The funeral of Ed Huss, who was killed by the accidental discharge of his .22 special rifle [May 4, 1917] while shooting magpies on his farm at Fairview yesterday morning at 6 o’clock, was held from the Christian church this afternoon under the direction of the Odd Fellows’ Lodge.
A service was held at the home at 1:15 to which all friends of the family and decease were welcomed. The Rev. F. E. Billington read the funeral service at the church.
Mrs. Lee Purdin, of London, Oregon, and Mrs. James Roche, of Centralia, sisters of the late Mr. Huss, came to Ellensburg for the funeral.
Mrs. W. H. Rader of this city is a sister of Mrs. Huss.
Newspaper account of accident:
Ed Huss, a farmer well known in the valley is dead as the result of the accidental discharge of his .22 special rifle while shooting a magpie this morning at 6 o’clock on his farm near Fairview. The manner of the gun became entangled with a clothesline causing a discharge which struck Mr. Huss on the upper part of his forehead, killing him instantly.
Dr. J. C. McCauley who arrived a few moments after the accident says that the position of the gun, and the location of the wound leave no doubt as to the accidental nature of the incident. It would have been he says practically impossible and absolutely unnatural for Mr. Huss to have taken his own life with a gun held at the position which would have been necessary for the bullet to enter at that angle.
Mr. Huss finished building the fires and was doing the early chores about the place when he saw a magpie and picked up his rifle to go in pursuit of it, it is supposed by the family. He had been shooting magpies for the past few days because they were becoming a nuisance. There are two clotheslines in the Huss backyard, very close together, one higher than the other. In stooping to avoid the low one, with his rifle raised and held back and above his shoulder, it is thought that the man caught the hammer of the gun on the top line. Death was immediate according to Dr. McCauley. The body was found a few moments later by Arthur Huss, the oldest son aged 22.
The deceased is survived by a wife, four children, all of whom living here, three sisters, six brothers, all living about Ellensburg, and his father and mother, Mr. an Mrs. Harvey Huss of this city. The eldest child is Laura, aged 26, Arthur, 22, is next followed by Bessie, 13, and a small boy of 4 years [Edward].
One of his sisters lives in Oregon, one on the Sound and one in Ellensburg. He had lived on his farm near Fairview for twenty years. He was a Woodman of the World and an Odd Fellow.
Funeral arrangements have not yet been made. The Bridgham company will be in charge. The body will probably be held until his sisters can arrive in the city.
Contributed by: Shelli Steedman