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THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS.
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take no further action until It la re-
ceived.
A certified copy of this report will
be placed In a safety deposit box at
the Barnett National Bank, so that
those who have valid reasons to ex
amine It may do so when proper au
thority is secured from the Coroner.
No sooner had the sudden and
mysterious death of Painter become
known than inspectors and special
agents of the insurance companies
carrying policies "ti his life began to
arrive in Jacksonville there was a
dozen or more here and they made in
dividual and collective investigations.
But they .like the Coroner, are await
ing the Baltimore report before tak
ing any action to contest or pay the
policies.
The genera] Impression in Insur
ance circles Is that the Mutual Life
will make the first move. Painter hav
ing secured $502,000 insurance in that
company. Those with smaller poli
cies will look to the Mutual to deter
mine their course of action.
Indications are. however, that the
insurance companies will contest un
der the first-year suicide clause In
corporated In mo^t policies. If this is
done it promises to he the biggest
piece of insurance litigation ever
fought out in the South and one of
the biggest in the whole country.
Dead Man Was 52 Years of Age
Painter was 52 years and 6 months
of age when he tiled. He was a na
tive of New York State, but had been
ip business in Jacksonville about fif
teen years. As editor of a farm jour
nal he became Interested In the ferti
lizer business and established the E.
O. Painter Fertilizer Company, be
coming its president. This company
1s capitalized at about $300,000, though
its actual value is said to be about
$100,000.
With Painter's stock In the com
pany. his handsome Riverside Drive
home and other Interests, his estate is
valued at about $150,000 and his in
come at $25,000 a year. In striking
contrast to this income Is the fact
that he combined annual premiums on
the Insurance he carried at the time
of death amount to about $60,000.
The first year’s premiums on the
million dollars new Insurance were
paid almost altogether in notes not
yet ematured and in stock in his fer
tilizer company. The policies were
made payable to his wife, daughter,
estate and the fertilizer company.
Much of the stock has been resold
by the insurance agents and-the notes
INSURANCE POLICIES
TOTAL $1,134,000
Of Painter’s total insurance, *1,-
134,000 of it was distributed as
follows:
LIFE POLICIES.
Mutual Life $ 502,000
Equitable . . . 190.000
Penn Mutual 100.000
New York Life . 100,000
Fidelity Mutual 70,000
Union Central 50,000
Prudential 12,000
Fraternal and miacefiane-
oua . 50,000
Total life $1,074,000
ACCIDENT POLICIES.
Travelers $ 20,000
Employers' Liability . . 15,000
U. S. Fidelity and Guar
anty - 10,000
Preferred Accident . 5,000
Illinois Commercial Men’s
Association 5,000
Travelers’ Protactive As
sociation 5,000
Total accident $ 60,000
Total insurance . $1,134,000
The Georgian-American Pony Contest
VOTE COUPON
Hearst's Sunday American and Atlanta Georgian
PONY CONTEST VOTE COUPON. TUESDAY, JUNE 3, 1913
5 VOTES
NOT GOOD AFTER JUNE 18, 1913.
Vote for
Address
CARRIERS’ AND AGENTS’BALLOT.
Hearst’s Sunday American and AtlantaGeorgian
Pony Contest Vote Coupon, Tuesday, June 3, 1913.
5 t/ATPQ NOT good after
¥WI JUNE 18, 1913.
Vote for
Address
SCHOOL BOYS’ AND GIRLS’ BALLOT.
discounted by Jacksonlvlle banks,
practically every financial institution
here holding some of the paper. The
effect of his death in business circles
can therefore be readily aeon.
Real Conditions Kept Secret.
The Jacksonville papers have given
but scant publicity to the case, for
fear of creating a panic and injuring
business conditions.
Painter was considered a perfect or
nearly perfect physical specimen. He
wan a pillar In the most fashionable
Baptist Church, a leader In the V. M.
O. A., and active in Board of Trade
circles. He was considered a most ex
emplary citizen and wan looked upoi*
with the utmost confidence in busi
ness cl nr’eg. When Painter met hln
death he was aboard a ferry boat
crossing the river to his fertilizer
plant. He stepped to the edge of the
boat and went over In midstream. A
lifeline was thrown to him, but he
apparently made no effort to grasp it,
sinking with the rope grazing hln
arms. The first theory whs accident.
