Atlanta Georgian. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, June 03, 1913, Image 2

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i 1 ) T 4 Wfmm” THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS. lie:: :z::::::::: 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.