RANCHER'S BODY FOUND IN WELL . Mystery More Baffling ] Than Fiction. gan Francisco, Calif.—As a climax to one of the weirdest murder mys- teries that ever baffled fiction de- tectives or flashed on the movie thrill er screen, the body of Frank Roder- ick, forty-year-old prosperous rancher of San Mateo county, has been re- moved from the bottom of a well 28 feet deep on his ranch on the Alpine road, one mile south of La Honda. As a result of the discovery of Rod- erick’s body, his crushed skull show- ing how his life had been ended by a powerful blow from behind, the rancher’'s wife, Minnie Roderick, thir- ty-three, and the “hired hand” of the ganch, William Woodring, forty-four. were in jail at Redwood City. : A “Red-Haired Gal.” Although the Roderick ranch is only a few minutes by automobile from the heart of sophisticated San Francisco, and in the center of a vacation and summer home territory, the history of the disappearance of Roderick and the events preceding and following it gre such as might be expected of the days of 50 years ago when California was frontier land and life was held cheaply. Cattle rustling, in which a nine-year- old son of Roderick’s helped him drive off steers from neighboring ranches—jealousy of a wife over & #pred-haired gal”—glances of affection exchanged between the boss’ wife and the cowboy from distant parts—bat- tle to the death—betrayal by confed- erates in crime—the astute sheriff who solves the mystery—all the re- quirements of the “western thriller” are present in copious quantity! Cattle Rustling Hinted. The story dates back eight months when Sheriff James J. McGrath went into the Alpine country to investigate reports of “cattle rustling.” There had been complaints from the Galla- gher & Zink ranch and the Lillicote ranch near the Roderick ranch that cows and steers had mysteriously dis- appeared on dark nights. A dozen head were missing altogether. The gheriff was unable to pin anything on anybody, but he closely questioned Roderick and Woodring av that time. The next chapter came May 20 last, when Mrs. Roderick came to visit Dis- trict Attorney Franklin D. Swart at Redwood City. She said her husband had beaten her severely, had dressed up in his “store clothes,” had put $2,800 in appeared with a “red-headed gal.” Swore Out Complaint. On Swart’s advice she swore out & warrant for her husband on a bat- tery charge. But Sheriff McGrath, re- membering his suspicions of a few months before, questioned Mrs. Rod- erick closely when she asked him to géerve the warrant. McGrath finally elicited information from the wife which led him to visit the Mindigo ranch, also in the Alpine district. Buried under the floor boards of a ranch outhouse he found many steer hides—unmistakable signs of cattle rustlers who had run off steers —had butchered them, had sold the beef, and had hidden the evidence of the branded hides. Again the sheriff questioned Wooa- ring—Roderick of course was missing —but again he was baffled. Sheriff McGrath continued to brooa over the story. He was ponplused, and McGrath is a man who likes things open and’ above board. So he his pockets, and had dis- returned to the Roderick ranch and found young Filbert Roderick, nine- year-old son of the rancher, alone. He adroitly engaged the lad in conversa- tion. A few minutes later the sheriff haa drawn from the boy the information that he had accompanied his father “and another rancher” when they drove off a big roan steer from the Gallagher and Zink ranch one ‘dark night. Father Killed Steer. ‘They had taken the steer to the Mindigo ranch, where the father had Killed it with a .22 rifle, left it to dry in the ranch house, and the next day had sold the beef. After his talk with the boy, Mc Grath arrested Ernest Hildebrand, owner of a nearby ranch, and took him to Redwood City for questioning. Hildebrand was not charged, and was released after a few hours. But that afternoon the sheriff confided to Un- dersheriff Edward Farrell that he “had a tip” Roderick had been mur- dered and his body buried in a well pear his home, The two went to the Roderick ranch and found Woodring busy in the vicin- ity of the ranch house with a borrowed scraper. He had been plowing and geraping geveral acres of land near the house which was not used for agriculture, although grain