The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1929-04-25

III. w. Bishop.
G.. Hillerud.
S. C. Bjone.
Ben F. Dubois.
H. A. Falk, oneof the members
of the jury Friday morning en-
acted scene in the Herald office
showing how the verdict of acct
dental death was arrived at. 1t
is understood the jury were OF
the opinion that Mr.. Rosenberger
either had the pistol in his hand
or it dropped from his coat pocket
to the floor as he was in stoop-
ing position endeavoring to either
pick up the door key or his glasses.
That the impact of the gun on the
floor discharged it, the bullet
striking Mr.. Rosenberger as above
stated.
1t is understood the jury arrived
at this conclusion after Morton
Weeks testified that MIR. Rosen-
berger never carried an empty
shell in the pistol. 1t was cur
rently reported before the in
quest that he was in the habit of
carrying an. empty she'll in the pis-
toll.
Friday morning Thomas Clough
who relieved Mr.. Rosenberger on
many occasions said that it was his
custom to carry an empty cart
ridge. He spoke specifically of the
last time he had relieved the de-
ceased; that Mr.. Rosenberger met
him on the street and told him that
he had left the gun and other para
phernalia at the Palmer House. AT
ter Mr.. Clough had gotten short
distance away dad" called him
back and said: ooh, Tom, you know
there is an empty shell in the
gun" Mr.. Clough said he found
the pistol in the condition describ-
ed by Mr.. Rosenberger.
VIM. DeLaurier for years a
police officer, states that he dis
cussed police affairs with Mr..
Rosenberger- many occasions,
that "dad" often told him he car
ried an empty shell in his pistol,
and at various times showed him
his gun, opening it up displaying
the empty cartridge. \.
If Mr. Fa4k is understood cor
rectly the accidental verdict was
predicated quite largely upon Mr..
Weeks testimony. From the
above it is quite evident that
either Mr.. Weeks oryboth Clough
and DeLaurieE Are mistaken. q +
The Herald editor asked Mr..
Falk how the jury arrived at the
conclusion that1a man shot in the
position ;the jury assumed mfr.
Rosenberger Ito. be would fall
backwards. He claimed the force
of the bullet would throw him
back. -
The physicians attending the
postmortem agreed that a man
shot in a posture slightly forward
would almost certainly crumble to
the floor falling forward.
In this connection it is under
stood that there is a fear in some
quarters that if a further investi-
cation is made of the case suicide
would be- developed.
The same physicians attending
the postnlortem after conditions
were located declared that any
idea of suicide was out of the
question. ':'ga
Saturday. morning the Herald
editor visited the City Hall for the
purpose of making some measure,
ments for the diagram used here
with. While there we met two of
MIR. Rosenberger's sons. On being
asked the question whether or not
their father was left handed, they
stated he was, and consistently so.
Incidentally it is understood
that the door. to the furnace room,
directly back of where Mr.. Rosen-
berger was standing, was open,
and it is possible that the bullet
which passed through his head
went on into the rubbish and coal
of the furnace room.
Much has been said about the
marks on the gun evidently made
when the pistol was dropped on
the cement floor. Couldn't those
scars on the gun have been caused
when it fell from 'Dad's" hands
after he had been shot?
Mr.. Falk stated to the Herald
Friday morning that there was ev-
cry evidence of powder smoke in
the gun more than "a hours after
the tragedy. George Fish and
others have stated positively to the
Herald that they examined the pis-
toll the morning of the tragedy
and that there was no odor of
powder smoke or evidence that the
gun had been fired. In fact, &C
cording to- Mr.. Fish every bit of
evidence pointed to the contrary.
Some men who have had consid-
cradle experience with firearms,
who examined the bullet found
about Is or 20 feet from where
the body lay, say the bullet gave
every evidence of having been
pulled from the shell by pair of
pliers. The theory Of these men
is that the bullet was carried in
MIR. Rosenberger's pocket and fell
out while the body WAS being re-
moved from the building.
Men who have had some exper-
fence with the size hole made by
bullets insist that the hole In Mr..