Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1883-11-22
An Old Murder Recalled.


IF there were few Brooklyn detect
ives who had the insight into character,
the keen intuition that the chief pos
sesses, there would be some work done
that would astonish folks"
This remark was made by promin-
ent BROOKLYN official, who was not aware
he was addressing n reporter of The
World.
Detective work in Brooklyn is below
that of other cities, is il notp" the re-
porter asked
swell, detectives ere born and can
not be recruited from police ranks"
was the answer. Policemen rs Il rule
are not logical. They have little intel
lectual directness, except perhaps in the
use of the club. A detective must not
only be able to see point, but to hold
on TO it through all manner of compli-
cations and the inevitable side issues
which are so fatal to detective work.
Policeman as a rule are as garrulous rs
old women over their tea. There are
notable exceptions, OF course but it is
lamentably true that these exceptions
are rarely promoted. But to return to
the chief; l shall never forget how he
got at the facts of the Goodrich murder.
'It seemed next to impossible to OBJ
tain the proofs of her guilt, and the
chief was at his wits ends. To COM
plicate or rather aggravate the case still
more, the woman confessed TO him in
confidence that she committed the muir
der. She said:
81 did it chief, and | know you will
not give me away, but If you should
think proper to do so, my oath will be
worth as much rs yours. You will
swear told you, and | will swear l
didn't.
every endeavor to discover Hates
local habitation failed. 1t seemed an
excellent joke TO this strange wo-
man that she could tell the story of her
crime to the superintendent of police
and not have it of any value TO him as
evidence.
"'If send for YOU, she said her ex-
pressivc eyes dancing with fun. lit will
not be necessary TO communicate my
address, for YOU will not know where to
find me.
The chief had her in the station-house
at this time.
"'Yes, Kate, he said kindly, Il shall
know where TO find you, and promise
TO come as soon rs You send.
Then calling him back, she said: Il
have told you the truth. killed Char
lie Goodrich, and when YOU find where
live YOU will find trunk in my room
and in that trunk is the pistol that j
killed him with, II watch. and Il ring be-
longing to Charlie Goodrich. Besides
thnan thnr.. l.. lnayt ,,ailfp1 nf Iirt
in the trunk.
Dirt" said the chief. ''Why, what
in the world did You put dirt in your
trunk for?'
Because | loved the very ground
that Charlie Goodrich walked on" wGs
the very singular response.
After had killed him, chief" and
most all the defiance and fun faded
from the woman's face, Il went out
where had seen him walk hundreds OF
times and shovelled up the dirt and put
it in my trunk.
THE chief, who felt himself respon.
sible for the apprehension of the muir
derer, was still off the track. At last
bold thought struck him. The exhaust.
i've and eXhausting talks he had with
Kate demonstrated that Kate had
room, and that the room was i'm Brook
Ign. So he issued an order that inquiry
should be made at every house in the
city to discover if any woman had been
absent from her home for the length
of time that Kate had been a pris.
oner.
Three hundred women, including ser.
want girls who had left their places, had
been absent for the time stated. Then
the three hundred were sifted until il
was found that only four had been mys
teriously absent during this period.
Kate was one of the four, and in this
way was hunted down. In her room
was found the trunk, and in this trunk
the articles she had mentioned, dirt and
all.
From first TO last Kate Stooddard hac
never told the chief lie.-NeW YorI
World.