The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1916-09-15
Al Dunning Met With Tragic
Death Last Night
ONCE A RAIL BRAKEMAN
Twice Served in States Prison,
Having Been Convicted
Larceny Charge
From Saturdays Daily.

Another tragedy took place in
Mankato last evening. Shortly be-
fore eight o'clock roughly dressed
man, while crossing the tracks at
Rock street going towards Front,
was struck by freight car, Knocked
down and cut to pieces.
The man was seen to stoop I'M
der the gate, which was down, and
to walk over on the track where a
Northwestern switch engine, No. 724,
was handling freight cars. At that
moment the engine was pushing a
freight car over the street crossing,
going south. Brakeman R. Miller,
who stood on the car, shouted at the
man, but the latter did not seem to
get the warning. 1t is believed that
cloud obscured the moon at that
moment, yet the tragedy happened
in the sight of several switchmen ana
others. I1fr
Word that something had happened
quickly reached the engineer, Chaun-
cey Brink and the locomotive was
stopped on the crossing, though not
until the victim had been run over
by the freight car and two drive
wheels of the engine.
Word was sent at once to DR.. G. A.
Dahl, deputy coroner, and he was
quickly on the scene, together with
City Policemen Thilgen and Bienapf
and others.
Body Cut in Two.
1t was found that the mans body
had been cut in two across the alb
domen, and the left hand had been
cut off. The lower part of the body
lay between the rails, near the spot
where the man was struck the up
per part lay on the outside of the
track, having been carried about
eight feet, and the severed hand lay
between the rails not far from this.
The man was still gasping and
breathing a little, when the officers
arrived.
Whether the man ever realized
what had happened to him cannot be
ascertained. The switchmen say that
he made no cutlery. They were asked
whether he showed any evidence of
drink, when he walked across the
| tracks. They could not answer this
question, but the neck of a whiskey
bottle was picked up where he was
struck, and they noticed a strong
odor of whiskey about the body.
They believed the bottle itself was
smashed in his pocket
A very remarkable feature Of the
accident was that there was scarcely
! any blood. The wheels not only cut
| the body into three pieces, but SEEM
ed to do it in such a way as to stop
the blood vessels.
The body was quickly removed to
| the Landkamer undertaking rooms.
| Almost as soon as it was picked up,
several men who knew AL Dunning,
long a familiar character in Mankato,
was the victim.
Dunning was about fortyfive years
old. He was well known to the po-
| lice. He has long been homeless
wanderer, a type of that rather nu-
| merous class of men who go from
| place to place, working a little here
and there, and never sticking to any
| job for any length of time
| AS much as twenty three or twen-
| ty-four years ago, Dunning was
known in Mankato as Milwaukee
brakeman. At one time he was con-
| sidered one of the best brakemen in
| the local service. He was married
at one time and had two children.
| There was trouble however, between
him and his wife and they separated
He was found guilty once or twice of
larceny, and spent two terms in
Saltwater. u5Y9u
| After being out on the Pacific coast
| in hn
| came back to MankatO about a month
ago. Old acquaintance quickly rec
ognized him. He spent two nights at
the Mankato police station as a lodg-
| err.
Deputy Coroner Dahl said this
morning that four or five men who
| knew AL Dunning had seen the body
| and positively Unidentified it as that
of Dunning. The coroner gave in
structions to the undertaken to have
the body buried this morning in the
county lot on the st. Peter road,
about three miles from the main part
of the city.
Some Change Found Near Body.
A 25-cent piece was found near
| the spot where the accident occurred
There were few pennies in the
pockets A large whiskey bottle was
broken in one of the pockets. A to-
bacco pouch and some cigarette pa
pers were also found in his cloth
ing. There were few post cards,
and an envelope, which was so bad
ly mutilated that the address could
mot be read, only it was seen that
the name of Morris was written
there. The coroner decided to hold
no inquest.
The train crew of the outfit that
killed the man consisted of C. w.
Brink, engineer; w. Deef, fireman,
and Albert Miller, brakeman The
brakeman was running ahead of the
car, just before the accident hap
pened and was climbing on the car
when the victim stepped on the
track. The brakeman yelled at the
endangered man, but the latter SEEM
ed to give no heed.
1t is understood that the father of
the victim is still living at Austin,
and is an old soldier; also that
brother of the dead man is a print