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Got Out Of Jail

Got Out Of Jail image
Parent Issue
Day
14
Month
July
Year
1886
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

Sunday morning, when Doputy Charlie Schott went into the corridors of the jail to perform the usual chores, his eyes met a sight thnt he will never forget beii ir 110 less thau the corpse of the man T. J. Walker, wlio had been arresteil on ¦usplcloa of havinjj committed a muider der in Socorro, N. M. There the body was with cord about its neek, eyes bula;ing out of their sockets, hands and foct tled together. He liad during the nigbt preyious removed the small rope in the ede of hU canvas cot, tied it around the hlgfawt bar of his cell, tlten around bis iiuck and aftcr securely fastenins; liis hands and feet he delibeiaU'lv bang hiniself, liis face pressiiif? heavily r.gaiust the steel bar?. Walker's arrest was told of last week. On Friday last he had a hearing before Justice Frueauff and was remanded to jail until the 20ih, to await",the arrival of Sheriff" Russell or other offlcers of Socorro, who were then on their way here. He was a man about 50 years of age, of goot! appearance, stocky, well built - thougli not tall, with drk hair and heavy moustache, sprlnkled with gray hairs, and hardly had the looks of a desperado. The story goes that durhig Saturday p. m. the jail inniates (of wliieh there were eight or more), were playing cards, when linally it was proposed to settle their sentencea by "cutting" the cards. The sentence of the one cutting the lowest card was hanging, the others were to receive the nuiuber of years there were spots on the curds "cut." Walker cut the lowest card twice, and the others drew oue live years the other eight years. In sport the boys said they would carry out the sentence on Walker, so they ticd his hands and feet, took a towel and made a rope of it, and they sald the fellow would have hung in earneat then had they not took him down. lt ia further asserted that the deceased made a confession to one of the prisoners, owning up to the charge of murder, admittïiijf that he wa8 the man. It is quite evident that he was the guilty man, and that he preferred deatli to being taken back there alive. He has prominent and wealthy relatives in the west it is said, a brother who is a banker, and a Bister whose husband is very wealthy . He took a singular way to get out of jail, but a sure way. Sunday a photographer took two plctures of him to send to relatlves. Coroner Sulllvan impaneled a jury 8unday morning, before whom the testimony of those at the jail were taken, and the body was then removed to the store of Undertaker Martin. THE TESTIMONY. The coroner'g jury, consisting of W. Q. Snow, J. A. Dell, Chas. Vogel, Win. A. Clark, John O'Mara and Chas. Schultz met and took testimony, the three principal witnesses tesWfying as follows: Charles Schott sworn.- I atn turnkeyand knew tbls man. He uever told me who he wu wblle In Jall. He ocoupled the flrst oell on the right hand slde. I locked hlm in at 9:30. I saw hlm again at 6:15 a. m. hanging wltli his face to the wall wlth a rope around hlsneck. It was lmposslble for any one to get In or out without my key. He was connned on charge of murder In New Mexico, havlng been commltted UU July 20 by Justlce Frueauffunless the offlcers should come before that. The wlndow ODposlte hlm I cloaed at nlght at hls requust, and when I opened itln the morning Inoticed hlm hanglug there. He was cold then for I feit of hlm. The rope was three feet long, and was tied wtth a slip nooee, the olher end was tied to the highest bar. The rope was cut out of the of hls canvas cot. The knlves we sent In always carne out lmmedlately after meals. No knlves were sent in at supper. He had no instrument wlth hlm. as we took hls kuife away. He might have cut it out at dlnner His feet were a foot off from the Hoor. He was dressed In a shirt, pair of drawers and stocklng8. His feet were tied with suspendera; hls hands were tted wilh a handkercliief and nccktie. His satehel lay to the right of where he huug. I don't ihink he stood on lt. There is a shelf 3 feet from the floor on whlch the bunk is fastened. He may have knelt on that when ae flxed the rope. John F. Cook sworn.