Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1873-07-12
THE GOODRICH
TRAGEDY.
THE MURDERESS DIS
COVERED.
FULL AND COMPLETE CONFESSION
STATEMENT OF sUp'T. JoURDAN.



dard, on the night of the 2lst of March.
She yesterday made a full and complete con-
fession of her guilt to the police authorities.
How that confession came about and in what
manner the arrest was affected, appears from
the following statement made by Police Com
missioner Jourdan to representatives of the
press, at headquarters, this morning.
Gen. Jourdan said
''Gentlemen, Since the murder OF Chas.
Goodrich. in March last, on Degraw street,
near Third Avenue, the police of Brooklyn
have continued a steady and unrem ttng
search for the perpetrator of the crime. Not
only has Brooklyn been searched, but New
York, Philadelphia Boston, Baltimore, Wash
ington, and countless number Of smaller
places, in all directions. Men and women
have been sent out, following clues that were
sometimes slight and sometimes promising.
The primary object of our search was this
woman, Kate Stoddard, but so little was
known about her personally and so totally ig-
| norant were we Of her habits and surround
inss, that, at the commencement, there was
nothing to work upon. The photograph OBJ
tanned was an exceedingly poor one, but we
made the most of it and had duplicates put in
the hands of all the officers engaged in the
case. (Here the Gen. exhibited the photo
graph, which represented Kate as pleasant
sparkling eyes, lightsome expression and
buoyant manner. That photograph ndi-
Gates a woman in good condition, while Kate
Stoddard, as arrested, was about as thin and
emancipated as anybody you ever saw. We
only succeeded, after a patient search, in
finding one person who knew her positively.
bat for more than six weeks after the muir
der that person was laid up in bed sick. That
person was Miss Mary Handley, and immedi-
| ately upon her recovery we employed her
on the search. Kate Stoddard was met by
Miss Handey in the street on Tuesday last.
Miss Iandley was going to New York, and
Kate Stoddard was evidently coming from it
when the meeting by accident took place.
As soon as she met her Miss IIandley reeog-
nzed and followed her until she met a police
officer, whom she induced to made the ar
rest. 1t became of the first Importance to
| learn where she came FROM which she de-
clined to reveal. Her person, without con-
committant testimony, amounted to little.
The entire city searched for house
where a woman had been missing since Tues
day morning. This resulted in the discovery
that in a house on High street, between Jay
and Bridge streets, such a woman had been
missing. We had the woman who kept that
house sent to the station house, and there she
identified Kate as her boarder. From this
W roman we learned that Kate had been living
since last April in an unfinished room at the
place mentioned. After discovering the
house, we obtained locksmith and went to
it, We opened her trunks and in them dis
covered Goodrich missing property-a watch
chain, finger ring, seal and pocket book
with $40 in bills. This is belev sd to be the
identical money taken from the murdered
man. In addition to these articles, a revol-
yer was found in the trunk with the watch
/ If no pha m loo Nd
empty, (there were three bullets in Good
rich) 1t need only be added that Kate is
prepared to 60 on the stand and make before
the Coroner a full and complete confession Of
the whole matter After leaving the commits
sioners the reporter learned that Kate among
: other confessions. stated that the revolver
found in her trunk, was the weapon with
which she killed Goodrich Every article OF
property taken by her from the premises. she
! seems to have preserved. Since the time of
( the tragedy, she has had a terrible struggle
/ for life working at times as q sewing girl.
She has made money enough to buy bread at
other times she was compelled to sell her
clothes for sustenance, but curiously enough
while thus at the verge ofstarvation, she kept
the jewelry and money of her victim UNI
touched in her trunk. She had two trunks,
/ both of which were taken possession IF by
the police. In one of them was found an I'M
mense package of letters from her father and
mother. These letters show her home to be
at Middleborough, Mass, and that her real
name is Minnie Waltham The letters are
carefully and kindly written, showing the old
people to be full of solicituc for the moral
and material welfare of their daughter
There is nothing at all to justify the SUPPOSE
zion that they knew anything about the
crime. In addition to those letters from her
parents, two were found from Goodrich max
ing arrangements to meet her. The letters
Will be read at the inquest which takes place
Tomorrow at 10 o'clock.
The following is the statement OF the wo-
man herself to the police, relative 10 the muir
DIR. how it was comitted,
She had been living with "Chathe' as she
called the deceased and was greatly attached
to him. lie wanted to east her Off but She
loved him so much that she could not leave
him. She entreated on her knees that he
would allow her to remain, but lie was firm
and in fact was brutal in his treatment of her,
and Tie Thursday before the Friday on
which the body was found was the day fixed
for her to leave him. He threatened her with
all sorts of things if she dared to trouble him
further. She had remained in the house in
| Degraw street all the previous eveang and in
morning when Goodrich got up, she again
sought him not to cast her of. He was very
angry ana reused ilef request, or hear her at
all. He then went into the basement at the
( front of the house and proceeded to light the
Baltimore heater which was located there
The murderess says that she loved the man
so much that she could not leave him aid that
when she saw determined to discharge her,
she worked herselfup to murder him. She
had one of his revolvers in her pocket, not the
one the detectives found found laying at the
house beside the corpse, and while Goodrich
was STOPPING down on one knee, in the
act of lighting the heater, she drew the pistol
and pointing her hand toward him said "Char
lie He looked up and she shot him tire,
times.
After she committed the murder on Thurs
day morning she waited all day and night il
the house watching it. On Friday morning
she had occasion to go to New York, and ear
ly that morning she washed the blood from
the murdered man with a towel which was al