The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1905-05-19
STRUCK AND KILLED BY ENGINE
UEKBowE EAH Lay ACROSS RAILROAD
TRACK MAR KDs0E.
Net Instant Death when struck BY Pilot
OF Engiue-Inquest Held wednesday
BODY Unidentified and Inquiry
Made in Two States.

The body of an unknown man, whose
name may be Laurand Alach, lies in
W. J. Bower & Sons undertaking
rooms. He was struck and instantly
killed FIVE miles east of GoOdland at
2:30 O'Clock Wednesday morning by
Rock Island engine 1872, pulling west
bound passenger No. IS, Engineer A.
F. Taper and Conductor NJ. G. Pat
rick. The body IS being held by Cor
oner Gulick awaiting a possible identi-
6cation.
The forehead of the unfortunate man
was crushed in by the blow, the right
leg broken near the thigh and above
the ankle, and the body bruised in e
number of places. When brought 70
town, blood was still OOZing from the
victims head and his body was still
warm.
Coroner Gulick held an inquest over
the body Wednesday afternoon. The
jury sitting in the case brought in g
verdict that Alach met his death by be-
ing struck by the engine of train No.
IS, and that his death was due to his
own carelessness.
Train No. 5 preceded No. IS about
forty minutes, and some conjecture that
Alach may have been riding that train
and fell OF. Why he should be lying
on the track when No. IS came along is
a mystery, for he vas doubtless alive
until he was struck by the engine that
killed him.
Alach's personal effects are in the
hands of Coroner Quick. Twenty dol
lars in bills were found IN one Of his
shoes. In his pOcketbOok was S2.35 in
silver. He had a watch, q United Mine
Workers of America button, and a note
for 500, due on demand, dated at Den
ming, Ark, January 80, 1905, given to
Laurand AIach by John Moix. A mem
Orandum of ''LOrens Alash's'' time,
bearing date of April IS, 1905, issued
by the Western Coal and Mining COM
pany Of Denning, Ark, was also found
upon the body. These evidences seem
to point to the fact that the mans name
was Laurand Alach. In personal ap-
pearance he IS medium in height, well
built and will weigh about us pounds;
hair is black, has short black mOustache.
a letter written from WilkesOn, Pierce
county, Washington, last August, was
begun with the words, Dear Lorenzo, -
and signed, as near as can be made
out, by Prank Alesh." It is written
in foreign language, and the suPPosi-
ton is that It is Italian.
Coroner Quick telegTaphed to Den
ming and to WilkesOn in search Of in
formation leading to the identity Of
Alach, but nothing had been heard from
the kilograms at noon Yesterday.
Engineer Taper and Fireman o. B.
LETTERS were the only witnesses examin-
ed. Engineer Tapper's story Of the ac-
cident was in effect as follows:
LAS engineer on engine 1872 1 was
pulling train No. Is. I stopped at
Brewster for orders which told me to
hurry IN to GoOdland. When Edison
was reached my train was making
about IS miles an hour, the maximum
speed for track along that portion Of
the road.
when a few miles west Of Edison or
about FIVE miles from GOodland, I no
ticed something on the track which I
took at first to be cinders, and a mo-
ment later thought it might be dog.
The engine carried an oil headlight,
and the object therefore appeared very
indistinct. As the engine met the OBJ
iect, which seemed to be lying In the
middle Of and parallel with the track, Il
tossed II Of and to the north side Of the
rails. / called my fireman, 0. B. LETTERS,
to me and told him that I thought the
engine had struck a man.
upon reaching GOOdland we met
train No. IS, in charge of Conductor
Ed Denney, and 1 told him to see what
I struck at that place and 10 phone the
information to me from Edison. Den
ney's answer was that II was a man
and that he was dead.
with engine -1512 I ran back to the
man, whom, so far as I can tell, was
was lying upon the track.