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Myron Hunt relates an exciting experience that occurred in a run away a few days ago. On driving into town he noticed a freight train standing on the crossing and decided not to wait for the train to pull out, but drove down below the elevators to cross the track; just as he was crossing, the ponies became frightened and started to run, the sled runners caught on the rails; consequently the ponies decided not to wait for the sled and left it and the driver on the track and finally wound up at the corner of the Stoltze lumber yard by one falling down and the other on top of it. By this time the train was in motion. Mr. Hunt had considerable difficulty in getting his sled off the track in time to save it.
Ward County Independent, 1/6/1904
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A DELIBERATE DEMON.
A Terrible Triple Tragedy Enacted by an Otter Tail County, Minn., Farmer.
Fergus Falls, Minn., Dec. 30.—A terrible tragedy occurred Saturday night in the house of Henry Reher, who lived fifteen miles west of Fergus Falls and about the same distance from Carlisle. Reher came home about 9 o'clock from Elizabeth where he ran a shoe shop, and, after some pleasantry about Christmas presents, drew two self-cocking revolvers and began shooting at his wife, son, and daughters.
Shot and Stabbed His Son.
He hit his son twice in the arm and stabbed him in the back with a carving knife as he was trying to escape from the house. The light went out in the midst of the shooting, and the three daughters got outside and hid themselves, one of them with a bullet wound in her shoulder. Then Reher turned on his wife and stabbed her repeatedly with the knife. Afterward he went in search of his daughters, and not finding them came back to the house. His wife had crawled away, but he followed her and
Stabbed Her Again and Again.
Finally he returned to the house and hanged himself to a beam, at the same time putting a bullet into his head. The son managed to get to a neighbor's house two miles away and give the alarm. When the neighbors arrived they found Reher dead, his wife just dying and the three daughters still hiding. Physicians were summoned from Fergus Falls and Wahpeton and dressed the wounds of the two injured ones. Henry Reher, the son, will probably die from his wounds and loss of blood.
Rather a Tough Lot.
The family were a tough lot. The son had served a term in the state prison for horse stealing and the girls do not bear an enviable reputation. The Rehers had numerous quarrels, and Reher went away a few weeks ago with the intention of not coming back. He went to Elizabeth and opened the shoe shop where he had since worked. He was perfectly sober at the time of the murder and went home with the intention of doing the deed, because he took with him from Elizabeth the rope with which he hanged himself, three revolvers and a bntcher {sp} knife. No inquest will be held.
Jamestown Weekly Alert, 1/1/1891
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CHRISS PETERSON FOUND DYING BY NEIGHBORS
Death Attended by Peculiar Circumstances—Home Brew Blamed
The exact cause of the death of Chriss Peterson, who died late Sunday night at his home 6 miles west of Fort Yates, after having been found that morning by neighbors, lying on the floor, unconscious, clad only in a shirt, in an unheated room, will probably remain in doubt unless revealed by an autopsy, should such an action be decided on. As it now stands an empty home-brew bottle which was found near him is the only indication as to the cause of his death.
The verdict of the coroner's jury, which was impaneled Monday with Judge Short as acting coroner, was in substance that Peterson came to his death from drinking home brew, which may or may not have contained poison. The jury decided that there was no evidence of foul play; over $40 in cash was found undisturbed, although the room was in the wildest disorder.
Sunday morning about 11 o'clock Glee Rusher, a son of Mrs. Rusher living nearby went over to Chriss Peterson's to borrow a pick ax. When no one answered his knock he looked in the window and saw Peterson lying on the floor only partially clad. Becoming alarmed, the boy ran over to George Hammond's.
Entering the house on his arrival, Geo. Hammond found Peterson in a deep stupor, the usual tidy house in great disorder, matches covering the floor, bed clothes strewn about the room and no fire in the stove.
Other neighbors soon arrived and all that could possibly be done was done to aid the stricken man, who did not at any time recover from the deep stupor in which he was found. The only thing found which shed any light on the cause of his condition was an empty bottle that had recently contained home brew. Death came twelve hours later.
Chriss Peterson, about 60 years of age, was a native of Denmark, having come to America as a boy. He was a bachelor and had no known relatives in this country. He settled here about four years ago, buying a quarter of Indian land.
He was a man of good repute among his neighbors, sober, honest and reliable. He was never before known to drink home brew, having often stated that he did not care to have anything to do with it. He was known to have been bothered with heart trouble, which may have been more the cause of his death than home brew.
Sioux County Pioneer, 12/22/1921
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"DUTCH ALFRED" HAUENSTEIN MAY HAVE BEEN MURDERED
Alfred Hauenstein, known as "Dutch Alfred" was found dead in the cellar of an empty shack in "Coon Town", near Fourth Ave. and Fourth St. S.W. at 6:15 o'clock Wednesday evening. There was a bullet wound from an old .38 five shot "suicide gun", thru {sp} his head and the gun was still clasped in his hand. He had evidently been dead for a day or two. He either shot himself or was shot from close quarters as his face was powder blackened.
