The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1884-05-21
MURDER WILL QUIT
The Murderer of Austin Ball
Captured.

The Louisville Courier Journal Of
the 18th, gives the following particu.
lars Of the capture of one of the mur.
derers OF Austin Ball, mention Of
which we made last week:
The peculiar and unexplained death of
Ball, who was found dead on a lumber
raft at the foot of Campbell street week
ago, has attracted great deal of atten,
tion in that locality, and the more the
matter was discussed the more evident it
became that he was the victim of foul
tragedy. The testimony of Connell, the
fisherman, before the Coroner's Jury put
to rest all doubts as to whether there
had been any one besides Ball on the
raft, but as he did not pay particular at
tention to those he saw there was but
little prospect Of finding the men he saw.
And then again the mere fact, if estab-
lished, that these men did leave the raft
Tuesday morning, 10 hours before the
dead body was found, would not be sat
isfactory evidence that they had
committed the crime, and after the Cor
oner's jury returned their verdict it was
supposed that the matter would attract
no further attention. There was one
man, however, who began to lay his
plans to ferret out the perpetrators of
the crime as soon as he found that the
affair was shrouded in mystery. That
man was Officer Kochenroth, who was
on duty on the Point the night before
the dead body was found.
On Monday night previous to the find
ing he was on his boat, and while watch
ing some parties who were slipping
about the river front, he saw four men
go on he raft which Ball had charge of,
and he took good look at them. About
a o'clock on the next day he was in the
vicinity again, and hearing some noise
on the raft he went down to the waters
edge just below to listen and learn what
was going on. While he was watching
four men left the raft, and he recognized
them as the same four who visited the
place early in the night. He saw moth
ing to cause him to suppose that any
thing irregular was going on, but he
took good look at the mysterious visi-
tors and discovered that they were all
colored, and that one of them was
roustabout on the Kentucky river packet
whom he had seen frequently in that
vicinity. He supposed that they were
visiting an acquaintance, and paid but
little more attention to them. He was
off duty when the body was found, and
did not learn of the suspicious circum-
stances connected with the affair till the
next day, and it was not until the inquest
was held that the fact that Ball had any
valuables became known, Various 9TH
er small details that were brought out
enabled Kochenroth to put his obse rva-
tions into such shape as to establish
the fact that a murder had been COM
mitted, and that the men he saw ap-
pToach and leave the raft had something
to do with it. He knew that the Ken.
tuckey river roustabout was named Tom
Sanders, and he began search for him.
He learned than he had stopped on Pop
lar street. between Shelby and Campbell,
during the stay of the steamer Fannie
Freesewhen down last trip and further
that Sanders had left on the boat for the
Kentucky river on Tuesday morning.
The officer conducted his investigation
very cautiously, and found that the
stearmer Fannie Freese would return to
the city Monday, and he watched for her
coming. When she arrived he went to
look for Sanders, and found him, and on
searching him found n watch and chain
which answered the description of that
worn by Austin Ball. He locked Sand
ers up at Clay street station as a suss
pected felon, and at late hour last night
had strong hopes of catching his three
comrades. The officer is positive that
he has the right man, and that strong
chain of circumstantial evidence can be
established without any trouble.