Mexico weekly ledger., 1893-12-28
Vuinian Claims Self Defense-The Dead
iramp's Companions Say There
Was No P~royocation For the
Milling Money Being
Raised to Prose-
cute Qainian.

NHoAA
Angel, who bound Quinlan over in
a bond of $500 to appear before the
grand jury. The other Two tramps,
who were with the party killed, are
IN Jail in Mexico, held as witnesses.
Quinlan says that there were four
but the two here in Jail say there
were only three of them, all being
very young men, under twenty-one
years. The two in Jail say their
names are Johnson and that they
are brothers, their home being in
Pittsburg. They claim they do not
know the name of the deceased but
that his home was in Chicago.
Quinlan claims to have killed the
party in self defense, but the John
son boys say it was a cold-blooded
murder. The fact of the deceased
being shot in the back of the neck
looks as though he was trying to get
away instead of trying to assault any
body. The three tramps were put off
tine train at Larabee. They went to
Quinlan's house and woke him up
to inquire of him when another train
would come there going east. Quin-
Ian said that he didn't know ANY,
thing about the trains and ordered
them to go back where they came
from. In a few minutes Quinlan
came down with his gun and drove
them back west. They claimed that
they asked him to let them 60 by,
that they wanted to go east and
would go oil Immediately. After
driving them up the track about
half a mile west Quinlan came back
to the section house, the three men
following. They say they wanted to
slip around past and go on. He
claims that they were cursing and
abusing him and trying to assault
him. Just before they got to the
section house Quinlan fired at them
with an old-fashioned musket kill
ing the unknown man and wound
ing one Of the johnson boys, who
are in Jail here now. The old man
does not seem to regret his action
at all ana says that he would do it
again under the same circumstances.
The old man sent for a physician
that night, but left the deceased lying
on the track and the next morning
went to work on the section as usual.
On the body of the deceased was
found a Bible, which looked as
though it had been closely read but
nothing by which he could be ident-
flied. He was apparently about
nineteen years old and a handsome
looking young fellow. The evidence
will be very conflicting as the stories
told by the Johnson brothers are
quite different from that told by
old man Quinlan. The cas- will
come up before the next grand jury
and will be thoroughly sifted by
Prosecuting Attorney Trimble.
ANOTHER ACCOUNT.
The Sturgeon correspondent OF
the Kansas City Times, referring to
the killing, says:
Thomas Quinlan, the Chicago &
Alton section boss at Larabee, last
night shot and killed a tramp and
seriously injured another ne. They
came TO the section house about 10
O'Clock and asked for food. QuinlaD
refused to satisfy their wants and
they cursed him. He then grabbed
his shotgun and drove them away.
Thirty minutes had not elapsed be-
fore they reappeared and said they
would clean out the house. He then
grabbed his gun and fred on them.
The ron held an inquest this
morning. Quinlan is under arrest.
He has always borne a good reputa-
ton.
5 WHAT THE JOHNSON BOYS SAY.
The tales told by the interested
parties were SO different in every
} respect that it is hard to tell which
to believe in the matter.
t This morning a LEDGER reporter
visited the Jail and asked to see the
two Johnson boys. He found Joe
J Stephens, the genial deputy sheriff,
in charge of the institution, and in
{ a few minutes he was in the jail
| proper. The johnson boys gave
A. their names as Frank and Walter
and neither appeared to be over u
wears of age. Frank, who acted as
spokesman for the two, is still sui
fering from the effects of some buck
shot. which he received the night
of the shooting. They both have
the appearance of having ''bum'
med" for some time, but tell theil
story in a straightforward manner
Frank said he did not know the
} name of the man that was killed
] He and bis brother were trying tt
get back to Pittsburg, Pa, and me
Y the victim of Friday nights tragedy
i, at Blue Springs, about 20 miles cas-
of Kansas City, and all they knew
. of him was what he told them dur
limo the ride to Larabee and thai