The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1895-04-29
THE MURDER OF A WOMAN
Light Shed on q Crime of Many
Years Ago
SHE WAS SLAIN BY A BOY
Dramatic Sequel to a Famous Criminal
Case
Notorious Burglar Aids Detectives In Bringing
to Justice Young r1an Who Killed
His Mother

PHILADELPHIA. April 2s-While the
larger portion of Philadelphia popula-
ton was attending church today there
lay on the desk in a dingy room. down
town the skull of a murdered woman.
There for six long hours was unfolded
horrible story of crime. The central fig
ure in the story is James e. LogLe-
known to the police departments of the
continent as Jimmy Logue-burglar.
bank robber and one of the most notori-
Gus all round crooks in the annals of crime.
The case turned up on the murder of
one OF this mans wives. Johanna Logue.
but it was a fitting climax TO a remarka
BILE tale that proved that he was not her
murderer.
On the night of February %. 1879,
Johanna Logue vanished as suddenly as
if the earth had opened and swallowed
her.
The newspapers at the time were full of
It. Rewards were offered and no one was
mole indefatgable in his efforts to locate
The woman than Logue himself.
On October Is, 1893 fourteen years after
ward, carpenter repairing the house at
1850 North Eleventh street tore up some
the skeleton of woman. When it be-
came known that Logue and his wife had
lived in the house suspicion at once
pointed to him as the murderer, but all
search for him proved unavailing. On
the evening of March 5th last the door
bell of Coroner Ashbridge's residence rang
and answering it in person he was con-
fronted by an old, white haired man who
said abruptly: II am Jimmy Logue, and
| hsve come to give myself up"
That was all he said ana the coroner
handed him over to the police, under an
assumed name. From that time on the
coroner and Detective Geyer worked to-
gether in secret until they had unraveled
the complete story which eliminated a
few days ago in the arrest of a man whose
identity was not revealed until today.
He is Alphonse Cutaer, jr.. the illegi-
innate son of Logue's former alleged wife.
He is locked up in the city hall on a
charge of murder, while in neghboring
cell Logue is held as a witness. Cutaiers
crime, for he has made confession in
which he acknowledges causing the
womans death. although he asserts in
voluntarily, is best understood from a
br1ef recital OF Logue career.
He was already notorious character
when in 1858 he was married to Mary Jane
Andrews. With her he lived two years,
when. without the formaity of divorce,
he was welded to Mary Gahan, who,
though she had not been wife, was the
mother of an 1S-months old child,
Alphonse Cutaiar, jr. Logue and Mary
had not lived long together when he be-
came enamored of her siaster, job anna
Gahan, whom he established in sepa-
rate household. paying all expenses until,
in 1869, Mary diei. Meanwhile Logue,
who was working at his profession, fell
into the hands of the police for series
of burglaries. On May 26, 1871 he was
arraigned at the Central police station
for sentence, but before the case proceeded
he asked Magistrate Smith to do him
favor first. The magistrate complied and
Logue standing in the dock, was married
to the woman. Then he was sentenced
to seven years in the penitentiary
During this term Johanna boarded in
this city, and promptly on h is release in
1877 Logue came to her, when tfiey went
to New York, where, for a time, he ope-
rated with the notorious Peter Burns,
who died some years ago in Jail in Flor
ence, Italy. Logue raised money in some
manner. for not long after his release he
bought $2O.O worth of government
bonds in New York. In February. 1879,
Logue and the woman came to this city
Meanwhile young Cutaicr had become
barber and Logue bought out for him the
business of his former emloyer, William
Matthews. and fitted it up as shop for
Cutaier, Logue and Johanna. giving with
him in the dwelling portion. which was
expensively furnished. A few days after
this Logue and the woman went to New
York for short visit. There Logue fell
in with another burglar named George
Mason. and on the evening of February
10Th the men left for Boston, ling
Johanna they would return shortly. The
following Tuesday Logue returned and
found his wife gone. He came to Phila-
delphia and went to his home. There he
found Cutaier, his journeyman Fitz Eek
ert and young APPRENTICE named Harry
Fricke. Cutaier told him the last he had
seen of Johanna was on the preceding
Saturday. Logue at once thought she had
cloped with Peter Burns, but it was found
of the woman was lost.
With the assistance of her brother.
Peter Gahan, Logue searched the country
far and wide for her. but to no avail. In
November. 1879, Logue was sent to prison
and after his release on April % 1898, he
was lost sight of until he gave h imself up
to Coroner Ashbridge.
At the time of her disappearance the
woman wore jewelry worth $200v and had
in the bosom of her dress four $1,000 gov
ern ment bonds. When they moved to
the Eleventh street house in 1879. Loguc |
had secreted seven Of these $1,000 bonds |
under the carpet of the stairway, telling |
no one but Cutaier where they were. |
When he returned from New York he |
found Cutaier had stolen one Of the bonds |
and sold it to the Drexels. Cutaier and |
his wife lived at the house for year af-
ter Johanna disappeared when a foul
odor coming from under the kitchen
floor made the woman so sick that they