Suic ide suspicions were aroused when
the insurance men became active.
Painter Policies All
Taken Out Recently
At a meeting of insurance men in
Jacksonville to consider the policies
held by Painter in the sum of $1,178,-
000, the following schedule of risks
was submitted, showing that nearly
all the policies were taken out within
the past five months:
$60,000, Union Central: ordinary
life, dated April 6, 1913. payable to es
tate. Policy delivered May 14. 1918.
Some delay in issue. Mr. Painter ap
plied for $92,000. which is the com
pany's limit at his age, 68. Only $50,-
000 was issued. He gave a note due
April, 1914, in payment of the pre
mium.
$8,000. Penn Mutual; ordinary life,
issued November 17, 1911; payable to
Martha S. Painter, wife.
$60,000, Penn Mutual; fifteen-year
term, issued February 24. 1913, pay
able to Martha S. Painter, wife. A
note was given for part of premium,
and an amount supposedly equal to
the agent's commission in stock of the
E. O. Painter Fertilizer Company for
the balance.
$47,000, Penn Mutual; ordinary life,
issued April 18, 1913; payable to es
tate. Note due August 23, 1913, given
for the premium.
$12,000, Prudential; continuous In
stallment, date May 3. 1910; payable
to Okie Painter, daughter. $60 per
month. The third premium was due
on this policy May 3. 1913. Premium
■was aot paid and was on grace period
at the time of insured’s death, May
22, 1913.
$50,000, New York Life; issued
March. 1912. payable to Martha S.
Painter, wife, and Okle t Painter,
daughter.
$40,000, New York Life; March. 1913,
payable to Martha S. Painter, wife,
and Okie Painter, daughter.
$10,000, New York Life; an old pol
icy, in force for some years.
Note for Premium.
$70,000, Fidelity Mutual: ordinary
life, issued April 21, 1912; payable to
Martha S. Painter, wife, and Okie
Painter, daughter. Note given broker
in payment of the premium. Note due
June *16. 1913.
$2,000. Mutual Life; date. January 25,
1891; payable to Martha S. Painter,
wife. Policy bears a loan of $933.
$12,000. Mutual Life; date. February
S, 1913; payable to Martha S. Painter,
wife. A note due in twelve months
from date given in payment of this
premium
$12,000. Mutual Life; date. February
3. 1912; payable to Okie Painter,
daughter. A note due in one year from
date given in payment of this pre
mium.
$50,000, Mutual Life; date, March
15. 1913; payable to E. O. Painter Fer
tilizer Company. Note due one year
White City Park Now Open
LOW ROUND-TRIP
RATE TO BALTI-;
MORE VIA SEA
BOARD.
ZZ0.85 from Atlanta, correspond- (
ingly low rates from other points. <
on sale June 6, 6, 7. Through [
trains, electric-lighted steel sleep- (
lng and dining cars, observation j
cars. City Ticket Office. 8S Peach- (
tres.
from date given In payment of this
premium.
$100,000, Mutual Life; date, March
27, 1913; payable to Martha 8. Painter,
wife, and Okie Painter, daughter. A
note due January 1, 1914, given In pay
ment (if the premium on this polidy.
Stock for Premium.
$50,000, Mutual Life; date, April 4.
1913; payable to Martha S. Painter,
wife. Premium on this policy paid
with stock in the E. O. Painter Fer
tilizer Company.
$25,000. Mutual Life; date, April 4.
1913; payable to Okie Painter, daugh
ter Premiums paid on this policy
with stock In the E. O. Painter Fer
tilizer Company.
$76,000. Mutual Life; date, April 23.
1913; payable to Okie Painter, daugh
ter. Premium on this policy paid
with stock in the E. O. Painter Fer
tilizer Company.
$50,000, Mutual Life; date. April 23,
1913; payable to Martha s’ Painter,
wife. Premium on this policy paid
with stock in the E. O. Painter Fer
tilizer Company.
$126,000. Mutual Life; date. May 2.
1913; payable to Martha S. Painter,
wife, and Okie Painter, daughter.
