The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-02-13
TO SAVE HIS LIFE
DETECTIVE SHOT
WALL KILLED A NEGRO.
OFFICER WAS PREPARED WHEN
DESPERADO DREW GUN.

Plain Clothes Man Fired Three
Shots in Rapid Succession, One OF
Them Taking ERect-Negro Died a
! short While Later-Dead Man Was
Desperate Character and Was
Wanted for Shooting His Wife
With "A Shot Gun-Came to Savan-
nah in Afternoon and His Brother
! fn-Law clipped Him on"
| Believing he was about to be shot
| by a negro supposed to be a murderer,
Detective Frank T. Wall last night shot
and killed Dave Watch.
The detective fired three shots. but
only one bullet struck the man. The
tragedy occurred after dark on the
Louisville road. about a mile from the
city.
Watch was armed with a 3S-calibre
Smith e. Wesson hammerless weapon
when shot down by the plain clothes
man, and the pistol is held at police
headquarters. The negro was brought
to the city in a dying condition and
taken to the police station. He died
before the arrival of a physician.
At o'clock Supt. Garfunkle received
a telephone message from wellington
Murray, a negro who lives on the
Louisville road, one mile from the city,
asking that officers be sent out to ar
rest his brother-in-Iaw Dave Watch.
Murray said Watch had shot his wife
| From the nature of the message Supt.
| Garfunkle was led to believe that the
shooting had occurred during the after
noon and that the woman was dead.
/ He hurrisd Detectives Wall and Muir
ply, and Officers Meldrim and Pitts to
the scene to arrest the negro.
Was "A Desperate Negro.
Before reaching the house where the
shooting was supposed to have occur
red the officers met Murray. who con-
| Quoted them to his house, where. he
/ said. Watch was. The officers follow
| ed the negro closely. while Murray re-
| lated the fact that Watch was a des-
perate man, having killed n man in
Florida, and having been shot in Jack
| sonville a little later.
| He had also shot his brother and q
week or two ago had shot at his wife
| three times, one of the shots taking eff
| feet in her leg. This put the officers
on their guard, and they decided to
circle the house. and close in on it
|
and the uniformed men started to sur
round the house, leaving Detective
| Wall with the negro Murray.
| Detective Wall said he was right
at Murrays side when they entered
the gate. He asked which house
Watch was in, and just at that time
saw some dark object moving along
the fence. When he started toward
him, and was nearly within touching
distance, the negro drew a pistol. Be-
fore he had a chance to use it De-
tective Wall drew his revolver and
fired three times in rapid succession,
one of the bullets taking effect, en-
tering just below the left armpit, a
little to the back From the direction
in which the bullet entered, the de-
tective believes the first shot missed,
and that as the negro saw he was
in danger, and started to turn and
run, the second or third shot struck
him.
Pulled From n Fence.
Even after being shot the negro
| tried to run, and succeeded in getting
up on the fence. After getting to the
| top he was unable to go further, and
the officers had to pull him down. 1t
was seen at once that the negro was
| mortally wounded, and he was hastily
brought to the city. Dr. Johnson was
summoned, but the negro was dead
when the physician arrived. DR.. John
son said he believed the heart had
been pierced by the bullet
The dead man reached Savannah
during the afternoon from Hampton
| county, South Carolina. He went at
once to his brother-in-law's house,
where his wife was getting over a
gunshot wound in her leg, which he
had inflicted two weeks ago. AS soon
as Watch arrived at the house Muir
| IN te1
the officers.
According to a statement made by
Murray Watch was desperate char
acter and had been in number of
shooting scrapes. He shot a man near
Jacksonville, year or two ago, it is
alleged, but made his escape. A few
weeks later he is said to have become
involved in a quarrel in Jacksonville
and was shot himself. About two
months ago. Murray says, he fired a
load of bird shot into his brothers
back. and two weeks ago he shot
hiw wife in the leg with double-bar-
relied shotgun. She came to her home
in Savannah as soon as she was able,
and reported the matter to her broth
| err.
Wallis story of Shooting.
AS soon as the negro died Coroner
Keller was notified. Arrangements
for an inquest have not yet been made
Detective Wall said he did what he
thought was the best thing under the
circumstances. Il was prepared to
Gee the negro make resistance" he
said, 'and had my hand on my gum
| AS he moved away from the fence on
my approach l saw him draw his pis-
tol and drew also, and fired as rap
idly as possible.
II was under the impression that the
| first shot took effect, but from the po-
sition of entry of the bullet 1 don't
think the first shot hit him. 1t was so
dark in the yard that it was with
difficulty a man could be seen at a
distance of ten feet / was within
four feet of the negro when I fired
first, and in my haste 1 might have
shot wild the first time. AS soon as
the first shot was fired. the negro
turned to run"
The remains of the negro will be re-
moved from the police station this
| v,n0rpipp yrbav will proha hlv he ola inn