, 1891-06-18
ON THE WING.
The Tramp Murderer Captured in
the Cheyenne Yards.
He Is Spied From the Cars by a
Greeley Marshal.
Taken Back Last Night to Be
Lodged in Jail.

The dead body of a murdered tramp
was found Monday evening near Windsor,
Colo, lying in an easy attitude against a
pile of ties. The lead mans head was
crushed and mangled and his arm was
also bruised as if 1t had been thrown up
to ward off a heavy blow.
The murder was probably committed
with a heavy club, while he was sleeping.
Nothing was found to indicate who the
murdered man was.
He had been seen with a companion
around there for several DAYS and suspi-
cion was at once directed to this iudivic-
ual. The dead mans partner was accu-
rately described and he was last heard of
as coming along the railroad toward Chey-
enne.
David Camp, the city marshal of Gree
ley, was notified and started to catch the
train and come to Cheyenne to look for
the murderer.
He missed the first train he tried to
catch and had to wait for the train which
reached here yesterday at 2:lO. Marshal
Camp was looking out of the car window,
and just as the train was pulling into the
yards he saw the mao he was looking for
sitting on the baLk at the side of the
road. He jumped of, caught the man
and brought him to the city and lodged
him in the city jail.
The alleged murderer, who gives his
name as Peter Snyder. was seen by a re-
porter who practically received a con.
fession of the crime.
Tit facts of the murder we're related to
him and he was asked why he had killed
his companion.
After a short conversation he told this
story; He said he and his partner were
tramping from Denver to Cheyenne look
log for a Job in a harvest field and had
stopped for several days at Windsor.
where they tried to get work. They had
piled up a number of ties by the side of
the railroad, a short distance from Windsor,
in the shape of a hut and we're sleeping
there. They we're in hard luck and he
had let his partner, whom he calls Jim,
have a watch to pawn to get money to
buy food. Sunday evening jim put
up the watch to a section foreman
who lived uear for $l.25 and afterward
came to the camp to sleep.
Snyder claims that the watch belonged to
him and that the monev it was pawned
-
for belonged to him. Next morning he
claims that wien he woke up the ties had
fallen down and one had struck Jim on
the head, He noticed that his face was
bloody but thought he looked like he was
asleep, so he didn't wake him uu. He
took the money out of his pocket and as
he wanted to shake him anyhow he left
for Cheyenne OF foot and had Just reached
here when he was arrested.
He did not deny that he was the dead
mans partner at Windsor, but gave the
above story as the facts of the case, claim
ing the man was killed by a tie falling on
him.
He was asked why il his partner was
hurt he had left him there alone and pro-
ceeded on his journey. He said he did not
like him much and wanted to get away
from him, and besides 81. 25 in money was
not nearly enough for two to eat on and
he wanted i. all himself. He walked up
hare begging along the way and had
$l.l5 in his pocket when arrested. The
murdered man, he says, was not as heavy
as he is although about the same height.
Snyder is an ignorant German, who
probably has not sufficient sense to realize
the difference between robbing and muir
der. He is a light-welGht man about 27
years old, and claims to be from Des
Moines, Iowa, and was coming out 10
Denver when he met the man he killed.
OF the dead man he knows nothing, as he
had never seen him until two days before
he met his death, but thinks he was from
Denver.
Marshal Camp took the prisoner back
to Greeley last night on the I O'Clock
train.
The people at Greeley are much excited
over this murder, coming so soon after the
cold blooded murder of Dillon, and Sny.
der will be in big luck if he is not lynched
when he reaches there.