Premium on this policy paid with
stock in the E. O Painter Fertilizer
Company.
*50,000, Equitable; date, April 28,
1912; payable to the E. O. Painter
Fertilizer Company. Second premium
on this policy was due April 23. 1913,
and was on the 31 days’ grace period,
w hich had only two days more to run
on the day of Mr. Painter's death.
Another $50,000.
*50,000, Equitable; date. April 23
1918: payahle to Martha S. Painter
wife, and Okie Painter daughter]
each, *1,250 per year for twenty years
Premium on this policy was paid with
stock in the E. O. Painter Fertiliser
( ompany.
$10,000, Equitable; date, April 23
1913; payable to Martha S. Painter!
wife, and Okie Painter, daughter. Pre
mium on this policy paid with stock
in the E. O. Painter Fertilizer Com
pany.
$50,000. Equitable; date. April 7,
1913; payable to executors, adminis
trators or assigns. Premium on this
policy was paid with stock In the E.
O. Painter Fertilizer Company.
$15,000, Equitable; date. April 7.
1913; payable to executors, adminis
trators or assigns. Premium on this
policy was paid with stock® in the E.
O. Painter Fertilizer Company.
$15,000, Equitabdle; date, April 7,
1913. payable to executors, adminis
trators or assigns. Premium on this
policy was paid with stock in the E.
< >. Painter Fertilizer Company.
$50,000, Fraternal organizations and
in small policies generally distributed.
Accident Insurance.
$5,000, Travelers; date, June 2, 1905;
payable to Martha S. Painter, wife.
This policy has fully accumulated,
bringing it up to $7,500. the doubling
clause rendering the maximum bene
fits thereunder of $15,000.
$15,000, Travelers; date. April 28.
1913; payable to Martha S. Painter,
wife. Note for premium was given
broker. Note due June 15, 1913. The
doubling clause renders the maximum
benefits under this policy $30,000.
$10,000, U. S. Fidelity and Guar
antee Company; date, April 21. 1913;
payable to Okie Painter, daughter.
Premium not paid to company. Pre
sume that insured gave the broker a
note. The doubling clause on this
I' dicy places the maximum benefits
•
$6 '00. Preferred Accident; date,
October 26. 1905. The doubling clause
on this policy renders the maximum
benefits thereunder $10,000. or more.
$15,000, Employees’ Liability; date,
April 23, 1913; payable to Martha S.
Painter, wife. The doubling clause on
$999,000 Insurance
Taken Out This Year
Painter secured his insurance on the following dates;
February 3 -Mutual Life $ 24,000
February 24 Penn Mutual 60,000
March New York Life 40,000
March 16—Mutual Life 60,000
March 27—Mutual Life 100,000
Ap>9 4—Mutual Life 75.000
April 5 Union Ontral 50,000
April V—Equitable 80,000
April j.8—Penn Mutual 47.000
April 21—Fidelity Mutual 70,000
April 21 -United States Fidelity and Guaranty 10,000
April 23 -Equitable 110,000
April 23 -Employees’ Liability 15,000
April 23—Mutual Life 125,000
April 28—Travelers’ 16,000
May 2 Mutual Life 126.000
May 3—Prudential 12,000
Total issued in 1913 $999,000
Old policies:
March, 1912—New York Life ... $ 50,000
November 17, 1911 -Penn Mutual 3,000
October 26*. 1905 Preferred Accident 5,000
June 2. 1905 -Travelers’ ... 5,000
January 25, 1891—Mutual Life 2,000
New York Life 10,000
Fraternal and Miscellaneous 50,000
Illinois (’ommeroial 5,000
T P. A 5,000
Total previous to 1913 $135,000
this policy raises the maximum ben
efits to $30,000. The insured applied
for $30,000, doubling to $60,000. The
company declined half of the amount
applied for. The premium has not
been paid, the broker requesting
credit until early in June. (General
agent granted). Broker stating that
the insured asked him for credit until
then.
$5,000, Illinois Commercial Men’s
Association.
$5,000, Travelers’ Protective Asso
ciation.
