The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-04-23
STORY OF THE FINDING
Another Witness Appears
Against the Suspected
Student.
SAW HIM NEAR THE CHURCH
1t Was Sis O'clock the Night of the
Second Murder-A Girl
With Him.

The links in the chain of circumstantial
evidence against Theodore Durrant are
slowly becoming stronger. Sunday three
young ladies appeared before the Chief of
Police and identified Durrant as the man
seen by them near Emmanuel Church at
9:l5 O'clock the night of the Williams
murder. Last evening man went to Chief
Crowley and identified Durrant as the man
= he had seen with young lady almost in
front of the church at s:15 o'clock on the
fatal evening.
And, more important than this, Berke-
ley constable has found lady with whom,
he says, Durrant left a coat shortly after
Blanche Lamont's disappearance The
coat, it is said was wrapped up, and when
the lady opened the bundle yester ay she
found that the garment was spotted with
blood. The constable says he has in
formed Chief Crowley of the discovery of
the coat.
While Durrant has shown no particular
signs of breaking down his gay manner
has left him and his face has hardened.
The man who has been brought forward
TO make Durrant's guilt almost certain is
James 2. Hodgdon, the adjuster of freight
claims for the Southern Pacific Company.
He is man of high standing and the po-
lice consider his evidence one of the most
valuable points yet found in the case of
Minnie Williams
Mr.. Hodgdon lives at 100 Bartlett street
: Detective Bohen learned a few days ago of
man who had told several people that he
had seen Durrant IN front of Emmanuel
Baptist Church with a young woman
about S:15 P. NJ Good Friday Detective
Bohen obtained Hodgdon's address yester-
day and last evening Detective Seymour
called on the newly discovered witness.
Hodgdon accompanied Detective Seymour
10 the office OF Chief Crowley, arriving
there shortly before o'clock
HIS statement is as follows: "My name
Is James Hodgdon. | live at 100 Bartlett
street and [ am in the employ of the
Southern Pacific Company. I left my
house about SIS O'Clock Friday evening,
April u. My house is a few doors from
the Emmanuel Baptist Church. As [
left the house 1 saw a young man
and a young lady standing near
the church. They were near the church,
about 200 feet from Twenty-third street.
When 1 first saw them it seemed to me the
young man was trying to take some liber-
ties with the girl. As I approached them
they became quiet, but l looked at the /
man closely, but did not pay so much at
,tentlon 10 the girl. noticed she was very /
small and wore a loose black cape or |
shawl. The man answered the description !
OF Durrant. / passed them and went on
to get cigar at a store on the next corner.
When l came out the couple had disap-
peared."
When Mr.. Hodgdon had finished his
statement Chief Crowley ordered Durrant
brought out of the prison so that Hodgdon
might see if he could recognize him.
When Durrant was brought to the Chiefs
room Mr.. Hodgdon identified him at once.
He said he was confident that Durrant
was the man he had seen, that his face,
coat, hat and general appearance was the
same, except that his impression was that
: the man he had seen was a tritle taller
than Durrant.
Following is the story of the bloody
coat which will be thoroughly investi-
gated to-day:
Late yesterday afternoon lady living
In the neighborhood of Parker street and |
Dwight way, Berkeley, brought a black |
Prince Albert coat to the business center
OF the town and asked for constable
Constable Brotherton was pointed out |
TO her, and she gave him the bundle, say |
ing that it had been left at her house by /
man answering the description of Dur
rant one day about the time OF the first |
murder. She said she was standing in her
'front.' yard when nervous appearing man /
stepped up and asked if he could leave the |
coat he had on with her for a few days
Not denying him the privilege he took it
on his back, wrapped it up, left it with
her, and then started for the hills
The man not returning for the parcel after
the lapse OF ten days, the woman became
suspicious, and yesterday afternoon. in the
presence Of her daughter, opened the
package, and, to her utter amazement.
found the front and sleeves covered with
stains. Upon close examination it was
found that they were blood stains. which |
the owner Of the coat had ATTEMPTED to
wash out by means of cleaning fluid.
From the places stained the garment |
must have been unbuttoned when the |
blood was splashed on it, as the flap which |
Is usually bottoned In the style Of coat |
was covered with stains the entire length. /
- The coat bears the name of Nordwell, |
Bush-street tailor.
On the inside of the garment near the |
waist is patch OF Farmers satin SO neatly |
put in that it must have been done by |
tailor. Near the back pocket there is an
other similar patch.
The coat was taken to DR.. Rowel i'm |
mediately after being placed into the hands !
of Deputy Constable Murray, and he will
make an examination of it to-day to deter
mine as to whether the spots which appear
on it are blood.
DIR. Rowelf, when seen late last night by
a CALL representative, was very reticent
about communicating information relating |
to the discovery of the blood-stained coat |
He said: Il am unprepared as yet to |
make any statement whatsoever regarding |
the matter. There may be truth in
the reports and they may be false. 1t is
not through any desire on my part to keep |
the matter from the public, but owing to
the position IN which have been placed, IL |
would be impolitic for me to make |
any statement bearing on the case. As
soon as anything develops l shall only be |
too glad to communicate it to the press.
II l am to make a microscopical examina-
ton OF the coat l shall call DIR. Eastman
into consultation, for the case is of too |
great Importance to be undertaken alone"
DURRANT ARRAIGNED