HURLED TO DEATH

NZ Truth, Issue 946, 12 January 1924, Page 12

HURLED TO DEATH

Bully Thrown Into Fire Pit Confession of Tenribto Revenge. Stained and brittle from perhaps 40 years of resting m ita niche, subject to the elements, a confession m manuscript form was found recently m a crevice between the logs of a' cabin m Culver Canyon, Eureka, Nevada, by James Thornton, a surveyor. Lying m the cabin bunk was a man's skeleton, a gold watch engraved with the Initials "L.R.8," and a watch chain, from which htmg & large silver nugget fob.; \ ■ ; .s ; ; NBVEQEt FORQAVB BIjOW. Following are portions of the confession which could be deciphered: "After four , years of wandering, I am back In the cabin which I built six years ago. Surely those six years of hell should go towards the final reckoning. I wonder if anyone will ever read this, or will it rot beside me? Soems if I could lie down easier if I write out that which I couldn't dare whisper since I done it My name is Uee Singleton, born m Crisfield, Md. Enlisted m the Southern army, was wounded twice and served until the close of the war, when my parents died. "I landed m Eureka m 187 L where I went to work as a feeder In the Richmond furnace. My companion was one, John Murphy, an overbearing man. He insulted me on several occasions, being much stronger and » bully. He struck me one day. Murphy signed his death Warrant thevand there, WREAKED TfiRRXBIiE REVENGE. "I never forgave him, but kept on working aa if nothing bad happened. He taunted roe for being a coward and I restrained myself with greatest difficulty, consoling myself with thoughts of the terrible revenge 1 would wreak upon him. The idea struck me it would be an easy matter to strike him on the head and throw his body Into the furnace. Detection would bo impossible. "1 waited two weeks for my opportunity, and when it finally presented Itself I struck him on the head with my shovel and brought his body into that roaring Inferno. As the charge of charcoal sank, he was soon out of sight "The next day was truly hell. It seemed as if every shovelful of ore flung into the feed hole of the furnace struck on Murphy's body, and the bubbling of the blast took to Itself speech and upbraided me for my wickedness. SEEMED TO RAKE HUMAN BONES. * r "When barring out time came, it seemed I was raking human bones instead of clinkers of iron. The hallucination fixed itself upon my brain and I Baw Murphy materialised at every part of the furnace. I got .such a mania for looking into the feed hole that I soon became quite Incapacitated for further work. Then I built this cabin and went Into the charcoal burning business. "1 went back East, where I wandered for four years, but no matter where I went I ww Murphy Just before my eyes, sitting In a white hot blast, taunting me. "I came back to Eureka and paid the furnace a visit. Although it was shut clown, I saw Murphy there grinning at mo. I could fool my reason slipping, bo I went to town and bought Bomo laudanum. As soon as I finish writing I will take tho poison and lay down m tho bunk. 1 will lay here and rot and vermin will feast on mo. I am sure 1 cannot go to a worse hell than I've been m for the last six years,/' ' -.