Evening journal., 1893-12-27
PASTOR BELL is IN JAIL
He and His Wife May Have to
Answer a Serious Charge.
ACCUSED OF ABUSING HIS CHILD

ACCUSED OF ABUSING HIS CHILD.
The Death Of Bells Son and Daughter Also
Made the Subject OF Invcstigation-Beirs
Career as a Preacher and as an Editor ut
Different Points.
LONG ISLAND CITY, n. Y, Dec. 27.-The
Rev. Jonathan Edwards Bell, editor of
The Weekly Flag, published in Astoria,
and his wife spent last night In cells in the
First precinct station ia Long Island City.
They were arrested on complaint OF Her
man Meyer of the Brooklyn Society for the
Prevention Of Cruelty to Children, who ac-
cuses them Of willfully neglecting Arthur
Morrison Bell, aged 13, one of Bells chill
dren by his FIRST wife.
The boy is now in the Astoria hospital
It was the death of Mr. Bells daughter
Edith that brought the family TO the
notice of the authorities. A short time
previous TO the girls death another son,
Harry English Bell, IA years old, died.
The children had been without medical
attendance, and two days before the burial
Of Edith Bell the body was exhumed by
the coroner and the stomach taken out and
sent to New York for chemical examina.
AAAAAs ~ was aAA1IANAAAA AAAtA Blu AAAAA UNNiA
poisoned.
Bell was found ia his newspaper office at
| 167 Main street, Astoria, by the policeman
who had the warrant issued by Police JUS
| tice Noble. accompanied the policeman
| without comment and was soon lodged in
a cell. Another policeman was sent to
| Bells home at $40 De Bevoise avenue.
i When Mrs. Bell was informed that she was
/ under arrest, she said:
Boil Calls It an Outrage.
"Well, guess they must have found it.
Did theyW
The policeman did not know what she
meant unless she referred TO she search for
poison In the dead girls body
Mrs. Bell dressed herself with care and
tripped out along with the policeman.
seemingly unmindful of the neighbors who
, nocked to the doors TO see her off.
When seen by reporter, Mr.. Bell said
| his arrest was an outrage. Later on he
said he would have his inning. The accu-
sation that he had i'll used his children
was, he said, an Infamous falsehood. On
Sunday he visited his little boy in the hos
pital, and the boy denied that he had told
any one that he had been I'll treated at
home. He also said:
81 can disprove the charges against me
with ease, but as to the charges against
my wife, she will have to answer for them
herself"
Mrs. Bell didn't seem to feel at all put
out about her arrest. She was smiling
when she came out Of her cell and was
ushered into the matron's room.
"To begin with" she said, 81 actually
don't know what / am here for. don't
know whether they have finished the anal
I I 81 Al
won't find anything aud viii have their
trouble for nothing. No; Pm not going to
say anything about the case, for don't
know anything with the exception of what
/ have read. Yes; ] expected 70 be arrested
The papers said we were 20 be arrested
sooner or later, and when the policeman
came to the door / knew what 10 was for.
do not know what steps Mr.. Bell intends
taking In the matter, but Of course he is
going TO act"
The present charge against Mr. Bell and
his wife is chased as misdemeanor. Agent
Meyer of the Children's society says he has
evidence enough against the couple to have
them indicted for manslaughter and that
their arrest was simply the first step In
that direction.
Rev. Mr.. Bells Career.
Many stories are told about Mr.. Bells
career One of them is that he was expell.
ed from his first charge in New London on
charges OF immortality In his subsequent
wanderings there was such demand from
other churches for copies Of the proceed
ings in the case that the church had them
printed in pamphlet form. Finally his
wanderings led him to Patchogue, where
he became pastor Of the Congregational
church. His stay there was brief and wa.
I terminated by his resignation. He next
turned up in Astoria, where, in connection
with a job printer named John Fallen, hC
started The Astorian, which was later
s changed to The Queens County Republican
s and then TO The Weekly Flag, which nam,
] Il now bears.
I It is said that Mrs. Bell was oncar "a
2 wife Of Giles n. Hewlett, a telegraph oper
ator who is supposed to be somewhere In
Cleveland. II is presumed that she Sc
cured divorce from him. The Bell chill
dren never took kindly TO her, and it hal
been charged that she i'll treated them.
Harry English Bell was the first TO b,
taken i'll. He Ind been i'll for more than
week when he died Of what was said to b.
typhoid malaria. No doctor was called II
TO attend him. His death made the neigh
, bors gossip, and they became outspoker
when Edith Bell was found dead one morn
ing.
1t is said shehad been left alone all might
in a cold, damp room. She had been IL
altogether nine days and was not once at
, tended by physician. She died Of pneu
, | monia and diphtheria. The neighbour
! | finally decided TO interfere Through theil
! | efforts Arthur Morrison Bell, who wa
found in the house in a pitiable plight
was sent TO the hospital. This was NOR
than a week ago.
] The inquest on Edith Bell will be con
}, tinued as soon as Coroner Brandon hear
7 from the chemists in New York who ar
making the analysis in search of poison.
Candidates For Wilson's Place.
5 MASON CITY, Ia., Dec. 27-Hon. L. S
r Coffin of Fort Dodge is announced as
b | candidate fnr tho IInifad Sinina annnln Il