No Analysis Made Yet, as
Vital Organs Are Missing
BALTIMORE. MIL. June 3.—A
heart, a stomach and two kidneys,
once the vital organs of E. O. Painter,
the fertilizer man of Jacksonville,
Fla., are missing somewhere between
Jacksonville and Baltimore.
They were supposed io have ar
rived at the Johns Hopkins Hospital
Saturday for the purpose of analysis.
That day the physicians of the hos
pital received word that they had ar
rived in the city, but when they were
not delivered at the hospital some
hours later a search for them was in
stituted which, to date, has proved
vain.
Arrangements for the analyzing of
the organs* were made at the Hopkins
early last week by a Redmond O.
Stewart, who .«ald, according to the
hospital authorities, that he repre
sented the Prudential Life Insurance
Company.
Stewart said at the hospital that
Painter had died suddenly and under
rather unusual conditions and held
the theory that he might have com
mitted suicide. The insurance com
pany had demanded an analysis of
the organs, he said, before entering
negotiations for* the payment of the
policy which the deceased held in
that company.
Johns Hopkins authorities agreed
to make the analysis, and Saturday
being the date set for examination,
everything was placed in readiness
for the analysis. They are still wait
ing.
At the offices of the Prudential
company In this city absolute Igno
rance of the shipment to this city of
the organs is professed. They say,
however, that the arrangements for
the analysis might have been made
by a representative from the home
office of the company at Newark, N. J.
Rival of Weston on
Long Race With Him
NJjJW YORK. June 3.—Cheered by a
big crowd, John Ennis, aged 71, of
Stamford, Conn., set out at noon to
day to walk the 1,446 miles to Min
neapolis.
Ennis made the start one day later
than did Edward Pay son Weston, his
ancient pedestrian enemy. He hopes,
giving Weston a 24-hour handicap, to
beat him Into Minneapolis, which is
also Weston's goal.
Baby's Body Found;
Police Investigate
Wrapped in an old skirt, the body
of a six or seven months old baby
was discovered in a gully at the
Williams street rock quarry, near
Third Street, by R. B. Wood, a driver
for the city, Tuesday morning.
It is believed to have been an in
fanticide. Detectives are investi
gating.
Florida Assembly
Ignores Constitution
TALLAHASSEE, FLA.. June 3 - Both
houses of the Florida Legislature have
adopted a resolution to adjourn the ses
sion sine die Friday noon, one day earlier
than the constitution allows.
The resolution which abolishes the as
sembly for State commission rule did not
reach a vote-to-day.
Hellfire Only Myth,
Say Bible Students
HOT SPRINGS. ARK.. June 3.—
Hell and hellfire are myths, in the
opinion of members of the Interna
tional Bible Students Association
who are holding a convention here.
Th *y ask ministers to discard the
"offending words.”
Laughs Himself Sick
At Vaudeville Joke
MILWAUKEE, WIS., June 3.—-A
veteran vaudeville joke heard for the
first time by Julius Jesvvein, aged 34,
made him to laugh so loud and so
long that the show was interrupted
until he was helped out to the side
walk.
He continued laughing until at the
end of sixteen hours he became so
weak he lost consciousness. Physi
cians to-day fear the violent laughter
will cause his death.
Broyles Finds Way
To Forestall Mayor
Blind tiger operators In future will get
a twenty-nine-day sentence instead of
thirty days. Recorder Broyles has
found a way to circumvent Mayor Wood
ward. who. the Recorder alleges, has
interfered with cases in the Recorder's
jurisdiction.
The Mayor can pardon prisoners sen
tenced on a blind tiger charge to thirty
days or mo'». bvt In cases where the
sentence is less he can not interfere.
! Recorder Broyles Monday afternoon
] sentenced T R. Preston to twenty-nine
! nays in the stockade on a charge of sell
ing liquor.
Memphis Grand Jury
Probes Martin Case
MEMPHIS, TENN., June 3.— Attorney
General Estes to-day admitted that the
j Grand Jury was examining witnesses
with a view to finding an indictment
against Joseph W. Martin, former pres
ident of the Martin-Phillips Cotton
Company, of Memphis, which went into
the hands of a receiver after Martin's
disappearance In London.
