The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-07-02
STILL A MYSTERY.
An Illinois Case Recalling Will
lam Highs Death.
In Both the Victim Was Lured to Public
Park-Evidenees of Woman's Pres
ence in thu Two Instances.

According TO accounts received by telegraph,
there Is considerable excitement IN Ottawa, Ill.
over The mysterious murder OF man In one OF
the public parks. His name was David Moore
and he was travelling salesman for the Scott
Lumber Company OF Merrill, Wis.
Ii appears that he was decOyed to the park by
4 woman aud there brutally beaten 10 death with
a couplHg-pin and robbed Although the dis
patches say mat the police are In a fair way to
clear up the mystery surrounding The ease and
bring the guilty parties 10 justice, one OF them
hIyiug already confessed, the cIse in many fea :
lures strongly resembles which occurred
here about three aud half years ago, and which
has never been cleared Up.
The case in question is that OF William High,
young Pennsylvania, whose body was found in
elump OF bushes In Golden Gate Park with
bullet-nOle In The head. There were signs around
the spot Where the body was found which would
indicate that the young man had met with viO-
lence at the hands of some other person, and had
not committed suicide.
A WOMAN IN THE CASE.
In Ottawa, the body OF Moore was found In an
Out-of-ihe-way corner of The park. There was
nothing In the way OF valnables left on the
corpse, and In the bushes near by was found a
wOman's pocket-bOok and a hair-pin, thus indi-
eating that woman was concerned In his death.
There were the same indications of a woman be-
Ing concerned In the death OF High III this city,
as revealed by detective research.
The part Of the park where Highs body was
found was remote, aud not only were there traces
OF buggy or carriage having ben driven to
the place. but there was also tie imprint of q
wOmaus shoe in the SAND near by as plain as
was the footprint which Robinson CrusOe dis
covered on tile sand OH his lonely island.
Hgh's body was lying with the cold. white face
upturued TO the sky, and life had probably been
extinct TWO days. The sand had partially COW
cred a portion Of it by drilling There was look
OF agony upon the features and lie hands were
clenched. When the body was taken 10 the
MOTgue an examination OF the clothing was
made, the attire consisting of black coat and
vest and pants OF a brown shade.
MYsTIFIED OFFICIALS.
There was nothing IN the pockets and the
M0Tgue officials were mySIihed as t0 his iden-
thy. IL was at first thought TO be case OF
suicide, but when the ground was examined and
the signs noted found a suspicion of foul play
arose ana Its shadow has fingered over the case
ever since.
For several days the body lay upon the slab
for tie unidentified dead. No one seemed to
know or recognize the dead man. IL began to
look as If The body would have 10 be buried in
the Potlers field with but numbered slab above
II TO mark where IL lay.
mentioned Names but the rghlful owners Of
these names appeared in the flesh to prove that
they were EOt dead Finally, and through the
medlumship Of the press which had mentioned
the case, IL was learned that The dead man close
ly resembled a young man who was missing from
a small town In Pennsylvania.
Photographs we're sent on and the Identified
ton vas Complete. The dead man was William
High, who had recently come to this Coast.
Highs body was buried in The city cemetery
but the mystery of bis death remained.
ALL ENDED IN NAUGHT.
Detectives worked on II for days and followed
many clews, but they all ended In naught. No
one could be found who had been Intimate with
High during his short sntourn III the city. 1t
thought probable that he had been inveigled by
some dlsreputabe characters through the medi-
umship OF woman To Golden Gate Park, and
there, In the lonely spot where his body was
found murdered and robbed.
The fact that tile sand around where his body
lay gave signs OF d struggle having taken place
strengthened this theory. Notwithstanding,
though, and search as the detectives would, they
could gain link toward making up ciilin Of
evidence. Other theories were also followed up,
but to no purpose.
Unlike the Ottawa case, which Will probably
be unraveled, the mystery OF William Highs
death remains as much of mystery TO day as 1t
was on that fall day in 1886 when his body was
found In the Sand-dunes.