The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1886-05-25

Considerable Mystery Attached to
the Death of a Former
Sedalian.
The Ante-MOrtem Statement of
the Dead Man and the
Juryss Verdict.

ton, on the Lexington and Southern
division of the Missouri Pacific, the
previous day, made an ante norton
statement to DIR. lockwood, of Nevs-
da. the attending physician, which
throws considerable mystery around
the supposed accident and subsequent
death. When summoned before the
coroner's jury DR.. lockwood testified
as follows:
THE ANTE-MoTEM STATEMENT.
81 was telegraphed to by Division
Superintendent Flanders that a man
was found at Arthur, on L. & S rail-
road; / went to Arthur and when
they had put the man in the caboose
/ talked to him /; asked him how it
occurred; he said there were some
things in reference to it that he did
not want to tell / pressed him to tell
me; he FIRST said he was not going to
squeal ON anybody; / asked him if he
was drunk when it occurred and he
said no; finally he made the state
ment to me that he was knocked in
the head and pushed onto the track or
against the train with the intent to
have him killed, such, he said, was
his impression. / asked him who this
man was, and after some time he said
his name was Jim Jones, a black.
smith; / asked him how he happened
to be In Arthur and he said he STEP
ped off the train there and this man
Jones got off, toe; that he did not
know what train he was struck BY.
He knew me perfectly well when /
first saw him; he said he thought he
first met Jones two years age; he
could get the time by referring to his
pass book; told me all about where
his mother and folks lived and seemed
perfectly rational"
FRYER's EVIDENCE.
w. III. Fryer, agent at Arthur, tes-
titled as follows:
"On the night of the 18th of this
month / was at the station alone, and
the train due there at 9:57 came up
and stopped. l saw the train men
put q man off the train at depot plat
form; train did not stop there to ex-
coed minute; one of the train men
stood by him until the train left. |
They pulled him off the train and laid |
him down on platform of depot. After
the train left / took my lantern and
went to where the man was lying and
looked at him; he was lying nearly on
his face with his head on one arm,
still on the platform where the train
men had left him; seemed to be sound
asleep; did not notice me at all: / did
not speak to him or touch him; did
not know him. When / came to
depot next morning at about ten min
utes to 5 o'clock, saw same man lying
on the further side of track from the
depot; had an arm cut off and other
wise injured. He was in another
place from where he was hurt. /
think he was lying between the plat
form and rail next to the platform
when hurt. 1t must have been some
train after Ii o'clock that night that
ran over him. did not see an yone
else get off the train that night. III
think from the way they put him off
the train and when / went to him in
. short time he was asleep. / think
be must have been drunk; did not
know that night why they put him ,
,h, and have not heard since. / have :
heard the conductors name on the J
rain from which he was put off is i
Merritt"
PENFIELD's TESTIMONY. i
The evidence of 81. Penfeld, agent g
It Nevada, was as follows: 81 had 9
/ talk with Mr.. Merritt, the conduc- n
or of the train. He told me j. B. q
Hart boarded the train of which he r
vas conductor at Rich Hill, and was v
vild and crazy with liquor. He n
sked Hart for ticket and he had q
10 ticket; asked him for fare and he N
would give him no satisfaction. Mer- VI
lit told him if he did not give him OF
he fare he would put him off the u
rain; asked him where he wanted to d,
ct of and said he did not care, any "
here he could get off, at Marion or te
Irthur. Mr.. Merritt told me he d,
rought the man out of the car and tn
ut him on the platform of the depot 81
Arthur, and they watched him s,
ntil they got away from Arthur;
st saw of him he was on the plat
'rm; said he was the only man that
1t off the train at that place."
THE VERDICT. q
The following verdict was returned ,
the coroners jury: .
'.Afser having heard the evidence |.
ID upon full inquiry concerning the