Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1864-12-02
TERRIBLE TRAGEDY.
SHOOTING AFFRAY---ONE MAN KILLED
AND ANOTHER WOUNDED. q

SHOOTING AFFRAY---ONE MAN KlLLEI
AND ANOTHER WOUNDED. L
A shooting affray happened at tn
bawdy house on the opposite side of tn
river, kept by Jack Anthony, Monda.
afternoon, resulting in the death of on
man, and severely, though not fatally
wounding another.
Sometime since seven Chicago thieves
and bounty jumpers paid this city {
visit, three of them remaining and TAX
ingsup their abode on boat near thu
lower tow-head, used as a house of i'll
fame, and kept by man known as
picioning the characters but unable te
obtain any proof against them, ordered
them to leave town and Ben to close his
boat. Conceiving Anthony to have in
stigated the proceedings, the trio yester-
day afternoon crossed the river with the
avowed intention of cleaning out his
shop" and killing Anthony. On arri-
val at the house, one of them pulled a
revolver, but Anthony, aware of their
coming, was prepared with a shot gun,
and before LOOMS, the leader of the
assaulting party could shoot gave him
the contents of one barrel in the bowels,
killing him instantly, and then poured
the contents of the other, at short range,
into the elbow ofanother, filling it COM
pletely with shot. The third one es-
capped. The wounded man will proba-
bly, lose his arm. The name of the man
killed is Richard Loomis, hailing from
Chicago. He is said to have been a
prize fighter and desperate character
generally. We did not learn the names
of the other two.
P. S. At the Coroner's inquest, held
last night, the jury returned verdict
of justifiable homicide The shooting
by anthony was undoubtedly done in
lf-defense.L
FULL PARTICULARS OF THE TRAGEDY
IN ILLINoIs.-We are indebted to one
of the coroner's jury for the following
particulars of the late tragedy. tits inn
possible to get at the true name of the
man that was killed, he having given
different names at different Places
While here, he gave his name as Loo
mis- but across the river he went by the
cognOmen of Dick O'Brien. The only
papers he had on his body was an ex-
press receipt, given at Rock Island, to
George Miller. 4
i 1t appears that O'Brien, being out of
money, pawned his watch to get funds
enough to have a big spree with. After
getting this, he took one-of his partners,
a man they called Frenchy, with him,
and crossed the river in company with
two men from Anthony's, named Riggs
and Palmer O'Brien was heard to say,
while crossing, thk he was going over
to " clean out" Jack Anthony. After
crossing, they all went to Jacks house,
and after drinking couple of times,
O'Brien and Frenchy left, and went to
Mr. Miller's house, up the river, where
it appears one of them was boarding a
woman. They staid there about half an
hour, when they started to return. On
their way back they saw two of Jack g
women ahead of them. They called on
them to stop, or they would fire. The
women paid no attention to them, when
they fired two shots at them, without,
however, injuring either of them.
BY this time Riggs and Palmer had
heard the firing, and started to see what
lit meant. On approaching, O'Brien
challenged them; they answered they
We're friends, when Frenchy fired two
shots at them, one of the balls barely
grazing the temple of Riggs. They then
told Frenchy who they were, when he
put up his weapons, and they all started
for Anthony's. On their way down,
O'Brien and Frenchy made their threats
that they would kill Anthony.
AT the door they met Mr.. Tip. Nc
Greer, who had ridden down to see what
the firing meant. On seeing him,
Frenchy struck at him, and both drew
their pistols on him. Mr.. McGreer beat
a hasty retreat into the back part of the
house.
At this juncture, Anthony came out,
and ordered them from his premises, re.
marking that he wanted no fuss there.
At this, they drew their weapons on
him, swearing that they would kill him.
Anthony then went into the back
room and got small double-barreled
shot gun, cooked it, with his finger on
the trigger, and again went into the
front room and ordered them away
O'Brien pulled his pistol and snapped 8
cap at him, whereupon Anthony pulled
up his gun and shot him, the contents
entering his bowels. Frenchy ther
snapped his revolver at him, and find
ing it missed fire, turned and fled
Anthony fired the other barrel at him
lodging the charge in his elbow.
O'Brien lived about an hour after hi
was shot. Before he died he sent fol
Anthony, shook hands with him ane
told him he did not blame him fol
shooting him, for if he had not, he would
have killed him, (Anthony.) He re
peated this two or three times, ant
requested him to give him q deem
burial. He then called to God to have
mercy on his soul and expired. Frenchy
managed to cross the river, and in com
pany with six other notorious charac
tiers left on the 4:45 train for region!
unknown. "Good radiance to bad rub
bish."
This place has been cursed of late
with these characters in an unusua
high degree, and it is time that the Off
GERS should exercise their perogative
and ship a few more of them. Their,
are several more "gunboats" that neet
spiking, and we hope the time is not fa
/ distant when it will be done, and that il