WICHITA, KAN – A thrill of horror passed through this community, last Monday evening, upon hearing the fact and manner of the death of Grant Matthews. He was a young boy of fourteen or fifteen years of age, and at the sudden and tragic death was with a hunting party, consisting of his brother, George Matthews, Judge S.M. Tucker, and Mr. Stancer, who were hunting on Satchell creek, in Butler county, about forty miles from this city. At the time of the accident George was out on the prairie, hunting, and Tucker and Stancer were preparing to move the camp, and had loaded their traps in a wagon. Among other things laying in the wagon was a loaded shotgun, with the muzzle toward the endgate. Grant had taken an ax out to cut a sapling, after which he approached the hind end of the wagon and pitched the ax in. It struck the hammer of the gun and the heavy load of buck shot was discharged, the entire contents striking the unfortunate boy in the right side of the face, carrying away the whole lower half of the face. Death was instantaneous. – The Hutchinson News, Hutchinson, Kansas. December 20, 1877. Page 3. © Transcribed by Darren McMannis for Prairie Wind Publications.