New Orleans daily crescent., 1866-10-13
The Dead Body Found on GENTLY Road-In.
quest of the Coroner

4he Dead BODY Found ON GENTLY Road-In-
quest Of the Coroner.
The Ponchartrain railroad, about two and a
half miles from the depot, is intersected by the
GENTLY road and about five hundred Yards from
the intersection stands a farm house, which was
formerly used as the stables or bar-rooIn to the
old Creole course. The race track is now obliter.
ated, and, with theadjacent ground has been
transformed into farm for the Gaising of cotton
and hay.
About two years since, one hundred and sixty
acres of this was leased by Louis Donneux, an ex-
cuisinier, who had for long time been employed
with John Strenna in his restaurant, and who had
determined to devote his remaining years to agri-
| cultural.pursuits He was anatiYeofBelgiu bro.
vince of Lege was about 10 years old, and had
been resident of the city for thirty-two years We
now introduce portion of the evidence Of Mr..
Louis Charret, taken before the coroner:
On Thursday the deceased accompanied me in
a wagon to town for the purpose of seeing Mr..
Nlhoul. He went with me also on the previous
Monday for the purpose as he stated, of OBJ
talnlng money (tc pay his employes.) Arrived
in town on Thursday; he went his way and [
mme. lagan saw him in the afternoon at about
O'Clock, apparently in the same condition as
when had left him. He drank glass of cider
and ate some bread, and afterwards went home
htr. 1iaG Nlh0M S1g0r7l-phe deceased until
WITHIN the past two months, had enjoyed eXcellert
health; since which time he has been ILL., and W.
month sick in bed. On Thursday he told N
he was well nigh gone-that he lthimself goiJ, z
every day.
.J,i5ien (cozored) seco,71-Have been in the EN-.
plOy of the deceased since last Monday nv whom
was employed to cut hay, on half interest. On
Thursday night, about 10 O'clock the deceased
came into the kitchen with gun in his hand He
inquired if we had heard the dogs bark. l said
:" yes" He then asked if we had seen any- one.
ont will l1b{ 4
mounted into the garrett, situated in the back part
OF the building. He searched awhile but found
no one.
Pierre (c0l0red) sluorn.-Have been employed
with the deceased for two months as cetton pick
En- Every morning went for milk for his break
fast. went Thursday morning, as usual and
Knocked at his window without receiving any an
swer. After that called to Julian to come and
see now the deceased was lying. / then immedi-
ately went and called Mr. Charret, Julian mean
while remaining.) The deceased was in the habit
of closing all the doors and windows at night.
Heard no noise the night'before except the bark
ing Of dogs.
The statement of Lieut. Jacobs, of the Third
District Police, who was present at the corener's
inquest, was that his pocket book was found lying
open upon the foor, and twenty-five cent. bill
outside of it, both near an aTnoir, as if they had
been taken from there and dropped. No other
money was found near the premises; the gHn of
the deceased was missing. About his nose there
were marks of what We're, apparently, bruises. 1t
was known to be the custom Of the deceased to
put the keys of his armoir under his head at night
after retiring; but this was found outside of the
house; near the door. A negro that had been en-
ployed with him, a night before his death was de-
tected in the act of putting q ladder to loft
for the purpose of stealing Chickens and had been
ordered away by the deceased. When the body
of deceased was found, his face was covered with
a couple of pieces of cloth; his night cap was
bloody; one or two spots were upon his forehead
all of which were supposed to have been produced
by bleeding at his nose. There were no marks of
violence except the swollen appearance about his
nose. There were no indications Of aforcible en-
trance having been effected into the house. If
any one entered during the night time, it must
have eeen because the door was left unlocked, or
the entrance was perhaps already made, as the
deceased suspected when he visited the kitchen
and atterW2rdseEamined the house. There were
no means Of telling whether the blood that was
on his night-cap apa forehead, and which undoubt-
ediy came from his nose, was from ordinary bleed
ing or from violence, The body was robbed of
$500; supposed to have been done by the negro
previously discharged, and who was seen on the
place the day before. An officer has been sent in
pursuit of the latter, and it thought he would
soon be arrested. The body, when it was lifted
into the coffin, showed that the deceasedha had been
sick with diarrhea
Hle verdict of the coroners jury was that the
deceased came to his death from chronic diarrhea.
We have no donbt that this was the principal