The Fremont County record. [volume] (Canon City, Colo.) 1877-18??, 1883-03-17

the cowardly manner in which Packer
claims he did. He was told if he would
show them the lake and the broken rifle
they would believe what he said, and not
until then. Packer agreed to guides party
of six men to the spot, and started with
them for that purpose. Mr. H.. F. Lauter,
clerk at the agency, had charge of the
company, which started on the search and
was gone two weeks. Instead OF going In
the direction the Indians said the lake was,
Packer led the party in an opposite direc-
tion and at last claimed TO be bewildered
and unable to go any farther. While on
the trip, one night, Packer tried to kill Mr.
Iauter. They were sleeping together, and
Lauser happened to awake in time to catch
Packers hand as it was descending upon
him with huge knife in its grasp. He
was made prisoner, bound securely with
ropes, taken back 20 the agency, placed in
irons and turned ovSr to the sheriff of
Sagnache county.
In June, when the snow hal disappeared,
great many miners passed by he agency
of which General Adams had chang and
he gave them orders to look out for the
bodies of the prospectors. Among the hrss
who went to Lake City was an itinerant
photographer from Peoria, Illinois, named
Reynolds. While he was wandering around
in hcmlock grove one day he came across
five bodies. Four of them were lying in
row, each one shot through the forehead.
Their blankets were still over them, shew-
ing conclusively they had been killed while
sleeping. The fifth man, Bell, was lying
some distance away with his head cut off.
Signs of a struggle appeared, and it was
evident that he had fought desperately for
his life. The most of the flesh was cut from
Bells body, but the other bodies were not
mutilated badly, which proved that the
party was not out of provisions when
killed, and that Packer had killed all of
them. Another thing which went TO show
that Bell had fought for his life was that
two of Packers teeth were missing when
he came back to the agency, and were not
missing when he LEFT it with his compan-
ions. Another thing which went to prove
that Packer had remained around where
he had killed the man, was that a shanty
was found near the place and q path well
worn leading from it to Bells body, lesding
persons to believe, probably correctly. that
Packer was in the habit of sleeping in the
shanty, and going down every morning to
get meat from Bells body for breakfast.
An inquest was held on the bodies and
a verdict was rendered that the deceased
had come to their deaths at the hands of
Packer. A warrant was sworn out for his
arrest for murder, but before the news
reached Saguache, Packer, though heavily
ironed, escaped, and nothing was heard from
him until a few days ago.
On the 29th of January man who
knows Packer met him near Fort Fetter-
man, Wyoming, where he was going under
the name of John Schwartze. This man
informed an officer of Laramie City, and
Sheriff Louis Miller sent a deputy up to
arrest the man-eating murderer. The sheriff
of Hinsdale county went to Laramie City
on Tuesday. to meet the prisoner, and
escort him back to the scene of his horrible
deeds, where he will be tried for his life.