The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-02-24
he MADE GRuESOME find
Remains of an Unknown Man
Found in Creek.
HIS SKULL WAS BROKEN
The Unidentified Victim of an Unknown
Murderer-There Is Absolutely No
Clue for the Officers to
Work On.

Special Correspondence of the Standard.
Bozeman, Feb. 21.-Coroner Finlay re-
turned this morning from Central Park,
where he was called yesterday to in
vestigate the matter of the finding of
the remains of an unknown man on
Sunday. small boy, the son of Thorn
as Maxwell, while chasing a prairie
chicken with broken leg in the brush
off the county road leading from Cen
trail Park to Manhattan. and about half
a mile from the former place, across the
West Gallatin river, came upon some
bones lying by the side of little creek.
With the usual inquisitiveness of a
small boy he investigated the matter a
little further and found something pro-
truding from the creek and pulled it
out. 1t proved to be the leg of a man.
He pulled little more and the bone
of another leg appeared. This was suf-
ficient for the boy, so he dropped his
hold and turned and fled for home as
quick as his little legs could carry him.
A few OF the citizens then Investigated
the matter and came to the conclusion
to notify the sheriff, which was done.
The coroner went down on Monday and
called together a jury and they went
to the place where the remains had been
found. They discovered a hole by the
side of a creek (the latter being about
two feet wide). In this hole the body
had been placed and over it to hold it
down had been put a couple of poles
driven into the bottom and across the
creek. and then weeds and water eress
ho1 hoe
hardly any flesh on the body at all; the
coyotes and magpies having got away
with all they could get at. The skull,
which was very thick one, was badly
broken, and looked as if it had been
fractured with a club or a similar
weapon. There was no way of telling
the age of the man or his size, except
from the skeleton, which indicated that
the deceased was a large and heavily
built man. The only thing left by the
coyotes, magpies and action of the wat
er, by which any clue to his identif-
cation may be obtained, were his Shoes
which were evidently new when he was
killed, and one of these is now in the
sheriff's office. The presumption is that
the man was murdered early last fall
probably by some companion of the
road. The point where the body was
found Is a great camping place for
travellers in the summer and fall, being
on the main road from Bozeman to Hell
ena and Butte. Some of the Inhabitants
remember seeing man last fall walk
ing UP and down close to the point
where the body was found and acting
as if he was guarding something, but
so many queer people pass that way
that nothing more was thought of it.
AS no one Is missing in this part of the
country the deceased must have been
knight of the road who was unfortu
nate enough to get mixed up in quar-
rel with another of his kind; or else he
was one of the numerous immigrants
who annually pass through the valley
for place to locate, and may have
been murdered for the cash he carried.
In any event, as the jury found, he
came to his death at the hands of a
person or persons unknown.
There was quite an exciting time in
Bozeman on Saturday morning for
about half an hour. A horse attached
to a single bob, the remaining bob and
box having been left behind in the 9TH
er end of town, came rushing up Main
street at an alarming pace. He was
not a common ordinary horse, but
seemed to have high-toned tastes. He
ran onto the sidewalk near the postoffice
and kept on it for about three blocks
Sheriff Fransham turned him off once,
but he came right back and finished
his squirt on the walk on the south side
of the street. The sidewalks We're very
slippery and it was quite amusing to
see the people get out of the horses
way. He was stopped, however,
without any harm being done.
About 10 minutes after a farm
er's team came down Main street from
the court house, attached to a .'dugout"
sled about as fast as a couple of old
farm horses can run when they get
scared. After they had continued their
mad career for about half the length
of Main street, they ran astraddle of
one of the poles of the electric car COM
pany, and then and there
ed company with the dug
out, and went on towards home, some
three miles east of town, and the farm
err had to borrow a horse to go and
get them.
The Bozeman waterworks plant being
now in the hands of the city fathers, it
IS fitting and proper and in keeping
with the dignity of the city that this
branch of the municipality should have
suitabl offices. Those who have their
water rates to pay will no longer have
to climb a fiight,o of dingy. unsafe, dirty
and fire-scathed steps to reach an
equally dirty looking office, but can go
to the city hall and visit the former
manager. A. E. Davidson, in a very
formerly occupied by the Electric Light
company. The room has been fitted up
very neatly and ladies' and all water
rate payers can pay their debts to the
city without dreading the trip, as they
used to do.
Another whistle was heard on Mon
day morning of this week, when all the
sirens of the mills and elevators in
formed the town that the weeks work
had commenced. This whistle was that
of the Bozeman steam laundry, which
opened it's doors for the first time on
that day and solicited the patronage of
the citizens. Though there are plenty of
Cinnamon in town, yet this is a much
needed institution, and fitted as it is.
with all modern machinery, it ought to
be profitable investment to its pro-
mOterS.
The city was visited with another
snow storm on Tuesday, but unaccom-
panied with wind, at least, not to any
great extent. A chinook has been blow
ing for several days and the old snow