The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1892-03-23
DR.. SCUDDER'S CASE.
A Chicago Crime Rivaling in Interest the
Cronin Mystery.


Chicago special: Every day brings to
light some new and startling fact in con-
nection with the Scudder- Dunton trag-
edy. What appeared at first to be very
ordinary murder, growing out of COM
monplace family quarrel, is fast devel-
oping into a sensational crime, beside
which even the bloody Cronin conspir-
acy is dwarfed. II one-half the state
mentS which are now alleged can be
sustained in court, DR.. Scudder is either
q crafty, scheming maniac or the most
brutal and bloodthirsty villain that eve -
walked the streets Of Chicago. His
friends are trying hard to prove that he
is crazy-the proof of murder being so
strong that they do not hope for acquit-
tai on any other ground. DR.. Scudder
is the son Of the eX-pastor Of the Ply
mouth Congregations Church, and is a.
skilled and successful practitioner.
Last September he married Dora Dun
ton, the adopted daughter OF Mr.. and
Mrs. +. III. Dunton, owners OF the Spirit
of the Turf, in this city. Mrs. Dunton,
although an invalid, and near to death
with bad case of tumor, was the active
manager of the paper and all the prop
erty, valued at Sl25,000, stood in her
name. The securing of this property is
crime. Mr.. and Mrs. Dunton had no
direct heirs, AMI Mrs. Dunton, who had
been told by her physicians that she
could not live six months more, made
will, leaving the estate to her husband
and at his death to Dr. Scu1ders wife.
Knowing that his mother-in-law could
live but little while, DR.. Scudder tried
about February Is last to poison Mr..
Dunton, so as to bring the property di-
rectly into his control at Mrs. Dun
tons death. BY some providential in
reference the dose, while it made Mr..
Dunton deathly sick, did not have a
fatal effect. Finding that his plan in
this direction had failed, DIR. Scudder,
on the pretext of having some small be-
quests made to other members of the
family, got Mrs. Dunton to consent to
make new will in which her husband
was again the principal beneficiary. He
had the will carefully drawn and Mrs.
Duton was so well pleased with the
changes that she signed it at once, the
witnesses being DR.. Scudder himself,
his 14-year-old daughter and youthful
neice of Mrs. Dunton's. Going down
stairs soon after DIR. Scudder called the
two girls and told them they had signed
the will in the wrong place and must
write their names again. Childlike,
they thought nothing OF this, and thus
DR.. Scudder secured their signatures as
witnesses to a forged will which he "rung
in" on them, and by which his wife was
made the sole legatee of the Dunton
fortune. This was on Saturday, Feb.
20. 1t was now TO the Doctors interest
to get Mrs. Dunton out of the way as
soon as possible lest the children should
chance To mention the "mstake" i'm 81 IN
ing the will and thus arouse suspicion.
The next day, Sunday, Feb. 81, he went
to the Dunton home, oniAldine Square,
and beat Mrs. Dunton's brains out. Mr..
Dunton saw him do it and attempted to
interfere, but Scudder pushed him out Of
the room leaving as he did so the bloody
mark OF his hand on Mr.. Dunton's night
robe. Hannah Johnson, a domestic,
also saw the murder committed. DIR.
Scudder has been indicted by the Grand
Jury for murder.