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[From
the Monroe City News of March 1, 1883.]
There
was considerable excitement aroused in our city last Sunday
a little after one o'clock, when. Al Adams came riding
in from the south, with the intelligence that he had found a
man lying dead in the road, near a vacant house on John 0.
Wood's farm, about a mile and three-quarters south-east of
town. A number of men and boys at once procured horses and
started for the place, accompanied by Squire T. J. Griffith.
When. they arrived at the spot where the dead man laid, an
investigation disclosed the fact that the dead man was J. W.
Rouse, better known is "Billy," or "Little
Will Rouse," a nephew of John W. Rouse, the merchant.
Squire Griffith, acting as coroner, at once impaneled a jury
consisting of W. P. Bush, J. A. Peirsol, J. T. Umstadt,
Frank Elliott, S. S. Hampton and Mr. Gibberson, who viewed
the body and decided that death resulted from a gunshot
wound. The body was then brought to town and laid out in
Wilson's undertaking establishment, while the inquest was
adjourned until Monday. A report having been brought in that
a man had been seen with a gun near the place where the
murder was committed, a number of our citizens armed
themselves and went out after him. They hunted until dark,
but found nothing and abandoned the search.
Tracks
had been found leading in the direction of the house where
the body was found, and a colored boy named Frank Smith was
arrested on suspicion, and held until sometime Monday when
he was discharged there being no evidence to show that he
made the tracks. It was further proved he had been in town
all the forenoon. The murdered man had been working for- J.
H. Sullivan, who lives a mile north of town, and had been
since last October. He attended Sunday school at the
Methodist Church Sunday morning, and after it closed (which
was a few minutes before 11 o'clock) he went to his
grandfather's in
the south-west part of the town, where he remained about
five minutes, leaving there about half past 11 o'clock, to
visit his brother, Robert L., who lives three or four miles
south-east of this place. He was riding a pony belonging to
Mr. Sullivan.
At
Sunday-school in the morning, be took out his pocket-book
and grave something when the contribution was collected.
Some of those in the class with him say he had $2 or $3 in
his purse. When the body was. found, both purse and money
were gone, showing that the murderer's object must
have been robbery. When the body was found, it was lying in
a fence corner, face downward, the hat, which was riddled
with shot, a few feet away, and the pony standing in the
road about fifty yards from the body. J. F. Elder, of Ralls
county, was the first man who saw the body. He was coming to
town after a doctor, when he saw it lying there, but
supposing the man to be drunk, and being in a hurry, did not
stop. Soon afterwards, G. W. Gallaway and Al. Adams passed
along the same road going east, and noticed the body. Their
first impression was, the man was drunk, and Mr. Adams
called to him several times. Receiving no answer, Mr. Adams
got off his horse and bent over the body, when he noticed
blood on the back of the head. He took hold of the shoulder
and found the man was dead. Adams then brought the news back
to town while Mr. Gallaway rode on to Robert Cranston's and
notified him and his brother William. The murdered man was a
widower and leaves two children, who have been living with
some of their relatives, since their mother died. He was of
a quiet, retiring disposition and is not known to have had
an enermy in the world. From the fact that he was robbed, it
is believed that he was mistaken for some other person. This
is only speculation, however, and the truth may never be
known. One thing is certain, a cowardly murder has been
committed and all hope that the perpetrator may be
identified and awarded the full penalty of the law. The
murdered man's remains were buried Tuesday at the Moss
Chapel.
Below,
we give the main points of Dr. McNutt's testimony: --found
four shot-holes penetrating the brain, one entering the head
just under the left ear and ranging in the direction of the
nose; eleven holes in his body and one through his right
arm. From the course of the holes he was shot from the left
side and from behind; one or two shot had struck his head
and not entered his skull; several shot bad discolored the
skin of his body, but had not entered. I cut one shot from
the back of his neck and it was pronounced by several
parties as double 00 in size; some of the holes seemed to
have been made with larger size shot, I think buckshot; I
think any one of the five shot entering his brain would have
killed him.
As
above stated, Frank Smith was arrested, tried and acquitted.
No arrests have since been made, and the foul murder remains
a mystery to this day. |