in the fields, according to’ the sheriff, was in need of attention. ‘rhe sheriff looked for the well. It was nowhere to be seen. All the land pear the ranch house had been plowed and scraped, and showed no signs of a well ever having existed. ‘Hut McGrath was determined to fina the well. By searching through county records, he discovered that Roderick had purchased the ranch several years ago from George Steinberg, now a youd superintendent with the county. He took Steinberg out to the ranch fo his automobile and asked him where the well had been. Steinberg stood at a corner of the house, squinted a sight on alignment with a tall tree, and walked 100 yards trom the house. “The well should be right here" he said. McGrath returned to the ranch, bringing with him Farrell, Depuly Clarence Wyckoff, Constable F. Grill, Eddy Chalmers and Charles Roberts. Armed with shovels, they attacked the spot were Steinberg said the well had been, At dusk they had feet, and there they found unmistak- abla evidence the earth had been freshly disturbed. Unrusted pieces of - iron, bits of autemobile tires and tin cans showed that anything and every- thing had been used to fill in & hole Find Man's Foot. / They again attacked the job the next morning. Down and down they went, Chalmers and Roberts were at the bottom of the hols, while Me- Grath and Farrel were at the top lifting out the earth. Suddenly came a shout from the bottom: i “We've found a man’s foot!” The two diggers were just twenty six feet .n the earth. “Come up @& minute,” ordered Mc Grath. When the two men—gladly enough—had arrived at the surface McGrath went to the ranch house and placed Woodring and Mrs. Roderick under arrest. Then they returned te the well. i It was 8 o’clock—past dusk—when the body had finally been freed from the soil and brought to the surface. | It was that of Roderick. It was plain enough how he had come to his death. A heavy blow from a bludgeon haé erushed his skull from the back. He wasn’t dressed in his “store clothes,” as his wife had said. He was wearing his overalls and rough shirt ! and shoes. There wasn't any $2,800 in his pocket, and the “red headed | gal” also remained a mystery. Questioned Long Hours. Sheriff McGrath took the body to Redwood City for a postmortem in- | vestigation. In another car came i Woodring and Mrs. Roderick, guarded | by the guns of the deputies. In a third | dug down six | car rode Mr. and Mrs. F. E Ander- i son, neighbors of the Rodericks, who : volunteered to take care of little Fil- bert, the boy rustler, and his six-year- | old brother, Donald, until the children i could be turned over to their grand-. father, John Fayail, Redwood City | rancher, at whose home Roderick | courted and won Minnie Fayall : There was no charge placed agalus. Mrs. Roderick and Woodring at the county jail. Deputy District Attor- pey Richard Bell and Edmund Scott questioned them into the small hours in the morning, but volunteered no information as to what their inquiries had disclosed, i U. S. Firm to Finance Costly German Canal Berlin.—An American project for an $80,000,000 inland canal linking cities of the old Hanseatic league, and which might help to bring them again | into some measure of the commercial : alliance which they enjoyed nearly ! seven centuries ago, has been submit- ted to the German government. : The proposed Hansa canal would ex | Jend from the Mittleland canal near the town of Rheine in Westphalia to Minden, where it would join the River Weser, linking Hamburg and Bremen, two of the most important Hansa cit- fes, with Germany's richest coal pro- ducing areas in the Ruhr. ! The name of the American firm pro- posing to build and finance the water- way has not been revealed. The project, if realized, would grea. ty curtail large scale British coal de- liveries along the German seaboard, since the German coastal cities could then buy domestic coal much more cheaply. | i | i French Plan to Spend $4,000,000 on Bourse | Paris, France.—France’s stock ex- | change, known as the Bourse, is go- ing to be enlarged at a total cost of $4,000,000, the municipal council has just decided. The work will not be started un dl 1931 and will Insure adequate space for those dealing in stocks and bonds at the financial center of France. The Bourse was a project of Napoleon, although not finished until 1826. In 1900 the building was &n- larged, but France's growing interest in. international finance has made necessary another enlargemenet. Nonspinning Airplane About to Make Bow washington.