The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1891-06-18
Walk Behind q Car, and the LatteI
Meets Death.
A Hole in His Head Tells the Story OF
the Crime.
Wise is Placed Under Arrest and Says
That the Deed Was Done in Self De-
fanaa


mechanic, and having very little money tc
spend, he did not always have the price OF
the drinks, consequently succeeded in run
ming up q bill of 50 for drinks.
Wise has frequently asked him for the
amount OF the bill, but 1t was not forth
coming.
Saturday night Henderson went into
Wise's saloon for drink, but did not get
II, as his credit was exhausted. Wise in
formed him that he could get no more Ii
quor until he had paid his old bill. Hen.
derson did not have the money, but Wise
insisted that he should have II, and al
once.
From the statement Of the bartender,
John Bollock, there was no violent distur.
bance in the saloon, but others state that
there was an angry passage of words be.
tween the two men, when Henderson re.
fused to pay the bill.
Henderson had been drinking but was
not very drunk at the time. He left the
saloon still very mad and making angry
demonstrations.
Wise did thing then which may hang
him. He followed Henderson out of the
saloon. Had he remained in his place
OF business, no murder would have been
committed as II is not probable that the
colored man would have come back into
the saloon after once having left it and
knowing that he would be unable to get
anything to drink.
As stated Wise followed Henderson out
and the latter walked across the street to
the Connotton railroad. Wise still follow.
ed and Henderson seeing that Wise was
in close proximity to him came back.
Wise demanded his money and Hender-
son angrily refused TO pay him.
There were several persons in the vicin-
ity and Henderson was heard to say:
Come around behind this car and you'll
get something.n
Wise made another fatal error here and
accompanied Henderson around the car
out OF sight of the others. Just what hap
pened behind this car is a irystery. Hem
derson is dead and the des Il divulRe no
secrets. Wise is living but,L : story is nec-
essarily colored.
Wise states that Henderscn turned on
him and with an oath mi lie violent
lunge at him. He states thu Henderson
had a railroad spike in his Land tied UP in
a handkerchief. Henderson, so says Wise,
struck at the saloon keeper with this spike
and gave him slight blow in the mouth
the force of the blow having been warded
of by Wise. Wise says he then struck
Henderson who fell to the ground. He
says he struck him with his fist, having no
instrument of any kind.
After striking Henderson, Wise proceed
ed to his saloon again. Not so Hender-
son.
With blood running down his face the
colored man staggered up the track to.
wards the TT, Wayne crossing. Peter
Schwalm. the target man was talking to
Jacob Cooper, moulder in the Bucher &
Gibbs plow works, when Henderson came
up the track. Henderson staggered along
until he came to the target house door.
He reached out for the target post with
which to steady himself, muttered some-
thing which sounded like "Good EVENING"
and sunk down on the steps. Cooper and
Schwalm thought he was drunk but when
Cooper examined him he found blood rum
ming down his face, and that he was rap
idly growing cold. Hastily running to the
nearest telephone he informed the police,
but ere his return the police were on the
spot.
In the meantime Wise had been inform.
ed that Henderson was hurt and had fall
en- down near the target. He could not
resist the temptation to see his victim and
while standing by his body was heard to
VI didn't mean to hit him hard. -
Officers Malloy and Stackhouse who ar
rived few moments after Henderson fell,
heard of this remark and went to Wise,s
house and placed him under arrest. He
was taken to police headquarters and
afterwards removed to the county Jail.
Coroner John II. 'Openhimer was noti-
fed and took charge Of the body which
was tdhch W lts lhCSEch y uilueEkakl0R
rooms. A small hole was found in his
head just beside the eye. There was a
cut alongside the eye, the small hole being
in the centre OF the cut.
The post-mortem examination was held
yesterday afternoon at which Drs. Evans
and Lininger officiated. 1t was clearly
evident that the deceased came to his
death by being struck with blunt instru-
ment in Wise's hands. The instrument
did not fracture the skull but produced
merely concussion of the brain. A small
piece Of the bone process near the tenn.
pie on the temporal bone was Clipped Off,
The skull was found to be remarkably
thin. The physicians have not yet finished
their work, but it will be found that death
was caused by conclusion of the brain.
A NEws-DEMoCRAT reporter called on
the murderer at the Jail this morning.
Wise was lying on his couch fast asleep.
The reporter called to him through the
grating and with some difficulty Wise was
awakened. He Is good looking, strap.
ping fellow, and while he was very guard,
ed in his remarks, was not unwilling to
talk.
"Wait till put my shoes on, he said as
he arose from the couch, "and will talk
to you."
While putting on his shoes Wise re.
marked that it was "hotter than hell in
jail.n He certainly did look warm lut
evidently did not think he had done any,
thing which under like circumstances he
would not do again. He gave the reporter
his version of the affair, stoutiy maintain.
ing that he had struck Henderson simply
with his fist. He says he didn't
hit him very hard and walEed
away as soon as Henderson fell
He says Henderson attacked him
and he struck him in self.defense
He disclaims any knowledge of how Hen
derson got the wound on his head, but
says he must have received the injuries
when he fell.
1t is barely possible that Henderson NAV
have sustained his fatal injury when he
fell as there was blood on a disused frog
which had been taken from q switch aud
laid alongside the track. The point of the
rail on this frog Is very sharp and might
have inflicted the injury.
The more plausible theory is, however
that Wise wrenched the spike from Hen
derson's hand, if, indeed, he and not Hen
derson did not have the spike in the frs
place, and struck Henderson with 1t. This
theory is advanced by many and is proba
bly, the correct one.
THE MURDERED MAN.
Charles Henderson was born in Rich
mond, Virginia, in 1853, of slave parents.
His father and mother both died before
the war in slavery, and he was held Q
slave until his race was freed. At the
close of the war he came north and work
ed at whatever he could get to do, Fol
some years he was with an older brother
the two sticking together and work
ing wherever they could do the
and the last that he knew OF
either his brother or sister, they were in
Philadelphia. For the past fifteen years
he has been in this State, having spent
most OF his time in the vicinity of Dayton
and Xenia, where he had an aunt. In 1875
he married Mary Smith of Massillon, and
one year ago last February he came here
the father of seven children. ak of whom