The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-10-08
KILLED A MAN AS GAME.
EGAN MISTooK CURRI0LA'S FUR
CAP FOR A WOODCHUCK.

Tho Italian Was Leaning Against y stone
Fence In Such \ way That Only Hls Cap
showed-He Was KILLED Instantly by EEnu's
s~hot-Coroner BannlnE Does Not Blame Esnn
Each year with the beginning of the hunting
season como the reports Of casualties due to
the man who shoots at q moving object or a
rustling In the bushes under the impression
that no is about to bag some sort OF wild ami
NAL. II tho shooter Is lucky he kills only a
cow or a horse. More often, however, 1t Is a
human being that falls victim to his zeal, and
next to tho Observation-Disclosures fool,
the overzcalous hunter is responsible for more
deaths In the community than any other va
ricty Of the gun.bearing individual. Tho first
Of this seasons deaths of this kind occurred in
Tuckahoe yesterday morning. when Hugh Egan
shot and instantly killed Rocco Curriola under
the too hastily formed conception that Cur
riolas fur cap was q woodchuck.
Both men worked for Bellew e. Merritt, con.
tractors, who are doing road repairing in Tuck
ahoe. Yesterday all tho men were laid of
owing TO some hitch in tho work. Egan, with
o friend named Ellis, started out to hunt for
gray squirrels at half. past z In tho morning,
and for an hour they saw nothing worth shoot
ing at. By the time they reached Morgan's
woods, back Of Norcross's quarry, they were in
that mood where even a crow would have been
regarded d. as game. They went through the woods
without seeing anything bigger than a spar
row, and when they came within sight Of tho
high stone fence that marks tho line OF the
quarry property they sat down on q fallen tree
and bewailed their lack OF luck.
This IL wasting o good day of" said Ellis.
Lets 60 home, Hugh"
not till I've had one shot at something"
said Egan. I'm going to fire this gun at some
sort Of an animal before / 20 home, II it's only
. horsefy."
There's your chance, then" said the other,
sinking his voice to a whisper. "Sce 10 Over
there on the stone fence; It's a a soq %san . . no
brought his gun up. We'll SEQ what it is in a
He tired and the supposed animal disap.
Nailed, square," cried Esan triumphantly.
He ran to the stone fence and looked over.
threw, himself down on the ground and began
leaped the wall and throw himself forward just
far enough to AVOID landing on what lay on
woodchuck had been struck square n the
centre by the charge OF shot. II, was still on
is oT ,Ss fsc head a;h but had s adpy S.f dOT ybs 9 3Sss
left. Ellis wen. back to Egan.
Hes dead, he said.
NJ God!" said Egan. 'what am going
1T wasn't your fault. 1t wasn't anybody's
fault said his friend.
what good does that dol The mans dead.
I'm going back to give myself up"
leaving his gun where 1t was. he ran back
to Tuckahoe, where he found Constable James
Daniels, and told him what had happened.
Daniels put him under arrest and sent to
Mount Vernon for Coroner Banning. Mean.
time the dead man had been identified by some
men from the quarry where he had worked be
fore he went 10 road mending. He was 81
years old and unmarried. What he was do,
ing behind the wall nobody knew. The belief
is that he had taken advantage OF his day of
to take a walk in the woods, and that he had
stopped TO look at something, or. perhaps. Ia
lean against the stone fence. when the hunters
caught sight OF his fur cap. just visible over
the stones. The cap is old, and from u distance
looks very much like a furry animal.
Coroner Banning, after making. some In,
Quiries, was so far satisfied OF the truth OF
Egnn's story, that, instead OF sending him to
jail, he released him in the custody of Con,
stable Daniels. The inquest will be held to
day. Egan and the Italian did not know each
other. il Is said. and Egan himself was unable
to identity the man he had killed.