—A new type of air- plane, claimed to be nonspinning, is about to be demonstrated in Montreal, the Commerce department has been ° advised. The nonspinning feature Is achieved by special wings so designed that they resist air currents and main- tain the craft in a position in which a dangerous spin is impossible. Geoortedeedededoideodeoiedootedededniedededutodod % 12 Cents Reward to Finder of $12,000 Missenden, England.—A littie boy found a woman’s handbag containing money and jewelry, amounting to between $10,000 and $12,000. The boy's mother. finding a name and address In the bag, traveled eight mijes by bus, paying 16 cents for fare, and walked a further three miles to return the bug to the owner in a remote part of Am- ersham. She was rewarded with a six-penny plece; (tweive cents). deeestedeete de dood doiodoiodeidoiniobdeiiog Seeded tees de de esdesferieerodrste dedeofeode dodo : i 3 3 i 3 3 where Chevrolet Coach DECKE isin $ 1924 Ford Coupe ened x 1926 Essex Coach i 1924 Ford 1 Ton Truck wd , 1925 Rollin Coupe ..............- $ 2 2 1926 Chevrolet Touring ...... $ 65. 1925... Chevrolet Touring ....$ 50.00 1027 Ons yster Sedan 1925 Buick Touring (Win- So.00 a AL au ter Enclosure) ....$ x ; 1926 Chevrolet Coach ..§ 150.00 1976° Chevrolet Landau 1924 Oldsmobile Coupe ...... $ 50.00 1929 Model “A” Ford MILE-A-MINUTE MARTY —by— Decker Chevrolet Co., Bellefonte, Pa. OP TNTO THE RUMBLE - SEAT, | WHAT § shes JL WRITE | | DON'T WISH E-6€ WHAT Plek UP RO INT GND SEE how You! |arEAKs [IA GREAT Wg CAN PI Su ASR (EER [unis RNa RE BEL OUGHT A nis RATSVIT] hUCK - BUT DECKER [3 fetes] Gt SY BHEnE we} DECKE \ | OIF SY [ARM BEFORE § NC oC, 4 YN A Wh Chevrolet “Six” 1929 ; Coach ................. $ 400.00 1926 Chevrolet Coupe ........$ 175.00 1928 Essex Sedan ............. 350.00 i 1928 Chevrolet Coupe ......... $ 350.00 $ 50.00 1928 Chevrolet Sedan ....... $ 375.00 . 1928 Chevrolet Coach ........§ 350.00 275.00 1927 Pontiac Roadster . (Rumble Seat)......$ 250.00 2p $ 175.00 1927 Chevrolet Coach ......... $ 250.00 er $ 300.00 Other makes of cars as resins . IoW 88 .ocvrcrneen-..$ 5.00 CHEVROLET CO. Phone 405 ...... BELLEFONTE, PA. mission man to ship eighty lambs market. The following day, as ready to deliver the la telephone rang. The broken badly. By delaying week, the farmer secured pound more than he original offer. FARMER was advised by his livestock com- then ready for he was getting mbs to the railroad, his arket, he learned, had shipment another one-half cent per have made on his would The Modern Farm Home Has « TELEPHONE INHERITS $50,000; WILL SPEND IT ON THE GIRLS Youth Plans Great Things After Being Named Beneficiary of | Dad's Will. Memphis, Tenn.—A nine-year-old | heir to the $50,000 estate of his father claims 15 girl admirers and is “going {| to spend lots of money on them.” The youth, Miller Jameson, Mem- phis, is planning great things after being named principal beneficiary in the will of his father, Wylie Miller Jameson, literary writer, who died iv New York City recently. The will, filed for probate in New York, provided that young Jameson should receive the major portion of the $50,000 estate, but if he had died before execution of the paper Col. Charles A, Lindberg and Gene Tun- ney, former heavyweight boxing cham- pion, would have received the money to “use as they see fit,” according te the stipulations of the will, The Jameson lad was reluctant in permitting newspapers here to pub- lish his announcement about the girl friends, for “1 don’t want to get Ir Dutch with ’em,” he explained. Likewise he plans to be independ- ent in business. “I'd go down to the drug store and buy six hoxes of tor- pedoes to make plenty of noise. Then I'd buy three hoxes of soda water and a refrigerator and go into the soft drink business,” he speculated from his bed at his home here. Miller was sick when the joyous news reached him, He had closed his drink stand the day before because. as his mother explained it, “he was sich from drinking the excess stock.” He will enter the fourth grade when school opens this fall. “Between now and then,” Miller said, “I'm gonna spend some of my time riding my bicycle, going to parties and dancing.” Boy Inventor Routs Fire With Own Device Philadelphia.