Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1875-09-10
The Qunsqueton Inquest.



ED. BULLETIS:-ln your last weeks
issue there is Il piece which, to those not
acquainted with the facts, would be de-
rogatory to the honor and standing of the
three persons who were the jurors at the
Coroner's inquest that was held here.
allude to the piece signed A. +. S. Now,
! claim the right TO give the facts as they
were.
About the first of April, 1870, dead
male child was found in the woods, about
ten rods west of j. NJ. Benthall's fence,
and ten rods north of the main road to
Independence, on the west side The
Coroner was summoned, and jury en-
paneled The evidence given by two
physicians was, that it would take about
one month for decomposition to take place
as ii had. Now, was there any suspicious
case that would fit the time? There was
but one, and this they were in duty bound
to look after
Some time in December, 1874, young
woman called Mrs Ellie Williams, came
here and took board with IL widow, stating
that her husband was in business in Chi
cago and could not get away, but had
sent her here for her health
Some time the last of February, 1873,
she gave birth to male child About the
18th of March, 1879, she, in company
with woman from this place, who at
that time had high standing in society,
went to Winthrop, took the cars east,
destination not known All that was
known about the woman was the above
statement. She wore Il breastpin ON
which We're two letters, f. L. Any qucs-
ton asked about her was answered by
rebuff. When the jury struck on the case,
the physician who had attended her was
"muchly mad, and the further they wet,
the worse he got, cursing. the Coroner, jury,
and every one who wanted to know any
thing about it; but when he was brought
on the stand, he admitted she was not IA
Mrs, but il Miss; but that he had not seen
her since she left here, neither knew where
she was, when there were three wit
ncsses testified that she went to lndepend-
went from here, and that lie was then
treating her for some real or chronic dis
ease.
When the officer went TO lndcpend-
cncc to subpoena now Miss Ellie, the
lady of the house where she was stopping,
told him there was no such person there,
neither had there been. And when they
gave in their evidence, her husband said
she, Ellie, had never been away from his
house since she went there first, that sic
did not have Il child With her, but that he
had seen her child only few days before
in Illinois. How did he know that it
was her child, he had never seen it here:
But his wife was the worst; three or four
times the lawyer tending the case started
to make out Il warrant for contempt be
fore she would answer. She went with
the woman (they claim that has got the
child now from Independence to Man
chester, meeting Effie and the other party
at Winthrop, changing or handing over
the child between there and Manchester,
and then taking the train back with Ellie
to Independence, the others, with the
child, going on east. Why such caution?
No one cares who has it. The husband
of the woman who went with Ellie from
here, took them to Winthrop. lie says,
on evidence, that they had something roll
ed up like II baby but he did not see any
baby, neither did he hear the least cry /;
and he also said he thought it Il very qui-
ct child
The girl who worked for the widow
where Ellie boarded testified that she was
discharged and taken home the day before
Ellie went away, and that she had receiv
ed letter from Lyons, Iowa, signed by
Ellie, stating that she understood that she
(the girl had her Child, and that she hop
ed to see them both soon
All the witnesses swore that they had
never seen, neither did they know Miss
Efiic Williams before she came here, nor
were they, in any way, interested in her
or her case, when it was all the Coroner,
Lawyer and jury could do to get them to
answer; and the physician said all the in
tercst he had was professional, yet he told
the woman from Independence, who tcsti-
fed, not to answer, and if they fined her,
he would see it paid Under these cir
cumstances, what could the jury do but
what they did-invcstigate the case? If
there was Islander, the witnesses brought
it out, and we think they are the ones
who were interested, mostly. As for A.
e. SIS. prosecution, ! don't think they
want amy more in the baby direction
Crime may not be fixed, but the color is
dark. If A. +. 5. wants any more he can
have it. \ JUROR
The above is in reply to n communca-
ton from Quasqueton, admitted to our
columns last week during the absence of
the editor. With our consent it should
not have appeared, for, whatever the mer-
its OF the controversy, we cannot see how
the public discussion of its details Will
any better bring out the truth than the le-
gal investigation it has already received.
The first communication given place, we
cannot In justice deny space for the reply,
but we assure our readers that they shall
not suffer the infliction of further details
of this neighborhood scandal, and the bad
blood growing out of it.-ED. BULLETIN.