The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-02-16
POLICE ARE BAFFLED
IDENTITY OF NAMACRAw MUIR
DERER is IN DOUBT.
KILLING WAS UNPRovoKED.
YOUNG WHITE BOY WITNESSED
THE FATAL AFFRAY.

Located Early Yesterday Morning
tendent of Police The Negro
Known as "Shut Eye" Is Not
Now Believed to Have Plunged
the Fork Into Frnser-PrisOner IL
StiI Held, However, and Officers
Leaving No stone Unturned in
Effort to Discover Identity of
Man Who Had Cord whIp-Deni-
1ens of West side VIII Not Talk.
The police are almost completely at
sea as to the identity of the negro who
stabbed Joe Fraser, colored, with a
table fork. and killed him, Saturday
night on Orange street, near Farm.
The negro Shut Eye, Joe Johnson, at
first suspected of the crime, is held a
prisoner at the police station house,
but it would seem that he is not the
man.
The officers, both uniformed men and
detectives, have been working hard TO
ascertain who used the fork. but with
little success. While they are reason
the guilty man, they do not know who
is. and are not yet ready to give him
his freedom. The negroes in Yamacraw
yesterday put a.report in circulation
that the killing had been done by a
woman, but this is disproved by the
statement of the dead mans brother
who was "A witness to the ARRAY.
The crime was also witnessed by
A L.
living on Farm street, and according to
unidentified man having been the ag-
gressor. The superintendent of police
learned early yesterday morning that
young Medin was a witness to the kill
ing, and had him taken to police head
quarters shortly after o'clock The
boy made a clear statement of the
tragedy to the police chief and was
sent back to his home in a cab. There
were no Developments after Medin had
made his statement, although the off,
GERS are leaving no stone unturned TO
discover the identity of the murderer.
knocked Murderer Down.
1t appears from the statement of the
white boy, who was standing near the
fruit store on Orange and Farm
streets, that Fraser was sitting on the
preached. The unknown had a small
whip and had been amusing himself
by cutting at negroes who passed.
Seemingly he was under the influence
of liquor. He approached Fraser and
struck at him with the cord whip.
Fraser jumped to his feet, called the
stranger a bully, and knocked him
down. Fraser then ran towards his
home at No. Ell Orange street, almost
opposite the fruit store. He was pur-
sued by the unidentified man and
caught in front of the house. There
was another sCuf'ie. and vicious blow
with the fork was struck. The muir
| derer ran down Orange street and
some minutes later it was discovered
that Fraser was dead from the thrust
| in the heart.
The negroes In Yamacraw were moi
| very much exercised over the killing
| for the reason that Fraser was a ma
tive of South Carolina, and from all
accounts, a rather industrious negro
No expressions of sympathy were
heard from any of the hundreds Of ne
groes who hung around the dead body
until it had been removed by Coroner
Keller. The officers feel certain that
the crime was witnessed by one or
more negroes who could disclose the
identity of the murderer If they wished.
Under ordinary circumstances there
would not be any great difficulty in
getting this information, but because
Fraser came from 'oVer home" the
denizens Of Yamacraw, it would ap-
pear, prefer to have his slayer remain
at liberty,