The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-07-18
A MORAL CERTAINTY
The Murder OF Captain Ross
Accounted for by an Old
War Time Incident.

When the war ended the two men
drifted apart, but my conviction re-
manned mistaken. Iknew as well as I
knew anything that they would come to-
gether at the proper,time.
The assassination of Capt. Ross last
week in a western town did not surprise
me in the least. 1t was just what l had
looked for-just what he had expected.
A detailed account of the murder appar-
emily throws no light upon it. The news
papers merely state that an unknown
person fired at the captain through the
window of his Office at night and made
his escape.
The inquest brought out no clew. 1t
was in evidence that a stranger-a stout,
squarely built man-had been seen in
the village that afternoon, and that he
had not been visible after the killing.
That was all. There was nothing to con-
meet the stranger with the murder.
And yet when I read this brief item at
a distance of a thousand miles from the
scene of the tragedy, it was all very
plain to me.
The newspaper dropped from my hand
and my thoughts travelled backward to
the last year of the war.
Private Gray first attracted my atten-
ton under very peculiar circumstances.
When / saw him he was in disgrace, and
was suffering the penalty.
Between two posts q barrel was nailed
in a slanting position. 1t had no head,
and no accommodating but the sides.
Private Gray, closely guarded by a SOL
der, was hard at work shoveling sand
into this bottomless barrel.
It was a very hot day, and it was very
unsatisfactory work. As fast as the sand
was shoveled in it ran out, and the job
was apparently endless.
People stopped to look at the prisoner,
and I joined the crowd. 1t struck me
then that Private Gray was a dangerous
looking man. He was short and stout,
with a square body, square shoulders, a
square head and a square face, with bull
dog jaws.
He did not shirk his disagreeable work.
He went on steadily, without looking
either to the right or to the left.
Finally l turned away and walked off,
My friend, Capt. Ross, followed me
"What do you think Of it?' the captain
asked.
WHO is he, and what is it about" I
inquired.
Private Gray of my company-he was
impertinent and l had him punished"
was the reply.
He has a suller, determined looking
tace,' 1 said.
EYES," responded the captain, she will
bear watching"
Later in the day the soldier was re-
leased. l sat talking with Ross and q
group Of officers in front of their quar-
ters when Gray came in sight.
The man did not stop, but he slack
ened his pace and looked straight at the
captain.
A dead silence fell upon the group.
That square, resolute face, with its deep
set, blazing eyes, fascinated us.
1t was only a second or two, but the
look that Gray darted at the captain was
full of deadly meaning.
"Ahem! That was Gray, wasn't it,"
said a young lieutenant.
Ross did not answer. His face was
very pale, and, muttering some excuse,
he rose and went to his room.
"Did you notice that fellows look%'
said an officer.
YES" replied one of the party; sit
was more than a look--it was a silent
threat, and there was murder in It'll"
The next day / spoke to Ross about
Private Gray.
"Oh. that's all right" he answered,
with IN air Of relief, II have had him
Observation-Disclosures to work in the
quartermaster's department in Mobile"
1 did not meet the captain again for
years. He talked very freely about old
times, and then his face clouded.
"Do you remember Private Grayf' he
said.
"Whati has he turned up AGAIN. /
queried.
"Several times," replied the captain.
"On three different occasions he has met
me in out of the way places where he
was evidently waiting for me-. Each
time the sudden appearance of other per-
SONS prevented him from making any
demonstration. He did not even appear
to recognize me, but quietly passed on.
"What do you think"
81 think" said the captain, that he
means to kill me, and l think that he
will do it some day"
We turned our conversation to more
pleasant matters, but I did not forget
what NV friend had said
A long time after our meeting Ross
wrote o business letter to me, and in a
postscript mentioned the fact he had
been shot at one dark night while he
was going home from his office. Hehad
learned that a man resembling Gray had
been seen In the town that day, butnoth-
ing further could be ascertained.
I thought over the captains letter &
good deal. 1t was true hat Gray had
been punished by the captains orders,
and that he had looked very strangely
afterwards, but all that was in val
times. The man had uttered no threat,
SO far as anybody knew.
1t struck me as / thought about it that
Ross was in a bad fix. If Gray should
lay his plans well and secretly shoot him,
sometime, no jury would convict him on
such evidence as we had. The old war
time episode would go for nothing.
With this outline of the inside history