The record. [volume] (St. Maries, Idaho) 1913-1918, 1914-07-07

cold bloOded murder ever record
ed in the history of Kootenai
county took place yesterday after
noon at approximately two p. m.
at O'Gara's Landing near the
mouth OF the st. Joe river.
The victim was Shorty Ar
cher, an old timer in this region,
a ''an 5, no has worked in the
ranps around Harrison and this
city for many years: the assailant
an unknown man who was accost
ed by Archer as he was getting
away with a considerable guam
lty of stolen goods taken from
Grants camp, a short distance
from the scene of the murder.
The condition of Archers body
when found showed that death
had been instanteous and as the
two shots which entered the vic
ilmwere heard by people nearby
who were also on the lookout for
the thief no time was lost i'm start
ing out a posse in search of the
murderer, but up to noon today
the man had not been captured.
The search continues UNDATED
however and as Sheriff Bailey, De
putty Sawyer and Prosecuting At
torney n. ID. Wernette are all on
the scene taking charge Of the
man hunt and blocking the dif'e-
rent avenues of escape it seems
almC st certain that the man Will
be captured within the next cou-
pie of days at most, as by that
time he will be badly i'm need of
food and will have to show him
self somewhere close, giving the
officers a clue to his Whereabouts
An excellent description has
been obtained of the man and as
all avenues of escape are being
carefully guarded and the hills
are being searched by the posses
il seems that escape will be i'm
possible.
Details of the murder were
readily obtainable as the posi-
ton of Archer's body told The
story. For several days the res
ldents along the river neav Chat
colet and on Harrison Flats have
been meeting with petty robber-
les, these consumating, yester-
day in the robbery of Grants
camp at O'Gara's Landing.
The losses were soon discover
ed and a party of men started
out to look for the thief. Ar
cher, who had lost a suit case
containing a number of articles
was one of the party making the
search, he taking with him the
only weapon he had available at
the camp, a small % caliber rifle.
Near O'Gara's Landing he met
the man and at the point of the
rifle made him give up the suit
case. 1t appears, however, that
when Archer discovered the thief
with the suit case ian his hand, he
had only a part of the stolenart-
icles and from clues picked up at
the scene of the murder, was just
leaving the place where he had
cached the remainder. When
called upon TO deliver the goods
Archer told him to produce the
remainder and he allowed the
man to go down a small gully TO
get the articles. When only a
few feet away from Archer but
out of sight on account of the
step gully he was going down, the
murder turned and fired the two
shots which ended Archer's life.
Archer was sitting on a log at
the time, his rifle pointed ahead
Of him in the direction the mur-
derer had taken, his finger on the
trigger, and the suit case he had
just recovered in front of him.
The first hsot proved fatal as
the bullet entered his right breast
on almost a straight line The
second shot was iird from a low
er elevation and made a glancing
wound a few inches below the
first.
The sherriff's Office was noti-
fled at once and at the same time
a pose left Harrison for the scene
of the crime. Sheriff Bailey
Prosecuting Attorney Wernette
and Deputy Sawyer came up on
The afternoon boat and took
charge of the search for the muir
derer, and word was at once sent
TO the nearby towns TO keep on
the lookout for the man.
The posse struck the trail OF
the murderer this morning and
followed it up to near Cosmos
Landing. On the Hill back os
Fred Hess ranch the trail led
into a dense thicket, and the posse