The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1913-10-04
CARD CASE CT UE To-
THE MURDER MYSTERY

Grand Forks, N. D.. Oct. 4.-That
the body Of the unknown man found
by workmen in a haystack heal the
corner of Oak street and Ninth ave-
nue. Wednesday morning with two
bullet holes In his head may be that
or Clyde II. Hall, representative of
the United Engine Co. Of Lansing,
Mich. with headquarters at Independ-
ence, Ia, developed yesterday when
a chain Of clews, the results Of the
finding Of a card case near the gas
tank on Washington street, some dis
lance from the scene of the grue-
some find, was carefully put together.
In the card case, a cheap leather
FOLDER, was a card bearing the name of
Hall, his occupation and residence as
stated, and a sales slip from the firm
OF A. A. Holiday & Co, Milton, N. D.
The sales slip, dated Sept. rs, had
three items written thereon. A shirt,
price $1.75' union suit, $3.50; pair Of
socks, IS cents; socks, Is cents, and
handkerchief 10 cents.
Clothing Identical.
On the body of the murdered man
similar apparel was found, the I'M
derWear, socks and shirt all being
that usually worn by a traction engi-
neer or machinery. salesman whose
business made necessary his personal
supervision Of work in the threshing
or harvest fields.
A pair of overalls, greasy as though
from oil, covered the lower limbs
of the corpse, and not a cent was
found in the pockets, which had been
emptied of tobacco and cigarette
papers lying near the body.
The theory resulting from the dis
covery Of the card case and coinci-
dence in the clothing itemized in the
bill of sale slip, and that found on the
body is:
An engineer or machinery agent,
after completing his work in the bar
vest fields. went to Milton on Sept.
20. the date of the sales slip, pur-
chased clothing to wear home or 10
a city where he could change to
something more suitable to wear in
travelling. He came to this city with
q roll Of money, possibly shown as he
made the purchase in Milton and no.
ttced by some of the many rough
characters infesting the harvest fields
this fall.
Arriving here, he was enticed by
toughs to some side street. perhaps
rot far from the scene of the finding
of the body, murdered, and his corpse
ragged to the hayStack, where an
attempt to conceal the crime by burn
ing the pile failed because of the
anxiety of the murderers to get away
from the scene.
His pockets were previously riled
Of all valuables and the card case
thrown away as the authors of his
undoing hurried to a remote spot and
possible theory advanced yesterday
when h finding of the caro- case
came to light.
Fact From Milton.
A long distance inquiry of A. A.
Wilson, manager of the A. A. .Holli-
day Co. store at Milton, last night,
practically identified the sale slip as
one issued by the firm on the date
mentioned, but it being a cash trans
action and hundreds Of harvesters
visiting the store at about that time
to make similar purchases, none of
the four clerks employed in the es-
Enlistment could recall selling the
goods to an individual answering the
description of the body found here.
This. according to Mr.. Wilson, is
mo strange, for on or about the 25th
of he month three threshing rigs
finished work for the season, and the
crews came in to Milton, were paid
off, and made many purchases there.
These three outfits were those of
Fred Meeting, residing south of Mil
ton; Robinson and Ecker, also resid-
ing hear there, and R. B. Lang. None
OF these could recall having had
such a man in their employ or engag-
ed as machinery expert, although each
admitted that it was possible and they
still do not remember the particular
case.
The appearance Of the corpse indi-
Gated that dentistry work had been
done on the teeth within a short time.
Inquiry Of. the Milton dentists failed
to identify a person of that descrip-
ton as having had work done there,
although they stated that they had re-
Gently made filings and done other
Jobs for many of the better class of
harVesters, engineers and machinery
men.
The body was that of a man who
took good care of his person, accord
ing to Undertaken M. Norman, who
had charge Of the remains and who
yesterday placed them in the potter's
lot in Memorial Park cemetery. The
hands, while calloused, were we'll
shaped, nails we'll kept and the body
clean, attired in new underwear, socks
and shirt, as described.