San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1878-10-05
A MOST SINGULAR CRIME.

A MOST SINGULAR CRIME.
The killing of A. M. Tullis,. OF Grand Is
land, CAL, by the u pnpn NC a. Enrtune of
From the San Francisco CALL
SACRAMENTO, Aug. 13.-Late last
niobt the Sheriff arrested Troy Dye,
pnblic Administrator of the county, on
a charge of the murder of Tullis, on
Grand Island. Clark, a partner OF Dye
in the saloon business, was arrested at
the same time. On the morning OF the
I'd inst, A. M. Tullis, fruit-grower on
Grand Island, in this county, was FOUND
dead in his orchard. The night before
two unknown men we're seen to come
down the river in q small, roughly built
boat, They went to Tnllis's ranch ana
landed. One of the men asked the
Chinese servant for the boss. he was
directed to the orchard. Soon after y
o'clock shots were heard fired, and the
shouting of men and the barking OF a
dog. Tullis was found next morning
on the ground dead. 1t was evident ne
had been running when shot, ana ne
must have been STOPPING over when hlt'
for the murderer's tracks were traced 10
the rivers edge.
At the inquest held on the I'd and 30
inst, it appeared that two suspicious
men in a redwood duck-boat were seen
in the river. One of the men pulled his
hat over his eyes when passing people:
The men were seen near Tullis's place at
5 O'Clock, and Tullis was killed about7 IN
the evening. The body had four gun-shot
wounds in it, apparently made oy pls-
tol. One entered about the first false
rib on the left side, and passed obliquely
upward, tearing away in its course one
Of the vertebre of the back and passed
through the right lung. The lung was
injured by extravasation OF blood,
caused by the wound. Another ball en-
tered at about the third vertebre, and
lodged Just over the right eye, passing
through the brain. A third bullet
passed through the neck behind, emery
ing under the right ear. This ball made
two openings. The deceased, when
found, lay upon the right side OF his
face, with his right hand under his face
and his left hand stretched out, full of
dirt, as if he had grasped handful OF
dirt Just before dying. His head was
toward the south. His shirt was burned
at the place where the ball entered the
back. There were no weapons on his
person. Tullis's tracks led from a
place south of where he was found to-
ward the north. These tracks appeared
for about 200 yards from where the body
was found. He toed out great deal,
and his tracks were easily distinguisha-
BILE. There were also tracks OF two
other persons. One was large track,
made by No. or boot, and the
other by a not over No. boot. These
tracks followed behind Tullis's tracks,
and came toward where the body was
found. Right around the body was a
confusion of tracks, as if several persons
had been walking around it. The tracks
were the only ones leading to or from
the body, and they went from the body
to the river.
The boat referred to was proven to
be sharp at both ends, and to have in it
two persons. On the morning OF the
murder, at early dawn, two men were
seen to launch rude boat from the old
mouth of the American River. Two
cleats nailed on one end made an indent-
alton in the sand, which an officer found
to correspond with the description OF the
cleats given by man who saw the boat.
The day after the murder two strange
men were seen footing it up the road
from Grand Island to Sacramento. 1t is
said they ran by houses and avoided OBJ
servation as much as possible. Since
the search for the murderers it has trans
pired that on the way down the river the
men in the boat halted at Corother's
ranch and sought nails and hammer
and strips of wood to fix their rowlock.
The San Francisco agent for Tullis,
George p. Starr, says the deceased wrote
to him that he had difficulty with two
Portuguese, who had been driven from
the ranch. Deceased was bachelor, of
very close and retired habits. He was
known to be severe on tramps, and in
variably drove them from the house.
Some have thought tramps, in fit OF
anger, killed him. Tullis left an estate
valued at $4,000. On this estate Troy
Dye, as Public Administrator, has filed
his application that letters of admins
tration be issued TO him.
Last night, at II O'Clock, Troy Dye
was arrested and charged with COM
plicity in the murder. The arrest was
effected by Sheriff Drew and several
deputies. Deputy Sheriff Harrison,
who has been woking up the Tullis case,
makes the following statement: He
says he arrived here on the Sunday sue
ceeding the murder, and read over the