The Parker post., 1918-06-01
.SU|C|DE'SBOD
FOUND IN SHAFT

VCTaAe A0A z, MAY 1O.--Ou Or
about May 1, 1917, rumors were cir
culated around this section that Jas.
Mccormick, an old-time prospector
and trapper, who had lived in this
section about fifteen years, had dis
appeared from his we'll known haunts
the Cave Creek country. Those to
whom he had spoken when last seen
alive state that he appeared to be OF
unsound mind, and that he spoke Of
suicide The last person who Is sup
posed to have conversed with McCor-
mick before his disappearance, VIM.
Robinet, was always of the opinion
that he was close around somewhere.
dead. On May oath of this year,
over year since the disappearance.
your correspondent was Informed, by
telephone at Plomosa Camp, by Geo.
Huston, prOspector and rancher,
who lives some eight miles northeast
erly from Plomosa placer camp, that
over ten days before he arrived at
Plomosa, two strange prospectors had
stopped over night at his camp and
had told him. a story Of discovery
Of dead man they had made In an
old, abandoned incline shaft, some
fourteen Or fifteen miles to the south
east from the Huston camp.
After bringing Huston down from
Plomosa to Quartzsite to act as q
guide, the writer gathered UP a cor
oner's jury of five men and started
for what is known as the old aban-
doned King Verde mine, worked
many years ago by John Wyatt,
some thirteen miles from Quartzsite
From there we were led one and a
half miles straight up to the top OF
the Plomosa range, over very rough
"hog backs" until the coroner and
his jury encountered another old,
abandoned incline shaft, which had
been put down some so feet on an
incline. About 80 feet down, some
one had run very narrow drift In
about 80 feet. tc southerly direc-
tion. At the end of this very narrow.
low, crooked drift, we found the
corpse, face down. 1t was easy to
see from the condition of the corpse
that the man had been dead about
year 1t was simply the dry shell
of a human being--in fact a dry
mummy.
BY studying all details closely of
this mans body, the story was plainly
told-suicide! Just over his head,
in the roof of this narrow drift, was
stuck a miners candlestick; the can
die had burned down to a whisper"
evidently after death. On one end
of this candlestick rested a block of
California matches. Right near his
head protruded the barrel of a very
small trap gun. The blood from the
wound in the head had mixed with
the dirt in the drift, and hardened
around the gun, which required quite
hard pull to bring it forth from
the dirt. The body was dressed in
blue Overalls, sweater shirt and
hobnailed shoes.
There being no way to bring the
body to the surface the coroner and
jury came to the conclusion the only
way left was to seal up the drift
leading from the shaft, and leaving
note stating what it contained
Near the mouth of the shaft we
found an old white clay pipe, with a
very short stem, an old faded ore
sack, made into a shoulder-sack
Both of these articles were identified
as McCormick's. And as further evil
dence would prove, the trap-gun. q
small brass affair of 38-calibre, was
never used by anyone in this section
except James Mccormick. It is very
deadly trap affair. AS the animal
reaches for the bait he releases the
spring which shoots the gun. Also
at the top of the shaft we found a
small covered box containing about
8 or 10 S8-calibre cartridges which
belong to the trap gun found at the
head of the body. All Of which ex-
plains what has been a mystery for
over year A G.. GROSSMAN,