The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1902-05-20
HAD TICKET FOR SPOKANE
Body Discovered by Section Men Near
Conway-6rought Here and
Inquest Begun.
From Mondays Daily Gazette.

AAv "a - uANSA N~nAA6 AOSAA0 -
the dead body of an aged man VIII
is supposed to have met his death b,
falling from Saturday nights west
bound Northern Pacific passenge
train.
The body was brought to the cit,
on yesterdays North Coast Limited
having been picked up about five
miles east of Conway, where it was
found by the train crew, who ha6
been signalled by Section Foreman
Johnson. Coroner Chapple began ar
inquest yesterday, but owing to the
absence of witnesses and pending q
post mortem examination it was
deemed advisable to continue it until
this evening at 1880 o'clock.
From Conductor Anderson, who was
in s~ehargesof the train that brought
theIemafns to the city, and several
others the following particulars were
obtained: Foreman Johnson and two
other men were passing along the
road at the point already mentioned,
when they found a man lying about
eight or nine feet outside of the rails.
They approached him and he said he
had fallen off a train, which was
about all that could be got out of
him. Being unable to do anything for
him, they continued and tagged the
Limited, then due, and notified Mr..
Anderson. When the train reached
the place the man was dead and hay
ing satisfied themselves that they were
in Yellowstone county the crew de-
cided to bring the body on to the city
and turn it over to the authorities.
n placed it in the express car.
Mr.. Anderson said he had made an
examination of the pockets of the
deceased for the purpose of seeing
whether they contained anything that
might lead to establishing the identity
OF the dead man. He found a second
class ticket issued by the Boston &
Maine railroad from Mechanicsville.
N. y, to Spokane, Wash, signed by
Richard st. John; a small note book
in which was written William LOT.
tus, Saratoga Springs, New York"
a five dollar bill, three one dollar bills
n 80 cents in change.
To satisfy himself that the man. had
been a passenger on No. 3, Saturday
nights westbound train, Mr.. Ander-
son said he stopped at Clearmont
station and asked Conductor Rapelie,
who had been in charge of No. 3 and
was then returning to Glendive, to
loo at the body and see if he could
recognize it. Mr.. Rapelje said he re-
membered the body as that of a man
who had been on his train the night
before and also identified the ticket.
as one he had punched.
F. R. Stanley of st. Paul, who was
a passenger on the train which ar
rived Saturday night, identified the
remains as those of a man who had
boarded the train at some station this
side of Mandan. He said the man had
asked him whether he was on the
right train for Spokane, saying that
he had got left at the station the day
before. The man had acted and talked
in a manner that indicated that he
did not seem to realize where he was
going and Mr.. Stanley said he had
had quite a time convincing him he
was headed in the right direction.
The deceased hao moved about the car
a good deal and had spoken to a num-
Der of passengers. Once he had gone
onto the platform and tried to get into
the baggage a and Mr.. Stanley said
he went out and brought him back
into the car. z..
TO Mr.. Stanley the man said his
name was st. John and that he was
from New York and had a brother
at Spokane. He said he was 70 years |
old and born in Tipperry. Some of
the other passengers had remarked
the old mans action and said they be-
heved he did not known what he was
doing.
The last time Mr.. Stanley saw the
alive was about 9 o'clock Satur.
day night. At that time he left him
and went to the other end of the car
and slept until the train arrived at
Billings.
DR.. Chapple is of the opinion thatthe
mans skull was fractured as a result
of falling from the train.
CROSSING THE BORDER.