Asheville daily citizen. [volume] (Asheville, N.C.) 1890-1900, 1892-02-01
WANTED TO MARRY FREDA
THAT IS WHAT MISS MITCH.
ELL NOW CLAIMS.

An ElOpement Had Been Arrang
ed Between the Two Girls The
Attorney General Thinks There
Was a More Human Motive.
MEMPHIS, Jan. 30.-"Why did she do
p That is the question that everybody
is asking his neighbor in regard to the
Mitchell.Ward murder. Having par
italy exhausted the horrors of the bloody
deed itself, all Memphis is still on hunt
for the cause.
So far there has been no satisfactory
answer given, though the air is tull OF
theories. The attorney general, it is un-
derstood, will proceed in the prosecution
on the assumption that there was a mo.
tive more human than that believed in
by the public generally that Alice
Mitchell was inspired by1 a desire to
avenge herself upon the Wards for rehec-
tions which they had cast upon her and
in consequence of which the intimacy
between herself and Freda was broken
off. 1t is claimed that the states attor-
ney has proof to this effect and tha, they
will also unearth the man in the case.
! They have in their possession a large
number OF letters which passed between
the two girls and between the members
OF their respective families in which APP
| hu
conceived the murder as measure OF
revenge and not as a result of mental
unbalance. The Attorney General has
the name of well known Young citizen
who alleges that man followed Alice
Mitchell in buggy Monday afternoon,
and when he saw her returning from her
trip down the hill after committing the
murder, he put whip to his horse and
drove rapidly away.
| Alice Mitchell and Lille Johnson spent
last night together in their room at the
jail. The father of Lille also remained
IN the office of the Jail. He is fearful that
Alice will do his daughter some bodily
harm and this fear is shared by most OF
his family.
All efforts to interview Miss Mitchell
have failed, but this morning a reporter
learned tromg good authority what passed
between her and her counsel. On other
subjects she seemed to be perfectly rat
lona and did not realize the enormity of
| the deed
II killed Freda," she said, "because
loved her and she refused to marry me,
| asked her to marry me three times.
and at last she consented. Wewere going
to marry here and 60 to st. Louis"
What did you intend to do in St.
Louls!" asked one of her attorneys.
"Oh, don't know, but when Freda
promised to marry me was so happy.
sent her engagement ring and she
wore 1t tor a time, but it was returned
to me, and l was miserable. | could not
bear to be separated from her and | re-
solved to kill her. | wonld rather she
were dead than away from me-"
The girl then asked one OF the lawyers
where Freda was. She was told that
the body was at Steinly & Hinton's.
ooh, mamma," she said, "it could
only see her. Please let me 20 to see
her. If could only lie down by her side
| would be so happy"
When permission was refused she broke
into torrent of tears. not for having
killed Freda, but for the separation. The
letters that she wrote to Freda are full
of the most endearing terms, and 60 to
show that the girl eagerly looked for
ward to the time when she could make
Freda her wife.
Strange to say, from what can be
learned, Freda herself seemed to be in
tatuated with Alice and willingly assent
ed to the proposed marriage. The time
had been arranged and the affair was to
have been in the nature of an elopment.
She does not feel the confinement, but re-
CARDS it as a school girl would slight
punishment. On other subjects she talks
nationally as she does on the killing, but
tor the peculiar views she entertains OF
the proposed marriage.
The grand jury has returned indict-
ments for murder in the first degree
against Miss Mitchell and also Miss
ohnson.