Earnest was murdered in Wyoming by some young men as he was working on ranch.

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Rock Springs Miner no. 3 January 20, 1906
The Henry’s Fork Murder.

At the time the MINER went to press last Saturday, but few of the details were known of the raid on the Hyde & Hatch sheep camp in the southwestern part of this county. Since that time the ground has been carefully gone over by the proper county officials and a part of the first report found to be incorrect.

The first report stated that the raiding party numbered over twenty men, that about 1000 sheep had been killed and the remainder driven over the “dead line” into recognized sheep territory. This report is untrue. According to the statement made to the officials by Goodman and Alred, there could not have been more than seven people in the attacking party and probably only four, as the latter number was all that had been seen; in all there were thirteen sheep killed and five wounded, also, one dog killed. There is not getting away from the accuracy of this report as the officials have verified every statement.

According to the investigation, the three men, Garside, Goodman and Alred were in the wagon when the shooting began. Garside was killed by a gunshot wound through the body, Goodman was shot in the foot and Alred escaped, although the wagon was pierced by fourteen bullets and it is a mystery why all of the men were not killed.

According to the testimony taken in the Coroner’s court: the three men had gone to bed in the wagon shortly before ten o’clock. In about a quarter of an hour shots were heard and bullets came whistling through the wagon. Garside and Goodman jumped to their feet and rushed for the door, but just as they reached the exit, Garside fell over on Goodman saying, “my God I am shot.” Goodman continued his flight and as he was going over a small hill received a wound in the right foot. The attacking party followed Goodman several hundred yards, firing every time they could get a glimpse of him. After loosing sight of Goodman in the cedars, the party returned to the camp and killed 13 sheep and wounded five others. Alred remained in bed in the wagon during the entire fusillade and was uninjured, and while the party were pursuing Goodman, made his escape to one of the nearby camps.

Early in the evening a boy about sixteen years of age made an examination of the camp and it is thought that he had some connection with the attacking party.

The body of Garside was taken to Carter station, where, after being viewed by the County Coroner and jury, it was shipped to his home in Riverton, Utah. On Tuesday evening the jury impaneled to investigate into the cause of the death, returned a verdict that E.H. Garside came to his death as the result of a gunshot wound, received at the at the hands of unknown parties about ten o’clock on the evening of Jan. 10, 1906 at a place about four and one half miles northeast of the Wade ranch in Sweetwater county, Wyoming. It was further found that the gunshot was fired with the intent to commit willful murder.

A reward of $1000 had been offered for the arrest and conviction of the murderers, and it is thought than an additional $500 will be offered by the state of Wyoming, although this matter will not be definitely determined until next Tuesday.

From the first reports the people were of the opinion that the raid had been made by the cattlemen of the Burnt Fork country for the purpose of driving the flock out of that section, but his is now believed to be a mistake. People who have gone over the ground thoroughly since the raid, believe that the attack was made by parties far under the age of those at first supposed, and several clews have been found to prove that it was not the work of the parties first under suspicion.

It is not thought that any further range trouble will result from the raid as the sheepmen and the cattlemen are united in their efforts to find the guilty parties.