Estes would not say for what of
fense the indictments might be found
The home of T H. Knox. ?3 Kuhns
Street, was robbed late Monday night.
The thief got a gold witch. Clifford
Howell, a negro, is held.
TECH'S GROWTH
AMAZES OLD
Alumni, Arriving for Commence
ment, Startled by Progress
Made in 25 Years.
Alumni of t’ech are drifting into
town for the great commenrement
and quarter-centennial celebration to
be held June 6 to June 11. Some of
them recall that ^5 years ago was
nothing more than a log cabin with
a modest workshop and are amazed
at the magnificent and Imposing col
lege confronting them to-day, cover
ing 25 acres, with sixteen buildings,
valued at approximately *800,000.
The commencement exercises will
open with a society debate by the
Henry W. Grady Literary Society,
June 6 at 8:15 o’clock, in the Tech
Y. M. C. A. Auditorium. On June 7
the Freshmen oratorical contest is
scheduled to occur in the same build
ing Sunday. June 8, at 11 o’clock. In
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Dr.
Thomas E. Green, of Chicago, will
deliver the baccalaureate sermon, “A
Veiled Vision.”
Claxton to Give Address.
At 10 o’clock Monday, June 9, there
will be a meeting of the school trus
tees. At 3 p. m., in the Tech Y. M.
C. A.. Dr. P. P. Clqxton, United States
Commissioner of Education, will de
liver a literary address. From 5 p.
m to 7 p m. President K. G. Mathe-
son will hold a reception. At 8 p m.
one of the features of the commence
ment. the Junior prom, will be held
on the campus.
Tuesday, June 10, is "Founders’
Day.” At 9 a. m. there will be a
meeting of the alumni In the Tech
Y. M. C. A. Auditorium. At 10; 30
Founders' Day exercises are sched
uled in the Auditorium; at 3:30 Class
Day exercise* and pageant on the
campus; at 8:15 C. Alphonzo Smith,
Ph. D., L.L. D., will deliver the
Founders' Day oration In the Grand
Opera House; at 9:30 p. m. there will
be a reception by Governor and Mrs.
Joseph M. Brown at the mansion.
Shop Exhibit June 11.
Wednesday, June 11, the boys will
be given a chance to show what they
have accomplished. From 8:30 to 10
a. m. a shop exhibit will be held. At
10:30 graduating exercises will be
held in the Grand Opera House. Dr.
Herbert S. Bigelow, of Cincinnati, as
commencement orator, will deliver an
address on "Old Institutions and New
Ideas.” At 1:30 delegates, trustees,
faculty, alumni and graduation class
win attend the Chamber of Commerce
luncheon.
Since 1905, when Dr. Matheson as
sumed the presidency, approximately
thirteen acres of land have been
added to the campus; the Income of
the school has been nearly doubled;
the Carnegie Library has been built
and its support provided for. A night
school has been established, which
gives Industrial education to a large
number of Atlanta artisans and em
ployees generally. A large and flour
ishing Summer School has been es
tablished. The Joseph Brown Memo
rial Hospital has been built. The
beautiful Rockefeller Y. M. C. A.
building has been erected. TJiree of
the five units of the handsome fire
proof mechanical engineering build
ings have been erected.
The finest athletic field in the South
has been secured, providing two
complete gridirons and baseball fields,
tennis cotorts, a quarter-mile track
and other athletic equipment. A re
inforced concrete stadium will be
built this summer.
Enrollment Is Doubled.
A number of scholarships paying
from *150 to *200 per year to needy-
young students have been secured.
The enrollment of the school has been
practically doubled, and large addi
tions have been made to the faculty
and all courses have been raised in
standard of efficiency. Decided im
provements have been made on the
campus so that it Is rapidly becom
ing an attractive park.
Through the will of Julius L.
Brown, two-thirds of his estate was
left to the school. Tentative dona
tions In equipment for a new heating,
power and lighting station amount
ing to more than *100,000 have been
secured. A course in architecture has
been added and, generally speaking,
large additions of equipment have
been made to the various departments
of the school. The reputation of the
school for work of the highest order
has been extended throughout the
country.