When D. W. Cole, colored, who was preparing to move into the shack went to look the house over, he discovered the remains in the basement, he reported to Chief of Police Larry Byrne. Hauenstein had been living at Cole's joint for several weeks. He had been cooking for a band of negroes who made headquarters at Cole's joint and about two weeks ago was arrested on complaint of several negroes who declared that Hauenstein had poisoned them by placing poison in their sugar. Hauenstein was placed in the city jail, but after remaining there for several days, Judge Lynch decided to let him go, as no further evidence had been produced concerning the poisoning in the sugar.
Hauenstein was interviewed by an Independent representative at the city jail and he stated that he did not poison the darkies. He said they did get sick, but it must have been from improperly cooked food, but that he did not poison them as he had no reason for wanting them out of the way.
When Judge Lynch released Hauenstein, he was told that Hauenstein had given a mulatto woman at Cole's place all of his money, about $90.00. They had kept up a correspondence and Hauenstein says the woman promised to marry him. Hauenstein was advised to go back to Cole's place as that was where he had left all his money, and see if the woman would take care of him. Hauenstein went back to the Cole joint and remained for several days.
Coroner Pence visited the shack where the body was found. It looks very much like a case of suicide, tho {sp} the case is being investigated as Hauenstein said while in jail that the negroes threatened to do him harm.
Hauenstein was about 55 years of age and was of German descent. So far as is known, he was unmarried. He filed on a homestead in Prescott township, four miles southeast of Glenburn about 20 years ago and remained there until about three years ago. He was regarded as an industrious farmer. He lived alone all that time and was very eccentric and the neighbors found him hard to get along with.
the remains have been taken to Rowan's morgue and Chief Byrne is telephoning the old neighbors of the deceased at Glenburn to ascertain the whereabouts of any relatives.
A grip belonging to Hauenstein had been left at the city jail by him for safe keeping. In it are a number of pictures taken in the Minnesota woods where he spent many winters. There is clothing and several letters, including one written by a brother, Henry, who lives in Akron, O. His broher {sp} will be notified.
Hauenstein told Judge Lynch he still owned his Glenburn farm on which there is a mortgage of $2500.00. He said he could have sold it for $4500.00 one time, but was advised that the price was too cheap.
The officers are inclined to think that Hauenstein met with foul play and are investigating on that theory. After he was let out of the city jail on Dec. 13, he returned to the colored shack run by Mrs. Cole and her son, D. T. Cole, and was soon back in the city jail, informing the police that a whole bunch of the colored folks, jumped on him and tried to drive him out. One of them cut his thumb with a knife, he says. His hand was tied up. He sat around the city jail for a long time and informed the police that he was afraid to go back to the Cole shack on account of threats that had been made. Officer Bakeman said he had only three cents in his pocket and felt that he was compelled to go where he might get his board. The officers told him he might return to the city jail if it became too hot for him among the colored folks.
The officers have grave doubts that he committed suicide and rather believe that he was murdered. When found, the gun was in his right hand which was doubled under his body. He had been shot in the right temple. If he was standing when he shot himself, officers say the gun would have fallen out of his hand. If he was lying down when he shot himself, he could not possibly have had his arm in that position. His murdered could have lured him into the basement and killed him at close range, then place the fun in his hand afterwards. Hauenstein was not known to have a gun and after he left the jail, he did not have enough money to buy one. The gun is an old rusty affair, but a wicked shooter. There are four cartridges and the one empty shell in the gun. Arrests are very apt to be made today.
When Hauenstein was arrested Dec. 8, the charged was filed against him by a white man, J. C. Cassel and a colored man, D. W. Cole.
Ward County Independent, 12/22/1921
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J. A. Wilbur, a young man from Two Harbors, Mich., who was arrested at Kenmare, charged with selling whiskey of his own manufacture, was dismissed in county court last week. The yroduct {sp} that Wilbur sold was not whiskey at all, but water colored to look like whiskey and sweetened with brown sugar. Wilbur had fixed up two dozen such bottles, hoping to raise a little money for transportation home, so that he might arrive in time to eat Xmas turkey. Wilbur upon his release from jail, wired home for money and will stick his brogans under the festive board on that gladsome day. He had been working with a threshing crew and isn't a bad sort of fellow.
Ward County Independent, 12/19/1912
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FROZEN TO DEATH.
The lifeless, frozen body of James Harrington, a farm laborer, employed on the Alex Moug, Sr., farm, about twelve miles from Buffalo, was found by the roadside between Ayr and Buffalo, about 5 o'clock Thursday morning. The remains were brought to Buffalo where an inquest held by Coroner Savage last night, revealed the fact that the deceased had come to his death by freezing, the result of an accident.
On Wednesday morning Harrington and Tony Farrell, both employed at the Moug farm, started for Buffalo with stock which was to be marketed. Each man drove a team attached to a common bob sled. Harrington had two steers and Farrell had a load of pigs. The stock was sold to Baker in Buffalo and after securing dinner and a goodly quanity {sp} of booze, the men started for home about 4:30 Wednesday afternoon. At 9 o'clock that night they reached the house of Alex Moug Jr., where they stopped and secured a cup of coffee and then proceeded.
Jamestown Weekly Alert, 3/3/1904
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