Los Angeles herald., 1906-04-04
SAN BERNARDINO HOTEL
SOLD TO EASTERN MAN
E. w sHIRK BECOMES OWNER OF
THE SOUTHERN
Floods Damage New Railroad Near
Ludlow Engines Marooned on Des-
ert Without FueI-EIectric Storm
Sweeps Through Valley
Special to The Herald.

Special to The Herald.
SAN BERNARDINO. April 3.-The
fact is now given out that E. w. Shirk,
a wealthy eastern man who came here
some months ago, is the purchaser of
the Southern hotel property for which
he paid $4,000, and it is now also stated
that he expects to make of it a first
class tourist hotel.
The building will be entirely recon-
structed and changed. and made first
class in every way, and a speciality
made of the tourist business. The
structure will be made thoroughly mod.
ern in every way and built up to three
stories all over a portion of the build
ing now being but one-Story high. The
hotel is one of the older buildings
of the modern portion of the city, it
being built in boom times in the latter
part of the sos. 1t occupies one of the
finest corners in the city.
District Attorney Sprecher and Dep
uty Sheriff Ward have gone to San
Francisco to look after the habeas cor
pus proceedings which have been
brought there on benalf of "Scotty''
and they expect to bring their prisoner
back with them unless something un-
foreseen occurs to prevent. While these
officials are in San Francisco looking
after the "Scotty' end of the affair,
Assistant District Attorney Willis is
in Los Angeles looking after the prose-
cution of Attorney Wideman on a
charge of attempted bribery.
Floods Damage Railroads
The floods of the past few days have
put the new railroad of "BOraX' Smith
from Ludlow out Of business. About
forty miles of the road had been con-
structed and while the construction
crew was at the end of the line with
the trains and engines, the floods took
out d large bridge and considerable
track about tWenty-seven miles out
Now it has been found impossible to
do any more work until the Santa Fe
sends out a construction crew from
Ludlow to repair the damage, as the
no fuel. 1t will require some time to
open up the line so that construction
can proceed.
A fierce electric storm has been hang
ing over the valley today, lasting more
than two hours Some rain has fallen,
but the loud peals of thunder and
flashes of lightning are novel ex-
perience for people here, as storms Of
this character are indeed very rare.
So far as learned no damage has re-
suited, though the rainfall has been
heavy in some parts of the valley.
Mark Merritt, an employe of the
Brookings Lumber company i'm the
mountains, is in the county hospital in
a serious condition from injuries I'M
fiicted about the head with an AK in the
hands of his best friend, Mike Dono-
hue, who is in the county Jail.
Donohue, who had been on Spree
was suffering from the delirium tre-
mems, and wandering about the woods.
Merritt brought Donohue to camp and
put him in bed. AS he started to build
q fire Donohue leaped from the bed
gra bbed an ak and struck at him, cut
ting Merritt's left ear off and taking
with it n piece of his jawbone.
He made a second lunge, but Merritt
overpowered the crazed man and sum-
moned help Medical aid was secured
from Highland, and later the man re-
moved to this city
Emma Patterson, the Chino woman
who was charged with arson, the burn
ing of her own home, was acquitted last
night at 10 o'clock by the jury. The
cause of the acquittal was the character
of the witnesses of the prosecution, they
being all women of doubtful character
and their testimony was successfully
attacked on that ground.
Floyd Carpenter, charged with the
theft of = bicycle from w. f. Loman
Of this citV was discharged.