The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-02-04
A SKELETON IN A TREE.
The Remains OF ~ Murdered Nnn
Fonnd by Woedcboppers.

CoN'S LANDING. W Va, Feb. 3.-Foui
wears ago = conspicuous figure in this sec
iion of the Ohio Valley was Frederick Da-
| yis q German. about thirty eight years OF
age. who peddled jewelry. Davis pur-
chased all his goods in Chicago. and had
quite an extensive sale for his articles
among the farmers in the valley between
Huntington W Va. and Gallipolis. Ohio.
He had no relatives living in this country.
but for ten years. so he said. his home had
been in and about Chicago.
One of his best customers was Mrs. Mar
| garet Howard. a wealthy widow who re-
| sides in Union district, in Cabell county.
| West Virginia. a few miles off the river
| and not more than ten miles from here.
| Davis was rather neat looking man. was
good conversationalist. and always had
plenty of money about his person. After
repeated visits 10 the home of Mrs. How
ard 1t became noised about that more than
a friendship existed between the widow and
the peddler
The rumor was true and in the early
part Of November, 1895, wedding was the
result After the marriage Davis Travelled
but little. but instead devoted all his atten-
tion looking after the interest of the farm
OF his wife. she owning broad acres along
the water of the Ohio and extending far
back on Trace Creek, in Union district.
Davis was known to also have considerable
money, and his friends throughout this sec
tiun were many.
The greater part of the shopping of Mr..
and Mrs. Davis was done either here or a,
~ Va and trims In hotb
places were of frequent occurrence. About
six months after the wedding of Davis and
Mrs Howard, Davis left home very early
one morning for this place for brief shop
ping trip. and was to have returned home
sthe same day.
Davis had considerable money with him.
He arrived here and late in the afternoon
started for his return home. That was the
last ever seen. of Davis. He did not re-
turn home and as the days rolled on the
more was the comment regarding the mys-
terious disappearance. Many were the the
ories offered, but the one most believed was
that Davis had simply tired of living in
this locality and had left for other parts.
The woman TO whom he was married only a
few months before spent hundreds of dol
airs endeavoring TO locate or find some
trace of him. but in vain.
The mysterious disappearance had long
since ceased to. be a subject for conversa-
tion, IL being almost forgotten by all save
probably his wife. and she had no doubt
come to the conclusion that she was a vic
tim of misplaced confidence.
A few days ago Watson and Rollison,
timber dealers. put force Of men to work
cutting some timber on Trace Creek. on a
strip OF land recently purchased from Mrs.
Davis on chopping down a huge syca-
more tree to make room for halfway the
workmen were much surprised to find in
the hollow trunk OF the tree the skeleton
of a man.
About seven feet from the ground was a
huge hole and through this the body of the
man had no doubt been thrust to conceal
an awful crime. \ few fragments OF cloth
ing still clung about the skeleton. and
when a portion OF these were shown to
Mrs. Davis she readily identified them as
pieces of the garments worn by her hus-
band on the day of his disappearance. The
prevailing opinion of the citizens OF this
community is that Davis was murdered for
his money and his remains were concealed
in the trunk OF the old sycamore to cover
up all traces of the tragedy.
Mrs Davis is much grieved over the dis
coyery. and today the bones OF the man
were placed in neat casket and inferred
in the family burying ground. There was
no opinion as to who the slayer or slayers
of Davis may have been. and as the crime
was committed so long ago II is more than
likely that the guilty parties will never be
lnnv-r,