The daily citizen. [volume] (Asheville, N.C.) 1889-1890, 1889-11-03
HOW 1T WAS DONE.
bob HEFFER TELLS THE STO-
RY OF CRONIN'S DEATH.

He COrrObOrates GiIIette's TeStI-
nOny-Chas. J. Carlson and His
Mother TestIfy-They All Seem
to Know Burke.
CHICAGO, November "A special dis
patch from Winnipeg this morning says:
assistant States Attorney Baker, Of
Chicago, had long interview with Bob
Hefer yesterday, and from him re-
ceived a corrOboration of many OF the de-
tails connected with the butchery of DR..
Cronin, which Gillette recounted on
Thursday. Burke, according to Gillette,
took quite fancy to Heffcr at first, and
was very communicative with him tell
ing him many tales about the crime. He
told Heffer that Coughlin was the main
actor in the tragedy, and had engaged
both him and Cooney to participate in
the crime. He told Heffer that sandbags
were used by two of the assassins, while
the third welded a common baseball
club. Burke was under the impression
that Cronin was being decoyed to the
cottage under the prcteXt that he was
going to attend the woman mentioned IN
Yesterdays dispatch. -Four men were
waiting in the cottage for him. They lis
tened for the sound of wheels. Aninstant
later the doctor hurried up to the door.
He knocked loudly and hastily as if he
realized that his presence was urgently
required Two of the assassins stood
behind the door ready to strike, while
one of the Others from the inner room
called out in loud voice, Come in. -
The door was quickly opened, and the
doctor strode in. The instant he was
in, one of the assassins slammed the
f,,,,ly he. n
a terrible blow with the sandbag. The
doctor fell heavily to the floor. Burke
ALWAYS declined to say who struck the
first blow.
Baker saws it makes it quite clear that
il was Burke himself, else he would have
mentioned the name. He always spoke
about four taking part and pounding the
doctor at the same time The moment
the doctor was down, the wholetour were
on him, and, with sandbags and clubs,
pounded the life out of him. The poor
man struggled and moaned awfully, and
blood poured from his mouth, nose and
ewes. Nearly twenty minutes elapsed be
fore he ceased to gasp. Then the tiends
stripped the blood stained clothing off
him. and one of them pounded his face SO
as to make it impossible to recognize the
over and the body was crammed into it
One of the quartette went out and
brought an express wagon which had
been left in a convenient place. When
they went to carry the trunk out blood
was dripping from it and ran on the
floor and some of their boots The trunk
was set down, and these leaks stopped
with cotton batting which was found in
the doctors instrumental case. The
trunk and it's contents were then taken
to the lake. Coughlin driving the horse
There was no boat at the point expected
and they tried to shove the trunk out
into the water, but it would not
work. Anxious to get rid OF the body
some way, Burke suggested that it b'
thrown into catch basin and the sug
gestion was adopted
Charles ]. Carlson, son OF the owner o
the Carlson cottage, was the first wit
ness in the Cronin case this morning
He testified as follows: 81 was sittint
with my wife and my father in the house
in rear of 1872 Ashland avenue, i'll th'
forenoon, sometime about the 2Oth o
March last, when there was a sharl
knock at the door, and a gentleman
came and said he wanted to rent a hous
and my father went to the house will
him and showed him around, and h
came in again, and made out receip
for a months rent i'll advance. Th
stranger said that he expected som
brothers and a sister from Baltimore t.
come and keep house with him. He CAV
his name as Frank Williams; subse
uuentlv he bought some furniture. In tn
evening about 730 O'Clock William
came again April Goth, to pay the secon
months rent. | never saw William
again until | saw him i'll Winnipeg
The witness was here shown piece {
CARPET, and identified it as the one he ha
seen on the parlor floor of the cottage.
Ouestion-"Can you point out Fran
Williams i'll the court room"
Answer-"Yes sir
Question: Point him out please
Answer-"Thc second one there,
pointing to Burke.
The witness then proceeded with hi
testimony, saying that after receiving.
letter from Williams relnquishing til
cottage, he entered it through the VIII
dow on May 10th. The carpet was gor
off the floor and it looked as if they ha
poured some paint on the floor as II the
were irving to cover it. 1t had not bee
brushed over in certain places. Foun
some stains on the base board tha
looked like blood. There was anoth'
large stain towards the north wall an
at the center of the floor; also found or
arm of the rocker broken and lose, an
the dresser and washstand in the cent
ofthe room. The floor was painted onl
in the centre of the room, and on Il
north side. Towards the south wa
there was no paint at allin certain place
saw several stains on the wall. lhei
were stains all along on the paper an
along on the south base board in var1oI
places that seemed to be blood. Thel
were places on the floor that were nj
covered with paint where there we
stains still showing. | saw foot prin
as if they had stocking feet and as
they had painted in their stocking feet
the hallway and in the house. Reteren
to stocking feet was ordered stricken OF
by the court. The witness then indie
ted on a diagram the location of stain
Kunze was pointed out to him by t
counsel for the State, but the -witne
could not identity him as any one he h:
ever seen before.
During all of the time in which re
was paid, the cottage remained unocc
pied.
The witness was subjected to a loi
cross-examiuation which did not seem
develop any new facts. He was follow
Inv johanna Carlson, his mother.
Mrs. Carlson testified that on the Su
dav following the 4th of May, when S
first went out, she noticed spots on I
steps, and that both steps and walk
the cottage showed that there had be
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