, 1898
artifact #65-A
Jeff Smith collection

(Click image to enlarge)

ou stood your ground in Skagway and now have the people’s confidence and respect."

      Artifact #65 is a letter written on June 28, 1898 by confidence man and friend, John J. Shay, from Los Angeles, California, to Soapy Smith in Skagway, Alaska. The letter concerns a batch of bunco men heading towards Skagway. The letter is written ten days before Soapy's death, so there is a possibility that Soapy never saw it, though the letter was among the thousands of others in his estate.

The current correspondence between John and Soapy may have been ongoing, but the known letters start three months prior, in March 1898.

March 10, 1898

I received a letter from Daily (Old Bill), he is in Tacoma. You will no doubt see him up your way. Jeff, with all his faults, the old man loves the very ground you walk on. “Treat him kindly.” Kid Collins left for Seattle last night. Thence to Skagway. There is none of the gang here now but Link Howard, and I think Davis, alias Poker Davis, will be in Alaska ere long. Billy Cardwell (Senator Whit’s clerk), says [to me] “Who are you writing to, Jeff…?” I said yes. “Well then,” said he…, “give him my kind regards, for he is a good fellow.” By the way, Jeff, Frank Cole blowed the mineral and got not a quarter from same, and is on the hog train. He is trying hard for someone to stake him for Alaska, and owing to his being a good rustler, you might have the pleasure of seeing him in the near future, and … [let’s not forget] to mention Mr. Coy Kendall, who worked for me so long, and then went to work for Cole, is now on his way to Alaska and will no doubt call on you, and Jeff, I wish to state he is a perfect and good man, honest as the day, and no better man lives, and kindly do what you can for him, use your influence in getting him something to do, tending bar or anything else, for he is most worthy. Please give my regards to Kempter (Dutch) and to all the boys, and not forgetting yourself. I remain, Very truly yours,

John J. Shay (1)

Jeff replied to Shay, who again responded with news about mutual friends. This is artifact #65 the subject of today's post.

Los Angeles June 28, 1898

Dear old friend Jeff:

      First of all I want to thank you many thousand times for the number of papers you have sent me. Not alone myself, who takes an interest in reading the valuable and clean little sheet that it is, but many businessmen and miners as well. They seem to take a great interest in reading same and express their great surprise in learning the enterprise of the people of Skagway. Am sure the paper being here does your town no harm. Henderson just came back, and states that Capt. Jack Lamey had left for … North Spokane, but a letter to Republic, Wash., would reach him. Jack made no money with Henderson on his staff. Ed is a good man. “No better,” but out of his line of business and C. H. Davis is out at some springs. And not a grafter in town. Burk has gone back to the city. Will enclose old Bill’s [Bill Banks] letter. Kid Collins was here short time ago— stayed but a few days and left again. Was sorry to see him leave, a good fellow he is. Cole was in yesterday, the first time in many weeks. He is broke and has been for a long-long time. He would make a good booster, and more than willing to join the band. However, he should go mining again. King Warren is in San Francisco. I had a letter last week from him. He tells me he is going to Alaska. Jeff, as always I am glad indeed to know of your doing well, and as I told the boys here, … you had more brains than them all put together. You stood your ground in Skagway and now have the people’s confidence and respect. Success to you is my earnest wish. My business still continues to be good. Am perfectly satisfied and happy, and hope this will find you the same, and any of my friends who might be there. I wish best wishes. I remain forever your friend

John Shay

Stateside members of the bunco brotherhood were gravitating north. How many actually arrived in Skagway and went to work under Soapy probably will never be known as the key to the success of his operations was secrecy.

Letter to Soapy Smith
From John J. Shay
June 28, 1898
artifact #65-B
Jeff Smith collection

(Click image to enlarge)

      Unfortunately, I have yet to find anything on John J. Shay. He obviously knew Soapy and his peers well enough to assume that he too was a confidence man. Probably a working associate of Soapy's at one time.

 (Click image to enlarge)

The above unknown newspaper clipping (possibly Los Angeles) was found in Soapy's personal trunk after his death, contains drawings of several bunco men mentioned in Shay's letters to Soapy.

• "King Warren," a bunco man whose name and face (drawing) are seen in the newspaper clipping above.
• "Kid Collins," probably "J. Collins" pictured in the newspaper clipping above. A confidence man named  "Collins" is forced to flee Leadville, Colorado with con man, "Big Ed" Burns in November 1879. It may be the same individual.
• "Old Bill," is Bill Daily who accompanied Soapy on their first trip to Skagway in August 1897. In the 19 days they were in the brand new camp they made about $30,000.
• E. C. "Poker" Davis, of whom nothing is known. There are several confidence men associates of Soapy's name "Davis."   

Footnotes:

(1) Letter to Jeff Smith II from John Shay, 03/10/1898. "Correspondence of a Crook," Alaska-Yukon Magazine (Jan 1908). Slightly edited for readability.

John J. Shay: page 504-05.

"Thieves fall out and we may find out some time what became of Jeff’s property. There are men in Skaguay now who claim to have killed my brother. I have been told that Reid did not kill him, but that another man in the crowd fired a bullet into his back while he was struggling with Reid."

—Bascomb Smith
Soapy's younger brother

MARCH 12

1664: New Jersey becomes a British colony. King Charles II grants land in the New World to his brother James, The Duke of York.

1755: The steam engine is used for the first time in North Arlington, New Jersey.

1789: The U.S. Post Office is established.

1856: California outlaw, Tom Bell, and his gang rob a mule train laden with $21,000 in gold, and tie the five drivers to trees.

1863: President Jefferson Davis delivers his State of the Confederacy address.

1884: The State of Mississippi authorizes the first state-supported college for women, the Mississippi Industrial Institute and College.

1885: The Montana Territory legislature bans "pernicious hurdy-gurdy" houses.

1889: Outlaw Jefferson Jones kills and robs Henry Wilson of $12 in the Choctaw Nation. Jones was arrested and tried in Fort Smith, Arkansas by Judge Isaac Parker who sentenced him to death. Jones was hung on January 16, 1890.

1889: Almon Stowger applies for a patent for his automatic telephone system.

1891: William Oliver is swindled of $42 in a Denver, Colorado “brace” game by bunco man John Hayes.

1894: Coca-Cola is sold in bottles for the first time.

1894: Bill Dalton, Bill Doolin and six others rob the safe of the Woodward Depot of about $7,000 meant for the soldiers at Fort Supply. It is believed that the wife of bad man Soapy Smith (Mary Noonan) is related to the Dalton family.

1894: James Young is killed by a blow from a fist, at the Arcade Gambling rooms in Denver, Colorado.

1898: Soapy Smith posts the “answer to warning” handbills in Skagway for the vigilante Committee of 101. The handbills are signed from the Law and Order Society (“consisting of 317 citizens”), which coincidentally is the address of Soapy’s saloon.

1904: After 30 years of drilling, the tunnel under the Hudson River is completed. It links Jersey City, New Jersey and New York, New York.

1906: The U.S. Supreme Court rules that corporations must yield incriminating evidence in anti-trust suits.

1909: Three U.S. warships are ordered to Nicaragua to stem the conflict with El Salvador.

1912: Ben Kilpatrick, the "Tall Texan" of the outlaw Wild Bunch gang, and Ole Hobek, are shot and killed during the robbery of the Southern Pacific's Sunset Express in Texas. They were killed by guard, David Trousdale.