Evening star., 1921-05-17
GROOM'S SHOOTING
|SUNDER INQUIRY
Army to Decide Whether to
Hold Col. SheIIey-Victim
Denies Blame.

Invest igation into the shooting YES
terday Of Richard Christmas. a groom
at the Army quartermas;er stables.
ny Lieut.. Col. Shelley. Ouartcrmaster
corps. |. = A. is being carried on to-
DAY by thc military authorities.
Lieut.. Col Irving l.. Hunt. L. <. A.
has been detailed 10 make the invesu-
ga ton. to determine whether or noj
Col Shelley viii be tried bv court
! martial. Col. Hunt today interviewed
! The wounded man and all of the WI
| nesses TO the shooting. but declined 10
make statement OF his findings
His re3or: VIII be r.ade to the
secretary or War. who is the one who
viii determine whether or not tho
! incident warrants bringing Col. Shell
| ley to trial
Christmas, the injured man. WAS re-
| ported at the Emergency Hospital to-
day as resting easy. Dr. l.. II. Her
linser. resident surgeon of the insti-
! tuition. said that he probably Will re-
cover.
Statement From Groom.
! While the Army has statement
from Christmas. Assistant District
Attorney Van Doren SaId today that
| the cINll authorities will tak. stale
mont from him only il death IS appar-
ent. If he lives. he said a statement
gwen now will be OF no use.
Employees of the quartermaster
stables At 18th and Virginia avenue
northwest where the incident hap
pened. were reticent concerning tho
| affair today. None would admit hay
ing been present
James X. MacEwen. watchman AZ
! the entrance to temporary building
= n Ir.a,-
street from where the incident or-
! CURED. sa id that he was first. attract
ed to the disturbance by loud talking.
When l looked up he said Il saw
the negro strike the officer.
| Then the officer attempted to Strika
| him with his riding crop. which tn"
negro then twisted from his hand.
and struck the officer. Then it was
| learned was Col Skelley. and the
| negro clinched | did not see the
gun. and did not know the negro was
/ shot until he fell after walking about
| fifty feet.
Says He Wrested Away Crop.
| When placed on the operating table
yesterday Christmas was told That h"
might not live. and was asked If he
! had any statement to make. II Is
understood that he then dictated d
statement. which was taken down.
/ but remained unsigned.
The statement is understood to
i have contained the assertion that Col.
Shelley struck him christmas, with
his riding crop. and that h. had
wrested the crop away and struck
Col. Shelley. and that then the officer
| shot him.
| MacEwen said that from the place
he was standing it looked like the
first blow was struck by Christmas
Whether there had been any blows
before this one he could not say.
! Col. Shelley is today at his apart
i ment in the Hadleigh. where he is in
technical arrest pending the military
| investigation and determination OF
| procedure.
| He bears a scar on his left cheek
and a bruise on his left hip, made by
| being struck by the riding crop after
CHRISTMAS Wrested it from him, he said.
! The incident which resulted direct
i ly in the shooting was an aftermath
OF trouble which had developed at the
horse show Sunday.
| Prior Trouble Cited.
We had trouble at the horse show
! grounds" said Col. Shelley today.
! following which I threatened to re-
! horse. He kept insisting on coming
! back and cursing me and struck
him there. Finally he went away
| Il had made UP my mind to report
! quartermaster stables where he was
employed. After going to my Office
/ in the Munitions building yesterday.
| and before going to the horse show
| grounds. l drove up in front Of the
! stable Office on 18th street. The negro
was standing at the entrance to the
! corner stable. about fifty yards from
! the office.
Il went inside and made report to
! the superintendent. On coming our
! Christmas was standing on the walil
| between me and the car. H..
| broached the subject when he said
! that | hadn't acted right toward him
! the day before.
Wns Hit in the Face.
Il told him to go away, that | had
\ reported him and that | didn't wan
/ any more trouble. Then he struck
me in the face. ! attempted to hit
him with my riding crop. but he
wrenched il from my hands and struc!.
me twice. once on the arm and then
| realized that was in danger.
| because OF the fact that the riding
crop is loaded with lead. While he
was beating me with the crop. I wa
attempting to get the pistol out OF
nv pocket. When l did We clinched
and then | fired with the muzzle
| against his body.
He told me Sunday that he in
tended 10 get me when 1 Cd ame Z"
! Washington. and SO when 1 left my
/ tapartment in the morning | picked
up an automatic pistol which 1 had a.
| home and put it in my pocket
believed that / would be attacked
! and | wanted to be prepared"