The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1918-01-18
JOKING
ENDS IN TRAGEDY
E. F. Orr Plays Bandit and
Is Shot To Death
STENOCRAPH ERIST FIRES
Pretty Girl Draws Revolver On
Supposed R0bber and Kills
Him Instantly
Especial to The Free Press.]

Especial to The Free Press.]
From Saturdays Daily.
Minneapolis, Mimi, January 12.-His
own life long penchant for practical
joking late yesterday cost the life of
E. F. Orr, Great Northern switch
man.
He had entered the office of P. Nc
Coy Fuel company, 969 Central avenue,
to order COAL Mabel Drumater. stem
ographer, was counting the days re-
ceipts. Orr jokingly told her to throw
up her hands" She took the order
seriously, drew a revolver from her
desk and shot him through the head.
Orr's girl wife, with tears streaming
down her cheeks, last night told of her
husbands habit of joking and his
creed Of Keep on smiling, no matter
how bad you feel" His three-year- old
son was unable to understand why
daddy didn't come home. Miss Dru-
mater is at The home of her parents,
431 Fillmore street northeast, suffering
from a nervous collapse which came
when she learned she had killed Orr.
Mrs. Orr's parting words to her hus-
band when he went to work yesterday
morning were to remind him not to
forget to order coal. He previously
had purchased coal from the Mccoy
company and is supposed to have
stopped there to leave his order, as he
was returning from work last night.
Leaped Through Window.
After the shooting. Miss Drumater
rather than step across Orr's body
turned and leaped through window
back of her desk. Her screams foI
| help brought passersby, who sum-
moned the police. Historically she
| told of her experience, clearly indicat-
| ing that she thought Orr's purpose was
| to rob her of the money she had been
counting.
81 was guarding the money! was
her repeated comment.
/ When some time later, she learned
she had killed the man, instead OF
wounding him, as she had supposed
she collapsed.
That Orr was joking never occurred
| to her, Miss Drumater told the police
when they failed to find any firearms
on his body. He was CARRIED in his
/ working clothes, and her first impulse
| she said, was to use the revolver re-
Gently provided her for defense from
possible hold-up attempts.
| He Was Just Joking.
"Ed wouldn't rob anyone" said Mrs
| Orr last night "He wouldn't do any,
/ thing to hurt anyone. He was always
Joking and trying to make everyone
| else as Apply as he was. / sometimes
used to tell him not to be such kid,
but he always. insisted on trying t.
make everybody else a little happier
With Mrs. Orr and the baby boy las1
night were Robert, brother Of the
dead man; Mrs. Fred Welshinger, 1905
Jackson street northeast, their sister;
and Ray Nolan. 439 Adams street
northeast, boyhood chum of Edwin
Orr.
Orr, who was twenty-five years old
had been employed as switchman by
the Great Northern railway for the las
i two years and is said to have missed
! but three or four days work durins
that time. Nolan said Orr had beer
| popular with his working associates
as he also had been in his home town
Merrill, Wis.
Following an autopsy to be per-
formed this morning by DIR. Gilbert
| Seashore, coroner, Orr's body will be
| {oLon to Merrill for burial