Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-05-12
OWEN JENNINGS
MEETS FOUL PLAY
oTrUMWA MAN BELIEVED TO
HAVE BEEN MURDERED At
HAMMOND, IND.
MESSAGE RECEIVED
Mother Gets Telegram Sunday and
Brother Go After the Re-
mains; Expected Here
Tuesday Morning.

'
by Mrs. NJ. E. Jennings, 433 Weller
street told of the death of Frank Owen
Jennings who was killed in Hammond,
Ind, The manner of the death was
not stated in the telegram and the two
brothers of the decedent, Oscar and
Charles Jennings left Sunday night for
Hammond to get the remains and are
expected home Tuesday morning.
One sister. Mrs. Martie Mckay with
his mother and two brothers survive
the decedent.
A Chicago paper has the following
regarding the death of the OttumWa
man in this mornings issue:
Chicago, May 11-Authorities in two
states are striving to solve the mys-
terry of Pennsylvania railroad boxcar
No. 1894, in which Frank Owen Jen.
nings, a cleaner and dyer, was found
dying on Saturday.
On Friday morning at $3.50 o'clock
jennings, who was % years old and
was employed in Sixty-third street,
near Madison avenue, left the resi-
dence of ]. H. Johnson, whose sister
divorced Jennings several years ago and
who lives at GAG West Sixty-first place.
Jennings said he was going to try to
buy the cleaning establishment OF Mrs.
Mary e. Schmidt at 1852 Commercial
avenue, South Chicago.
Jennings asked Mrs. Johnson for
money. but she told him he had car
fare and that was enough. The man
always carried a bank book and had
funds in the Roseland bank. Whether
or not he drew money on Friday or
Saturday will not be known until the
bank opens today.
At 1880 Friday morning an auto
mobile driven by c. G. Tongring, a
contractor, 70 Z Escanaba avenue ran
Jennings down at E'ight-ffth street
and Commercial avenue.
Leaves Police Station.
Tongring did not think the man hurt
badly, but he telephoned the South
Chicago police and patrol wagon took
Jennings to police station, where ne
gave his name and address. He also
told Of having tried to buy the Schmidt
plant, but said he lacked few dollars
of having enough to swing the deal.
Police Surgeon J. E. O'Brien, after an
examination, said he could find no
ab-asions or bruises. Jennings walked
sa"-n- s~c-, the station saying he was
r. go :. enc
cr-t-- urE day night the box car was
'I'ng in the Baltimore and Ohio
ad
RI 80 yards. just east Of the Indiana
s'asc line. and on Friday morning 1t
WIS t9ken 10 the Pennsylvania railroad
ve~'.. rear One Hrndredth street. At
2. 0 O'Clock Friday afternoon it was
taten to Robey. Ind. That night
George Rippo. employed by the Penn
sylvania railroad. says he inspected the
interior of the car and it was empty.
At $40 o'clock Saturday morning the
car was shnnted or a sidetrack at No.
house of the Knickerfocker Ice COM
pany. in Sheffield. in the northwest
Fart of Hammond.
Body Found BY Woman.
At $40 o'clock Mrs Mary Shumilla,
whose home is in a field along Wolf
lake. entered the car to sweep grain
for her chickens. She saw form in
a dim corner, and frightened, leaped to
the ero-nd. She says she saw club
beside the body.
Three hours later J. Jebaney, a rail
road employe. saw the man, and he
summoned the Hammond police. Jen-
nines was breathing his last when the
patrol wagon arrived He was taken
to an undertakers morgue. In his
pockets was 20 cents. There was no
jewelry. The club the woman had
seen was not in the car when the pc.
lice arrived
A post-mortem examination revealed
that death was due to cerebral hemor-
rhage, caused by an injury to the head
above the left eye and ear. The skin
was not lacerated, but the effects of
the blow were apparent. The side of
the head was swollen badly and discol-
ored.
Could Not Crawl Into Car.
DR.. B. w. Chidlaw, deputy coroner,
said after the autopsy that such a
wound would invariably produce i'm
mediate Inconsistencies: that it
would be physical impossibility for
the man to have crawled into the car
after receiving such an injury.
There was no trace of liquor in the
stomach and no odor of intoxicants in
any organ" Dr. Chidlaw said. Even
the pale stomach mucous membrane
which drink produces was absent in
this case. In my opinion the man was
assaulted and thrown into the car or
was attacked while he was in it."