Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1900-04-27
HIS DEATH WAS ACCIDENTAL.
The Son of Charles Gaking Evidently Lost
His Life in an Attempt to save
u G.E@ @5s the Horses. %ls -.

WA See~SSSO
Il, His Life in an Attempt to save
}.:@ >iS tho Horses. =.
Coroner Trace and his assistant, L.
D.Brown, Sheriff Rider and County
Attorney Lyon, all visited the place
in Buchanan town, Monday, where
the young son of Charles Gaking lost
his life Saturday by fire, which de-
stroyed the barn on the farm which
Mr.. Gaking was operating. i
After q thorough investigation by
the examination Of the promises and
all the witnesses of the unfortunate
affair, the coroner was convinced
that there was no evidence of foul
play in the boys death, and decided
that an inquest was not necessary.
Mr.. Gaking's story, which is cor
roborated by his other son and also
the son of a neighbor named Benne-
WITT, and the position of the body
when found, indicates that the boy,
lost his life in an attempt to save the
horses.
Mr.. Gaking recently lost his farm
in Buchanan town and rented anoth-
or some distance from where he was
living. Saturday morning he and
his two sons went to the rented farm
with two teams to do some of the
farm work. When the noon hour
came, Mr.. G<.king discovered that
there was no hay for his horses on
the place, so he took one of the teams,
and, accompanied by his youngest
son, went to a neighbours, about a
mile distant, to get some hay. On
the rented place there la an old shack
of a house and q barn. The team was
put in the barn and the oldest boy
remained at tie place.
When Mr. Gazing and his young
son were loading the hay the boy no.
ticed that there was a fire of some
kind at the farm where his brother
was left. MIR. Gaking Immediately
unhitched one of the horses from the
wagon and rode the animal as fast
as possible to the place. When he
arrived he found his son lying near
the ruins OF the barn, face downward,
dead, his body badly burned, and his
clothing still ATTIRE. The bodies of
the horses also lay in the ruins of the
barn.
Mr.. Gaking said that he could not
touch the body OF the boy, but imme-
dfately called two neighbors, named
Herman and Wayne. They removed
the body short dis ance and carried
water to extinguish the fire in the
boys clothing.
Mr.. Gaking's younger son corrob-
Grated his father In regard to the
fire, and q young boy named Benne-
witt, who was at work in another
field. about a half mile distant, said
that he saw the Gaking boy running
around the barn with his clothing
a-fire. :.
The origin of the fire is not posi-
lively known, but there was piece
of ground several rods in width be-
tween the barn and the creek that
runs through the farm, that was not
burned over In the morning when
Mr.. Gaking went to the place. This
ground was burned over when Mr..
Gaking reached the place after the
fire, and his theory is that some one
set fire to the grass on this piece of
ground, and that the barn caught
fire from it. Several boys had been
seen fishing along that creek, and it
is thought these boys in some man.
ner, either accidentally or Intention
ally, set fire to the grass.
The unfortunate boy was II years
OF age His tragic death ia a sad blow
to his parents, and his father keenly
feels the position he was left in by the
peculiar circumstances surrounding
his sons death. However, in the
eyes of the officials who made the in
vestigation, he is entirely blameless
for the death of his son, and each of
them sympathizes with him in his
sorrow.
Scarcity Of Logs Probable.
Saltwater, Mimi, April 23.-During