| Show 4i WAS HE DROWNED 7 I William A Douglass of Leadville Colorado Dies While Bathing Becks Hot Springs P D Sprague the Hackman Takes Him Out Alive and Brings Him Back Dead Bruises on the FaceA Free Mason of High Standl Registered at the Continental William Douglass Leadville Colo is the way a large man of medium height registered when he arrived at the Continental Hotel in this city on Thursday last The man was given a room at the hotel and remained there up to last night Since his arrival he has been in the habit of going out to Becks Hot Springs once a day and has always been driven out by P D Sprague a hackman who has more than once figured befgre the public Yesterday afternoon Sprague drove him out as usual and after he bad taken his bath he was driven back to the hotel HIS LAST TRIP Last evening at about 8 oclock Sprague drove around to the Continental where he says he had an engagement with a couple of parties but being a little lit-tle late he missed his customers He says thatDouglass then came to him and said he wanted to go to the Springs Sprague agreed to take him and Douglass got into the hack and Sprague drove leisurely to the bath house Arriving there Douglass undressed and got into the water Sprague in the meantime hitched his horses and going into the big bath house where his passenger was bathing he stood on the bridge which spans the middle of the tub and began to talk to Douglass The latter answered Spragues questions and talked with him for some fifteen minutes Douglass was very near the bridge and was floating on his back when Sprague asked him if he didnt think it was time to come out He made no answer but floated on toward the southeast corner of the bath Sprague says that his hands seemed to be moving as though he were SWIMMING ON HIS BACK But there was no sign of any struggle Thinking it strange that the man did not answer Sprague walked to the north end of the bridge in order to get a better view of him There were but two lamps burning in the place and as the water was steaming Sprague could only get a glimpse of the man After a wait of a couple of minutes the hackmau again spoke and again receiving no reply he crossed the bridge and went toward the corner where the man was Here he found Douglass floating on his back and reaching down he caught the cold hand and drew the form toward him only to find that DOUGLAS WAS BEAD Sprague says he was badly startled and screamed for help thinking that the man who runs the bathhouse would hear him and come in It happened however how-ever that Herbert Slade the Maori was the only man within hearing and was the first to run to Spragues assistance Sprague told Slade that the man was dead and the two then lifted the corpse onto the platform They laid the form face downward and began to roll it to get the water out Just then Slade suggested that Mrs Martin the lady who keeps the boardinghouse boarding-house at the Springs would know what to do as she is a doctor Mrs Martin was called and told the men to stand the men to stand the body on its head They took hold of the feet and did so but there was but little warer came from the mouth The nose and mouth however filled with froth and gave the face a ghastly look All efforts to revive the man were futile and laying the body to one side Sprague proceeded to the telephone Undertaker Joseph William Taylor was called up and proceeding to the Springs with his wagon he brought the corpse to his establishment on West Temple street WAS lIE DROWNED The fact that Sprague says that the man died in the water is not conclusive evidence that he was drowned In fact if it is so that he spoke but two minutes before he was taken out the drowning theory is not at all probable The frothing at the mouth and nose would seem to indicate i indi-cate some kind of poisoning or else that the man had taken a fit Altogether the death was a strange one and nothing short of a post mortem examination will explain it HE WAS A RICH MAN As soon as the news of the death became be-came known this morning there were many inquiries as to the identity of the man T AV Collins formerly of Lead ville but now of this city says that I Douglass is a wealthy citizen of the above named town and he Collins has today telecraphed the news to the dead mans wife He says that Douglass owns at least 100000 worth of property in Leadville Another gentleman gentle-man a guest of the Continental says that he has talked with Douglass and found that he was a Free Mason of high rank belonging to an Iowa lodge It is admitted by all who knew Doug lass that he has been on a big tear ever since his arrival here and Sprague said that he told him yesterday that he was on a seven days drunkthe first one he had had in seven years He told Sprague yesterday that he was 59 years of age When the undertaker arrived he found the mans face to be pretty badly bruised and skinned Sprague says that this was done when they were trying to revive him A SIDE STORY employe of the Continental says that Douglass was seen going into the bar last night arm in arm with Sprague and that he was heard to say something about wanting to take a woman with him but how true this is will probably come out later It is said that Douglass was a friend of George M Scott of this city who is now in Denver and yesterday he gave the hotel clerk a check to cash with Mr Scotts signature on it Taking all that can be learned in seems altogether likely that there is something more to the story than the simple part told by Sprague If so it will likely be brought out at the inquest to be held at 4 oclock this afternoon |
