The Cook County news-herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Cook County, Minn.) 1909-current, 1919-05-07
C0RONER'S JURY FOUND
man COMMITTED SUICIDE
!nquestfed Over Body Of Man Shot at kug|ers Place at
Pine Lake. kugIer Arrested for Assault.

- -, 1 -. = ,~S'''. = " s:f'.s I.-s
AS reported last week, a man was
shot Sunday forenoon April 9th, at
Kugler's place at Pine Lake in the
Town Of Hovland. The sheriff, with
two men, John Jacobson and John
Jaskey, went there Tuesday and
found him dead, He was laying on
the floor beside, the bed with his
skull crushed and a rifle laying be-
side him. There was hole in the
ceiling of the room and blood splat--
tered on ceiling and walls, showing
plainly he had committed suicide,
They left everything, as they found
it and returned Immediately to
Grand Marais and notified the cor.
oner. -. :.
Thursday morning Deputy Coroner
Matt Johnson, County Attorney S.
C. Murphy, DR.. F. B. Hicks, Sheriff
L. H. Lien, and William Howenstine
of Grand Marais, and Esten Jacob,
son, Carl Thoreson, Alex Englund,
Hilmer Nelson, John Jaskey, Johr
Jacobson and A. S. Carlson of How
land, started out to hold the inquest
They reached Kugler's place Frida:
morning and found the dead man a.
described above.
DIR. Hicks made an examination
and found two wounds i'm his body
besides the top of his head blow
off; one bullet had entered his righ
shoulder, breaking his arm, anothe:
bullet wound in the lower part o.
the abdomen. Parts of the bullets
were found in both wounds. j., The
doctor testified before the coroner's
jury that the wound in the head was,
the immediate cause Of his death
but that the other wounds were suf
ficient to cause his death without
proper care and nourishment, that
oe would be in such condition as to
be rendered helpless and could not
have lived more than four or five
days without help.
A. S. Carlson was called as wit
ness before the Coroner's jury and
told his story how he and Kugler
left Big Bay Saturday morning,
camped at Stump River that night
and reached 'Kugler's place Sunday
morning about ten o'clock. Upon ap-
preaching the house they saw fresh
tracks in the snow and when they
/ got to the edge of the clearing they
saw heat from the stovepipe. They
at once suspected this man was in
the house and concealed themselves
in the brush waiting there about ten
minutes. Then he came out and
stood about six or eight feet from
the door, Kugler called to him to
throw up his hands, the man looked
around and made motion with his
right hand for his left side as
though drawing revolver, then
Kugler fired and the man went into
the house. Just as the door was
closed Kugler fired another shot
through the door. They waited a
few minutes and Kugler ran farther
into the clearing and croucEed down
behind a stone pile around flag
pole and fired another shot through
the wall Of the house. After a short
time the man came out, Kugler fired
again and he fell to his hands and
knees, then raised to kneeling posi-
tion and threw up his hands and
said: "now I give myself up" Kug-
ler ran to a place about 165 feet
from the house where he could be
seen more plainly and said to him:
where have you Tcashed the stuff?''
He said: ION the left side of Pine
Lake, about two miles up Kugler
sald: you better go get It, and he
replied: II can't now.v Then they
started off to Chicago Bay, canped
at Stump River that night and
reached the Bay early the next day
when they telephoned the sheriff.
Sheriff Lien also testified before
the jury and told how Kugler had
reported to him early in March, say
ing a man had come to their home
and driven them out, that he had
helped himself to every ythin8 in the
house, that he and his wife had
walked to- Chicago Bay on snow
shoes, a distance of 81 about thirty
miles. The sheriff started out with
. party Of four men, they found that
some groceries, clothing, blankets