The Whitefish pilot. [volume] (Whitefish, Mont.) 1904-current, 1911-03-09
CONNER'S BODY
IS RECOVERED
HAT FROZEN in ICE IDENTIFIES
SPOT WHERE HE BROKE
THRU A MONTH AGO.

The body of Lou Conners, the
rancner who has been missing fol-
a month, wss recovered Sunday aft
ernoon from the bottom of the lake
His hat was found frozen in the ice,
and was the means of locating the
spot where he had broken through
a month ago when it was very thin.
He had a pair of skates on and. was
probably returning home from town.
The body was found about $50 yards
from the shore, near what is known
as Carver's Point, in about twenty
1eet of water. After a hole had
been chopped in the ice the body
was seen through the clear water
lying on bottom, and was recovered
by Officer Ben Hotter, J. E. Evans
and ]. Hoffman.
| Conners was an unmarried man,
ABOUT thirty years OF age, and was
a very eccentric character. He lived
on his homestead On the north shore
OF the lake in a cabin all by him
self, and very seldom associated
with anyone.
He had been i'll the habit of eros
sing the lake to town when others
never dared to venture on the ice,
and had been warned many times
by neighbors to be careful, but he
OnIv ridioulod than, opd ;rnouo., a.,
warning.
Some time in January he insti-
tuted a suit against a neighbor
rancher, Alexander King, with whom
he had some sort of contract, and
the trial was set for February 4.
Conners failed to show up, and it
was thought he had dropped the pro
ceedings. Just previous to this is
probably the date that he wNs
drowned.
The first one TO notice his alb
sence was Frank Haines, a neigh
Dor. but it was nothing unusual for
Conner to disappear mysteriously for
time and then put in his appear
ance just as suddenly as he went,
SO couple of weeks went by
without any attention being paid to
his absence. Mr. Haines finally con-
cluded that something must have
happened to Corners, and investi-
gated at his cabin, where all indica-
tlons pointed to the fact that Con-
nerS had not premeditated any long
absence from the place. On account
of the great number of foolhardy at
tempts he had made to cross the
lake before Haines' first thought
was that he been drowned, and held
to that theory, which later turned
out to be fact
Last Thursday, Fred Long, an
other rancher living up the lake,
reported the finding of the hat on the
ice. J. A. Monk and G. w. Avery
went up to investigate, but were un-
able to trace any tangible evidence
Or hat that might have belonged to
Conner. Sunday, Ammel Dester-
man came to town and reported to
Officer Hotter that he, too, had seen
hat frozen in the ice. Haines and
Evans thought they would investi-
gate. and found the hat, which they
identified as the one belonging to
Conner. They cut a large hole in
the ice at this spot. which is now
seven inches thick, and went away
to prepare a drag.
Officer Hotter arrived there short
ly afterwards, and when the sun
was shaded by cloud the body
was discerned on the bottom in
about 20 feet of water. With the
assistance of Evans and Hoffman
they managed to fish the body out
with a couple of pieces of wire and
brought it to town where it was
placed in the morgue.
Last election he was a candidate
on the socialist ticket for represen-
tative.
coroner Waggener was called to
view the remains, but decided that
no inquest was necessary, and pre-
pared the body for burial and mott
fled his father, J. L. Conner, who
resides at Ruby. Wash.
Mr.. and Mrs. ]. L. Conner. par
ents of the deceased, and a brother
and sister arrived Tuesday night
from Ruby, WASH, and took the
body to Kalispell for burial yester-
day morning.