The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-11-01

AFTERNOON and met PietZel at the western
Union office, at Tenth and Chestnut
streets, and gave him the check for the
trunk. He then went to his boarding
house on Eleventh street and that night
left for the West. Holmes told him that
the next time he met Pietzel was in the
postoffice at Detroit. Holmes said that
he had given Pietzel instructions how to
prepare the body for the swindle. He was
to place it on his back, one hand upon the
breast and the other by the side, and to
place some liquid in the mouth and cause
an explosion. This liquid was wash for
cleaning clothes that they were making.
He also told him to burn the breast and
arm. He also instructed Pietzel how, by
working the arms of the corpse, he could
inject chloroform into the stomach.
AT subsequent interview Holmes re-
tracted the foregoing statement and told
Geyer that the body was that OF Pietzel.
On hearing this Geyer said: Holmes, if
that was Pietzel's body, you murdered him
and killed the three children"
mo-, [ did not, Mr.. Geyer,' replied
Holmes, 81 will tell you about it."
Holmes then told Geyer the story that
Pietzel committed suicide and of his find
ing him dead on Sunday morning. Holmes
went to the house, found that Pietzel had
killed himself by laying a cloth across his
face and allowing chloroform to drop from
bottle upon the towel. Pietzel left a
note for Holmes telling him that he in
tended to kill himself and advising him to
make such use of his body as they had
intended to do with the bogus corpse.
After some reflection Holmes says he did
this and fixed the body as it was found.
In explanation of the whereab bouts Of the
children, Holmes said they had gone to
London with Minnie Williams. When
asked where their trunks were Holmes
said he left them in hotel on West Madi-
son avenue, in Detroit. At another inter-
terview Holmes contradicted himself by
stating that he had given the boy Howard
in charge of man named Hatch at In
dianapolis, and that ne had never seen
any of them since he sent the girls from
Toronto.
Mr.. Graham proposed now to have
Geyer tell of the finding of the children S
bodies. The defense objected strenuously
and the jury was taken from the room
while the argument upon the question was
made to the court The matter before the
court was the most important that had
yet come up.
The Commonwealth undoubtedly has
based much of its case upon the evidence
OF the killing of the children by Holmes,
not alone for the effect it would produce,
but to show that the murder of Petzel was
but one link in the chain of deaths he
plotted. If evidence of the murder of the
children was barred out the Common
wealth's case would lose much OF it's
strength, as the evidence of the killing of
Pletzel IS purely presumptive and circum-
stantlal, and the prosecution might have
difficulty in proving directly the murder
by Holmes. With these facts in view Mr.
Graham argued at great length and with
much earnestness. He quoted from au-
thorlties sustaining his position, and burn
ing words OF denunciation of Holmes and
his crimes fell from his lips.
Holmes sat unmoved beneath the lash
of the eloquence of Mr.. Graham, and even
smiled at times and made notes of the
argument. Mr.. Grahams whole conten-
ton was that the motive for killing the
family was mercenary one, as it was
only by wiping out the Pietzel family that
Holmes could obtain entire possession of
what was held in common between him
and Pietzel. So vital was the evidence of
the killing of the children that Graham
intimated that il it were rejected Holmes
might be acquitted.
Mr.. Rotan made the argument for the
defense. At Sis O'Clock the court adj
journed till tomorrow.