The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1895-11-29
HERE AND THERE.
VARIETY OF NEWS ITEMS FROM
VARIOUS PLACES.
The Record of the Infamous Murderer
and Insurance Swindler, ii. III. Holmes
Becomes More Horrible Every Day,
Fria htful Discoveries at Chicago.

The awful record of III. III. Holmes,
the now famous murderer of the Pet
eel family, Mrs. Conner and daughter
and the Williams sisters, continues tc
grow blacker and blacker as the in
vestigations of the officers on the case
proceed. Holmes career in Chicago
is now the principal point of interest
after the above eight murders have
been securely fastened upon him.
Holmes residence in that city was in a
double three-story building called the
'castle," in which he had his offices
He had fitted up the various floors
with trap doors, secret rooms and
hiding places and in the basement had
placed two acid or quicklime watts
and furnace to dispose of his VIC
TINS. The police now believe that
they have evidence enough to hang
not only Holmes, but two, and possibly
three, other persons who were con-
nected with him in his frightful bust
ness. At least two more murders are
quite sure to be charged against
Holmes. One was Miss Emeline
Cigrand, of Dwight, Ill, who was sup
posed by her friends to have married
man named Phelps probably PietzeD.
Miss Cigrand was employed by Holmes
in his insurance swindle office in the
''castle" and is supposed to have be-
come too well acquainted with his af-
fairs for his comfort. Milford Cole, a
wealthy citizen of Baltimore, became
acquainted with Holmes while the
latter was settling the Williams sis
ters' estate in Fort Worth, Tex. Cole
went to Chicago, presumably visited
the castle" and disappeared. John
I'll. Caldwell, convict in the Arkan-
sas state prison, has furnished the
authorities with that incident. There
are some who believe that Horace
Williams, who died at Denver in 1898
shortly before the murder of his Sis
tiers, was also a victim of Holmes.
The Chicago police have arrested
Mr.. and Mrs Pat Quinlan as witnesses
against Holmes and they claim to have
evidence enough against them to hang
them also. Quinlan was janitor and
confidential man to Holmes at the
'castle." He carried the 81 keys
which opened the various doors, Sc
cret and otherwise, in the chambers.
To Quinlan, it appears, were sent the
orders from Philadelphia to destroy
all of Holmes papers, clothing and
other articles which might aid the
detectives in tracing his career. How
faithfully Quinlan did this is to be
seen in the little of Holmes effects to
be found in the castle. A man named
HI. s. Mack, who was also employed
by Holmes was arrested with serious
evidence against him. At least he
has said that he could hang Quinlan
and his wife if he cared tc. Chief Of
Police Badenoch says he does not be-
lieve the Philadelphia authorities will
ever surrender Holmes, and therefore
he is determined that Illinois justice
shall be meted out to his accomplices.
But the most startling evidence
against Holmes, Quinlan, ct al. was
obtained by the arrest of Charles
Chappell, machinist and jack-of-all-
trades, who has confessed that he artic-
ulated skeletons for Holmes and had
bodies taken away from the "castle. I"
He had removed the flesh from the
bodies of two women and one man and
had "set-up' their bones for Holmes.
Chappell's admissions reveal the ex-
istence of a complete system of ma
chinery in the castle for the commits
sion of murder, commencing with the
steel chamber or vault for smothering
the victims, the dissecting table and
ending in the acid tanks, where all
evidences of the deed but the bones
were removed. Chappell turned over
to the police one of the skeletons
which is said to be that of Minnie
Williams. 1t is now believed by the
police that little Howard Pietzel was
killed in Chicago and his remains dis
posed of.