New-York tribune., 1911-11-21
DRILLED WITH bUCkSH0T
WHILE EATING DINNER
President of Lumber Company in
BaSking Ridge, N. j., Seri-
ouSly Injured.
GUN FIRED IN VACANT LOT
People at Railroad Station Join
in Excited but Fruitless Search
and Fire Bells Call
Out Citizens.

F. VI. Ellis. president of the Conkling
Lumber Company, Of Basking Ridge,
y. j.. was mysterlously shot last night
while sitting at dinner with his family.
He was wounded so seriously that he is
not expected to live. The small village,
which is i'm the heart Of the Bernards
willie section and numbers among its
residents many New York business men,
was much excited, especially as last
night there was no clew whatsoever for
the detectives to work on. The man
that shot Mr.. Ellis stood i'm a vacant lot
about seventy-fve or one hundred feet
from the house and fired through the
window.
There was quite a crowd just before
I o'clock last night at the railway sta
ton Basking Ridge is sixteen miles
from SCmerville on branch line Of the
Delaware. Lackawanna & Western Rail-
road, and many were waiting for the
train They were the first to know any
thing about the shooting outside Of
those inside the Ellis house
Shot Fired Without Warning.
Without warming there was a loud re-
port and at the same instant a dart OF
fire in the black gloom of the vacant
lot. which is used as a tennis court.
Some of the people rushed over to the
lot and went through II, but could find
no one. The people at the station were
much frightened and excited, and this
small panic was brought TO a high pitch
when in a moment the door Of the Ellis
house burst open and a woman rushed
out screaming. Four or five men ran
over to her from the station.
They've shot him, They've killed
him" she shouted.
The wounded man is ffty-fve years
old. He came here from the West about
five years ago He married a daughter
Of G. b. Conkling, who was the head Cf
the Conkling Lumber Company until he
died. and became president and general
manager of the company.
Inside the house Mr.. Ellis was uncon-
sclous and had fallen halfway from his
chair to the floor. The buckshot-for it
was generally agreed, from the loud re-
port and the brightness OF the FASH
that a shotgun had been discharged--had
gone through the window and entered
Mr. Elis's abdomen at the side. Some
Of them had gone clear through his
body and buried themselves in the wall
of the room.
One Of the most peculiar incidents OF the
shooting was that the charge did not
shatter the glass, but instead there were
eight or nine small holes drilled in it,
each the size Of pea.
DR.. f. G. Jones and DR.. J. Neigh
came hurriedly. but they were fearful
for Mr.. Ellis's life. as intestinal perfora-
ton is common in gunshot wounds Of
this character, and peritontis frequently
sets In. Drs. Edward Ill and Charles,
Of Newark. arrived later and Dr. Ill
prepared to operate.
There is no police force in the village,
but the ringing of the fire alarm bell
brought out all the citizens. Scores of
them, together with the members Of the
Fire Department set out to scour the
country. Telephones were kept busy for
an hour.
County Officers Begin Search.
The county authorities at Somerville
were communicated with and County
Detective Totten and an assistant went
10 Basking Ridge. They found that the
man who fired the shot stood on small
knoll If he had been closer TO the
house than he was he could not have
hit his victim. for he would have been
beneath the window.
Slugs larger than buckshot. in fact.
about the diameter Of a .32-calibre bull
let, were found buried i'm the walls and
furniture Of the room. Two of them
were on a line with Mr.. Elliss head as
he sat the table and the others ranged
about the position of his body, showing
the assailant 10 have been good marks
man.
When Mr.. Ellis was shot he was din
ing with his wife, daughter and four
teen year-old son. A piece Of glass
struck the boy in the neck and blood
began to flow. As her husband sagged
down in his chair his wife heard him
say:
We'll who would have thought a nya
would want to shoot that boy Just to
get a chance at me"
Bloodhounds may be used to-day. but
i; is considered rather a useless policy
as the ground where the woud-be muir
dered stood was trampled last night by
the feet Of n thousand persons