The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1895-07-30


to Make 1t Appear Accidental.
PHILADELPHIA, July 29.-The Bulle-
tin to-day prints the following: An
entirely new statement has .just been
made by h. II. Holmes. the supposed
murderer of the Pietzel children. In It
the man Of many crimes gives his ver-
sion of how Pietzel came by his death
last September and also states his
| (HolmesD connection with the tragedy.
The statement was given to a close
friend OF Holmes in Philadelphia, who
gave 1t to the Bulletin representative
to-day.
Holmes says that on Saturday night
| preceding the death of Pietzel tho latter
came to his house on North Elev tn
| street. where he was staying with MRS.
Howard" Pietzel told Holmes g heart
rending story OF his pee unisry Difficult
ties and of the sickness OF his daughter
in st. Louis
| He asked Holmes for money, and de-
clared that life was becoming q burden
to him and threatened to kill himself.
Holmes then AYERS that Ee jokingly re-
marked to Pietzel: well, your body is
as good as any other. but 1 would not
advise you to do anything rash"
| Holmes accounts for making this re-
mark by saying that he and Pietzel had
| under consideration the defrauding of
the Fidelity Mutual Insurance Com.
pany. Holmes says Pietzel then be-
came angry and again avowed that he
would commit suicide. Holmes Saws he
Vave Pietzel no money that night, but
promised to meet him OF the Callowhill
street house the following morning.
1t was about 10 o'clock the following
day, Sunday, Holmes goes on to say,
that he went to visit Pie,zel at the CAL
the place no one wAB apparently about
Holmeo sat in the kitchen for almost
twenty minutes waiting for Pie,zel.
Then he began to search the house for
| him. AZ rose to COUP stairs l noticed
a note lying on the counter In the front
part OF the house. 1t was addressed to
| me.
The note, he says, directed him to 60
| up the second floor and open closet In
which he would find large blue bottle
containing another letter addressed to
him. Holmes followed the directions,
found the note in the bottle and was
Mortified when he read it. 1t was from
Pletzel and advised Holmes that his
| (Pietzel's) desd body could be found in
the house. The letter pleaded to
Holmes to look after Pietzels children
and suggested that there would be no
difficulty In getting the insurance
money from the Fidelity Company now
that the dead body of Pietzel could ke
| produced In evidence.
| Holmes then told his friend of the
appearance OF the corpse, and said that
he sat in the room with the body for
over an hour. He was dazed and hardly
know what course to pursue. He finally
m ade up his mind that since Pietzel had
taken his life there would be no harm
In destroying any evidence OF suicide,
so that he might be able to get the In
surance on PietZel's life without any
| difficulty.
| Holmes confessed that he thereupon
| dragged the body to the second floor.
laid it on the floor, pried open the mou th
OF the dead man with pencil and
poured In quantity OF explosive chem.
lcals. He then, he says, placed lighted
match to the mans mouth when the ex-
plosion which 30 horribly dishgured the
corpse followed. To give more forcible
Impression that Pietzel came to his
! death by an accident by explosion he
|
| bacco, lighted 1t, then blew out the
| fame after the tobacco had been partly
consumed, and placed the pipe beside
the dead mans body.
1t was nearly 4 o'clock in the after.
noon before he left the Callowhill
House. He put on hat of Pietzele to
partly conceal his identity and went
] directly TO the Broad strees station and
inquired at what hour the first train
| left for Chicago He and wife, Holmes
| alleges, left for Chicago that night.
a dispatch from Chicago says that
| one CT the many theories that has been
advanced concerning the Holmes castle
and the many uses to which 1t was put
| Is to the effect that Holmes was pro-
fessional 'procurer." The presence OF
30 msny young girls abou, the premises
at various times has led to the sus-
picion that Holmes added this to his
other nefarious crimes. In this wey she
disappearance OF come OF the unforsun-
ate creatures is accounted for.
The Amphitrite at Charleston.
CHARLESTON, S. c., July 9-The
monitor Amphitrite steamed into port
{oly 20 I'll L..