A Body Beside the Tracks Near Cathcart
Dennis Wall, a Cathcart farmhand, was found dead in water beside the railroad with a head wound and two sets of new clothes nearby. A French farmhand who had been with him may know more.
The story, cleaned up
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SNOHOMISH, Wash.—Dennis Wall, a farmhand employed by Henry McGuire on his farm near Cathcart, was found dead Tuesday morning by the crew of a southbound freight, lying beside the track and covered by water.
A small wound on the back of his head and a few drops of blood on the track twelve feet from the body indicate the man was struck by someone or something before falling into the water. Near the body were two complete outfits of clothing and other articles, purchased at Karo's store in Snohomish, indicating that at the time he was hit Wall was in company with a second party. He is known to have been with Frank Pelletier, a Frenchman employed by Tom Evans on his farm near Cathcart Tuesday, and it is believed Pelletier may be able to throw some light on the tragedy.
“A small wound on the back of his head and a few drops of blood on the track twelve feet from the body indicate the man was struck by someone or something before falling into the water.”
A farmhand found dead beside the rails, with a wound and two sets of new clothes nearby, raised the possibility of murder in a rural corner of Snohomish County. The case is a reminder that violence against itinerant farm laborers could remain murky and unresolved, and that the people last seen with a victim often held the only answers.
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