Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1913-10-25
NEWTON CRAWFORD
JOHN YOUNG SAID
TO BE ASSAILANT


Struck Crawford With Murderous
lntent-Three Prisoners are Liber.
ated, but "Sennieo Miller VIII be
Given Preliminary Hearing.
4 I'VE, the jury. find that the said
Newton Crawford came to his death
By strangulatlon BY falling upon a
barbed wire fence. and that the prim-
airy cause OF death was due to a
blow delivered with murderous in.
tent with a double barrel shot gun in
the hands OF John Young"
4 This was The verdict rendered Sat
urday evening by the ooroner's jury,
after an autopsy had been perform
ed upon Newton Crawford by Drs
Clay and Tonkln The jury was not
satisfied to render verdict until the
autopsy had been performed. and the
opinion of the physicians could be
had. After that II required but a
few minutes for them to agree.
All efforts to apprehend Young
have so far proved fruitless The
officers made thorough search Sat
Iurday and worked until late at night,
but they were unable to find any
trace of him. 1t is believed, however,
that he escaped into Maryland, and
catching train hurried away. A
description of him has been sent to
the different towns and cities, and
it may be that he viii be apprehended
should he show up at any of the
places that have been notified.
Saturday evening Justice Harry s.
Thompson liberated John d Star
4 lipher, Elmer Benner and BUD
! Starlipher, as the evidence introduced
dit the coroners inquest did not im-
plicate them in any way in the muir.
der "Sonnie" Miller is still in jail,
and he viii probably be given hear.
ing before Justice Thompson at an
early date The evidence showed
that he had hand in the affair, and
he will be called to account
Saturday morning Justice Thomp-
son sommoned following jury to max
the inquiry: c. c. Lemen. S. B. Cunn-
ingham, John When, d. o. Bartles, e.
B.. Kettering and f. d. Gardner After
viewing the body the jury entered
upon its duties at Wilens undertaking
parlors. VI
Il The first witness called was WI
liam NJ Rice Jr., whose home is a
short distance from where the body
was found. Mr.. Rice told of going
to the man after he had been notified
by the two boys Of Charles Johnson:
that his cap and trousers were gone
and his face covered with dry blood,
4 He said the man very inaudibly spoke
of some trouble. Mr.. Rice said they
left him and went to their homes,
and Mr. Johnson was going to notify
the sheriff; that later they returned
and found the man dead with his
head between two wires of the fence.
DR. II. G. Tonkin said he was called
and went to the scene. He made an
examination and found that life vas
extinct; that the scar on his head had
been made by rock Or some bluat
instrument; that he tried to restore
the man but it wasn't possible.
"Sonnie" Miller is employed by
Charles Locke at Spring Mills. He
said he and Crawford had attended
the Hagerstown fair Thursday, and
left the late train at Bedington and
; started for home On their way they
approached a man, who had box OF
: salve in his hand, and that Craw-
ford took it from him; that the man
went to a house and they proceeded
up the road. Later, he said, they
were overtaken by three men, and
he was knocked down and rendered
unconscious for time, and when he
rallied he ran and reached home The
best he could He didn't see Craw-
ford after that time.
Charles Johnson, near whose home
the body was found, told of going
with Mr.. Rice to the scene when his
boys notified him of their finding It.
He said the man was alive when
they reached there, and in his weak
ened condition he would get up and
stagger and then fall that his cap
and trousers were missing and fire.
quently Crawford would declare he
could whip any one of the crowd. He
said when they made the second trip
Crawford was dead with his head IN
the fence
John D Starliper said that he and
John Young went to the road where