REPUBLIC INSURANCE COMPANY

OF TEXAS

A. P. WHITE, ABILENE DAYS
told December 12, 1932

I think it was in 1881 when I shot a fellow in Abilene. I think his name was Fred Black, but I am not sure.  It has been so ... long, anyway they called him Slim Jim. He was a ... whore house pimp. We was in Sam Neal’s Saloon--Joe Rice, Ed Brockman and me. Joe and Ed had left their Six Shooters at Sam’s Saloon and we was done in a tent and this fellow come around cussing. I think he wanted to see if we had our six shooters. He saw me and came over and tried to run his hand under my coat. I ran out the tent door as I ran out, he did too and we both started shooting. I got him in both legs. The City Marshall was another ... pimp and he took me and Jess Chandler and chained us in bed. Jess hadn’t done a ... thing. He was laying there and said, "Well, one thing, I am not chained to a horse thief." I told him, "No, but you’re chained to a ... good cow thief. John Cunningham was Sheriff and when he come down and saw me chained he raised ... with the ... little old Marshall. I waited around all day and finally John said, "Perry, I am going to swear out a writ for you. Maybe I can keep it out of the grand jury." He did, and some old German was holding court in a tent said, "What have they got you here for." I said, "I will be ... if I know." He fined me $1.00 and coat. I got out of it for about $10.00. Jess Chandler hadn’t done a thing. He fought it through the courts and it cost him about $200.00.

After that I was on my way from Sweetwater to Hamilton when the train stopped at Abilene. I went across to Sam Neal’s Saloon to get a drink. Sam said, "Perry, you ought not to have gotten off that train, for they aim to kill you.’ About that time Ed Manell came in and said, "Perry, Fred Black and 2 girls just got on the train and he is going to kill you." I went back and got on the train. In those days they had stoves in the coaches. I got behind the stove in a corner and was going to use the stove as a breastworks. Just before the train started, Jack Best and Paul Reed got on the train. Old man Jim Reed owned the Horse Shoe Ranch. They were going to Fort Worth and both had their six shooters in their grips. I told them what was up and that said, "We will help you out of it." They opened up their grips and put on their six shooters. Fred Black and the two girls got off the train.

They aimed to kill me once before that. Two women told Joe Rice that they was changing their clothes to kill me. They walked between me and the fellows that were after me and they couldn’t soot me without hitting the woman.