Southern Illinois Journal

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THIRTY-SEVENTH YEAR.
FLORA.. ILLINOIS, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 20. 1907.
NUMBER 49
MURDER MOST FOUL
i^lan Found With Bullet Hole In HU HMd.
TRAMP'S STRANGE STORY
Coreacr's Jary rioMi J B.  Wllioo for
"';-•..  tht Kwtitr^M-^il¦
"We.'the nnderefRnrd jnrom. ewom to Inquire ot tbe demh of James C- Zlmmerla, on oatb do find tbat be came to bla death by a pittol ibot in tbe back of the head Ured by Joeeph B. Wlleon, a patrolman for the U. Sc O. 8. W. R. R. Co. aboot 12:i)0 a. m. Off Snnday, Dec. 16, A. D, 1907, wlthontaoy lawfal jnatl- iication nr ezcnse ao far as we can de tormina froi:j the evldenos. We also recommend that the said Joeeph B. Wtl- •OD be held on said cbarge
Dated tbis, tbe 18tb day ot   Dec, 1807, C, 8 CtJHitmOHAJi, JJt>Wli>0OX, Jrw Kellumb, John BoRnERS, (i«0, STURM.
J, J, Keith," Tha abon rerdtct jjis tbe outcome of a three days' inquiry tiy a eoroner'a jary into tt>e canse of tbe death nf a man foniidl^ln. a dying condition near the Light Plant early Snnday morning, Rolla Oaiter waa the first peraon to aee the injnred man. Mr Carter waa on Lia way to work in itac railroad }ards atxmt SBven o'clock and was ao badly scared that he conld acareely tell bia ] fellow workmen of bia ghastly dla- j coTiry. The alarm waa given and Dr. Fairchild was called as soon as it was ascertained that the man was still IW- ing.
The doctor reachel tbe scene before the body bad been removed from Itn po aition aliont thirty fret east of the Lifibt Plant, near tbe middle of the street, and aboot seventy-five feet south of the main track of the B. & O. 8 W. B. R, The man waa firat carried into the Light Plant wbere a hasty examination dlacloaed a bnllet hole abont two Inches back of the right oar. He waa then carried to Dr, Fairebilda' office. D ¦. E C. Park. Jr., was cnlled to a»f"l-t and tbe sknll was trepanned in an i-Sort to save tbe man's iife. Tbe effiin wms nn- avalling however, and thn iuku d fd abont 9:'M. Tbe body was in-n re¬ moved to the nndertaiiin^ pilj.sof the Qaddia Furniture Co wh rr nn tu. topfiy wua held nnder the or.ierM i.f Cor¬ oner Falley of Bible Grove, who h»d been notified and had hnrrird to tlie scene. The ball was located jn>-t above ths left eyebrow, hNvin« passed diag¬ onally entirely throngh tiie brain.
A coroner's jury, waa impani-in'l and the inquiry begnn. Little b>-adjrHy, however, waa made, the whole Iransxc-
tion apparently being ihronded in mya lery. Several witneasea. among whom was the night operator at the Light Plant testified to hearing a abot aboot the time tbat the 12:80 train was atand¬ ing at the platform, thongh a namber of railroad men wko were on the plat¬ form at tbe time testified to bearing no ahot, .nor anything nnnrnal. The nolae of tbe locomotive probably waaeogieat at to drown the noise of the shot. At six o'clock the jnry adjonrned for snp per having bren able to ascertain pract¬ ically nothing except ihe name of the murdered man. This proved by lettera nn bis person it be J. Q. Zimmrrla. and that he bad a brother. C. E. Zimmeral at Bridgeport, III. Dnring the anpper honr, kowevrr, Marshal Holaday picked np a conple of trampa, a bo gave a clue to a fxteible solution of tbe tragedy. Tbe tramps who gave Ihrlr names as Lloyd Hoskina aod James McAleer, re¬ ported that tbey bad met. aoolber tramp at Olney who told them if they were coming toward Flora to look ont for the "Big Ball," meaning the policaman. He stated tbat he and hia partner were here the nigbt befou and that the po¬ liceman had ordered them to bait; that tbey ran away and the policeman took a shot at tbem; tbat ha did not see his partner after tbe shot and was afraid he had been hart. '^Is atory waa made known to the |>Coron»r and tbe jnry and an adjourn ment waa taken to Taeaday morning.
Marabal Holaday and Frank Duff were aent by Proaecuting Attorney Iteangh to Snmner and Bridgeport on I search for the partner of th» dead man No t^aoe of bim was found at Skinner, bnt at Bridgeport they go^ a tracf ot the tnUn wanted and the officers learned tbat be bad repeated the aama atory to others.
On accoant   of the  great   nnmber of strangers flocking into tbe oil fields at Bridgeport it was soon   fonnd   that   the search for a man with ruch meager dn acriptlons aa were at hand, would  prove twliona iMilread, and   Miir»li"i   Boladay returnodti Florn  leaving  Mr    Dnff  tn I c^n'i-'i'r 'h"   at-areh, which   hr   prope ! cutr.l   «nci;-a«fnliy.      He   broiiRbt    ihi- i: un who ga'v.* bia name aat'bris Haa-le- ¦ iii:t   ,   t.)    I-lor*   oti  Tnerfday  ari..r( nnn w ..r_ i,„ rfp,.,led   the atory   wlh   »p \i tf-Hiitlr aoenrate detaiU in tbe p'ei-enee o^ f'l.- juro--.
Ii--I'lrtitpril thai lie atid th» lunrdered iiiVii i-ainrtn Floru on freiitht train No. 'Ji-i t>i-i.y night, H