The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-12-05
JOHN cox KILLED


IT began running toward a. farmer by
the name of Woods, who was working
in the field. 1 looked around and it
seemed that Haskell and Biggers were
running after me but later Biggers
swerved to the right and that's the
last 1 saw of him. Cox was dead when
1 got Woods and returned to his body.
The shots entered on the right side of
the face and the gun mustn't have
been many inches from the deputy's
face when it was fired
Biggers lives with his mother and
two sisters. One sister, Melvina Big
gers, shot and killed a man on Van
Buren, street about fifteen years ago
during the progress of a lovers quar-
rel She served two years in the state
prison at Lansing. Biggers is about 20
years old.
Death instantaneous.
Cox had just arrested the negro for
hunting without a license, when, ac-
cording to the broken story told by
the other colored men, the murderer
threw his shotgun to his hip and fired
point blank.
The charge tore away the entire
right side of the deputys face, and
some of it entered the brain. Death,
according to Coroner o. F. Narcotic,
was instantaneous.
Immediately the negro who fired
the shot turned and ran east on the
ing, while his two companions, terror
lied by the act, ran towards c. E.
Wood, who was blowing only a shor.
distance away, crying to him that
colored man had shot white man.
| They returned with him to the body,
which was lying in the road.
1t is believed that the murderer ran
east until he reached the bottom of a
small valley 200 yards away, and then
ran thru the hedge fence and down the
valley.
i Wood, himself a deputy game war
den, found Cox's body in the last
quivers' of death, and instantly went
to the telephone to notify the officers.
In short time several men had gath
cred around.
The two colored men remained with
| Wood all the time after running to
| him in the field, and were evidently in
| terror of what would happen to them.
Their guns were taken from them and
| brought back to town by Coroner
| Narcotic, after he had viewed the
body and ordered it brought to To-
| peka for an inquest.
Cox Was Well Liked.
Cox was sworn in as deputy game
| warden only about a. 1onth ago, and
was very we'll liked in his commun-
| ity. He was the owner of a 2S-acre
farm adjoining the Forest Hill farm
owned by C. E. Wood, and some stock.
His wife, who recently underwent
| a. operation at a Topeka hospital
was visiting at the home of a neigh
Dor some distance away when the
| shooting occurred.
Their 12-year-o1d daughter, Jose
phine, attends the Seabrook school,
and was at school when her father
met his death.
Note of Tragedy.
A sharp note of tragedy rang across
| the school grounds when the little
girl, who alone knew where her moth
er was to be found, was gently told
that her father had been hurt"
With childish intuition. she guessed
from the serious aspect of the doctor
and the plying countenance of the
teacher that something terrible had
happened. She had just been called
from play with her schoolmates dur
ing the noon recess. Mrs. Lena Nc
Corbett, friend of Mrs. Cox, took the
little girl in the car with her as she
went to find and notify Mrs. Cox OF
the death of her husband.
Following an examination of Lester
Watts and Oscar Haskell who were
the companions of Claude Biggers at
the time the shot was fired killing
John Cox, county officers issued a
charging Biggers with the murder. He
is in the county Jail.
Biggers Writes Confession.
| | 0iSScIS was WTlllHS d CONCESSION &c
,, the murder of John Cox at $3.50
| o'clock this afternoon. In this con-
fession, Biggers tells a different story
than that told Joe Holman at the time
of his arrest. He says he and Haskell
were hunting together and that Cox
approached them and demanded their
license. Biggers demanded that Cox
show his star and finally Cox to back
up his demand leveled his rifle al
Biggers.
81 gave him the gum" said Biggers
land we started off, walked about a
block. guess. when 1 stopped to roll
a cigaret. Then 1 grabbed for Has,
kells gun and said to Cox:
20 Give me that gum
Cox leveled his gun at me and ]
fired
Biggers told officers where he hid
his coat and gun and the officers
found them. They also discovered
, Cox's official paper showing that he
had been appointed a deputy game
warden. 1t had been torn to pieces
| and leads the officers to believe that
Biggers went back to the body and
searched it after the shooting.
Shot at Billiard?
Biggers is also the man who shot al
Billiard during one of his flights Sun
| day, according to Buford, the negro
arrested Sunday on the charge OF
shooting at the Topeka aviator. Blu
ford was arrested by Officer George
jackson shortly after the shot wa.
fired, and gun was found in his pos
session. Buford asserted according t.
Jackson that the gun belonged te
Biggers and that Biggers had giver
the gun to him to conceal shortly after
he had fired at the aeroplane.
Aer-Duct Heaters at Forbess-Adv