The Bad Lands cow boy. [volume] (Little Missouri, Dakota [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-1886, 1885-09-10
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How Too Much Of III Came Near Hanging
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How Too Much Of III Came Near Hanging
$ EST Its Possessor.
ss Probably one of the most remarkable
instances OF reportorial zeal ever heard
/, of, and which came near ending very
seriously to the main actor, was tho;
exploit of young man named Arm
strong, connected at the time with the
:, city staff of a, morning paper in New
York. The incid emit, writes a Hartford
C0urdnt correspondent, TRANSFERRED
about sixteen or eighteen years ago.
Armstrong lived across the East river,
just back of Wllliamsburgh. At that
time the outlying district was sparsley
settled. and many pretty little cottages
were rented cheap. One summer night
the reporter left the Office about mid:
night. After crossing the ferry and
going to the end of the street-car limo,
Armstrong had quite q piece to walk
before he reached his cottage. Apor-
ton of the way led through a dense
|1groYe. On the night in question,
while the reporter was sauntering
lelsurely through the grove. his atten-
ton was suddenly attracted to an obs
iect suspended from the limb Of a tree
about q dozen yards from the road he
was traversing. It was a bright,
moonlight night, and there was little
difficulty il seeing objects near by. Il
AS he passed over to examine what had
caught his gaze, he was startled upon
coming up to it To- find the. dead body
of a man swinging from a very low
lmb Of q tree. His feet were about;
twelve inches from the ground. IA
knife was plunged 10 tho lilt III his
left breast Tlew reporter was in "a
quandary. Here was a big item and
it Twas too late to get q line In the pa
per about it. What should he dop5 He
was the discoverer of this first-class
sensation, and he hated to be- cheated
out of the sweet privilege OF s.beat-
ing' all the other papers by giving it
to his own first. He thought only Of
this, and finally resolved upon very
strange proceeding. He deliberately
cut the body down, carried il, off to
huge log near by, that lay upon the
bank of q little brook, and covered it
entirely with leaves. sticks, and other!
debris. He then departed with tho
intention Of '.discovering the body ut
an hour in the afternoon of the next
day too late for any publication in tho
afternoon papers. AZ .;Armstrong
struck the road he vas not aware that
two neighbors were jogging along just
behind him, both of whom had seen
him come 'front.' the log near the brook,
AS the reporter was several rods
ahead they did not hail him, SO 5he
walked rapidly to his cottage and went
in ut the front door. bout 10 O. clock
the next day, while the sun was
streaming through the window of the /.
reportorial bed room, where Armstrong
lay possibly dreaming Of his big son.
satiOn, q constable and two men, call
ed at the cottage and told his wife that
they wished to see him on important
business. She aroused her husband,
informed him what was wanted, and
he at once got up, dressed himself, and
went out into tie parlor, where the
visitors wore waiting. Hes was then
informed by the constable that he had
come to! arrest him on the very serious
charge of murder, and a reques was
made that Armstrong accompany the
officers at once to q neig hboring justice
OF the peace. Before reaching that
functionarY' place, the reporter was
made aWare,ofs the fact that the body
he had so carefully concealed the
night before had been discovered, and
that lie Ind been nrrested on;suspiclon
Of knowing how the man came TO- his
death, the NEG hbors who saw him
come from the brook, as related, haY-y
ing testified to what they, had Witness
ed.s There! was intense sexcitemen for I
a. time in the locality. Armstrong
told his story, but there were q good
many suspicious glances thrown / at.
him. Fortun ately /, howeYer,Sa letter
/ in q pocket of the deceased mans
coat, anl other supplementary facts,
proved that he was q suicide, and that
he had put q rope about his neck while
sitting on the branch Of tho tree where
he was found, and subsequently drove
q knife into his heart. Armstrong
kicked up a bigger sensation than he
at first imagined he would. sS ~