Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1910-07-21
HEAD OF RAILWAY
SYSTEM SLAIN BY
BURGLAR IN HOME.
Fashionable Suburb of Chicago
Driven Almost Distracted
by a Carnival of
Crime.

| orally believed by the police that Presi
| dent Ira G. Rawn, Of the Monon rail
way system, was slain by burglar in
his home early this morning, private
| detectives, working on the case, init
| mate that there may have been another
| motive. The detectives say that the
work of the man who broke into the
| house was not that of an expert bur-
.olar A screen door through which he
| entered had been forced open by break
! ing off the latches. The detectives as
| sert that a burglar could easily have
| cut away the screen without making
the noise which must have been caused
by the breaking of the Iatches.
| Mr.. Rawn recently was a prominent
witness in the Chicago and Western
| Indiana railroad cases in which alleged
real estate frauds aggregatng $780,
/ COO were charged against the former
officials of the road. The case against
one of the men still is pending.
| States Attorney Wayman said that
he was satisfied that Mr.. Rawn's tes-
tmony in the Chicago and Western
Indiana fraud proceedings had nothing
to do with the murder. Mr.. Wayman
| said he had looked over the testimony
| today and that he thought it contained
nothing by which Mr.. Rawn could have
incurred the enmity of any one.
Twenty private detectives are row
working on the case. All have been
hired by Mr.. Rawn's family.
Chicago, July 22-Ira G. Rawn, pres
ident of the Chicago, Indianapolis &
Louisville Railway company Cthe Mo-
non rOute), was shot through the heart
| and instantly killed at 100 o'clock this
morning by burglar, who entered his
| summer home at Winnetka, a suburb
| Is miles north of Chicago.
The burglar forced the basement door
and was heard prOwling about the first
| floor by Mr.. Rawn, who went down
| stairs to investigate Members of his
| family heard him say: What do you
| want here?" and a shot was fired i'm
mediately afterward When they hur-
| ried to the first floor Mr.. Rawn was
! lying dead at the foot of the stairs with
! a bullet through his heart. The muir
! derer or murderers escaped.
The fact that the murder was COM
mitted by a burglar was established by
| the finding Of Jimmy" marks on the
door which had been forced open. The
| assassination is the climax to a reign
of crime that has driven the residents
! of the north shore suburb almost to
| frenzy.
Story of the Killing.
The story of the shooting of Mr.
Rawn was told by Ralph G. COburn, a
| soninlaw of the victim this morning.
| Mr.. RaWn was awakened by sounds
on the first floor of the house." he said.
| HE insisted upon going down to as
| certain the cause, dlIHOuSl NTS. EIdWn
| tried to persuade him not to do it. He
| descended the stairs, and had barely
reached the landing when every one in
! the house was awakened by the roar of
two shots fired in quick succession.
II rushed out as did the others. We
| found Mr.. Rawn lying in his night
! clothes. Blood was trickling from his
| breast. He struggled, turned OveR tried
| to speak, and could not. We sent in
| hurried calls for a doctor. Mr.. Rawn
died within five or six minutes after
| the shot had been fired. He did not
| regain consciousness.
I'VE Immediately summoned the
| Winnetka police, and it was they who
| found the marks on the door which
| established the fact that the crime had
| been committed by a burglar. Other
| than that we have no clew.
| The house was occupied by Mr.. and
| Mrs. Rawn, their daughter. Mrs. Bige-
| low, and my wife and myself and our
| two children. There were also three
| servants in the house, the cook, Mrs.
Rawn's maid and Mrs. Bigelow's maid.
| None of the rest of us heard the bur-
glar Only one bullet took effect. The
| other went wild"
Big Reward Offered.
A half an hour after the murder had
| been committed detectives were hired
! by relatives of the dead man.
I'VE will offer a reward" said Mr..
| Coburn, and spare no expense to cap
| ture the assassin"
| A revolver with one empty chamber
was found near Mr.. Rawn's body it
| later developed. No trace of the second
| bullet could be found, and no bullet
| could be found and the police believe
| Mr.. Rawn wounded his assailant. Two
| shots were heard, but 1t is impossible
| to determine whether Mr.. Rawn or the
| murderer fired first.
Belief that the murderer was wound
| n1 hxy p WAS str = hnr cd
| when the police found a trail of blood
| about 100 feet along a stone walk east
| of the Rawn residence. Coroner Hoff-
man and Deputy Coroner Webster went
to Winnetka early today. A jury was
| impaneled and the inquest begun short
| ly after o'clock.
| Investigation by the police showed
that the burglar had forced open two
front doors in breaking into the house
and that he was heard by Mr.. Rawn
before he had time to ransack any Of
| the rooms. The burglar had appar-
| emily just entered the front hall when
| he was heard by Mr.. Rawn who
| started down stairs with a revolver in
his hand. Nothing had been disturbed
by the intruder.
Last April the Rawns moved from
| their residence in Schiller street, Chi
cago, to the Gay residence on Pleasant
street, in Winnetka. They had rented II
for the summer. Mr.. Rawn had three
daughters, all married. They are Mrs.
Robert c. Brinkley. Mrs. Ralph G. Co
burn and Mrs. D. N. Bigelow.
l. Mr.. Rawn was 55 years old, having
been born August co. 1855, at Delaware
Ohio. He entered the railway service
in 1870, beginning as a telegraph ope-
ratOr for the Big Four. After rising to
be trainmaster with that road he went
to the Kentucky Central railway in
1887, as master of transportation.
Two years later he became division
| superintendent and superintendent of
transportation of the Chesapeake &
Ohio railroad. In 1890 he was made
general superintendent of the Baltimore
| & Ohio Southwestern. He became gen.
| eral manager of that system in 1904,
and in 1907 was made vice president in
charge of operation of the Illinois Cen
| trail lines. About a year ago he Was
| elected president of the Monon.