The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-03-11
THE MYSTERY OF
GOEBEL'S KILLING
Did the Fatal Shot Come from
the Front?
CONFLICTING TESTIMONY
AND SUSPICION SUGGESTS MANY
STRANGE THINGS.
DID HE WEAR A COAT OF MAIL +?
A Surgeon Declares That the Opening of the
Wound on Goebeps Breast Was Larger
Than That on the Back. No
Autopsy Was Held.'
AND SUSPICION SUGGESTS MANY
STRANGE THINGS.
DID HE WEAR A COAT OF MAIL /?

Autopsy Was heId.'
the morning of January so. Nearly a
| month has passed and the mystery of
his murder is more of a mystery than it
seemed to be a few hours after the
shooting. All of the facts that are unds-
puted may be summarized as follows:
Goebe left the Capitol Hotel TO attend the
meeting of the Legislature at the State House,
accompanied by Col. Jack Chinn. of Lexington,
and Warden Eph Lillard, of the Frankfort Peni-
tentaTy.
As they entered the State grounds Lillard
walked in front of Goebel and Jack Chnn. The
two latter went rapidly up the broad pathway,
Goebel three or four steps ahead of Lillard and
Jack Chinn.
As Goebel reached a point forty feet ahead of
the State House and eighty-five feet from the
nearest angle of the Executive Building the firing
began.
While four or five shots were being discharged
Goebel sank TO his knees and then fell heavily
upon his left side. Blood squirting from
wound Just in front of the right armpit.
Who fired the shots? We're they fired
from the front or the rear? Were they
fired at close distance or long range?
Were they fired with intent to wound
or with intent to kill? Did any one see
them fired?
These are a few of the questions to
which there has been no answer, in
deed no attempt at answer.
The first impression, promptly sent
out by the Associated Press, was that
the shots must have come from the EX-
ecutiye Building-a high, detached wing
building to Goebels right from the little
old main Capitol. This conclusion was
jumped at because that building was Oc-
cupied by Goebers political adversaries,
and had been and still was To an extent
sleeping quarters for mountaineerS who
had come to Frankfort with their Win
cheSterS Ito look on at the Legislature" "
as they said significantly. The only evil
dence that has been advanced to sus-
tain this theory is the statement of a
Mr.. Reading, who stepped out from his
store far across the wide street in front
of the State House yard at sound of the
shots. Mr.. Reading says:
As | walked toward the middle of the street
looked around to see if | could locate where
the shots had come from As could see no one
in the yard ] looked up at the Executive Build
ing. ] saw window open on the third floor and
q mans arm extended as if reaching for some
thing.
This evidence is refuted by the state
ment of w. II. Stone the State nsur-
one indicated by Mr. Reading. Mr.. Stone
says:
Mr. Readings statement is no doubt correct
rs Immediately after the first shot fired | ran
to the window and pushed it up, but owning to
the shape of the building could not see the part
of the ward the crowd running to- and with
drew. The shots not fred from my side
of the third floor. In fact, do not think they
We're fired from any part of the third story.
However, upon the strength of the
Reading statement man named Whita-
ker was arrested, was nearly lynched, is
still under arrest and will not come up
for examination until next Tuesday. He
was in the suspected building, in the Of
flee of the Assistant Secretary of State,
and had rushed out from there and around
in front of the main Capitol to a small
detached building on the far side to call
the Adjutant General, and was running
back. He thus twice passed the spot
where Goebel lay dying. He was arrest
ed by a we'll meaning old man for merely
running, and that toward, not from. the
supposed ambuScade.
Whitaker is completely cleared by
John Davis, custodian of the Capitoi
grounds amply corroborated. Col. Davis
says:
just outside Gov Taylors office when
heard the shots and heard Gov. Taylor say, ''My
God, what have they done" He called to me
| AT once to go over to the office Of Adjt. Gen.
Collier and Whitaker went along. He could
not have done the shooting.
Besides Whitaker one man is also un-
| der arrest, untried, for the shooting, a
man named Sutton, who, in the wild de-
| lirium OF debauch in which he jumped
| from a third-story window in Louisville
and ran unhurt a mile, declared he had
done it. 1t is enough to say that Sutton
| is wholly uncorroborated even by himself.
| This leaves suspicion as to any concrete
| individual wandering in quite an aimless
| and desultory way.
According to Col. Jack Chinn, who with
! Eph Lillard constituted the Senator S
| usual bodyguard, 'Lillard had gone ahead
and had just got into the State House. y
| So it seems that Lillard was nowhere
| near the scene, yet in his statement to
| the reporters Lillard says:
| / tried hard to get sight of the fellow. He
| kept pouring the lead down at us, and ] will
swear there was no sign 10 indicate from where
he was shooting. As many shots he fired
| would make a considerable powder smoke if
| ordinary cartridges were used but never sign
! of smoke could | see.
| Col. John Chinn gave out several con-
! flicting statements; for instance, in one
| he said, Il saw a stream of smoke set
| Ting back from a window in the east oi
| the Capitol building" In another he said
| The firing made no smoke that | could
| see, and | saw. no sign of a gun at any
| of the windows and could only judge oi
| the direction by the sound"
4 The first phySician IN examine the DIV