Los Angeles herald., 1892-08-29
RAYMOND SHOT HIS BROTHER,
A Shocking Accident Which
Occurred Yesterday.
The Result of Boy Being Trusted
With Firearms.
Charley WetzePs Death = His Brother
Does Not Know How the Accident
Happened-His Account of
the Sad Affair.

A shocking tragedy occurred yesterday
noon, near the five-mile house, north Of
the city, by which little Raymond Wet
eel, 13 years old, accidentally shot and
killed his elder brother, Charley Wetzel,
15 years old. The boys are sons of Mar
tin Wetzel, engineer of engine No. z, OF
the Los Angeles FIRE department, one Of
the best known members of the depart
ment.
The news reached the city at O'Clock,
and Mr.. Sharp, of Peck, Sharp & Neitz-
ke, undertakers, went out to the FIVE
mile house, returning with the body,
and the heart-broken little fellow who
had been the cause of the accident.
The story of the accident was related
to a He RAID reporter by Raymond Wet
eel, between his sobs, and as he sat on a
chair in the undertaker's Office, holding
on to string, at the other end of which
was little dog, who looked up at him,
and occasionally whined.
"My brother Charley and I, and
Ethelbert Vincent started out from
home this morning." said Raymond,
ito 60 up the valley towards Glen
dale. We had little wagon with ua,
and single-barle eled shot gun to shoot
squirrels with, if we saw any. We
walked beyond the fve-mile house to
Ramona, where we got some grapes, and
then turned to come back. Bert was
sick at Ramona, and didn't feel very
good as we came along back. Before we
got to the fve-mile house he sat down
to rest little, and my brother and
went on slowly. When we were short
ways from Bert, about 100 feet, l guess,
my brother saw squirrel to the right
of the road, and told me to get the gun
and shoot him. He was hauling the
wagon by the handle, and I was on
the left hand side of it. The gun was in
the wagon, with the muzzle pointing
towards Charley. jumped around be-
hind the wagon and to the right side.
I put my hands on the gun to pick it
up, and it went off. Charley said, My
God 2 and fell down on the ground. I
hallooed to Bert that Charley was shot,
and threw out the box of grapes that
way in the wagon. When Bert came we
picked my brother up and put him in
the wagon. Then we brought him to
the Five-mile house, and they tele-
phoned to town. The wagon was pretty
email, but we got him there some way.o
The boy tried to choke back the tears,
but they would come. Further ques-
tions being put to him, he said that the
gun was lying with the stock close
against the back of the wagon, and the
muzzle reached out in front, elevated to
the height of the front board. He said
he had haIdly touched it before it went
off. He was positive that it was not
cooked. When he grasped it, he put
one hand on the barrel just where it
joins the stock. He could not tell
whether the hammer hit anything or
not. But of course this must have hap
pened, as the gun would not have gone
off py itself.
This statement of the accident waB
corroborated by others and the circum-
stances. When Mr.. Sharp reached the
five mile house he found the body of the
boy. He was still alive, although
unconscious, when brought in, and
very soon he breathed his last.
The wound from which he died
was in the back of his head, the whole
charge OF shot having entered little
above the neck. A visit to the ecene of
the shooting was made by Mr.. Sharp,
and he found pool OF blood in the mid
die of the road, where the unfortunate
boy fell, and in it some of the brains
which had oozed from the wound before
he was Ii ted into the wagon.
Charley Wetzel was bright boy, end
has been working for some time past at
the job printing establishment of Kins-
ley & Barnes. He and his brother have
always been companions and they were
very much attached to each other. Ray
mond has been going to school at the
Chestnut street public school out Tenn
pie street, and is q sturdy little fellow.
They had planned this little jaunt as 1T
was the only day when Charley had
leisure. They had their boy friend,
Ethelbert Vincent, go with them, and
left home in great spirits, little thinking
of the dreadful termination Of the day's
outing.
The news of the tragedy was COM
municated to the parents, and their
grief was very affecting. They were
completely prostrated by it, and have
the sympathy of great many friends
in the city, where Mr.. Wetzel iH exceed
ingly we'll known, he having been an
engineer on the Southern Pacific foi
many years before entering into the ser.
vice of the fire department.
Coroner Weldon was at San Pedro
yesterday, and will return this morning
when an inquest will be held at II
O'Clock.