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Show Riverdale Farmer 1 Found Dead; Rifle rt Shot Proves Fatal Monro Wheeler. 2S years of age a farmer whose home I- in ElvcrdaP-. was found dead on the farm of his father, Fred Wheeler, at Plain City early this morning with a bullet hole j through his body Tjeath Is believed I to have been caused from a shot ac-' ac-' cldentall fired from a .32 rifle whl( h he carried The bullet entered the right side near the heart passed through the . ribs and emerged at the right portion of the back. Death was evidently caused by the severing of nn arteiv near the heart, according to Dr. G. A. Dh kson. FATHER FINDS BODY. The man's father discovered the bodv as he was passing Into a pasture-to pasture-to milk his cows. The body was lying In some weeds near the gate. The man had been dead for some time. While no one actually witnessed the ' shooting, an investigation made later I by Deputv Sheriff Joseph ("had wick tender! to bear out the belief that the fatal shot was accidentally fired through the catching of the trigger on the weeds. The man had been dead for some time when the bodv was found short-lv short-lv after S:30 o'clock and It Is believed thai the accident occurred short after dawn, when the man usually went to the pasture to milk Deput.v Chadwlck and W H. Anderson, Ander-son, countv game warden, who went to the scene of the .--hooting after the ("'gden office had been notified, declared de-clared I hat Wheeler's death was caused b accident. Footprints, they said, showed where the man had come to a : gate, had set down bis milk pall, and then had gone to a nearbv slough, ev idcntlj to shoot at some muskrats with tho 32 calibre rifle he carried The footprints, the officers said, showed that he returned to the gale anil was in the patch of weeds when . the gun was discharged. p Is then contention that Wheeler had the gun ; cocked when he went to the slough and did n..t place It on safety" when he returned In an attempt to pick up the milk pail, the trigger Is believed be-lieved to hav- caughit on the weeds and to have fir.d the shot. TJ ST TRIGGER PI LL. The officers said they tested the lrigger of the rifle and found that the-pull" the-pull" was unusually delicate and that the weapon, In their opinion, could have easily been discharged by catch- ing on nearby sunflower stalks or even , In dropping to the ground. . . t Thi father of the dead man said that his son is In the habit of taking the gun with him to the pasture cacti morning to shoot muskrats He had Red D number of the animals ami was preparing their skins for sale, he said The bodv was not discovered until after v o'clock thi morning when the father went to the pasture to milk his cows. He told the officers that he IW the mill; pail near tho gate land In looking around discovered his 's.pu .-i feci protruding from the weeds. I he bodv was ylrig face upward with the arms outstretched, he said. He Immediate called neighbors to the scene. Clarence Coy, Mark H. Knight and Merle Hudson responded and carried the body to the Wheeler .fW home. Ir G. A Dickson was called and found that the bullet had entered the bodv near 'he heart, had gone through the ribs: glanced, and had emerged through the right portion of i the back. It is believed that the bul-veiVd bul-veiVd an artery in passing near the heart. I xamlnatlon of the ground where the bod.v was found showed that the man had evidently died almost in-I in-I stantly, the officers said There was 1 no sign of a struggle and the rifle wax found about six feet from the body. LEAVES FAMILY. The young man left a wife and three hlldren, who were staying at the Wheeler home at the time of the a- cldent. Wheeler's home Is in River- dale, but he cam- here recently to aid H till fs he,- with farm work. It was said. IP was born In Plain City. October 2, 1892 and Is ihe son of Fred and SMarths Knlghl Wheelei of Plain city, He is survived by a widow, Sarah jKt Mi In tyre Wheeler and three children, Alvln, May and Lee Wheeler Th ffB following brothers and sisters alau ii' surv ive: Fred and Joseph Wheeler of Plain City; Mrs. Pearl Walker and ' ftr, Mrs Millie Slater of Willa d, and Dora W heeler of Plain City. Jrf Mr Wheeler was a member of tho A j Latter Da Saints church and is well 'IBl? known throughout the state K'- lb.- body was laken to the Lindqulsi parlors Funeral arrangements win be announced later. if t |