Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1893-06-03
1.-THE MURDER OF MATSON
Picture of the Home Life on the
Fatal Night.
A Happy Family, Apparently Without an
Enemy, Sitting in Soc al Converse,
Startled b. t,e Assassin's Rifle.
Capture OF th, Fiend.

show the crime to have been one of the
most bloodthirsty that has ever been
committed in the state. The details of
the crime, as now learned, vary some
what from those contained in the first
reports. 1t was a teaceful. happy
home on the Missouri river bottom.
opposite Brue City, in Lyman county,
and the occupants of the home, a
brother, sister and an adopted boy
about II years old, were people who at
tended to their own business and who
in the natural order of things should
not have had an enemy in the world.
1t was the home OF VI. Matson and his
sister Christina. The toll of the day
had been completed and the
little family was gathered in
the house preparing for sup
per. Matson complained of
| feeling very tired, saying that his feet
burned and that he would battle them,
after which they would sit down to
supper. He got a basin filled with wa
ter and seated himself IN the open
doorway. Then his sister informed
him that the papers had come, and he
remarked that She might read them to
him while he was bathing his feet
which she proceeded to do. And this
was the happy home scene which was
| to be rudely broken into by the assas-
sins bullet. No sooner had Matson
! taken his seat and commenced the
! bathing than the sharp crack of II rifle
rang out in the twilight and ne rolled
over with a bullet through the head,
entering on the left check bone and
coming out in front Of the right ear,
death resulting instantaneously and
without the slightest warning. Tie
shot without doubt was fired through
the window diagonally through the
door, rs there is no indication whatever
of the bullet anywhere in the
room, while the window was
all blackened with powder smoke
by the nearness OF the dis
charge The lamp was on the table
near the window, and the conclusion
put it out. The sister. horror-stricken,
drew the body of her brother partially
into the room, and then, hastily draw
ing on a pair of her brothers pants, she
stepped to the door, hoping TO escape to
the residence Of her nearest neighbor.
NJ {. Felker, but The murderer had
now passed around to the front of the
house, and as she came TO the door he
raised his rifle to shoot her down. But
fortunately the cartridge did not ex-
plode and she jumped back into the
house 1t was when the assassin raised
his gun on her that she insists she
recognized Henry Schrader, the man
now in Jail here suspected of having
committed the crime. The house was
now dark In the darkness was the
sisters safety. She asked the boy 10
reach her the gun, which he did,
and she then fired repeatedly
through the door and window
| She and the boy crawled up
| into the attic, where they, in horror
spent the night. Early IN the morning
she sent the boy TO the home of NJ. c.
Felker for assistance, and Felker
pro uptly responded, returning with
the boy. After viewing the body and
learning the particulars he started at
once for the city TO inform the authori
ties Of the fearful crime. Christina,
who insists that she got distinct view
| of the murderer, named Henry Scbrader
as the guilty person, and the sheriff of
this county soon had number of men
out looking for the suspected person.
One of the parties, composed of ID. w.
Overacller, AL Findley, Jack Kyle and
Fred Ray, went down on the east side
of the Missouri. and were so fortunate
as to speedily find their man, who was
spending the Sunday afternoon at the
residence of Joe Spangler, about fifteen
miles south of here. Shrader took the
arrest with the utmost composure and
emphatically protested his innocence. He
has for several months been working
for Frank Phelps on Dry Island. an
island in the Missouri river opposite
the residence of the murdered man,
and he insisted that he had not left
the island since the preceding Thurs
day. He was brought to the city and
placed in one of the steel cells of the
county Jail. In the meantime the
sheriff. accompanied by one deputy,
made his way down the west side OF
the river to the scene of the tragedy.
The shooting was done at twilight Sat
urday evening, and they reached there
about 5 o'clock Sunday afternoon, find
ing the body in the precise position
left by Christina after she had partially
pulled it into the house 1t presented
fearful picture lying doubled up in
large pool Of blood, which still
oozed from a shocking wonnd in the
head. The bullet must have been
from a winchester of heavy caliber, for
1t literally carried away the side of the
face from which it came out. The
sheriff promptly got down tn work and
proceeded TO investigate into the case
as thoroughly as possible. Looking
the ground over in the neighborhood OF
the house the tracks were plainly seen
where the murderer had gone from the
window around to the front of the
house. where he attempted to shoot
Christina. the empty shell which had
been pumped from the rife being
found upon the ground near the tracks,
and this shell fits perfectly the rife
found later upon the island, where
there were also found fully 100 of the
same kind of cartridges. The sheriff,
accompanied by portion of his posse,
then went across to the island, guard
being left at the house to see that
nothing was disturbed. The island
was subjected to most thorough
search. In the house on the island
were found pants, socks and boots, wet
and muddy, which were afterwards
foryd 10 belong to the prisoner, Henry
Schrader. They were found under the
prisoners bed. The boots were taken
to the slough, where tracks were plainly
Embedded in the soft mud, and every
test proved conclusively that the tracks
were made by the boots found in the
house. Only one set of tracks were
found going in the direction of Mat
sons house and returning The rife
was also found still containing the un.
exploded cartridge, which showed an
indentation in the primer, which for
tunately did not explode when the life
of the girl was attempted In the
meantime the guard ut Matson's house,
which had been instructed by the sher
iff to arrest anyone approaching the
premises, observed Frank Phelps com
ing toward the place and they
promptly covered him and in.
structed him to throw up his hands,
which he did, the sheriff upon return
ing placing him under arrest. on the
charge of completely in the crime. He
was taken to the residence Of nj. G.
Felker, where he was held during the
night, and in the morning sent to thi.
city In charge OF Frank Esmay. The
coroner accompanied by the states
attorney. the city attorney and DIR. s
w. Duncan - an expert, arrived or
the ground at about Q o'clock Monday
morning, and after swearing in jury
proceeded to investigate the shocking