Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1895-04-15

San Francisco, Cal, April 14-The
Emanuel Baptist Church, at Bartlett
street, between Twenty-second and
Twenty-third streets, in this city,
has been the scene OF two of the
most atrocious murders ever commit
ted in the State. Yesterday the mu-
tilated and murdered body of Minnie
Williams was found in the library of
the edifice. To-day the nude body of
! Blanche Lamont was found in the low
er room of the same church. The
same hand, the authorities believe,
slew both girls, and w. IL. f. Durant,
the young man
| SUSPECTED OF BOTH CRIMES,
is now in custody.
Blanche Lamont and Minnie Will
Jams were members Of the Emanuel
| Church and members of the Sunday
school class The former was stu
dent at the Normal School, on Powell
street, in this city; the latter was a
| companion in a family in Alameda,
across the Bay from this city. Both
! were twenty-One years Old, brunettes
| and pretty and modest girls. Both
/ had been the recipients of attentions
from Durant, who is a young medical
| student, and who is also the librarian
of the church, and the secretary of
the Young Peoples Society OF the
Church.
On April Miss Lamont
SUDDENLY DISAPPEARED.
Diligent search failed to reveal any
trace of her whereabouts, and her
aunt, Mrs. Noble, with whom she had
been living, was totally unable to
throw any light on the affair. The
last person seen in her company was
| Durant.
On Saturday about 111O p. m, the
mutilated body of Minnie Williams
was found in the library of the church.
The girl had been assaulted, and her
remains were cut and hacked, the gin
/ having evidently died from loss OF
blood. On further examination, it was
found she had been gagged, the as
sailant tearing part oil her undercloth-
ing and thrusting it
DOWN HER THROAT
with a sharp stick, badly laceratins
the tongue. Two witnesses state they
! saw a young man and young woman,
the former answering the description
of Durant, and the latter that Of Minnie
Williams, enter the church. Following
this clue the police at once put the res
idence of Durant under surveillance.
Friday evening she was TO have at
tended a meeting Of the Young Peoples
Society of the Emanuel Church, at DR..
NogeTs house. At 7:15 o'clock she left
Mrs. VOys house to attend the meet
ing, taking a latch-key with her. She
NEVER APPEARED THERE.
About this time Durant left his home
on Fair Oaks street, in the same
vicinity, bound for the same meeting.
At $50 he appeared at Dr.. NOgels res
idence, where the meeting was in pro-
gress. At II o'clock he left with a
party of young people and went home.
The next morning Durant arose early
and went with his comrades of the sig
nal corps to Mount DiablO, fifty miles
away.
The two murders are so closely con-
nected that it is now necessary to so
back TO the Lamont case. Yesterday
Mrs. Noble, the aunt of Miss Lamont
received through the mails a paper
containing the four rings
WORN BY HER NIECE
the day she disappeared. On the paper
were written tn name and address OF
Theodore Durant. This together with
the fact Miss Williams, an imats
friend of Miss Lamont, had been heard
TO say she knew Blanche had been
murdered, but had refused to tell what
she knew, led the police to sus-
pect the same one who had killed Miss
Williams had slain Miss Lamont, and
that learning that Miss Williams knew
of his crime. attempted further con-
cealment by committing a second muir
der. Late last night the detectives
had about decided DuTant had mUr-
dered Miss Williams, and this theory
was further strengthened this morn
ing when, after making a thorough
search Of the Emanuel Church, the
dead and outraged body of Miss La
mont was found
! CONCEALED IN THE STEEPLE.
Death had been caused by strangula-
ton. The body was lying just inside
the door of the tower room, nude and
on the floor. Around the neck were
blue streaks. the marks of fingers
that had been pressed deep into the
tender flesh The mouth was open,
showing the regular teeth; the features
were badly distorted, being drawn. and
the Inns were swollen and blOOd-stain-
ed The nose was the only feature
that retained its original shape, for the
cheeks were bloated. The girls hair
was matted with dirt and hung closely
about her shoulders. The body was
badlv decompOsed, the OdOr emanating
| from the remains having reached the
nostrils of the detectives before they
oDened the door When the officers
! reached the top of the stairs they found
the door leading to the tower room
! locked. They broke in the door. 1t
| was so dark they could not see and one
of the officers struck a match As the
light fared up they saw before them
! the dead body of the girl for whom
tbev were searching. The body was
taken TO the morgue where it was
nlaced on a slab by the side Of Miss
AS soon as the news became known,
IMMENSE CROWDS
surrounded the church and morgue
and had 10 be kept back by the police.
| The excitement was intense.
At : o'clock came the news that Du
,or+ had been arrested at Walnut
| Creek on the road TO Mount Diablo.
bv Detective Anthony. The detective
| - --..s-o,o,. 1aff on the navf train