Daily press and Dakotaian. [volume] (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1875-1880, 1877-08-25
MIR. HEDGES DEATH.
Col. sawyer's Report OF Matters as u.
Found Them At the Scene
of the Accident.

SOl. SaVSyerx ncPOft OF fuAtterS as te
Found Them At the Scene
Of the Accident.
Sioux City journal.
Col. Sawyers arrived at Lower Brule
agency Saturday, August 10. and the next
day at 5 o'clock he reached.the grave Of
Mi. Hedges. being accompanied by Major
Gregory and others. He found that the
scene of the accident was On q gentle de-
clivity reaching down to . rather shallow
gully. 1t was evident that Mr.. Hedges had
started for a crossing place on this gully at
which the banks were less precipitous than
above or below it, and that the accident had
happened when within se~venty.four PAGES
OF the ditch, where the hat was found. He
remained in the buggy while the ponies
Travelled fifty PAGES, At which point the LEFT
ran into . hole about the size Of
An ordinary stove.kettle, throwing him out
upon the left side. He had, it is supposed
from the appearance Of the blood in the
buggy, striven 10 remain inside, probably
with the idea that by 20 doing he would be
carried by the ponies into the agency, dead
or alive. After striking the ground, he
erawled fourteen PAGES to the edge of the
gully, where he died. 1t is Col. sawyer
judgment, in which he is seconded by those
who made the examination with him, that
Mr.. Hedges did not live more than q minute
and a half after being shot. The trail of
the buggy shows that the ponies did not
stop from the time of the accident until Mr..
Hedges fell ont, and the mount of blood
spilled in this time was 80 great that even a
vitality such as deceased possessed could
not stand it for many minutes.
There il no idea entertained among in
telligent people acquainted with the circum.
stances, other than that the death was acct
dental. There was no possible chance for
anybody to have been concealed anywhere
except in the gully, and no one would have
waylaid Mr.. Hedges there, because they
could not have known where he would cross,
there being no such thing - a road. Fur
thermore Col. Sawyers stood at the ditch
while Mai. Gregory stood at the place where
the accident occurred, fifty yards away, and
the greatest upward angle he could give a
weapon aimed at his man was fifteen degrees,
while the cour e Of the fatal bullet was near.
ly perpendicular. Again, the side which
received the shot was turned away from the
ditch II was impossible for any body to
have been concealed elsewhere, because
there il no grass but that ofthe stubby bunch
variety, which could not furnish ambush
for any body. The most experienced trail
ers in the upper country, both Indian and
white, examined the ground with the utmost
minuteness, and we're unable to detect the
least trace Of any human being having been
there, and the ground would have shown il
plainly had there been any sign. There
is therefore no question about it that the
death vas accidental.
The details Ofthe manner can only he ar
rived at by theory. 1t Is now considered
to have been caused by the revolver falling
off the seat into the back Of the buggy and
striking with the iammer upon the side Of
the box. The ball struck the jugular vein
on the right slide Of the neck and then
passed upward, coming out the top of his
head. 10 the passage 1t ranged far enough
back 10 escape the plate Of his false teeth.
The eevering of the jugular accounts for
the large quantity Of blood spilled in so
short y time.
At daylight Monday morning Col. Saw.
yers and those with him proceeded to take
up the body. They found 1t buried in 4
nice pine coffin, which they opened, and.
after saturating everything with carboljc acid
and the body with embalming compound.
they took from it whatever had been over.
looked in the first search. They then cush.
Toned the corpse 20 that 1t could not move
in the coffin. and put sawdust around II.
The whole was put inside the zinc ,casket
made here especially fer the purpose. and
this EAs sealed up = tightly ~ possible,
This twas9 loaded upon . wagon, and BY
Monday, noon they reached Lower Brule.
the corpse now lays there waiting . boat.
!. 10 expected that the Bisek Hills, which
leA Yank.oa Tuesday eve:iag for II. Pierre
will pass there Oh it's way back next Sunday
here probably next Tuesday. Ths river l.
Rill NATE 2e1x alnSR TIN in