The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1910-07-06
KILLED FOR MONEY.
BODY OF JOHNSON CO. RAILROAD
MAN FOUND IN HOG PEN
| NEAR kARNAk.
Had Been Missing Several Weeks
Two Vienna Men Under Arrest
HAD Cashcd Dead
Mans Check.

Johnson county people are much
aroused over horrible murder com
mitted in their midst some weeks ago.
1t appears that an Italian section
foreman on the c. & K. |. railroad
named James, DePalma, disappeared
suddenly and after some days sus-
picion was directed toward Newton
Blevius and his son VIM. of Vienna,
the former having cashed a time
check for $500, issued to the miss,
ing man Moreover, DePalma was
last seen in company with Blevius.
Inquiry by officers developed that
Blevius met DePalma on a road, in
vited him onto his tent, and when he
left followed him, leaving a sleeping
companion in the tent. The latter
awoke before Blevius returned ard
discovered that his pistol was miss
ing When Blevius returned to the
tent he was asked for the weapon
and gave it up, one shot having been
fired from it. When Bleyius cashed
DePalmas time check he explained
that he had sold his place to the lat
ter and received the check in pay
|ment.
Other circumstances pointed SO
strongly toward the Blevius men that
they were put under arrest, although
no trace of the missing mans body
had been found. Not till last week
nearly a month after the disappear
ance was the body found under hor-
rifying conditions. The Marion DAILY
Leader tells the story as follows
The body of James DePalma, the
Italian foreman of Camp No. OF the
Carter Construction Company, who
was supposed to have been murdered
on June 10' was recovered Saturday
afternoon shortly after o'clock.
Shortly after the arrest of Newton
Blevins and mis- son charged vita the
murder of the Italian, searching
party was formed and all day Satur-
day the country surrounding the
place where DePalma was last seen
was searched.
The body was found about one.
half mile east of the camp where
Blevins and his friends had been
camped and from where the Italian
and Blevins were said to have walk
ed of together
Marks of Violence.
The body plainly showed marks
of violence. The base of the skull
was fractured as though struck by
some blunt instrument a bullet hole
was found in his head, The bullet
wound was found in his right temple
and search for the bullet revealed its
location near the lower jaw bone OF
the left cheek. Whether there were
other bullet wounds or not the dis
coyefers were unable to discover as
the body was terribly swollen and
hecomposed from It's exposure Of
twenty days to the weather.
Hogs have roamed in the field
where the body was discovered and
they had terribly torn the body
shortly after its discovery the body
was picked up and put in a metal
casket and Theoretically sealed, il
being in such shape as to be utterly
impossible to embalm it, Saturday
afternoon the coroner OF johnson
county took charge OF the body and
an inquest was held. No verdict as
yet has been reached as the coroner
is holding the inquest open for fur
Their investigation.
Effort TO Cover Tracks.
Close by the body and hid undel
log was found q quart bottle OF
whiskey, which, it is stated, was
highly saturated with chloroform, II
was thought by some that perhaps
he was poisoned ann while under
the effects of the drug was murder
ed. Others, however, believe that
he was murdered and his murderers