Atlanta Rail Mail
Division Advanced
The Atlanta and Montgomery di
vision of the Railway Mail Depart
ment, one of the most important be
tween New York and San Francisco,
was placed in Class “C" following a
long conference with Postmaster Gen
eral Burleson In which John Hogan,
national auditor of th^ Railway Mail
Association; Senator Hoke Smith.
Representative Schley Howard. P. J.
Schardt and H. G. Swanson partici
pated.
The committe was in session nearly
a week. Eleven Congressmen and
four Senators supported the conten
tion that the line should be classed as
a “C” division.
Woman Sees Her
2 Grandsons Drown
ORLANDO, FLA.. June 3— Frank
Pounds. Jr., and Fred Wilmott, Jr., 5
and 6 years of age. were drowned in
I>ake Lucerne here yesterday while
the grandmother of the Wilmott child
looked on in horror.
The boys were playing in a boat
which floated out into the lake where
the water is ten feet deep. Thinking
it shallow, both jumped out of the
boat. The bodies were soon recov
ered. but efforts to resuscitate them
were unavailing.
D R. HERBERT S. BIGE
LOW, of Cincinnati (at
top), Dr. Thomas E. Green,
Chicago, and Dr. P. P. Clax
ton, U. S Commissioner of Ed
ucation, who will spejik dur
ing Tech’s commencement
celebration.
SETS ALTITUDE RECORD.
VERSAILLES, FRANCE. June 8—A
new altitude record for an aeroplane
carrying two persons was made here
to-day by Aviator Perrl, who ascended
16,832 feet in a monoplane with a woman
passenger.
“Woman With Money Mark for
Designing Men,” She Says.
“I’ve Learned a Lesson,”
PHILADELPHIA. June 3.—The ap-
pointment of a master to take testi
mony In the case of Mrs. Daisy Opie
Grace, who, in September of last year,
filed suit for divorce from her hus
band, Eugene Grace, will be as«ked for
by Mrs. Grace’s counsel some time
this week.
Grace failed to reply to notice of
the action and a verdict for the plain
tiff virtually is assured.
If Grace fails to appear at the hear
ing before a master Mrs. Grace will be
called to the stand, her libel in divorce
read, and, after she has been sworn,
the decree likely will be awarded her
by default.
Personal service was not obtainable,
because the respondent failed to come
within the jurisdiction of the county
courts* here, and, under the law, it
was necessary to advertise the suit by
legal notices in the newspapers.
Taka Testimony Next.
This advertising was made return
able yesterday, and the next move
will be for the courts to appoint a
lawyer to take testimony on the
charges of cruel and barbarous treat
ment, on which the woman, who fig
ured in one of the most sensational
trials in recent years, bases her suit.
Mrs. Grace said to-day:
"I do hope to be free from that
man forever. The world has never
known what I had to endure from
him, and now that I shall have the
opportunity to tell what he did to me.
I know that opinion will change. It
Is true that sentiment was all against
me. because of the part that I was
assumed to have taken in the shoot
ing.
Won’t Wed Again, She Says.
“I have had enough of men like
him. Since my acquittal T have been
more careful than ever of my associ
ates. and I tell you that the costly
lesson I have learned has taught me
to beware.
"When a woman has a little money,
she is a mark for designing men, and
the race in predisposed to that sort of
thing.
“Once I am free again. I tell you
it will be a long time before any man
can court me."
Atlanta Suffragists
To Hear Addresses
The Atlanta Equal Suffrage Asso
ciation will hold a public meeting
Wednesday at 3 o’clock in the Carne
gie Library.
Philip Weltner will speak on “Crime
and Its Cure.” Mrs. Fred Ingraham
will urge the necessity for matrons in
the jails to care for women inmates.
“Why I Believe in Woman Suf
frage" will be the subject of an ad
dress by R. F. MacDonald a business
man of Atlanta, who will treat the
subject from a practical viewpoint. <
IS CALLED
drawn revolver, backed up by Sheriff
McCurdy.
According to a statement made on
Tuesday by one of the members of ths
"mob,” the lynching bee was framed
by Chief Lanford, with the knowledge
and consent of Sheriff McCurdy and
a number of farmers.
Ruse to Get Confession Denied.
