The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-08-02
MAYER WAS KILLED
BY JOSEPH KELLER
so A JURY SWORN BY CORONER
LoNGsTREET DECIDED.
Post Mortem Examination Was
Made by the Coroner Assisted by
DIR. A. j. Winebrake--Course
Taken by the Four Bullets That
Were Fired by Keller-Testimony
of Several Eye Witnesses to Sun
days Tragedy Was Heard by
the Members of the Jury.

A hearing and coroners inquest in |
the Little England murder case were |
set for last night at the office of Squire |
Krotzer in Dunmore, but the hearing |
was not held, because there was no |
necessity for 1t, Keller having been |
formally committed Sunday evening. |
| Special Officer James McGrail, of Dun |
more. was responsible for bringing AS
sistant District Attorney w. Gaylord |
| Thomas up there on wild goose chase. |
| The coroner's jury met and placed the |
| responsibility of Mayors death upon |
| Keller
Keller surrendered to Chief of Police |
| Dierks Sunday and was placed IN the |
borough prison. At his own request !
| he was given a hearing before Squire |
| Krotzer at s o'clock that evening. at
| which he admitted having killed
| Mayer. The squire made out COM
mitment, charging him with murder
| and he was taken to the county Jail.
| McGrail waited upon Mr.. Thomas
yesterday and informed him that Kel-
| Ter was not committed upon a warrant,
that he was moved from the Dunmore
| lookup to Jail at his own request on
| the plea that he was in danger. Mr..
| Thomas made arrangements for the
hearing at 7.3O o'clock and was to meet
| McGrail there with the prisoner. Mr..
| Thomas was there on time. Along to-
ward 7.45 a cab rolled up to the door
and McGrail and Constable Tim Jones
| alighted, but no prisoner. Mr.. Jones
is acting in County Detective Leyshon's
stead while he is on vacation. Mr..
Jones was instructed to be at the Jail
| at 40 nv MCGrail
| WOULD NOT GIVE HIM UP.
| The jailkeepers would not give Kel-
| Ter in their charge without an order of
court, as he was committed on a charge
of murder, the paper being a regular
| commitment lust as if he had a for
NAL hearing. They did not know but
that the prisoner was properly given
into their charge, and consequently
| McGrail had to depart.
Mr.. Thomas inquiries from Squire
| Krotzer disclosed the fact that Keller
had a regular formal preliminary hear
| ing and was properly committed to the
county Jail to await the action of the
| grand jury. His own admission was
testimony in abundance to send him to
Jail.
Coroner Longstreet arrived about $50
and examined three witnesses, a man
who saw the shooting, another who
| heard the shots, and the officer to
whom the murderer surrendered. The
| coroner, assisted by DIR. A. j. Wine
| brake, held post-mortem eXamina-
ton at 10 o'clock in the forenoon. He
found two wounds that would have
caused death.
One bullet struck Mayors left breast
between the second and third rib and
DETECTED downward, passing close to
| the heart and severing the main blood
vessels, going through the right lung
and out on the right side of the body
under the arm pit, and lodging in the
biceps muscle of the arm. 1t was
picked out Of the arm.
The second fatal bullet entered at
the point of the left jaw and took a
downward course through the larynx
or voice box, lodging against the spinal
column at the base of the skull. A
third bullet struck the left arm be-
tween the elbow and shoulder and
fractured the humerus or bone of the
arm, going out on the other side and
into the left side about two inches
from the point at which the other bull
let penetrated. 1t lodged under the
skin, and flattened like nickel against
a rib. The fourth bullet went through
the left arm between the ulna and the
radius bones, two inches above the
; wrist and flew off into space. In all
there were nine bullet wounds on the
body.
TESTIMONY HEARD.
j. f. Schuler, a butcher living at the
corner of Dudley and Blakely streets
was the first witness. He was out for
a walk and was going along the Erie
and Wyoming tracks He heard a loud
= conversation between two men on the
tracks not far from himself and stop
: ped expecting to see scrap. They
) walked only short distance when one
of them whipped out a revolver and
fired at the other.
Mr.. Schuler thought after the first
shot that the man shot at was stoop-
ing down to pick up a stone, but he
stopped over until he fell and rolled
{, down the bank. He went over to as
sist him and the man with the revolver
said:
Keep your hands off that corpse or
= you'll get the same dose he got" The
5 witness was not acquainted with either
of the men, He described the man who
2 used the weapon as having a light suit
+, and saw him run up the hill afterward
" toward Little England.
William Koher was a witness. He
was in his back yard when Mr. Schuler
came along. Mr.. Schuler called his at
: tention to loud words between two
, men on the Erie and Wyoming Valley
railroad tracks. He went around the
house before the shooting and heard
8 the shots but did not see the men al
$ the time. He went down to the scene
= and saw the man dead and saw a man
going up the path toward Little Eng
d land. Some children told him that was
: the man who did it. They pointed af-
c ter him.
). officer Fred Beaver testified that he
was on his beat Sunday afternoon go.
ing along Chestnut street when he was
a accosted by a special officer whom he
;. did not know who told him there was
J. a shooting affair in Little England. The
j. | special said the man who did it was
then on his way down 10 the borough
= building to give himself up.
i OFFICER MET KELLER.
i The witness turned back, accompan,
q led by his informant and they walkeC
!, down to Blakely street and along tha
- thoroughfare toward the building
Near Potter street he met Keller anC
his father coming toward them anC
accosted them in this style:
a Joe, j hear you got in trouble"
Eyes. / guess So" was the answer.
"Is the man dead?" asked the of
J. ficer.
y II don't know whether he is or not