Year: 1877

thirteen miles from Eureka, in desc
late and forbidding country. is tam
ble-down shanty, evidently built by
some coal burners. Some four mouth.
ago . man In search OF stray stock
happened TO look into the shanty. and
found the body of a man dead IN rude
bunk against the side Of the cabin. A
week ago. James Thornton, while on,
hunting. .ough, shelter under the root
Of the shanty, ana found book from
which the following IS transcribed:


NOVEMBER Il, 1876.


Nv name i. lie. Singleton. l was
born in Montgomery county. Mary
land. in 1871. lived there until the
breaking out Of the war, when en-
listed in the Southern army. and
served until the close of the war
was wounded twice-once a. Yorktown
and again at the siege Of Petersburg
Both my parents died, aad after the
war was over l came West, aud fol
lowed the Union Pacific Railroad un
til it was completed I then went tc
White Pine. and in 1871 to Eureka
where | went to work as feeder al
the furnace My companion
John Murphy. was very overbesIing
and insulted me on several occasions
but a. he was much stronger mau
than myself took no notice of it until
one day he struck me. He did not
know that he signed his death-war-
rant with the blow. but he did.


While feeding the furnace the
thought Immediately came to me
that j, would be an easier matter te
stun him with a blow. and throw HI
into .he stack, and knew that If once
accomplished no Que could ever de-
tect any traces Of the crime. The prin-
cipai difficulty was the continued
presence of the wheelers, but o:
they worked ten hours and quit at {
o'clock. there was an interval OF an
hour. during which l and Murphy were
alone, save the occasional visit OF the
night boss. | had to wait nearly two
weeks before the shifts changed so that
We came on at the same time. Whe1
the opportunity finally presented itself
l stepped behind him and struck him q
blow with my shovel on the head as he
WAS STOPPING to get q scoopful OF char
coal To drag him to the teed-hole and
throw him on the charge was but a
moments work. did not know he wa:
dead or only stunned. but it made little
difference, as the tunes would have
sufiocated him Ia few moments. by
working hard | succeeded in covering
the body with oar and charcoal, and =:
the charge in the furnace sunk he wa:
soon out Of sight | went into the
charcoal business, and, forming CO.
partnership with two other men, built
the cabin in which / sit writing this
statement. We burned coal here fo'
two years, when, the wood becoming
exhausted, | took my share OF the
profits. $4,000. and went East. but
after four years wandering. returned
TO Eureka


AS soon Is finish this l shall TAX.
poison and lay down in the bunk.
don't suppose that any one ever passes
this way. and shall probably lay here
aud rot, or the vermin will feast on the
| cannot go to a worse hell than what
have been in for the past six years. II
anv one inds thi, statement they Cat
verify the truth of it by looking ever
The books of the smelling company. anc
they will find mine and John Murphy
name on the pay roll: and if X, NJ
Willis is still in Eureka. he will re
member the fact Of Johns disappear
ance. for he was night forman at The
time.


.Ipr N.NnVrTnN "