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Show I CHOKER'S SON DIES ON TRAIN Meets Mysterious End in Kansas. Indications Are That the Young Man Had Been : . Drugged. NegTo Helped Him Into Chair Car nt Kansas City find Gave I KANSAS CITY, May 12.-Hrbfrt V Croker, a snn nf RlehArd Croker. the New York pnllilcnl leader, was found t'oad on a ?outhbound Atchison, Top.'ka & Santa Vc train betw.fn Kansas City and Newton. Kan., today. He had died during the night, evidently from the effects ef-fects of sorr 'lrug admit. If lert-rt at Kansas Kan-sas Cllv, where he took the train hist r.lght for Bl!?. k Th ilrt ncwa ol tho death of young Crokr v . a."; received In Kan.ns City at 4 o'clock this afternoon, when the locnl police po-lice were tvquesud to Iwnt for a notro who Is s:ild to have placed Croker on the train at Kansas lty. Found Dead In Car Sea". Croker was found dead In a enr seat Just tWore the train reached Newton earlv today. The body was taken from the "train at Newton His Identity did not become known until a meM&ce was received from Richard 'roker at New HHH York several hours later, asking the nu- Ithorities to hold the remains, and stating that he wo ild h ave the Eaflt Immediately for Newton First Clew to Identity. The first clew to Croker's Identity was a letter found In the dead man's pocket addressed b Zoch Mulhall fnrmrl : Oklahoma, who is now holding a wild West show )n New York City, to Joseph S. Miller, manager of the famous "tin," ranch at Bliss. Ok. Inquiry by telephone elicited the Information that Croker v.s not known at the Bliss ranch Evidently he was on the way to the ranch for an outing. iiH Following n message of Inquiry sent to New York City, he c.roner took charge of the body and empaneled a jury. An Inquest was b'eglitl this afternoon Put on Train by Negro. According to Btorlee Of passengers and the oonductoi on the train upon which froker died, the young New Yorker was placed on 111' tram at Kansas t'lty shorl-B shorl-B after 10 o'clock last t.lght by a negro. Croker appeared to be under the influ-ence influ-ence of some drug . The negro was seen to hand him n sum of money an. I a railroad rail-road ticket just before the train started, when he Jumped off and disappear. id. When the .onduetnr came around to celle. t Croker'i fare the latter was H asleep, and he did not disturb the pas- Conductor Finds Him Dead. Croker was left to himself all night nn-til nn-til nearly 5 o'clock this morning, when H the conductor made another attempt to COlICet his ticket. He was unable to arouse rYnkfr and upon examination found that he was dead. The Coroner nt Newton was notified by wire and wh-n the train reached that city the body was removed to an under-ij.king under-ij.king establishment. it was several hours later before the young man's Identity Iden-tity was suspected. Spent Afternoon nt Races. As far as learned Croker arrived In Kansas CltJ early on Thursday and spent the afternoon at the Elm Ridge race track lie Is known to have been in I the company of several patrons of the race track before he boarded the train H for the south Saw Negro Give Him Money. H Passengers on the train took particular i notice when young Croker was assisted H into a chair car at the Union station In H Kansas City by a young negro, because H the while man was helpless, as If from H liquor The negro assisted ("roker Into 1 a seat and gave him a purse containing a railroad ticket and OS, counting the H money out to Croker "Send the Rest of It." H The pas'encrs heard f'roker SE "Now. I want you to send mo the reyt H The nepro a?ked Croker to write his address, but ("roker refused, and finally the neirro wrote while Croker dictated H The address was- "Bliss, Oklahoma, H care lnl Fell Into Deep Sleep. Immediately after the train started H Croker Ml Into a deep sleep, snoring H loudly. Later he grew quieter. As the train ii are. i Newton th( conductor, who ' wished to take up I'rnkH s tl k i f shook H Mm to arouse him and found him dead. There are no mark? of violenci on the young man s body, and the offlcera here H do not believe he died of heart trouble, , as he v.a- ol (Ini physical development. Letter From a Woman. Besides the letter from Zach Mulhall. Introducing Croker to Jot Miller of 101 ranch. Croker's papers contained a letter !, of Introduction from .1 l Carroll of New "Ycrk to Miller, a letter signed "Carter," from New York, and an affectionate letter let-ter from a woman on West TweBty-SSC-end street, New York. The two latter U iters wore not made, public. Did Not Make Himself Known. t the roe trak Croker's manner was j not such at, to excite notice. To. Sloan, the Jockey, who rode for Richard Croker, and who war well acquainted with Her- I hert's brother, was at the track all after- noon, and he did not even hear that ( roker was In town It appears that Croker did not make his identity known anywhere in this city. Negro Is Identified- The negro who put young Croker on the train last night was Charle Wood-j Wood-j sen, a porter at the Coatcs hotel. Wood son says that Cmker arrived at the hotel ! I bout 8 o'clock last night In an Intoxl- I cated condition. After checking a small v.-llr-o at tho hotel Croker, the negro t-aye. asked him where there was a "hop Joint." Went to a "Hep Joint." After repeated re-quests Woodson saH that he agreed to accompanv Croker to .so. h r. r.-sort Th. y went together to a Rlnese resort on sixth street, between Wy.uidoit and Delaware streets, whero they remained an hour. "Woodson savs that be then took t i-oker direct to the train 'rokr:B valise is still at tho hotel. Croker Did Not Register. Croker did not register at tho hotel nnd it I not believed that he stopped at any othr hotl during his brief stay In the city Woodson, the negro porter tells a straight story, and the pollco do not think that he was guilty of robbing Croker or otherwise abusing his confluence. |