Omaha daily bee., 1889-05-11
ALAS FOR DR.. CRONIN !
A Startling and Disgusting Confess
fession Concerning Him.
BETTER THAT HE WE'RE DEAD.
Instead of Martyr He Is n Base
Criminal Fleeing Affri2hted
From the Sword of
Stern Justice.
Revolving Revelations of Dupe.

shouting plot ana 'aSSaSSlnatl0n' Tor Jnc
past six days, are dumbfounded at to.nights
developments. On the other hand, the
friends of Alexander Sullivan, who it was
insinuated by the Croninites, was in some
way connected with the doctors disappear
ance, are greatly pleased at the turn affairs
have taken, and express their satisfaction
that the ridiculous idea of plot to assassi-
nate or kidnap Cronn or any other member
Of an opposing faction in the land league has
been exploded. From the confession of
Frank Woodruff, to the city police, there
appears to be but little doubt that DR.. Gro
min has left the city to avoid the conse-
quences of his connection with case of
abortion which resulted in the death of the
unfortunate woman whose body was CON
veyed to secret place OF burial IN the
bloody trunk found in Lake View, Sunday
night, and which friends of Cronin have
been inclined to believe, contained his
manged remains.
Last night an officer from the Twelfth
street station arrested young man who was
trying to sell white horse and wagon in a
livery stable near the station, for a small
sum of money. When taken to the station
the man gave his name as John Brown, and,
when asked the routine questions always ad-
dressed to prisoners, betrayed much emo
ton, and asked for Captain O'Donnell. He
was taken to the captains office, and in the
presence OF several officers told startl ng
terry. To-day the police investigated tn e
story ana found it corroborated by many cir
cumstances which tend to show its truthful
ness. Browns real name is Frank G. Wood
ruff, and he has been working for Dean
& Co., livery stable keepers at
404 Webster avenue. His story
as reported by the authorities is to the effect
that a week ago Wednesday, in talking with
a man named William King, he (Woodruff)
had complained of being out of money, hav
ing lost considerable playing cards. and said
that it was necessary for him to secure some
thing to do that would pay better than work,
ing in livery stable. King said he could
put Woodruff in the way Of making some
money easily.
Saturday evening, just at dusk, King called
Woodruff out of the stable and asked if he
could get horse and wagon out without any
one knowing 1T, and said he would give
Woodruff S25 if he could do it. Woodruff
said he could, and place of meeting at
O'Clock in the morning was agreed upon
Woodruff left the wagon out doors in The
alley before going to bed, and when all the
other employees had retired, he stole
noiselessly down stairs, took out horse,
hltched up, and meeting King, they drove
together to a barn in the rear of big house
on State street. AS they wheeled up III
front of the barn, Two men came out. One
was a man whom Woodruff calls Dick Fair
burn. The other man Woodruff feels sure
was DR.. Cronin. Although it was quite
dark at the time, he had several oppOrtuni-
ties to look closely at the mans face, and
| asserts that he answers Cronins description
| in many ways.
The other men addressed this person as
doc" The three men went into the barn
| together and returned with trunk, which
they lifted into the wagon and then climbed
| in. They then drove straight through the
alley to the first cross street, over to Dear
born street, and up Dearborn to Lincoln park.
81 heard several expressions in converse
tion between the men, said Woodruff,
(which convinced me there was a body in the
trunk In the first place, / noticed that
| Cropin was very anxious for us to hurry
| Two or three times he said: Get out of here
| boys, get out OF here quick noticed the
| trunk smelled as If there was decaying flesh
| within it. We drove nearly to the north end
| of the park, then stopped minute near some
| bushes King and Fairburn were with me.
| We left Cronn at the barn, and l remember
| as looked back at him that one OF his eyes
| was black as if he had been struck. At the
| bushes we lifted the trunk out, ana | held
| the horse while 1t was opened | then saw
| my suspicious were correct, There was :,
| body in the trunk. They lifted it out in sew
| eral pieces. lcan't say positively whether it
was the body of aman or woman, except from
| one circumstances. | heard King say:
"'Here's where we leave Allie
"Fairburn answered: Yes, and if you
had let Tom alone we would have had Doc
I in here with her.
"These remarks passed while they were
carrying The trunk back into the bushes. l
noticed each piece was carefully wrapped in
| something that looked like cotton. King
| gave me $25, told me to drive on and get rid
| of the trunk and get The horse back in the
| barn.
al began to feel a little shaky, and
| whipped the horse into gallop. ! don't
think | was over fifteen minutes on the run.
Finally dumped out the trunk and turned
| back. 1t broke open as it fell, but did not
| wait to see in what manner it lay or just
how the pieces were placed. l returned TO
| the barn"
~
versation he overheard between Cronin,
| Fairburn and King, that the body in the
| trunk was that of a woman, whose death re-
| suited from an operation, perhaps performed
| by DR.. Cronn. He draws this conclusion,
| not only from the words he overheard, but
| also from the anxiety evinced by the doctor
| to get the body out of the way, and from the
| fact that Cronn had apparently recently
been struck by some one.
Woodruff first read of Cronln's disappear
| ance Tuesday, aud also read the story re-
| lating 10 the finding of the empty trunk. He
was greatly frightened, and thinking the
| ofncers were certainly on his track, took this
| means to get out of the city. He had some
| money remaining, but decided to obtain
| little more, aud stole the identical horse and
wagon which he had used last Saturday
night. The result was his arrest and con-
fession.
Woodruff is Of the opinion that Cronin is IN
| the city: that King knows of his where
abouts, and that if King can be found, he can
| tell where Cronin is. Search has been made
| at point in Lincoln park, where, on the
| lake shore, Woodruff is said to have
| left Cronin and the others with the
body. The unusually heavy rains have
| interfered with the work. Except on one
| side, the lake stretches away for miles in
| every direction. Within the park near by is
| a large pond. Both the lake and the pond
are beng dragged. The residence, TO which
belongs the barn from where the trunk is
| claimed TO have been carried, belongs TO a
| well-to-do citizen named Waterous. He dis
CLAIMS all knowledge of the singular affair.
| A pretty brunette named Allie or Alice
| Villayaso has been missing from the neigh
borhood near which is located the barn
| where Woodruff is said 10 have
met Cronin and the latter's COM
| pauons. Her parents are in rather
| humble circumstances and heretofore little
| attention has been paid TO her disappear
| ance. Several personals" addressed to her,
| or relating TO her have appeared in the papers
/ Of late, but the advertisements contain little
or nothing definite.
| CONKLIN DON'T BELIEVE 1T.
| Saloonkeeper Conklin, with whom Cronin
| lived, was Informed tonight OF Woodruh's
statement, Conkllng declared there could
| be nothing in the story and once more in
sisted that the doctor had been murdered by
certain Irish uatiOralists, who, according to
| Conklin, were enemies of Cronin.
II He in Toronto?
ToRoSTo, Ont, May l0-A man alleged TO