Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-01-03

oA UlAie; anu inSleau OF SetJlng OH at Ia
gle street, as was his custom, he rode dow
to the Sioux City freight house
situated on the river ban
at the foot of Robert street
His object in SO doing was to pay friend
ly visit to Mr.. Wm. Newberry, the freigh
clerk at the freight house, with whom h
had long been on friendly and intimat
terms. Hewent up stairs and paid his re
speots to Mr.. Newberry, stating that ht
had just come down from Minneapolis
! and that he thought he would drop in ant
W. ish him happy New Year before going
hon e.
AN AWFUL FATE.
The young men chatted together unit
about II O'Clock, when, remarking thai
he felt tired, Mr.. Pierce bid his friends
good night, and was heard by Newberry tc
descend the stairs and start up the track
in the direction of the elevator. This is
the last friendly account of the courageous
young man on earth, for as the sequel
shows, he was to go out into the night to
meet an appalling doom.
What took place on that lonely track
the approach of the assassins, their assault,
the valiant but vain defense of the daunt-
less young man, the struggle and final
accomplishment of the awful deed-none
but the faint stars and the all-seeing eye
of the Infinite Ruler can tell. That he made
valiant struggle against the uneven odds
Of the rufians is eloquently told in the
torn and ripped seam of his undercoat and
the sleeve and cuff of his shirt.
Somewhere on that track, within almost
hearing distance of the place where his
friend sat, young Pierce met bis pitiful
doom. All tkat is definitely known IS
mutely, but forcibly told by the blood-be-
spattered garments on the bank of the
dark river.
The night Waterman atthe freight house
had spoken that evening of the
presence of several hard looking
tramps, whom he had ordered away from
the building, coupleFof men having been
seen there just before young Pierce ar
rived.
THE BEST THEORY.
Among the several theories afoat it
seems most probable that he was attacked
soon after leaving the freight house and
that on first being assailed. he drew his
knife and prepared to defend himself, that
he was overpowered by his assailants, who
wish his own knife or weapon of their
own, inflicted the blows that resulted in
his death. Whether he was first slugged
and then dragged to the river bank or vice
versa is of course matter of
conjecture and of little moment.
His coats must have been at first par
TALLY removed and then torn off during the
struggle. The deceased was a young man
of vigorous frame and great strength, and
those who knew him say that he did not
know even the nature of fear. His cloth
ing was searched, and after securing the
price of their souls damnation the vii
lains must have completed their work by
throwing him into the river.
1t was thought at first that the body
might have been placed in a box car or
thrown back of some of the numerous
wood piles on the levee, but search in this
direction revealed nothing.
Another theory was, that he might have
recovered consciousness after the villains
had left, and sought relief at the hospital
or the house of a friend, not caring to
frighten his mother.
The latter theory was at first grasped at
with hope, particularly as it was reported
that stains of blood had been found on the
desk and the floor of his fathers Office.
This rumor was started from the fact that
several papers on the desk had been ap-
parently smeared with blood. and some
more excited individuals thought they
saw blood stains on the mating
1t transpired that the smears on the papers
had been caused by bleeding fingers
several days ago, and the blood ON the
mating proved to be tobacco
spit. Another theory was that he had
leyanted, and that he had taken this means
of throwing pursuit eff the track. 1t is
unnecessary to say that this absurd theory
was generally secuted as mere bosh.
THE MOTIVE FOR THE CRIME.
If any doubt existed as to the motive of
the crime it was efectualIy dissipated
when the empty pocket book of the murder
ed man was picked up on the track by Mr..
George Taylor near the foot of Robert
street. 1t had been rifed of all its con-
tents but three cents. Later in the day
another evidence of the robbery was found
in the shape of a fragment of chain and
seal worn by the deceased. This was
found near the foot of Jackson street.
sIoNIFfoENT TRIPLES.
While these triies are of minor impor-
tance in themselves, they may be the
means of leading to the detection of the
crime. They prove in the first place that
after the crime the murderers walked
down the track, throwing away as they
went the evidences of their guilt. The
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