Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1892-07-14

had found out that John Oakburn kent
large sum Of money in his little safe
and having a duplicate key to it. /
meant TO rob il.
had entered the office, after forcing
open the blinds and raising the window.
and had robbed the safe and locked II
up again just as l had found 1t after Sc
curing the money, nearly eighty thou
sand dollars, on my person, when sud
denly John Oakburn entered the outer
offlce.
I had only time to hide behind a desk
when he came into the interior office.
and hastily unlocked his little private
safe.
shall never forget the cry Of agony
he uttered when he discovered that the
safe had been robbed.
He reeled into the outer office and fell
into a chair.
The old man had paid the seventy
eight thousand dollars he drew from the
bank that afternoon, and which belonged
TO Garrison, TO save a scapegrace son Of
his from arrest. Pratt and Weeks had
captured that son, and TO them John
Oakburn paid Garrison s money, intend
ing to replace it with the money which
was in his little safe.
1 remember the way the old man NUT
tered as he sat there after he discovered
the loss of his money.
4 am ruined, 1 am an embeZzler, 1
have appropriated my employers money
to my own use, have betrayed a sacred
trust. 1 have kept it a secret that had
saved q large sum of money, and that
1t was in my little safe. My story will
not be credited. will not live TO suffer
this awful disgrace. whose one wish
was to live an honest man, and dying
leave a spOtless reputation. 1 will die by
my own hand"
It was like that he went on, I almost
remember his exact words. Then he
seized a pen and began to write, I
watched him breathlessly, and bad as I
am, resolved TO save his life, to pre-
vent his committing suicide.
When he had written for some time,
| he came to his safe again, and took out
q pistol. He carried the weapon out
into the outer Office, and I heard him
say:
4 will kill myself in ten minutes"
1 saw him sit down, pistol in hand,
and watch the clock. The time was al
most up, and 1 was about to rush out
and disarm him, when he threw down
the pistol saying. I am afraid" 1 saw
that he trembled from head to foot.
After that he paced the room for a mo-
ment or so, but finally he picked up the
pen and wrote a few lines. Then as if
he had decided, he picked up the pistol
again.
4 cannot face the weapon. The sight
of the pistol unnerves me. If could
not see, might have the nerve to pull
the trigger.
Then he took up the pistol once more,
| opened a drawer and took out ball Of
Irvine. Tying one end Of the Irvine to
the trigger of the pistol, after cooking it
! he placed the weapon in a bracket at the
side of the door, where there had been
a lamp, and with the cord in his hand
walked back to the table.
Before I could prevent it, and before I
| fully comprehended what he intended TO
] do he pulled the string attached to the
| trigger, the weapon, which was an air
/ pistol, was discharged without report,
| and Oakburn fell dead, shot through the
back of the head. In his fall he over
turned the table.
/ 1 sprang forward and secured the pa
per which he had written, for surmised
it was statement that he had com
mitted suicide.
Then left the office as had entered
| it, taking care to close the window and
the blind behind me. had an idea that
the suicides last written words might
be of value TO me in case I was sus-
| pected, and the result proves that I was
| right snfd Kredga