The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-08-29
CONFESSION FROM HOLINESS PAL.

CONFESSION FROM HOLINESS PAL.
ssThe Mascot" Tells Of a Plan to XIII
Pietxel-MinnieW Williams Alive.
One of the men whom the authorities have
been working upon for information in the
Holmes case is j. c. Allen. alias Caldwell,
a convict serving a ten years sentence at
Little Rock, Ark, for horse stealing. Allen
has been identified as Mascot" the un-
known, who has been frequently referred
to In the Holmes case. Warden Moore has
at last obtained a confession from MAS
cot" which throws much new light on the
case. The following is Aliens story:
81 first met Holmes. alias Pratt. alias
Howard, In Tennessee in the fall of 1892.
Seen after meeting him we went together to
H,t Springs. Ark l never knew Holmes
We remained at Hot Springs one week, and
from there went to Texas-Holmes going to
El Paso and / stopping in Taylor county.
Holmes soon Joined me at Abilene. and
from there we went to Kansas City. Holmes
left me at Kansas City to go to Chicago,
and was soon TO return. Failing TO do so
went to Fort Worth in company with man
named Charley Murphy. went from Fort
Worth TO Memphis, where l remained three
months, when went back to Hot Springs,
where 1 met Holmes again. From there we
went to Denver, Col. and from there to
Chicago, where remained five days. Leav-
ing Holmes in Chicago, Pietzel Qyman) and
scheme conducted by Pratt and Pietzel
proving failure. Pietzel and myself went
to St. Louis, stopping at the Southern Ho-
three weeks thereafter Holmes. Lyman and
myself met at St. Joe. Mo. Minnie VIII
liams accompanied Lyman to st. Joe from
living as the wife of Holmes. AT this meet
ing was the first knowledge had Of the
Fort Worth property DEAL
THE WILLIAMS PROPERTY.
''The Minnie Williams property in Fort
Worth was then and there decided to me, in
the name of A. E. Bond. from Minnie VIII
liams, notary public whose name 1 have
forgotten acknowledging the transaction.
The deal was made with the distinct under
standing that 1t was to be a swindling OPP
Grafton. It my opinion at the time
that Minnie Williams was persuaded or
scared into making the transfer Of the prop
erty by Holmes. In few days the prop
erty was transferred by me to Pietzel, but
made, Holmes making the transfer without
my knowledge or consent (HOlmeS was an
expert in initiating the handwriting of
some others). From St Joe Holmes, Pietzel
and myself went to Denver, where we re-
mained one day. and from there We went
to Leadville. where Holmes and Pietzel had
in view some swindling operation, but failed
in doing so. From Leadvile the three of
us, with Holiness so-called wife, Mrs How
ard went TO Fort Worth TO commence oper-
ations there. We arrived at Fort Worth as
entire strangers. The Holmes Qoratp trans
actors at Fort Worth are already familiar
to the public. Pietzel's drunken conduct at
away TO Kansas City. While in Kansas
City PietZel wrote several threatening let
wo1,d turn nn ali their rascsiitv nn,ess ns
Holmes sent him money. PietZel was fur
nished money three different times. sent by
me at Holiness request Holmes visited
PietzeI at Kansas City to get him to sign
the necessary papers to secure a loan Of
$4,000 on the Fort Worth property.
PLAN TO MURDER PIETZEL.
'Tn some particular the papers were not
correctly signed, and Holmes failed to Sc
cure the loan. The papers were sent back
to Pietzel for correction, and when they
were returned Holmes secured loan of
only 1900, according to my information.
While Pietzel was in Kansas City Holmes
and Pat Quinlan, who had joined us at
Fort Worth a short time before we left
that place, had several talks about putting
Pietzel out of the way. because Holmes
had become afraid of him on account of
his drinking too much and knowing too
much. ut was known to us all that Piet-
Eel carried a ten-thousand-dollar life insur-
ance policy) At our last talk upon this
subject, three days before leaving Fort
Worth, it was understood that Pietzel was
to be killed. was selected to assist Holmes
in doing the job. but in what manner IT was
to be done was not definitely settled, only
that Holmes remarked that he had some
thing that would make the work easy, and
large trunk was purchased in Fort Worth
in which to place Pietzel's body after be-
ing killed to ship off in. At this point
Holmes patted me on the back and said:
Mascot. it is $4,000 and trip to Long
Branch, and from there to California, and
more buildings
II protested against assisting in killing
Pietzel, when QuinIan remarked: :.
ing when you get used to II.
That night 1 advised Holmes to quit
such business, as he had enough money not
to resort to murder. He replied that he had
been at such business SO long, that it had
become perfectly natural to him, and he
could not quit it. l told him we would be-
come involved IN serious trouble to attempt
or carry out such schemes, when he told
me just to follow his instructions and stick
to him and 1 would have a good time the
balance of my life.
PARTS FROM HOLMES.
"The plan agreed upon to dispose OF Piet-
eel was that We were to meet him In ST
Louis and together go from there to Chi
cago. where he was to be fixed When
the proposition was being discussed to
dispose of Pietzel, Holmes remarked that
about year before he had planted some
pumpkin seeds up in Gods country and
Ii was time to plant more. II was between
Fort Forth and Denison that Holmes told
me that / must have my life insured for
$4,000 in favor of my little niece. Holmes
was to collect .he insurance in his peculiar
way, and l was to get 5000 of the amount
and Holmes 5000 for collecting Remem-
bering the large trunk bought for Pietzers
body. and becoming fearful that j might
not be alive when Holmes collected the
insurance money. / determined to part
company with him, which / did at Deni-
son. and i have never seen him since, but
received as many as three letters from him.
THE last time / Minnie Williams
was at our meeting in st. Joe. Holmes told
her that she must leave the United States
for a period of three or four years If
everything worked satisfactorily in Fort
Worth she was TO return and claim her
property upon the grounds that the title
was obtained from her fraudulently, she
establishing proof that she was out OF the
United States at the time. India was
agreed upon as the country to which she
would go. / went to the depot with her.
while Holmes bought her ticket and checked
her baggage, but where to / do not know
She was to have company. but | never
knew whom. While at Fort Worth | read
as many three letters from Minnie
Williams TO Holmes. They purported to
be from India-the place / have forgotten
One of the letters I sure from In
dia, because / saw the peculiar postmark
but the letters received from Minnie Will
Jams by Holmes and the letters he wrote
her came and went through some party i'm
Chicago-Quinlan and his wife, | believe
Il