Year: 1869




On Monday evening, Messrs. George r. Eldridpe
and Spencer c. Martin took the steamer for Cleve-
land on their way home, having arrived here after
three weeks trip through the counties OF Roscom-
mon and adjoining, the one to look after pine land
interest the other to endeavor to an interest
in the cranberry marshes In that section. These
gentlemen left the Detroit and Milwaukee Railroad
at St Johns and from thence walked most of the
way to Isabella City: AT that place they borrowed
a tent-cloth and a couple OF rifles and
tramped over the woods, shooting their food
and sleeping under their tent They tell
OF horrible discovery which they made near the
edge of large marsh In the southwest part OF Ros
common. They had encamped for the ght near the
which they had been following for several hours
During the evening the wind bore to them such
sickening smell that they obliged to strike their
tent and remove to greater distance. All night
long they heard growls and snars on the trail ahead
generally at one particular point, and cracking,
grating sound, something like the lonesome moaning
OF signboard swinging on its rusty hinges In the
morning, while one OF the gentlemen was preparing
breakfast the other sailed out to investigate the
disturbances of the previous evening Az he
advanced along the trail beyond where they
had at first encamped the smell graW
more sickening, until al last it seemed to al the
woods. Coming out into spot on the trail about
twenty feet square, where there were no trees nor
brush, the hunter almost over large wof-lOoK-
ing animal, which bounded OFF into the thicket with
savage snail An object dangling from hickory
saping, partially bent down, next caught the eve,
and 1t needed but second glance to send back a
scream OF horror to the huRter at the camp. With
the right ankle firmly cenched in the cruel teeth Of
bear trap from which depended chain about
three feet long, was the putrd, rotng skeleton of
mani The b dy hung down to within about three
feet OF the ground and shreds of clothing and bloody
locks OF hair on the leaves showed that the missing
head neck shoulders, and arms had been eaten or
by wild beasts! Nothing was left OF the body
but the legs and q portion OF the trunk, and from
this the flesh had mostly rotted of, leaving exposed
to view the bones and JOINTS A pair OF cowhide
boots encased the feet, and few shreds of woollen
cloth yet hung to parts of the Portions of the
corpse were strewn about the ground; in one place
lay the grinnng skull, the flesh entirely eaten of
and the bone bitten through in several places 1t
was easy to see that the man, who was undoubtedly
hunter and trapper, had stepped into the trap,
which had been set on the trail by other hunter
or the Indians, to entrap bear or deer, and the
hickory sapling springing back had elevated him
from the earth, head downward, and in that
condition he had met horrible, lingering death.
An attempt was made by the gentlemen to get down
and bury the remaining portion Of the body, but de-
composition had so far advanced that they de-
tered from so doing few hours later the men
met party Of Indians, who, after hearing OF the
discovery, stated that they had known Of the fact
for several weeks; that they found the man there
when the wild cats had only eaten hair his head OFF!
They did not care; they didn't know who he was
only that he was hunting and trapping around
Houghton Lake and the marshes last win
ter and suddenly disappeared. There were
some Indians encamped about half
a mile from the spot where the corpse was hanging
at the time the man was missed, and they had told
these Indians that they had heard a great deal OF
screaming and shouting for whole night, but sup
posed it to be some drunken white men, Messrs
Eldridge and Martin stated that the Indians acted
very coOy about the NATTER so much so that cir
cumstances would go to point them out preparing
the trap and the horrible death which befel the un-
known man. They offered the Indians five dollars
to go back and bury the skeleton, hut they declined,
wasn't enough left worth burying.-DetrOh Free
Press, july 7.