- I reside in Socorro, N. M., and aru deputy sheriff. I knew the deceased for two or three yiars in Socorro I had a warrant against him for murder. He killed Albert Kelstrohm and then lied. I had a requisltion from the Governor of New Mexlcoon theOovernor ot Michigan. I kuew htm as Thomas J. Walker,. He had a motiler two nleces, and a brother-ln-law, and a ¦ lanar m Krx-nrro. I have seen ths body and iuüetlfy II as tbat of T. J. Walker. Frank F. Clark sworu.- I reside lu Ann Arbor, ara 20 years oíd. I knew Walker and was In Jall at the time of hls doath. 1 knew ulra as Jones before he was arrested. He told me In the Jall tliat he was T. J. Walkernd had shot a Swede in Socorro. He Haid he wlshed he had hl revolver wlth htm, and he would dlsiippoint the oftlcers who wero comlug after hltu. He knew the ortlcers were eipected by Monday. One of the prlsoners protposed o cut carda to see who should be Iiiiiik by the rest, theone euttlng the lowest to be hung. All cut and Walker ent the lowest andwe huughlm In sport. He dldu't seem to care whether he was hung or not when we took hlm down. We let go of the other end of the towel and he came down. He was Jovial In hlsconduot. Heard no noisedurliig the nlght. He admltted to me on Prlüay after the examlnatlon that he was tho rlght man, hut mud he shot the man througb the breaxt because they attacked hlm. I went to bed at half-past nine after playlug cards with hlm. We talked lu our cells untll 11 o'clock, whlch Is the last time I knew hlm allve. I saw hlm aaln at 6:15 Sunday morulnii bauglng ln.hlscell. All were locked lu Ht the same time, and no one could gel oui unless let out by the turnkey. K.dward J. ü'Nelll sworu.- I reside In Hocorro, Ñ. M., but am temporarlly In Aun Arbor Hlnce Aprl 1. I saw the deceased severul tlmei here. I knew hlm well as T. J. Walker In Socorro for '2 years. He murdered Albert, the Swede, Kelstrobm, and left lmmedlately. I swore out a warrant agatnBt hlm here and he was In the county jall until hls deatli. The deceased Is Thos. J. Walker, knowu bere by different names. A certified copy of the testimony was taken back by Deputy Sheriff, J. F. Cook, to New Mexico. The body of Walker was taken to a vault in Forest Hill ceinetery last nlglit and will be given burial by friends, n subscription lüivinj; been circtilated and suflicient funds raised therefor. On Snturdny evening, July 17th, the Ann Arbor I. O. G. T. will hold a lawn social on (the old James lot) Liberty street, between Fifth and División street. Ice cream, cake and lemonade wlll be gerved. Good music in attcndauce. While at Eaton Rapids recently, the Rev. Sam Jones hired a hack and kept it trotting around town three hours, for whicU the hackman very nioderately charged him $3. This the Rev. gentleman "kicked" on, not to the hackman, but to the public, and thought he ought to have rode that length of time for ten cewts. The hoggishncss of some men is simply appalling. Conductor Myers of the T. & A. A. road, recently injured by ditchii) of a gravel train near Howell, we regret to learn, will probnbly not recover from the injuries, and it is thought he will last but a few days longer. Yesterday an amputntion of his remaining leg was to be ]erformed. He is reported a rrent sufterer from bis injuries and deslrous of beinj; relieved thercfrom by dcath. - üundee Reporter. The suicide of Walker, which has been a bonanza to the newspaper boys of the city, furnished a good joke on Coroner Sullivan. He havingbeen infornied that the deceased's brother, W. H. Walker, of Jendn Springs, Kas., wiis a wealthy man, sent a telegram to know wliat to do witli his brother'g body. The dispatch (Mine to $1, which the Dr. paid. A reply came to "givc (he remaitis (Jhristian burial and senil bilí to me". But this return dispatch, which also came to $1, was marked collect. The Coroner tliought the chances for the payment of any bilis were miglity slim under the circumstances.

Article

Subjects
Ann Arbor Courier
Old News