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8 THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS. W ADE STEVENS, youth who was arrested following the dis covery of the bodies of his mother and sister in the Are ruins of the family home on the McDonough Road. No suspi cion is now attached to the boy, who is aiding to clear the mys tery in every way. Son Is Freed of All Suspicion. Men Sought Were Feared by Slain Women. A« » result of his straightforward story .tnd the proof he has brought forwari.' to sustain it, the police vir tually h.We eliminated Wade Stevens as a suitpect in the murder of his mother. Mrs. Sarah C. Stevens, and his sister. Miss Nellie Stevens, and the burning of their home on the MbDonough road. The activities of the police and Sheriff McCurdy are now being di rected towart Walter Wilkes, and Ernest Maymrd; former employees of Mrs. Stevem A country-wide search has been instituted for them. Descriptions of the negro and the half-breed have been sent out to all parts of the Soufli by telegraph, and the officers are confident that It Is only a matter of lit <urs before they are arrested. The theory that Wilkes and May nard committed th.» crime, formulated by statements madle by neighbors of the Stevens famil:y. and statements made by William Stevens, has been strengthened, the police say, by the statements of Wade Stevens. 3aw Wilkss Near Home. ' Young Stevens, brought to Atlanta from Chattanooga by Detective John Black at 2 o'clock Friday morning, told the police that twice within the past week be has seen Wilkes, the last time befmg only a few hours be fore the murder. "I met W.Ukes in town Tuesday night shortly before 8 o’clock," said young Stevens. "He stopped me and asked me where l was going. I told him that I was going to Chattanooga He asked me If father had not already gone, and I told him yea Then he remarked that lie supposed mother and slater would be alone at the house during the night, and I told him I supposed so. Then he asked me if we needed a hired man. and said he guessed he would go out and ask mother If he could get another Job." ' Young Stevens said he also saw Wilkes within a mile, of his home last Sunday morning. "I was driving to town,” the boy declared. “And I met Wilkes Just beyond the bridge over the South ern railroad. He asked me where I was going, and 1 told him to town. Then he wanted to know If mother wanted any work done, and 1 told him I didn’t know. He then asked me If father was at home, and when 1 told him he was, he asked If he could go back to town with me. He got In the buggy then and we came to town. He said he was going down on Decatur Street. pnd that was the last time I saw him until Tuesday night, Just before I left i„r Chattu- nooga.’’ Both Insulted the Women. Young Stevens is positive thal Wilkes and Maynard committed the crime, and declares that both tin men have several times Insulted his mother and sister and tried to get them to give them money. "The negroes thought mamma kept a large sum of money in the house, 1 ' said the Stevens boy, “and they were always asking her for a quarter or a dollar, and getting mad when she wouldn’t give it to them. Mamma and sister often talked of the ne groes, and said they were afraid of them. Three times that 1 oan re member, while Wilkes was working for us, he tried to Insult sister, and that Is why we discharged him. Twice sister saw him peeking in the 1 window when she was dressing or bathing, and both times he grinned and cursed and ran. "Mamma and sister were Just as much afraid of Maynard as they were of Wilkes. He tried to insult Nellie one day and mamma drove Wm Will Bible Solve Stevens Slaying? +•+ +•+ +•+ +•+ +•+ +•+ Gews in Holy Book Negro Read +•+ +•+ +•+ +•+ Verses About Murder Marked Testament Given by Slain Wom an to Suspected Hand Found in His Cabin. m '■'A isR, 2«l him away with a gun. He had threatened the whole family several times, and we were all afraid of him. Maynard was a half-breed In dian and negro, and was always in a had humor and talking about money. ’ Young Stevens also threw light on a phase of Wilkes' character that up holds the theory that Mrs. Stevens' Bible, found in Wilkes’ cabin, may prove valuable evidence. "Wilkes always was saying lie wanted to be a preacher, and In March he borrowed mamma's Bible He drank lots of whisky, and would sit with the Bible In one hand and a glass of w hisky In the other, laughing at the Bible. He used to point out places in the Bible where it said not to