Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-11-17

THE CIRCUMSTANCES aTTESoISa MS BEING
c3r-raoUpLE AROSE IN BOTH CASES OVER A
GAZE u CRAP
Fsr.y this morning Coroner Patterson was
notified OF two cases Of homicide, each having
resulted FROM a game Of ''crap," which during
the PAS. few years has been the cause Of nu-
merous homicides and dangerous assaults
In one case the victim was Frederick Hip
kins, a colored man more than forty years old,
while in the other the victim was Richard. alias
''fal" Frazier, young coiored man. In the
first case the man charged with having inflicted
the wound is Arthur johnson. alias Jas. Brent,
and that affair happened in South Washington
more than two weeks ago Neither Of the men
was well known in police circles. In the latter
case. however. both men were known TO the
police, William Lancaster, alias '.Scrimmage,
the slayer Of Frazier. having made an excee'i-
ingly bad record for himself previous to this
case.
BOTH MEN DIED LAST NIGHT.
Hipkins died in Providence Hospital shortly
after o'clock last night and Frazier breathed
his last in Freedman Hospital a little later.
The killing of Hopkins. according to the
ante norton statement OF his victim was with
out provocGtion. and Was the result OF his try
lEE 10 impress upon Tic DliUO VI dbeScu
murderer that il was wrong for him to engage
IN a game OF crap. Hopkins was hard-work-
ing man. and was employed on the steamer
Mattano. He thought he wolld like to take a
days holiday, aud he went TO sce johnson to
put him on the work in his place. Yesterday
afternoon Mr.. Mullowney of the district attor-
ney's Office took his ante morton statement. In
which he described. best he could. what &C.
CURED on the night OF October q. His ver-
sion OF il Was given as follows:
HIPKISs ANTE-MoRTEM STATEMENT.
Il was working on tine steamer Mattano and
thought would get Arthur johnson to work
for me for day, and he was shooting crap at a
lady's house. II ut Mrs Washington $
house in South Washington where went to zee
him TO get MIN to work for me- He called me
n - black - because told HIM
he ought not play crap. He said TO me, Il ain t
like you that works yourself to death, and then
followed me from The house MY words TO hin,
were: John. go back; don't fellow me- he
told me; Fred, you black - am
going to cut your - out OF you tonight As
turned from him he ran up behind me and cut
me in The neck. After he cut me he allowed
that he sorry for it. and said: Go away,
Arthur; Won done cut me.
He had followed me down to the boat and
that's where the cutting happened. l walked
from there to the drug store When he cut me
we were right i'll front of the ferry boat wharf,
near the patrol box. He walked behind ME all
the way down from Mrs. Washington's house,
and two men who were with him ran away when
he cut me. He hit me on the arm with a stick
first and hit him with my fist and he said:
you to do, now I'll fix you,' and then he cut
me. He saw some men coming toward me and
he ran away.
The deceased showed a remarkable vitality.
Although he was apparently hieless from loss
OF blood on the night OF the homicide, through
lr..1 and lrxQx
sixteen days The hemorIhages of the neck
could not he stopped and several times it was
thought he was dying.
pal" FRAZIER AND HIS MURDERER.
PAL Frazier, as he was commonly called,
was also terribly wounded with knife He
was cut in the groin, and when attended at his
home that night the physician expressed the
belief that he could not recover, and the fact
that he lived for such length of time was a
complete surprise to all the doctors who saw
him. As heretofore stated game of crap was
responsible for this killing as well as the other
1t occurred about the same time as the other
case. and the patient bore his treatment and
suffering without murmur. William Lam
caster, alias ''Scrummage," the negro who
inflicted the wound. has figured in
many fights and disorderly gatherings and
has sci we'd term for the killing OF a man
named Williams. At the time OF that killing he
was indicted for murder. but through the hard
work Of his counsel. Mr.. Howard Clagett, the
offsnse was reduced to manslaughter and his
neck was saved. Now Mr. Clagett is the prose-
cutting officer and he will necessarily be on Il e
other side. which the prisoner regrets.
The injuries Inflicted by him this time, as al
ready stated, were necessarily fatal, SO the doc
tors said. The affair happened on 10th street
northwest between l. and VI Streets the trouble
having originated in pool room where game
of crap was being played. The police say that
he nj l.
though the deceased in hisante-mortem state
ment saws to the contrary Mr.. Harvey Givens
OF the district attorney office took the state
ment sunday, the dying man acknowledging
the following:
STORY OF THE CUTTING.
Il, Richard Frazier, being, as solemnly be-
lieve, in the presence of death from the effects
of a mortal wound. from which am now suf-
ferinS. and having abandoned all hope of re-
covery. in the face of impending death. as /
beiieye, do solemnly state that the circum-
stances under which i received the said mortal
wound was follows: 1 was cut in a pool
room on 18th street between l. and NJ streets
by Will Lancaster. All were playing crap and
got in dispute. The man who owned the
place told me to take up the dice and bring
the IN down TO him. / carried them down there.
Lancaster grabbed me in the collar and said.
Held on; doa't go;' put his hand i'll his pocket.
pulled cut a knife and cut me. i came out and
went home"
THE INQUEST THIS AFTERNOON.
The bodies Of the victims we're tahen 20 the
morgue today aud Deputy Coroner Schaeffer
made the post-mortem examinations.
At O'Clock this afternoon Coroner Patterson
began an inquest in the case of Hopkins, and
the inquest in Fraziers case will be held TO-
morrow.
Says the Plaintiff Was Extravagant.