Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1895-08-08

nswYork Morning Advertiser.
Criminal history is without a parallel |
for Holmes. He seemed to have
mania for crime. There was no form
too revolving for him, no deed too dar-
ing Murder and swindling was his
life business. He pursued it as pro-
fession and with boldness that was
startling almost beyond credence. He
operated everywhere and anywhere,
with headquarters at Chicago. His
"castle" there was CHASTITY mauso-
leum. 1t was flimsy structure. Some
day, had not chance, which some call
fatality, trapped him, the castle"
would have gone up in flames and in
the ruins would have been buried
every evidence OF the awful crimes of
which it had been the theater. The
success that had attended Holmes gave
him an assurance that enabled him
TO operate with confidence that
stood him in good stead many time.
Like most other criminals of method,
Holmes was not born in criminal sur
roundings. His was an educated shrewd-
ness, quickened and made alert by the
risks he ran. 1t was not common, low
cunning, but the development of
plan that was the life work of daring
criminal. The gain Of wealth and a
taste depraved were the mainsprings of
his actions. He had few confidants,
but the few he had at any time either
fell victims to him or were bound to
him by the fact that their lives were
linked together SO that the accusation
of one was necessarily the conviction
Of the other.
The story of the life of Holmes is a
grewsome tale. If written in fiction
it would be denounced as unnatural
and improbable. 1t would be deemed
utterly beyond belief that in every city
of consequence in the country, except
the city Of New York, he had piled his
criminal trade and finally was only
brought behind prison bars through
the accusation Of train robber, whose
only grudge was that Holmes had not
recompensed him for an introduction
to useful man. This train robber
had only been a chance acquaintance
OF Holmes. He had no knowledge of
even the existence of charnel house
in Chicago, but he did know that he
had introduced Holmes to an attorney
who would be useful to him in fixing
up claim for bogus insurance. The
I train robber acted from motives of ven
I geance only The result may make the
public look with leniency upon the
motives.
This man Holmes, confessed biga-
mist, perjurer, swindler and alleged
murderer, was born short distance
from London, in the New Hampshire
hills. His real name is Mudgett
Besides Holmes he is known to have
used the alias Howard. His parents
were plain, homely country folk, but
with ambitions for their boy He was
the prize boy in his classes always. He
always managed to capture what honors
there were going, and the people of
the town marked him out as lad who
would make stir in the town. He
was inclined TO be wild His friends
said that it was better he should SOW
his tares early in life than late. His
father had picked out the law for him.
He chose medicine for himself. There
was little feeling at the house over
his inclination, and this, coupled with
fracas into which he got, induced
him to leave home.
He went to Gilmartin and there
taught school. He saved money enough
to attend medical school at Bur
lington, VT While there he married.
4 II was a boys infatuation and
girls love. The girl lived to regret
it, He was too wild and too full of
schemes for the future to bother with
the gentle country lass that had lis
tened too credulously to the VOWS he
made her. He left her behind when he
went to complete his medical educa-
tion at Ann Arbor He stood well
in his classes, but had the reputation
of being a wild young man, with no
consciousness of rectitude and no
moral restraints 1t was then, as it
ever is in colleges, not particularly
hard for young man such as he to
find a congenial companion among
the students.
He found him. He is the physi-
Gran that a thousand detectives are
now hunting down. The pair became
inseparable. They were in every
brawl in town, but managed to pull
through their examinations When
their term was over they were without
means and without regulations, save
that they had talents. They worked
at all sorts of things. Finally an idea
seized Holmes. He had read Of the
substitution of bodies in insurance
cases. He suggested the idea to his
friend, and it was then decided that
Holmes friend was TO insure himself for
as much money as they could pay pre-
MUM on, that he was to procure dead
body three or four months after, then
disappear and Holmes would identify
it as the corpse of his friend. They
worked like beavers, boarding their
money as misers would. In a short
time they had enough for their pur-
pose and went to Chicago. Homles'
friend was insured for Sl2, 500. Then
thaV sapnrntpA Hand hnJ,, 49,.
course Of time found and put away in
Connecticut Holmes, after due scru
tiny, and with great apparent regret.
identified the planted body as that of
his friend, and then went to Chicago and
collected the insurance. The scamps
divided the money. They had Sc, 600
each after paying the expenses. Their
moral senses had been blunted and they
swung themselves into criminal life
without any reproach from conscience.
1t was the old story. The ease with
which they had made the money and
the security that followed rather made
them an apology for the crime. They
separated for while, but eventually
met again by appointment in Chicago.
Their money was exhausted and. in
the vernacular of the profession they
touched up" another insurance com.
pany for $4,000. This was repeated
by them under various aliases, in vari-
Gus States, until Holmes became
professional criminal. His partner had
left him and this absence of a conf
dental pal led him into the deeper
crimes, which, it is alleged, he com
mitted He married, but finding the
woman unsuited and useless to him in
his schemes, he cast her overheard.
He drifted back to Chicago as Mr.