kill anybody, and then he'd say it was all bosh and make fun of it. He would say that he’d bet he could do all those things and not get punished. He and Maynard were together when ever they got h chance, and they drank a lot of whisky." In young Stevens' story of bow he speni the day on Tuesday, he de- cliirhd that he knows nothing of his sistah taking his .Nothing to J neigh bor's. and says he was not i: home all day His statement, in whieh he Is corroborated by “Red" Merchant, arrested with him In Chattanooga, follows: "I left home at S o'cloek Tuesday morning, after a quarrel with mamma, 1 had cut the oats on Monday and on Tuesday she wanted me to put them in the barn. It bad rained dur ing the night and I told her it was too wet. She was mad and said if 1 didn't put the oats in rho .bam i could leave, f told her 1 would if eh-' would give me my clothes, and she wouldn't do it. “So 1 came to town In the overalls that I have on now. 1 met Red' Merchant on Pryor Street near the Union Depot, and we were together about town until about 1 o'clock, when ‘Red’ went home, to East Atlanta. I hung around town until 3 o'clock and met Rod’ again. We stayed down town and about 5 o'clock we met four boys, one of them the McWilliams boy, and stayed with them until about time for the train to leave. We caught the S: f.5 W. and A. train and got into Chattanooga about 1:08 o'clock. At 1:30 we saw a man named Parker who runs a newsstand near the Chattanooga depot, and talked with him for some time. Then I we hung around town. I wasn't ar- ' rested by the Chattanooga police. ] When I read in the paper Wednes- i day morning that mother and sister had been murdered and that 1 was wanted, I went to the chief of detee- [ lives and gave myself up.” Young Stevens and young Merchant were taken to tho Decatur County Jail by Sheriff McCurdy Friday. They I probably will be held a few days un til the Chattanooga end of their story Is proved. Young Stevens says the man Parker, owner of the newsstand, will come to Atlanta if necessarv and prove that he w#e there about the time- the murder is supposed to b:.v“ been committed. Is the Holy Bible to play a part in solving the mystery of the murder of M rs. Sarah C. Stevens and her daugh - ter and the burning of their lonely farm house? Was the murderer * type of hu manity who combined a passion, at a contempt, for the Bible with an In satiable craving to kill, rob and de stroy? Was this fanatic Waltsr Wilkes, a ne~ro. who up to three weeks ago worked for Mrs. Stevens—known to be a close student of the Bible? Was h'e aided In his fiendish work by Ernest Maynard (or Mannard), a half-breed Mexican, who worked at the Stevens farm before Wilkes came —known to be a friend and follower of Wilkes, and as deceitful and as treacherous? The finding of Mrs. Stevens' Bible on a shelf In a log cabin formerly oc cupied by the negro and the Mexi can, with many passages having ref erence to violent deaths and actions marked with a cross In lead pencil, has brought these questions strongly to the fore, and has caused the in vestigations of Sheriff McCurdy and Detective Rosser to point toward the negro and the half-breed as possible perpetrators of the crime. Officers consider the Bible, with It* marked passages, one of the most re markable and Important bits of evi dence unearthed since the Investiga tion of the murder began. The Bible has been positively Iden tified by Mr. Stevens and two of Mrs. Stevens' brothers as the property of Mrs. Stevens. The inscription on the fly-leaf—"Mrs. Stevens’ Book"—has been Identified as her handwriting. Mr. Stevens made the further Im portant statement that the Bible has been in Wilkes’ possession slijce the last of March, when Mrs, Stevens loaned him the book at his request. The negro had told her that he was studying for the ministry and did nol have a Bible of his own. Striking Passages Marked. Practically every passage that is marked with the crude cross has ref erence to some form of violent sin that Is punishable by eternal damna tion. The passages refer to killing destroying, lust and adultery, the greatest crimes In the spiritual and temporal calendar. These questions are being raised: Why did Wilkes mark only passages dealing with violent sin and Its pun ishment? Did the marking of the Bible within a month of the murder have any bearing on the crime? Does it show that Wilkes' mind was constantly filled with thoughts of murder and robbing? Did the marking of Exodus x!x:13 "And it came to pass