“The plan,” declared the “mob”
member, “was this: Sheriff McCurdy
and Detective Rosser brought the ne
groes out to the Stevens farm, and
after tying them to a tree, stepped
behind the barn. Then the farmers
who were in on the deal began threat
ening the negroes, and the original
plan was to get a rope and advance
upon them, yelling that we were going
to lynch them. Then Chief Lanford
was to rush up and rescue the ne
groes. It was hoped to get a confes
sion out of them while they were
frightened.
“But a number of farmers came
out who were not in on the frame-up,
and they wei*e In dead earnest. The
crowd carried the men to the baru
and started to put a rope over a
rafter when Lanford appeared. It is
very probable that the negroes would
have been hanged If he had not shown
up.”
Chief Lanford declared this morn
ing that the lynching was not a
frame-up, but declared a moment
later that he thought the farmers
were only going to frighten the ne
groes. Detective Rosser declined to
comment on the affair at all. He
said he had not seen it and didn’t
know anything about It.
U, S. Biggest Market
Place for Canada
Clews, First Taken as Slaying Evi
dence, Believed to Strengthen New
Theory—Negroes Have Alibi.
With an alibi practically proved by Walter Wilkes and Ernest
Maynard, negroes held on suspicion in the Stevens ease, detectives
who are investigating the mystery are inclining to an accident
theory to account for the burning of the Stevens home and the
death of Mrs. Sarah C. Stpvens and her daughter, Nellie.
Detective Rosser, Sheriff McCurdy and Deputy Sheriff Livsey,
of DeKalb County, working on the case, have finally learned the
truth of the finding of the ax, hoe, revolver cartridge, the dis
charged shotgun shell and other evidence, which it is claimed sus
tains the theory of accidental death more than it does the theory
of murder.
The investigations of the of
ficers, according to one of them,
has developed the following
facts:
The ax was found 60 feet from
where the bodies lay, and the
blade was imbedded in the
ground. It was later carried into
the ruins where the bodies lay.
The door—there was but one—
leading from the hallway Into
Mrs. Stevens’ room was locked.
The hoe was found In the hall
way, nearer Mr. Stevens’ room
than the room where the bodies
were found.
The exploded shotgun cartridge
was found more than a hundred
yards from the house, at a spot
where it is said Mrs. Stevens had
been shooting at birds.
The exploded revolver cartridge
was found a hundred yards from
the house, at the edge of the
road. If had not been in the fire
at all.
There was no truth in the re
port that an exploded shell was
found in the shotgun discovered
in the bedroom. There was a
shell In the gun, but the brass had
melted and run Into the barrel.
It was impossible to tell whether
it had been fired or discharged
by the heat.
Thinks Fire Cracked Skulls.
F. W. Patterson, of the firm of H.
M. Patterson & Son, the undertak
ers who prepared the bodies for bur
ial, told a Georgian reporter Tuesday
morning that he does not think the
skulls were crushed. He said it was
impossible, owing to the condition of
the bodies, to tell how Mrs. Stevens
and her daughter were killed. He de
clared that the skulls of the women
looked more like they had been crack
ed open by the heat than crushed.
Mr. Patterson said it Is not an un
usual thing for the bones of human
beings to be cracked by the heat when
caught in a fire. He said he could
find, in a minute examination of the
bodies, no traces of foul play. Neither
of the bodies were examined by a
physician.
One of the officers declared to-day
that the hoe, supposed to be one of the
weapons with which the murder—if
there were a murder—was committed,
was an old implement that had been
under the house for several years.
Sheriff McCurdy said that the hoe did
not look as though it had recently had
a handle in it. The band of steel
which holds the handle in place was
missing when the hoe was found, and
has not been located.
Theory of the Tragedy.
Detectives declare that Mrs. Ste
vens’ revolver—the one Wade Stevens
took to Chattanooga—was .38 caliber
instead of a .32, and that the cartridge
found near the road had been fired by
Mrs. Stevens some time previous to
the burning of thei* home.
