Jasper County Democrat, Volume 14, Number 72, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 December 1911 — Joe Marshall Was Murdered. [ARTICLE]

Joe Marshall Was Murdered.

Leon Eiglesbach, who returned Thursday from the west, gave us the following facts as the cir-j CUmstances surrounding the' death of Joe Marshall. It seems, that Joe had secured a position I as a forest ranger near Willits, Cali., and was thought a great, deal of hy the people of that section of the country. He fell in' love with a j r oung lady postmistress and was carrying the mail, for her and doing other little fa-, vors which made the young men j of the town envy him the posi-j tion he held in her eyes. •On the day of the murder he, went to the house where the girl, boarded, the home of a Mr. Spit-, ler, the village blacksmith, and whether he went to see the girl, or to see MY. Spitler is not, known. However, Mrs. Spitler t came to the door, and when he asked for Spitler, the latter at first refused to come to the door to see him- or allow, him to come inside. Finally Spitler came to the door and told Joe to get offi

the place, after a short parley. Joe, in leaving the place met the girl with another gentleman accompanying her, and spoke to her, asking her if he was to carry the mail the next day. What she replied is not known, for Spitler then came put of the house and ordered Joe again to move on and leave the girl alone. Some heated words followed and Joe told him it was none of his (Spitler’s) business what he did. Spitler, who had a small child in his arms, set the tot down in the yard and returned to the house and after a short interval again appeared, while Joe and the young lady were still engaged in conversation. Spitler stepped to the door with a rifle in his hands and, firing, hit Joe in the neck, killing him almost instantly. and before he had a chance at self-defense. The young man. who had accompanied the postmistress, when she was met in the yard by Joe, is said to have been on the other side of Joe, behind a tree, with a drawn revolver, so that in case Spitler missed Joe he could get him from the other side before Joe had a chance to draw his gun. At the coroner’s inquest Spitler was charged with murder and bound over to court to stand trial without bail. Spitler's defense consists of self-defense, he claiming that Joe drew his gun as soon as he (Spitler) apepared in the door, and that he therefore w’as forced to shoot in order to protect himself. Joe, it seems, had made good out there, having a claim that he had proved up that was worth three or four thousand dollars, which a paroled qpnvict, by the name of Meguire, about the time of Joe’s death, was endeavoring to beat him out of by threats of making the town too hot for him, etc. The coroner decided at the* inquest that Joe’s revolver had never been taken from his holster. as was claimed by Spitler. The shooting occurred about five o'clock on the afternoon of Nov. 27, and the trial of the accused man will take place .very shortly.