that on the third day In the morning that there were thunders gad lightning, ar:d a 'hick cloud upon the mount.” have any bearing on the burning of the house, the crackle and roar of the flames and the thick clouds of smoke? Did the marking of James 1:14 “But every man is tempted, when he Is driwn away oil his own lust land enticed,’’ have any reference to his desire and efforts—alleged by the girl’s relatives to have occurred—to attack little Nellie Stevens? Did the marking of James 11:10, "For whosoever, shall keep the whole law. and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all," mean that he would be equally guilty whether he commit ted assault, murder, robbery, arson, or all? The portions of the Bible that were marked, presumably by Wilkes, are as follows: Exodus xlx: 13—There shall not an hand, touch It, hut he shall surely be stoned or shot through; whether it be beast or man, It shall not live: when the trumpet soundath long, they shall come up to the mount. Violent Passages Indicated. Exodus xix:18—And It came to pass on the third day In the morning, that there were thunders and light nings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was In the camp trembled. Exodus xxtlS—Thou shalt not kill. Exodus xx:14i—Thou shalt not com mit adultery. Exodus xx:17—Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his man servant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is' thy neighbors. Exodus xxl:15—And he that smltetl, hts father, or his mother, shall be surely put to'death Exodus xxl:17—And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall be surely put to death. Exodus xxi: 19-—If he rise again and walk abroad upon his staff, then shall be that smote him be quit; only he shall pay for the loss of his time ana shall excuse him to be thorough ly healed. Exodus xxi:33—If men strive an-, hurt a woman with child, so that hei fruit departeth from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman husband lay upon him; and he shal pay as the Judges determine. Exodus xxi:23—And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life. Exodus xxi: 18—And he that steal- ®th a man and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall he surely put to death. Exodus xxli:16—And if a man en tice a maid that is not betrothed * • • he shall surely endow her to be his wife. Matthew v:38—Neither shalt the: swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. Matthew vli:23—But If thine eye be evil, thy whole body shal! bfe full, of darkness. If, therefore, the light that is in thee is darkness, how great is that darkness. Hebrews xili:17—Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves; for they watch for your souls, as they that must give ac count, that they may do It with Joy, and not with grief; for that is un profitable for yon. James i: 14—But every man is tempted, when he Is drawn away ol his own lust and nticed. James 1:13—Then when lust hath Save money NOW Furniture at High’s. FREE, NEXT SUNDAY. The A merican Sunday Monthly Magazine, coAtain- in£ the first chapters of Jack London's new story, is GIVEN FREE with every copy of the next Sunday American I*! i Save money NOW onj|| Furniture at High’s. T Yes, It’s Hot, But Don’t Worry The Market Basket h. solves the vexed f| marketing question. ! It appears to-day. Cut. it out Saturday abd use it as a guide. It will save you | money, time, w .rry. J our Suit Made “The Dundee Way” To Your Individual Measure for Would Cost You Elsewhere $25 CO to $30.00 Or ilcr your Suit to-mor row! W e just received n li i g- shipment o f mohairs—EVERY pure-wool snm- P.iln'ic of the season is here. We antee a perfect fit. Saturdays Until 10:30 P. M. Y .r* ' . Buv a Home—Like Furniture On Very Easy Payments you to pay RENT and. in the end, he Wouldn't that be ». 4.. tc or..er ucurii avenue j*. S upposing the furniture dealer asked for your Furniture, for t.he rest of your life— were to take back the furniture as HIS property! preposterous? It’s just as UNREASONABLE for you to pay RENT for your HOUSE --and. lu the end. for the property to still belong to your landlord! The eases are exactly the same. The big FURNITURE STORES will sell you. at the lowest possible price*. FURNITURE on the DIVIDED PAYMENT plan! We will sell you. at the h west possible price a pretty HOUSE and LOT. on the same basis <'it 'e DIVTnED PAYMENT plan—$100 down and as little as $21 a month, tf! > home is paid for. No mortgage to assume \\ V ave several brand-new bungalows and cottages in the well-popu lated ard picturesque section of Atlanta known as CAPITOL VIEW—on the street car lire—only eighteen minutes from FIVE Tv INTS. You don't RENT your FURNITURE—then WHY rent your HOME when you can HUY a home on EASY TERMS like you buy furniture? Phone us -or come to our office—and we'll tell more about our plan for selling you a handsome HOME, on our DIVIDED PAYMENT plan * W . D BE A 1 IE, 207 Equitable Building Bell Phone, Main 3520 -Xtlanta Phone, 3520 conceived, It bringeth forth sin; and sin. when It ie finished, bringeth forth death. James 11:10.