The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-12-09
10
The Murde of Janitor Barnes Solved
Inv COnfessfou<

by confessions
CHICAGO. Dec. S.-The mystery sur
rounding the murder Of Alfred Barnes. the
janitor Of the Hiawatha flats. has finally
been cleared UP, and Edward Jordan, the
assistant janitor of the fiat building, is the
confessed murderer. This afternoon the po-
lice succeeded in getting from Ann Ma
honey. the woman with whom Barnes had
been at one time intimate. an admission
hat the crime had been committed by
Jordan. She repeated her confession in the
presence of Jordan and he acknowledged
that 1t was correct. The story of the Ma
honey woman was told in a stolid. indiffer-
ent way. she apparently feeling not the
slightest c~ompunctfon for her part in the
awful tragedy, and even at times laughing
loudly. Her story was that some time ago
Jordan came to her and said that Barnes
was anxious to get him Uordan) to put
some strychnine in a glass of whisky which
was to be given to a policeman named
Allen. against whom Barnes had a grudge.
Jordan. the woman said, declared to her
hat he had refused to accede to the wishes
OF Barnes and had told him that if he
wanted any poisoning done to do it himself.
Jordan declared that Barnes was perpetu-
ally urging him to poison the officer and
was afraid that Barnes would injure him
If he did not do as he wished. The woman
warned Jordan TO beware OF Barnes, whom
she declared TO be a treacherous man, and
told him that if he did not take good care
pr himself Barnes would put poison in the
food and kill him instead of the policeman.
Wednesday nieht Jordan came to the
woman and told her that he had killed
barnes in a fight, and that the body was
asked her TO come and help him clean up
the place; She went as Jordan requested,
near the furnace. She and jordan striped
the body. and she took 50 in money and a
watch that We're found in the murdered
sidered herself entitled to this, as Barnes
had cheated her out of 500. She washed
up the blood stains around the place as well
took all Barnes's clothes in order to give
color to the story that Barnes had gone to
Dakota On Thursday she met Jordan and
Jersey OF the street, and they told her
that they had put the body in a box, which
was still In the cellar. She went with Jor-
dan while he engaged an expressman to
take the box away, and then went to the
fat and watched the two men bring the
body out of the basement.
She laughed heartily in telling of this
episode, declaring that Jersey was fright
ened all the time. and he did not begin to
have the nerve that l had" She went with
the, men when they took the body away
shore and put stones in the box so that 1t
would be sunk in the lake. They refused
10 DO this and dumped 1t into the street,
where the police found IT.. At different
times in telling her story the woman
seemed to be greatly amused over some
of the features of the tragedy and freely
admitted that she was glad that Barnes
was dead. She had been angry with him
tor a long time. ever since he had refused
to have anything more to do with her.
As soon as she had finished her con-
fession. Jordan was brought in and she
repeated what she had told. Jordan adj
mitted he. had killed Barnes. and when
asked what he had done IL with,
calmly replied: you have the TOOL
meaning the ak in the possession. of the
police. He said: Barnes and 1 had an ar
gument over a missing bolt in the furnace.
He called me a liar and rushed at me. ]
grabbed the ak and knocked him down. He
never moved or spoke after the first lick.
L had to hit him. for II | had not / would
nave been killed myself" The balance of
the story told by Annie Mahoney Jordan
corroborated fully.
J. b. Jersey, the first man arrested, con-
fessed early this morning that he had been
asked TO assist in the murder, but declined.
Ii was his confession that led to the arrest
of Jordan