Daily Davenport Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1864-1874, 1864-12-02

: - ' 49, -s''''
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~. DAerssr1 B. Townsend, d ths town
- -, - ~ and rsspectsd citissn cfthia
eeoolRy - = bsoth1F ~ a. 8. and Geo. n.
86Wo1o60. = ~ sam6 Nv !, was murdered
- ~ ~. Or lat October, whi:e q ~ weg
- fton Idaho. The following ere the
~. Townsend ieft his home early last
Anil foe idaho. which place he reached
e6out the iSrst 81 August. Not finding The
eoontry = psomising . he Axpected, he soon
m6de tFupsss lions % rctorS home. An ~
'nsA absGt SIXTY years u age, named Joseph
McMullin, from Montgomery county. near
Pana, Illinois, was 81 this time in Idaho.
and on learning that Mr.. Townsend WAS
at,oot q setdrn home, ne begged the priv
lego Of riding with him, representing ct the
same time that he had no money and no way
% eet home. Mr.. T. had good team q
mules, and being . kind hearted man, he
WAS touched BY tho old mans story. and
told him he would take him along free Of
charge. About the last Of August they
started out on their long journey across the
country, intending TO cross the hissindppi
q Dubuque Mr.. townsend treated the
old man very kindly on tho way, always Cd
dressing him ~ "father."
On tho 9Th Of October they reached Story
county, Iowa, and. IS night came on. they
called at house just beyond the village Of
Nevada, where Mr. T. purchased = cabbage
and squash, telling the old man that these
vegetables, together with some corned beef,
which they had in the wagon. would make
them . hnc breakfast. They then drove
along, and the people Of the house noticed
that bsfore reaching the village, they drove
ct short distance from the roa., to the
bank Of creek, where they campcd for the
night. The next morning they saw the old
man hitch up the team and drive of alone,
which awakened the suspicion that al was
not right. The old man pursued his Journey
alone, Offering all along to sell the team Of
two nudes and one good horse, together
with the remainder Of the outfit, for $500.
Az the property was worth about $500.
those TO whom he offered it refused to pur-
chase, on the supposition that he had stolen
Il.
About ten days subsequent to the time
that the parties camped at Nevada, = gem
tleman, being on the spot hunting, saw, just
1t the edge Of the creek, mans whiskcrs
and the toes of his boots sticking out Of the
ground. He at once removed the earth
from the body, and found the head almost
split in two from blow which smashed in
the left side of the skull and cracked it
nearly around. A rope was about the neck
Of the corpse, which had been used in drag
ging the body from the scene Of murder to
the spot where it was buried.
The people in the neighborhood at once
understood the whole story. They iemem-
bered that two men had ten days before
campcd near there over night, and that the
old man drove away the next morning alone.
They remembered, too, Of having heard the
young man say, on the day before the muir
der, that he owned the team. They also
judged from his appearance that he had
considerable money with him. and they had
no doubt that the old man had murdered
hun 'or his team and money; but hey had
NO knowledge ~ to where the parties were
from. or what were their names.
Further senrch was made. and within five
rods Of where the body was discovered they
found where the two men had camped. A
shovel was also found here, and the axe
with which the damning deed was commit
ted. Here, while the kind-hearted, honest
man was enjoying that sweet, refre hing
sleep which he SO much needed alter the
wearis0me journey of the day, the hoary-
headed villain stood, with axe in hand. wait
Ing to take the life Of his benefactor. When
certain that the good man was asleep, he
struck the fatal blow. Then, ate, takn .
his money from his pockets, he put rope
about his neck, dragged him to the creek,
and half buried him.
As som as these facts were brought to
light, the people Of Nevada sent two men in
search Of the murderer and the team. They
also h I'D two hundred photograph Of the
murdered man taken and sent to all parts
Of Iowa, with the hope that they might
meet the eye Of some one who knew him.
M. William II. Ankeny, Of Clinton. acct.
dentally saw one Of these photographs. and
ct once recognized it as that Of s. B. Town
send, with whom he had been well acauanin-
ted. tie Immediately telcgraphed TO Mr..
H. s. Townsend, who, OH the receipt Of the
news, started with his brother, G.. N.
Townsend. for Nevada At Clinton they
were joined by Mr.. Ankeny, who went
with them to assist in identifying the body.
The people Of Nevada gave them q de-
scription Of the nu dercr, which Ankeny
said answered exactly to the description Of
an old man from near Pima, who went to
Idaho last spring, in the same train with
himself. The Townsend brothcrs lost no
time in hurrying to Pana, where they found
xcMullen, and had him arrested. He own
ed that he started from Idaho with Mr..
Townsend, but said that they parted at Dos
Noincs. which is thirty miles beyond Neva-
da, and that he did not see Townsend after
wards. Mr.. Ankcny, with an officer, took
the prisoner to Nevada, and while on his
way there he confessed his guilt. At Neva-
d. he was examined, when he again confess
ed the whole, and was committed to Jail to
await bis trial, at the District Court in that
county, next April. He confessed to Mr..
Ankeny that he had been in the rebel SER
vice, and his neiehbors suppose him to have
been Z Missouri bushwhacker.
The brother Of the murdered man recciv.
Cd letter from Nevada, few days ago,
stating that the team had been recovered,
and that the man who purchased it paid but
e460 for Il. a.1
NJ Townsed il supposed to have had
about ~ 900 in money on his person At the
time the murder Was committed. This The
murderer had squandered away. and none 81
Il win ever be recovered.
Mr.. I0Wnaend WAS On hor cred uprieht
eitisen, aud man e considerable property.
He Va native Of the lad mine reeion.
and va nearly forty years Of sgs. He
leaves : 1ife and n adopted son shout e.,
yeor6 I'D, % whom be Willed Ne property
beloeo soontffg fbf Idaho.
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