—For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he le guilty of all. Colossians 111 - 20—Children, obey your parents-in all things; tor this is well pleasing with the Lord. Ephesians xxxiv:25 — Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man with his neighbor: for we are mem ber* one of another, Ephesians vl:5—Servants, be obe dient to those that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ. Stevens Aids Officers. Several points that had nuzzled the officers Investigating the case were cleared up with the arrival of Mr Stevens from Chattanooga and his visit to his burned home Thursday afternoon. His Identification of vari ous objects and his statements that none of them were In their usual places have completed and upheld the murder theory. The ax and the hoe tound In the' bed room, where the bodies were found, Mr. Stevens identified as be longing to the, house. The hoe, he said, is usually kepi on tne back porch, and the ax Is kept at the wood- pile In the rear of the house. Sheriff McCurdy and Detective Rosser are positive that the ax and the- hoe were the weapons used by the- murderer; and they are positive also that there were at least two j'.’ the fiends. Though Sheriff McCurdy declared that young Wade Stevens and. "Red" Merchant will be held until their ac tions on the night of the murder can be thoroughly investigated, he Inti mated that all clews now point to the negro and the Mexican, Walter Wilkes and Ernest Maynard, or Mannard, and intimated that a country-wide search will be institued for the two men. Both Were Discharged. Maynard, or Mannard, had been discharged from the employ of Mrs. Stevens because he had Insulted the young girl and once had attempted to attack her. Wilkes was discharged because he became a “peeping Tom," and -\ as surly a .d threatening on the day he was ordered off the place. Wilkes knew Mr. Stevens would be away from home on the night of the murder. When working in the fields with the negro a month ago Mr. Ste vens told the negro that he would at tend the reunion, and remembered the negro had asked him the date when he would be away from home. The investigation conducted Friday by the officers developed the fact that Wilkes and Maynard were togeth*'- a great deal of the time. ADDITIONAL TRAIN SERVICE. Effective Sunday. June 1st, the Louisville and Nashville Railroad will establish double daily service between Cartersville, Ga„ and Etowah, Tenn. Traili 35 will leave Etowah 8:30 a. m., arrive Cartersville 9.25 a. m.; train 38 will leave Cartersville 10:30 a. m.. arrive Etowah 1:30 p. m.; train 37 will leave Etowah 2:20 p. m., ar rive Cartersville 5:20 p. m.; train 38 will leave Cartersville 7:12 p. m., arrive Etowah 10:10 p. m. adv’ City of Savannah Is Overhauled Entirely GERMAN WARSHIP ASHORE. I BERLIN, May 30.—The German cruiser Bleacher went ashore this aft- | ernbon during a heavy fog. Other - arshipa are standing by. Information was received Friday by W. H. Fogg, district passenger agent of the Central of Georgia Railroad, that the Savannah Line steamship City of Savannah left New York yes terday for Savannah for the first time since It was overhauled thoroughly. Improvement* consist of seven ad ditional stataroo ns, private baths in connection with large bed rooms and a barber shop similar to those on the City of St. Louis and the City of Montgomery. Tna City of Savannah I Is one of the most commodious ships i plying between New Xork and Savan- | nah. Former Columbus Woman Daad. COLUMBUS.—Mrs. Fran* White, a for.iter reslilmn of Columbus, la dead at her home ha Georgetown. S. C. Her body will be brought here tor the fu neral Saturday. Save money NOW on Furniture at High’s. TIT) flPCrTT TREATED. Quirk relief, | X swelling, abort breath I soon removed, often entire relief In lfito 26 days. Trial treatment sent FREE. | Write Or. M. H. Greens Sons, Box 0, Atlanta, Ga. 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