The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1894-12-24
TAKE A NEW TACK
The Searchers For Mrs. MatsOn'S 5
Murderers
Believe That NeVels Is Guilty
But Not Bailey.
COME TO LIGHT
That Make Matters Look Gloomy
for Nevels.
Much Doubt That Bailey Owned
the Iron Slug"
Which Was Found Near the
Dead Body.

Sheriff D. n Burdge and his associates
who are hunting for the murderer or
murderers of Mrs A D. Matson. are con-
I fdent they will be able to bring the gull
ty man or men to justice, although the
case has not developed as rapidly IS
/ they would have wished.
/ To d STATE JOURNAL reporter today
! Sheriff Burdge said- Il have not heard
from Chattanooga, Tenn. but / am IN
clined to think Nels Bailey is not the
man we are after, although his leaving
here Just at the time he did and in the
wav he did, were suspicious circum-
stances. After making a careful lnves-
tigation yesterday and today into Bailey's
habits and his past record 1t seems to me
he is not the guilty man. We have not
yet secured any positive proof but the
circumstantial evidence IS ccumulating
and II looks bad for this man Nevels who
is now in Jail"
Ex-Sheriff John NJ. Wilkerson. who is
the right hand man of Sheriff Burdge,
in tracing the murderers, also believes
that Bailey Is the wrong man and that
NeveIs was. at least, implicated in the
murder.
Mr. Wnkerson said: "The circum-
stantial evidence against Nevels IS very
strong. [ have just discovered letter
which he wrote from Houston. Texas,
December ID, although he now insists
that he was not in Texas At all but says
he was in Winfield
"NeveIs left Topeka on the night of
the 18th and this letter was written TO his
wife on the 18th from Houston and in it
he said he would be home after Christ
mas Instead of coming home after
Christmas, however, here he is in jail
and he was arrested here last Friday
night When he was frat arrested he
said he had been to Gainesville, Texas,
and now he says he was not in Texas at
all, but was in Winfield
Il am told by his acquantances that he
has two wives, the one here and one IN
Winfield l have wired the Winfield
authorities TO learn what they know
about him, and they viii let me know
sometime this afternoon if he has been
there lately
Il am inclined to the opinion that the
1slug-shot' IS not important a link IN
the evidence as We first thought The
.slug-shot' is not sash weight but IS the
lower end of old fashioned wagon
coupling pin. with key hole in the end
Of it. The string was tied in the key
hole. This may have belonged to the
murderer, but 1t has been suggested that
it might have been Mrs MatsOn's. 1t
was not too heavy for q woman to have
used.
There has been some talk about the
people she had trouble with at Salinn
being concerned IN the tragedy but l
tlIDk not. ne man Sne ndQ trouble
with is Swede by the name of Chris
tophersOn, an inoffensive fellow, and his
trouble is not serious. He wrote to her
to know what she would take for 200
bushels of wheat
sShe replied that she would not take
less than So cents a bushel, but that she
wanted to sell all of it. When Christie
pherson received her reply he went to
Mrs. II atsOns granary and took out 200
bushels, and it is supposed he sent her
the money She was not satisfied, she
objected to his taking any of the wheut
unless he took all Of it There was moth
ing in the transaction from which he
would not be able to clear himself. and
do not believe he was party to the
crime"
As Mrs. Matson paid e-haIf Of her
taxes, amounting to S4S.47, on December
4, il is supposed she received the money
for the 200 bushels of wheat Christoph-
erson took from her farm.
The officials are generally of the opin-
ion that the discovery of the agreement
between AIr. and Mrs. Matson. which is
printed in this issue of the JOURNAL.
does entirely away with the theory that
Dir. Matson was party TO the murder Of
his wife.
All day yesterday there was a constant
stream Of people going and coming from
the Matson homestead. corner of Fif-
teenth and Monroe streets and many per
sons carried away pieces of whatever
they could lay their hands on as souve-
Mrs.
The coroner's jury was in session only
a few minutes this morning and adjourn
ed until o'clock. Coroner Bailey said
TO a JOURNAL reporter, Il expect the
jury will be IN session most of the week.
We want If we can, to return more than
a formal verdict, and try and fnd ont ali
the particulars OF the death aud the
names of the murderers-7
A circumstance which may or may not
have significance regarding the mystery,
came from North Topeka late Saturday.
Mrs A J. Proudfit found concealed in a
pile Of rubbish in her yard a shirt and
vest which were saturated with blood.
The garments were turned over to the
police.
Commissioner J. Lee Knight is familiar
with an incident which shows how Mrs.
VI atsOn engendered the illfeeling Of her
neighbOrs- A man named Estus WAS
found insane IN the probate court, and as
there was no room for him in the asylum
he was committed TO the charge and care
Of relatives who were paid the same rate
for his care as the county receives in
such cases. Mrs. MatsOn concluded that