The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-11-27

the People on the Outside-The Man
Gives a Biography of His Life and
Winds Up by Asking Questionable Boy
Says He has Made Full Confession to
the Officers, while the Woman Says She
viii have to Tell All or Die
After ten days confinement in the
county jail the three wfliamsons were
seen yesterday by a representative for
the Eagle. They Were all anxious to
talk and especially inquire as to the
feeling on the outside. This was espe-
cially true with reference to Marion
Williamson and his divorced wife Irene.
They are all three confined in sepa-
rate cells and have no means Of COM
municating with each other William
son appears to be resting COMFORTABLE
and looks really better than at the first
time he was seen by an Eagle repre-
sentative after his arrest. He is con-
fined in the same cell in the rotary
which was occupied by w. n. Hupp.
one Of the men VINO shot and robbed old
man McGinty and who during his con-
finement decorated the cell with his
name, pictures taken from papers end
oniTnous signs among which Is the large
plainly and well executed prediction:
''Whosoever enters this cell is DOOM
ed man." "Be sure of one thing, end
that is your sins will find you outp'
Don't waste any time building air cas-
ties on the sands of hope, but get
ready to meet your DOOM
The lettering on the cell is no scrawl
but is neatly executed, and is probably
the work Of William Smith who is now
serving sentence in the penitentiary
for robbing a sleeping car at the Santa
Te depot. He was probably the finest
penman that was ever confined in the
jail and his workmanship lead the local
detectives to believe that William
Smith was no other than Cigarette
Charley" who was wanted for murder
in Iroquos, county, Ill. In fact the let
rering On the wall did the man no good,
but it was declared by him that his
pastirne and efforts to decorate the cell
had gained for him at least three addi-
Fional years in the penitentiary. When
compared with the description sent out
by the Pinkerton detective agency, the
resemblance was so marked that when
Smith was taken to the court house he
was heavily ironed and II doubtless
had its effect upon the jury. His great
gift with the paint brush and PENCIL
first attracted the especial attention Of
the officers to him, and considerable
communication was mad between the Of
ficers here and the Illinois authorities,
and at the end of Smiths sentence he
will probably be taken TO Illinois 10
answer no the charge Of murder.
When called upon yesterday Marion
Villa son was found reading paper.
t. Il 7,r. ~.
porter and inquired the news on the
outside. but when asked il he had any,
thing to add to what had already been
published. he replied that he expected
II would be better for him ITO keep quiet.
although he would have no objection
TO swearing to every word as published
in the Eagle at the time of his first in
terview, and also giving an additional
history Of himself up to the time of his
arrest. He said:
During the war I served as a high
private in the SD Illinois Infantry, I'M
der Colonel McCowans. At the close
of the war 1 went to New Brunswick
and Maine and worked In the timber.
and finally began railroading. In 1868
7 began working at the blacksmith
trade and repairing all kinds of mach
inery. In 1869 I returned to Indiana and
began working for Todd Smiths father
as blacksmith. Old man Smith also
conducted large saw mill and / was
sent there TO do some repairing. While
] WAS at the mill the engineer went off
on drunk and took charge of the en-
CINE. / liked the business better than
anything 1 had ever tried and when a
new engine was being put in l watched
every piece and was soon counted as
good stationary engineer. About this
time | went to Anderson, Ind, and
worked three years in a machine shop.
I'm 1876 I came no Wichita and be-
came engineer at the old elevator which
at that time was conducted by Russell
& Furlong. / worked for them two or
three years during the season for re-
ceiving grain. About this time J. c.
Fraker started his mill or the West
Side and I worked for him until the
mill burned down.
in the summer Of 1876 after the sea-
son was over for receiving grain at the
elevator, l went 70 Kingman county and
took a claim and broke out seventeen
acres of land which I sowed TO wheat in
the fall. In the spring of 1877 I was
married TO Irena Tull. and We concluded
that man would never get ahead work
ing for wages and so We built us a house
on the claim. II was not long before
lily vile grew ulSGOnlGllLSQ WIN farm
life and wanted to return to Wichita
/ made It a custom of coming to Wich-
tia every two weeks and staying over
Sunday. but this only made matters
worse, and to try to live with the w1o-
man in peace concluded 10 come back
TO Wichita. l sold all my improvements
on my claim for 800 and returned to
Wichita. I went in with her father and
farnned one year, but raised nothing.
and in the fall accepted a position in the
mill OF Mr.. Goodyear on East Douglas
avenue.
About this time things become so
duh here that I could not find employ
ment and we moved back to Indiana
where ltook charge of saw mill. We
had no sooner became settled than my
wife became dissatisfied and begged TO
return TO Wichita. l told her that IL
at that time as I had contracted with
Todd Smiths father 10 conduct his saw
mill for him. She kept on raising
thunder and ] finally gave her money
TO cone hack TO Wichs,a. / remained in
Indiana for three months after she left
returned to W:chita in September
1879. and our son Orville was born on
Nov. g. 1879. ana he is low past Is years
IF age.
During that fall could find nothing
- do and went 10 California and work
ed at my trade | finally returned -
wichita and finding nothing to do l
helped my wife wash FOR a time. I next
went in partnership with my wife's peo-