The Tide Flat Mystery: A Carpenter’s Body Found Beneath the Rails

TIDE FLAT TRAGEDY. Abbott's Body Found Three Weeks After He Was Lost. WAS IT ACCIDENT OR MURDER?

The mystery surrounding the disappearance of Abner Abbott, who has been missing since January 2, was partly cleared up yesterday afternoon when his bloated remains were drawn out of the water beneath the Columbia & Puget Sound railroad trestle, on King Street. But the circumstances of his death still remain a mystery. There are some signs that he was murdered.

About 1:30 o'clock a Japanese girl saw the body of a man floating among the driftwood and rubbish underneath the narrow foot-bridge leading from the Japanese alley to the railway trestle under the incline ascending to the coal bunkers. Officer Kawcett was immediately called and notified Coroner Morton. Upon his arrival the body was drawn from the water and taken to Bonney & Stewart's.

The key to room 41 of the Seattle Hotel was found on the person, also a trunk check, which established beyond a doubt the identity of the remains. This was the room occupied by Abbott at the time of his disappearance. In the pockets were found $38.90 in gold and silver coin, two watches (one gold, and one silver), a pocketknife and other articles. In the trunk, which was left in the room, were found among other things a large number of letters addressed to A. Abbott.

Abbott was a bridge carpenter and after work long on the Nooksack bridges in Whatcom county, came to this city from Whatcom with George DeWitt and William Thomas to spend the Christmas holidays. He registered at the Seattle Hotel December 17, laying for room 41 for a week. One of his friends, W. T. Thomas, occupied the room with him. On the evening of January [2] he ordered his baggage brought down, saying he was going to leave on the following morning to work on a contract on Hood's Canal.

Thomas said that when his disappearance became known, he was drunk at the time and went to search for DeWitt, leaving Thomas at the saloon. He failed to return and at 11 o'clock Thomas went to the hotel and went to bed and knew nothing of Abbott's disappearance until next morning.

When he left the saloon he seems to have gone down South Third street and turned along the railroad to see his old friend, James Barron, who works at night in the oil house of the Columbia Puget Sound Railroad Company. The oil house is not over thirty feet from where the body was found.

"Abbott came to the oil house, where I was working, about 9 o'clock in the evening," said Mr. Barron to a reporter of the POST-INTELLIGENCER. "He told me that he was going to Hood's Canal on the following day. I told him to sit down a few moments until I finished my work in the adjoining room and I would be with him. I left him, and when I returned about five minutes later he was gone, and I do not think anybody saw him alive after that. I knew he had been drinking that evening, but did not think he was drunk. He sometimes drank when he was not working. He should have somewhere about $400. He had it on deposit in some bank."

Among the large crowd that stood around viewing the body, many were the speculations as to how a man happened to fall in at that particular place and drown, without being able to rescue himself by means of the vast amount of driftwood and even logs, which float around so thickly among the tides. The general theory was that, when he fell, his head struck against a piece of this driftwood, stunning him so that he could not recover himself. The bruises on his face seemed to bear evidence of the correctness of this theory.

But if he was drunk, as one theory of the case supposes he was, then, that of itself would undoubtedly have prevented his recovering. But there is strong evidence that he was not drunk. There is the story of Thomas to the effect that he had been drunk during the day, but had slept it off, and then the three partners went out together in the evening after Abbott had apologized to one or two persons in the hotel whom he was told he had insulted in his drunkenness.

Thomas said the three went up the street a short distance, and about 9 o'clock Abbott left them saying he was going back to the hotel; that he sober at the time. But it turned out that he did not go to the hotel, but went down to see Barron, who was the last to see him, and Barron's story is to the effect that he was sober. The general expression of those who made his acquaintance about the hotel is that he was not a hard drinker, but happened on that one occasion to drink a little too much, and after becoming sober he appeared heartily ashamed of his conduct.

If the theory that he was not drunk is the correct one, as it appears to be, then how did he fall into the water? There are two short tides directly over the spot where the body was found and there is a possibility that he was walking close to the edge and, in the darkness, stepped into this hole, though the probabilities are not in accord with this theory, if he was sober and did not step into this hole, then there must have been foul play.

And if foul play, what could have been the motive? Was he sandbagged for the purpose of robbery and in falling rolled into the water; or may have been pushed in by some one having a spite against him? The bruises on his face, unless done by striking against the driftwood, must have been made by some blunt instrument. As to the exact circumstances, they probably never be known, but foul play are sufficient to warrant an investigation by the detective and police force of the city.

It appears strange that the body should remain in the water so long without having been seen before, as the tide runs out every day, leaving the beach bare for some distance beyond this spot.

For several days after his disappearance, his friends searched the city for a clue to his whereabouts. The case was reported in the POST-INTELLIGENCER on January 1. After several days of waiting his friends left the city, and have not returned since.

He was about 30 years of age. He came to the Coast from Illinois about two years ago and had been on the Sound seven months. He was a widower, and leaves a daughter 5 years of age. He lived in Seattle for several months, while in employ of the Northern Pacific Railroad company. He roomed with James Barron while they boarded at John Stewart's on the corner of Ninth and Dearborn streets.

Mrs. Stewart says that she never saw any indication that he was addicted to the use of liquor during the many months that he lived at her house.

Coroner Horton decided that no inquest was necessary, and will order the remains to be buried today.