Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-04-24
The Mystery Of the San Francisco
Church. Murders.
DIFFICULTIES OF. TEE PROSECUTION
Witnesses for the State Uncertain
About Identification.
DURANT is SELF-ASSURED

SAN FRANCISCO, April 24.-It may be
that the Emanuel Baptist Church murders
Ghe killing of Miss Blanche Lamont, on
April }, and Of Miss Marian Williams, on
April 12) may go down as unsolved mys-
teries in the criminal annals of San Fran
CISCO The police, it is true have gathered
much evidence, all circumstantial, but the
witnesses for the state, under the fire of
cross-examination, have not held SO firmly
to their statements; they wavered in the
matter of Identification when pinned down.
The result of the second days preliminary
examination led Chief of Police Crowley to
remark that it was rather disappointing
and not what he had reason to anticipate.
Certain it is that DuranI. the medical
student. accused of the murder of Marian
Williams, has not yet lost his assurance of
nerve. His demeanor Is SO peculiar, so
enigmatical that the conclusion Is forced
upon the observer that he Is either most
consummate master OF a most cruellywrong-
ed man. 1t Is stated he Is anxious to make
his defense In the police court, relying upon
the weakness of the case against him so
far and his alleged ability to prove an
alibf, but his lawyers are too cautious to
permit him to have his way.
What the Police Say.
The police have abandoned their search
for additional evidence and say they have
the net woven good and strong around
Durant. OF course, the public, or, at least,
large portion of it, is skeptical, as the
police still have some twenty-five Witness
es, and perhaps more evidence of which
the public have not been apprised. 1t is
possible the police may be right and will
succeed in presenting the case strong
enough to hold tha prisoner for trial.
The first witness today will be the Rev.
Baptist Church. at whom the finger of sus-
picion has be en- pointed as the man who
possibly committed the crime. but who can
not possibly have been concerned in It, for
he was at a gathering of church members.
AS to the nature of his evidence there can
be no surmise, as he has teen silent on all
matters touching the case.
Some More Light.
Additional light has been thrown on the
murder of Marian Williams. Searchers
have found blood stains in the church.
showing that the murderer had made his
way in the dark from the library closet
where lay the niuttiated body. to the wash
room back of the pulpit in the rear end Of
the church. The prints Of bloody fingers
were seen at intervals.
The extent of the blood stains in the
wash room so to show that the murderer
had no Light while washing his hands, for
n judicious person. as hts actions prove him
to be. would not have spattered SO much
blood around if he' could have seen What
he was doing. And 1t is evident that If he
had had light he would not have left the
cody stains on the basin. This tends to
prove that the murderer was familiar with
every part of the church building.
Dgrupt's Alibi.
Durant is making strenuous efforts to
prove an alibi in the Lamont case, by at
tempting to prove that on the day Miss
Lamont disappeared he was not her escort
from school at $50 o'clock in the afternoon.
Three young ladies have identified Durant
as the young man they saw on a car with
Miss Lamont at that hour.
He Will call on his college classmates to
prove that he was at a lecture at that
hour. 1t IS said that Durant's note book
contains no notes of the lecture. and that
he obtained information as to the subject
matter of the lecture from another student.
This matter is a question of Importance to
Durant, and he bases his hopes on the
memory of his fellow students. DuraGt
was marked present at this lecture, but 1t
had been a habit of students to answer
present for each other, and the roll book
does not count.
sensational statement was made this
morning of a trance medium, who says that
several days ago she went into a trance,
ard, according to her story. plainly saw
Durant in the act of killing his helpless
victims. 1t is hot probable that the police
will pay any attention to the trance medi-
um's dream.