—It took the emer. gency of a fire at his home to apply the acid test to the chemical genius of a Philadelphia boy inventor. And Frederick Williamson, Jr. six- een, of 1712 Moore street, was found pot wanting. For weeks he had been trying in sain to ‘convince employment officials of chemical plants of his ability. But, though his confidence was not infec- tious, he lost none of it. He kept on working en the model of a fire extin- guisher. When the fire was discovered in a sofa on a porch outside his room on the third floor, his parents, who had smelled smoke from their second floor room, snatched up carpets to beat out the blaze. When young Williamson advancea «ith his simple little device, his par- ents kept on swinging their rugs—but not for long—for the fire didn’t last long after Frederick turned. his extin- guisher on it, and Engine Company ' Pwentieth and Federal streets without having to get into action. The boy's home made device is & &sllon jug containing water and baking soda and four tubes of sulphuric acid, which are affixed inside the neck of the jar. The mixture is poured from | am L-shaped tube in the top of the container, and the chemical reaction of the ingredients smothers the flames, Frederick explained. Ruling Strikes Gyp Car Sale; Protects Buyer Washington.—Even though the pur- shaser of a used automobile enters in- to a contract which states that the car is purchased “as is,” he may recover damages in an action for deceit, ac- cording to a decision by the Massa- chusetts State Supreme court reported by the legal department of the Amer- {can Motorists association. Thomos J. Keefe, general manage: of the motorists association, said the decision was of great importance be- cause more than three and a half mil- lion used cars are sold annually. The court ruled that the purchase: could recover damages if it was shown that the sale was made through mis- representations as to the condition of the car. Slave’s Burial Rites Held in White Church Statesville, N. C.—The funeral of “Uncle” Richard Wood. respected slavery-day negro, set a precedent In Statesville. “Uncle” Richard’s funeral service was held in the $200,000 First Presbyterian church. When white residents heard of the aged negro's death, his family was of- tered use of the church. When the congregation of the churci. was soliciting subscriptions for the pew church, Wood was among the first to contribute and to pay his sub- geription in full, { French Youths Start Round-World Auto Trip Paris, France—Driving a tiny six- horse-power French automobile, two French youths, Pierre Martineu and Antoine Bertin, said good-by to Paris on July 16 on their departure for a trip around the world via French Co- chin-China. Having been refused permission b, the Soviets to cross Siberia, the two motorists are en route to the United States via Austria, Roumania, Bul- garia, Turkey, Persia, Afghanistan, {pdia, Burma. Saigon, thence to San Francisco and back to Paris. Light Stops Trains Demonstration of a method of halt- ing trains by the action of a beam of light, was made with a small model recently. A small hand lamp custs ray which strikes a light cell on the front of the engine. The cell then cautes the brakes of the train to be appiled through the “action of relays get in operation hy the effect of the No. 24 went back to its station at fight upon the eell. = Will you save, or speculate ? A savings account is not a quick rich road to wealth. But it is a sure road. Which one will be ahead in ten years? The man who saves - or The man who speculates. There is not much doubt about the answer. Methodical, persistent saving will win. THE FIRST NATIONAL BANK BELLEFONTE, PA. THE “JURY SYSTEM” APPLIED TO HATS Ir you could see the inside of ev- ery hat you passed on the street, youd find that more Stetson hats are worn by the men of America than any other make regardless of price. This overwhelming verdict in favor of Stetsons is based on a sixty-five year record of distin- guished service. When you choose a Stetson this FALL you may be sure you’ll get style, extra wear, added satisfac- tion. You can now buy a Stetson for $8.00, only at FAUBLE'S