Juniata sentinel. [volume] (Mifflintown, Pa.) 1846-1873, 1872-04-03
RUMORED DISCOVERY OF MURDER
THAT OCCURRED THIRTY YEARS AGO.

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following account of the rumored discov
cry Of the murder of Berks county
man committed thirty years ago, in Union
county, this State. Says the Journal:
No doubt many of our readers will re-
member a rumor which was in circula.
ton some thirty years ago, that man
travelling on horseback through Penn.
Valley Narrows hal been foally dealt
with The rumor was based upon the
fact that the body of horse was found
some twenty rods from the pike. which
had apparently been knocked down with
a cudgel and killed. The horse was
found several days after he was Killed by
some boys who were out cunning. Other
circumstances connected with the affair
caused great deal of excitement in the
neighborhood. Some half dozen of the
citizens were soon after summoned to the
spot. who reported that the case required
a thorough investigation A call was
made upon the citizens en-masse and a
day appointed to make search for the
body Of the man supposed to have been
murdered.
On the day appointed, number cf
men from Centre and Union counties re-
paired to the spot where the horse was
found and set out in squads through the
woods, and searched all day diligently,
but found nothing They then conclud-
ed that if there were any ground for their
suspicious, and that man had really
been murdered, his body must have been
sunk in a sawmill dam close by. Another
day was then appointed to let the water
out of the dam.
On the night before the day fixed npon
to let off the water, the gates were drawn
by some unknown parties, and the water
let out. The feelings Of the searching
parties can only be imagined when. the
next day, they found things in such a
condition Those who had given the
matter very little thought. and had ridi-
culed the idea of their being any cause
for such apprehensions, at once changed
their minds. and the excitement became
intense. Search was, however made in
the mill dam, when fresh tracks were
found that had no doubt been made the
previous night by the parties who had
been wading through the mud. but no
further developments were brought to
light.
Various rumors were in circulation
Several parties were implicated in the
crime, but as in most cases of this kind,
the rumors were mostly, if not all, un-
founded, and the occurrence was SEEM
ingly forgotten
Some ten years ago, however, it was
published in the newspapers in certain
localities in this State that a man, who
hand been former resident of Union
county, had confessed upon his death
bed that he was one Of party who had
murdered man in Penn's Valley Mar
rows some twenty years previous to that
date. This news created some little ex-
citent at the time, but it soon also died
out
Within the last few days rumor has it
that certain man who moved out west
from the upper end of the county many
years since had lately died, and had con-
fessed at his dying hour that he was one
of the party who committed the Penn's
Valley Narrows murder. some thirty
years ago, and had implicated three
others. That they played card with
the man they afterwards killed. at tav
ern this side of the Narrows, and there
discovered that he had large amount of
money, being drover from Berks coun-
ty; that they at once laid plan to kill
and rob him; that they followed him
through the Narrows to the place near
where the horse was found. and killed
him and the horse, and buried his body
under the horse. After the horse was
1;s,oyarad tbav ,noved the mans hodv
and sank it in the mill dam, and when
the matter was talked of and the citizens
determined to let the water out of the
dam, he and the other parties implicated
let out the water the previous night and
took the body and carried it several
miles away, towards Brush Valley
Narrows, and buried it and were the
first on the ground :he following morning
to help in the search.