The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1894-12-20
TRAGEDY IN A BANK.
AN ASSISTANT BOOKKEEPER AC
CUSED OF THEFT.
lie Shoots His Accusers and Then Turns
the Weapon on Himself-He Died
Shortly After, but the Others
May Recover.

Shortly After, but the Others
May Recover.
Council Bluffs Ia, Dec. 16.-At II
O'Clock today a tragedy Was enacted in
the private Office of the Citizens state
bank of Council Bluffs, which may result
FATALLY Tor three persons. John Hunting
ton,, assistant bookkeepcr and collection
clerk, shot G. A. Cromwell of Mime
apolis and f. II. Hayden of Chicago,
president of the Fidelity and Casualty
company of New York, and then emptied
his revolver into his own brain, inflicting
Il wound from which he died two hours
later. Cromwell and HAYDEN. il is
thought, will recover. Huntington was
one of the best known gentlemen in Coun-
ell Bluffs and numbered his friends by
the hundreds. So far as known he had
no bad habits and this is what makes
his act the harder to explain.
/ On the 10th of last July a check of $500
was turned over to him by Ira Il. Hen
dricks, one of the employees of the bank,
in the regular routine of business. Hunt
ington charged up the check to the Union
national stock yards of South Omaha,
and from that, day to this nothing has
been heard of it. The day following
Huntington left for Il vacation trip of
several weeks to New York. The bank
officials kept thinking the check would
: turn up sooner or later and deferred any
action, but as time passed on it became
evident that the bank was out $500. They
sent Il message to the Fidelity and Cas-
ualty company, notifying them of the
fact and suggesting that inspectors come
on at once and make an investigation. The
bank officials claim that at the time they
had no charges to make against Hunting
ton or any other emplOye of the bank.
All of their employees were bonded in the
Fidelity. and they preferred that the FL
deity should make their investigation
rather than make it themselves. Messrs.
Cromwell and Hayden arrived in the
city last Friday and took rooms at the
Grand hotel. They croSs-eXaminCd each
of the bank employees through whose
hands the missing check had passed, ANA
among the rest was Huntington. They
claimed to have discovered that he had
been spending more than his salary of
SO per month which he was receiving,
would warrant, and on this together with
the fact that the check had been last seen
in his hands, they based as their Sus.
piciOnS. Huntington and the representa-
tives of the Fidelity company met Satur-
I day and made arrangements for another
meeting at the bank Sunday morning.,
when the investigation was 10 he reSuln-
ed. At the appointed time they were to-
gether, and Cromwell and Hayden com
menced to put the young man through II
cross fire of questions. President J. ID.
Edmonson and Cashier Hannin of the
bank were present during tie morning of
the interview. The conference had not
been in progress for nose than IL min
urr; when Hun;ingtOE rose from his
chair. pulled n revolver and commenced
: firing at the representatives of the I'll
delity company. The revolver he used was
! n 41-calibre that belonged TO the bank,
and had been kept in the desk of Mr.
SpOoner, the paving teller. The first three
shots were fred at Cromwell. who had
taken the lead in the Interrogation, and
all three took effect The fourth struck
Hayden, and then Huntington raised the
weapon to his own head and fired. He
fell to the floor unconscious. and remain
ed so until his death. at II p. m. The
wounded men ran out of the bank down
First avenue and into the Grand hotel,
| blood droppng from them at every step.
! They were taken to their rooms and DIR.
McRae was summoned One of the bullets
I had taken effect in CromWellS back Just
to the right of the spine. 1t was found
about four inches below the surface and
extracted. The second bullet struck in the
left side of his cheek, blowing its way
around the right side of his neck and
came to Il stop, after just missing the
carotoid artery. The third struck him in
the wrist, he having put up his hand to
strike the reYolver ont of huntington S
hand 1t broke one of the bones of the
forearm clear in two and imbcdded itsele
in the bone, almost severlng it. When the
ball was taken out, it was cut almost in
two from the pointed end down. Ecom-
well will probably loose the use of his
right hand on account of a stiffenng Of
the wrist joint, as the result of the frac-
ture of the bones.
Hayden Jared better. The bullet struck
him in the neck. and after passing around
about a quarter of the W ~, emerged and
imbedded itself in panel of the door,
where it was afterwards found. His
wound is not considered of a serious na-
ture. but a variation of half inch would
have killed him. The bullet that took
IIuntington's life, entered the skull Just
behind the ear. and lodged back of the
right eve, where its presence was shown
by n discoIoration of the lid. His having
tGe weapon in his possession showed he
had MANNED it all out before hand. and
his coolness in the face of the terrible
deed he was meditating is surprising. All
IL