The. accident theory, based on the
new developments, is that Mrs. Ste
vens and her daughter, being fright
ened because they were alone, had
locked the door of their room when
they retired; that about midnight,
when they were sound asleep, the
house caught fire; that with the door
locked they knew nothing of the blaze
until it had gained considerable head
way; that they arose from their beds,
and, half-suffocated with smoke, stag
gered to the door, forgetting that it
was locked; that they had reached the
door and couldn’t get It open; that
they then started for the windows and
were overcome before they could reach
them.
* Sheriff McCurdy declared to-day
that, in the light of recent develop
ments in the case, the only circum
stance that points to murder is the
position in which the shotgun was ly
ing when found. It was as though it
had fallen from Mrs. Stevens’ hand.
It has been learned, however, that the
gun habitually stood in a corner of
the bed room, and the theory is ad
vanced that when the flames exploded
the shell the recoil threw the gun into
the middle of the room.
Police to Sift Evidence.
Though all indications now point to
accidental burning as the solution of
the mystery. Sheriff McCurdy and De- j
tective Rosser said to-day they will
continue to work on the murder theory
until It is exhausted or evidence ob
tained to determine whether there was
a murder or whether the women were
caught in the burning of their home.
Detective Rosser practically admit
ted on Tuesday that the two negroes
held under suspicion, Walter Wilkes
and Ernest Maynard, had proven
alibis. He is not yet through with
his investigation, however, and the
negroes will not be released until
after their alibi is proven beyond
the shadow of a doubt. Both men
are now locked up in the DeKalb
County jail at Decatur.
Because not all of the crowd of
farmers who gathered at the scene of
the crime Monday afternoon were let
in on the secret, a dramatic ‘‘third
degree” to obtain a confession from
Wilkes and Maynard not only failed
of its purpose, but almost developed
into a real lynching. The lives of
the negroes were saved, it is reported,
only when Chief of Detectives Lan-
***** appeared on the scene with
WASHINGTON, June 3.—Accord
ing to a report made public to-day
by the Department of Commerce, the
United States ranks second as a cus
tomer for Canadian products and first
as a supplier of Canadian needs.
Canada buys more from the United
States than from all other nations
combined. We also would take the
bulk of the exports except that Cana
da has little to sell that is not pro
duced also in our own country.
The larger takings of Canadian
wheat constitute the principal factor
that makes England loom larger In
the export trade.
Pushes Bet Winner
30 Miles in Barrow
SPOKANE, WASH., June 3— R05
McCampbell, of Okanogan, Wash., es
corted by a drum corps, made a thir
ty-mile hike from Okanogan to To-
nasket, trundling a gorgeously trim
med and canopied wheelbarrow in
which sat George Hopkins, the man
who won the bet as to the probable
date of entrance into Okanogan of
the New Croville-Wenatchee branch
of the Great Northern Railway.
If the linA had reached Okanogan by
April 10 Hopkins would have been the
motive power, with McCampbell his
passenger.
Record Graduation
Class at Normal
MILLEDGEVILLE, GA., June 3.—
The Georgia Normal and Industrial
College closed here yesterday with the
largest graduating class In the history
of the institution.
The baocalaureate sermon was
preached by Bishop Warren Candler
to a congregation of 1,600.
The board of trustees to-day
changed the name of Lamar Hall,
which was named in honor of the late
Richard N. Lamar, to Terrell Hall, in
honor of the late Joe Terrell. The
name of Science Hall was changed to
Parks Hall, in honor of President M.
M. Parks.
Babes, Buried Alive
By Maniac, Still Live
ATLANTIC CITY, June 3.—Two of
the three young children of George
Walls, proprietor of the Chelsea baths,
who were buried alive by a maniac
yesterday, were to-day believed to
be dying.
The lunatic, said to be the wayward
son of a prominent Philadelphia fam
ily, Is under constant guard in the
Jail.
POLICEMAN DROPS DEAD.
MACON, GA., June 3.—Policeman
William Avent jumped off a street car
last night during a downpour and
started on a run toward his home a
block away'. Just as he reached his
front gate he fell dead of heart fail
ure.
A WHOLESOME SUMMER DRINK
Hertford's Aeld Phosphate
Batter than lemons or limes—healthful and
delicious. Refreshes and invigorates. Adv
We have Beautiful Bedding
Plants 3c each. Atlanta Floral
Co,, 555 £. Fair Street.