The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-09-15
DID "JIM" PARKER DO ITs
Artil1eryman O'Brien Said to Have
Knocked CzoIgosx Down.

From the New York Tribune.
Buffalo. Sept. Thames Parker, the
colored waiter, who, according to his
own story, prevented Czolgosz, the as
sassin, from shooting the President the
third time on Friday last in the Tenn
pie of Music, is going to have hard
time to establish his claim to that dis
tinction. In the episode of knocking
Czolgosz down and empowering him
the crediting of the service to the right
full person is no longer regarded as a
trivial and unimportant incident. The
members of the cabinet are
taking good deal of in
terest in looking over the evidence
which is to prove or disprove Parkers
story.
Parker, it will be remembered, asserts
that he was just in front of Czolgosz,
and that just as soon as the shots were
fired he turned upon Czolgosz, hit him
with his fist on the nose and bore him
to the floor. The mental picture of
Parker, who is six feet six inches tall
rescuing the President of the United
states from possible instant death was
so dramatic when first told that it was
easily believed by hundreds of thous-
ands of people. 1t seems to be a Dues
a
that his admirers say he did, for the
evidence is piling up in the office of Dis
trict Attorney Penney that the credit
for oVerpowering Czolgosz belongs pri-
marily to Private O'Brien, Seventy
thirty Company, coast artillery, one of
the dozen or more guards close to the
President on Friday afternoon.
OBrien's friends have come to the
'front.' with mass of corroboratiye cv-
idence which is being most seriously
considered by District ATTORNEY PEN
ney, superintendent of Police Bull and
George B. Cortelyou, secretary to the
President. The evidence thus far col
lected tends to establish the following
general facts: That Private O'Rrien
crushed Czolgosz to the floor. that
Czolgosz's pistol was wrested from
him by Albert Gallagher, a Chicago Sc
cret service detective; that Parker was
fifteen feet from the President when
Czolgosz fired the shots, that Czolgosz's
face was bruised by the blows of sew
eral persons, Parker among the rest
James ID. Wells, a Buffalo newspaner
man, who stood close to the President
and John G. Milburn last Friday az
ternoon at the time of the shooting. Is
one of the witnesses whose statement
concerning the shooting has been re-
quested by District Attorney Penney.
Mr.. Wells, when seen yesterday by a
Tribune reporter, said:
"O'Brien was the man who fioored
Czolgosz. / was looking right at him
when he did 1t. He was the guard on
Mr.. Milburn's left, and Mr.. Milburn
was Immediately at the Presidents left.
/ was to the right of the President
and little behind him. The line of
people who pressed forward to shake
the Presidents hand came from the
southeast side of the building. and
swung around a crescent toward the
southwest side, the point of egress.
Midway between the two sides stood
the President and his party. ! saw
Parker pass the President after shak-
ing hands with him, and I remarked
as / looked at the breadth of his shoul-
ders and the back OF his head, which
lowered far above other men, that I
would like, TO have his physique. He
was more than ten feet away from