The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1914-01-30
DETECTIVE LANE KILLED BY
HOBO
From Fridays Daily

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Ex-Sheriff James Lane of Sumter
county, for some tina past special
detective Of the Seaboard Air Line
Railway. was in Ocala Wednesday in
the performance of his duties, and in
tended returning to his home at Wild.
wood on the freight train. which left
here about midnight. When he got
on board he was Informed BY the
conductor that two hoboes were steal
Ing ride on top of one of the cars.
Mr. Lane said that he would wait and
arrest them when he got to Wild
wood, for if he arrested them in Ocala
!, there would be no one he could turn
them over to.
Just before reaching Wildwood the
freight train is supposed to have stop
ped, and Detective Lane started out
to bag his game, but they proved to
be more than ordinary hoboes.
What actually occurred viii never
be known, but some time afterwards
the dead bodies of AR. Lane and one
of the unknown hoboes were found.
The hobo had been shot.five oRssix
timess Mr. Lane had been shot only
once, but that single shot proved to
be fatal one, and he is supposed to
have been instantly killed.
The inference is that when the
train stopped Mr.. Lane went out to
arrest the two men that he had been
told were stealing a ride, and that
they refused to be arrested. Both
had flash lights and both saw that
each was armed and in readiness for
battle. Mr.. Lane, however, seems to
have gotten the drop on his antago-
mist, as all the chambers of his wea,
pom We're emptied, and every dis
charge took effect. Only one cham
ber of the hobo's pistol was discharg-
ed, but that did fatal work.
The bodies of both men lay near
together, cold in death, when discov-
cred. It seems that the railroad crew
knew nothing of the desperate battle
that was being fought, as the bodies
were found by the section road gang
early Thursday morning.
The stranger was young man ap-
parently about twenty-five or thirty
years of age. There was found on his
person a revolver, one chamber of
which had been discharged, a fash
light, some nitro-glycerine, several
sticks of dynamite and about 5000
worth of postage stamps. Upon an
examination being made of his body
it was also discovered that he also
carried scars from two other bullet
wounds, one on his back and one on
his side, which he had probably re-
ceived in a former combat. The fact
that he had in his possession such a
large number of postage stamps, it is
believed that he is the man who rob-
bed the postoffice at Lawtey few
nights ago when the contents of the
safe had been removed after being
blown open.
Ex-Sheriff Lane had host of
friends in this and Sumter county
who deeply sympathize with his be-
reaved family.
An inquest over the two bodies was
held Thursday afternoon by Coroner
w. G. Kilgore, and the train crew on
the north bound trip stopped over to
testify.
The other man who was stealing
a ride at the same time and which
had been reported to Mr.. Lane by the
conductor on the freight train, mys-
teriously disappeared, and nothing
further was heard of him until he
came into wildwood seeking medical
attention. It was found that one of
the bullets that was fired in the fatal
duel by the other two men had shat
tered one of the bones in his arm
above the elbow. and i was thought
by the attending physician that the
arm was so badly injured that 1t
would have to be amputated. This
man is also young man and upon
being questioned stated that he was
|out of money and as he could not pay
|his fare had boarded the freigth train