The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-03
ROBBERY NOT A MOTIVE.
Was There a Buggy in Front of
the House During the
Murder?
SENATOR L. W. BUCK DYING
Conflicting Statements of the
Neighbors Who Wish to
Avoid Publicity.

The heads of the Police Department
worked assiduously yesterday in trying to
unravel the mystery that surrounds the
butchery of Miss Ellen Harrington, whose
half-burned body was found in her apart
ments at 1017 Ellis street Saturday after
ternoon.
Captain Lees spent most of the day in
going through the mass of correspondence
found in Miss Harrington's room, and in
examining the 800 or more photographs
that belonged to her. In the morning the
two sisters and brother-in-law of the MUIR
dered woman came down from Sacra-
mento These are Mrs. Josephine Jack
son, the widowed sister and heir under the
will of deceased, and Mr.. and Mrs. Daniel
w. Rae. They spent several hours in con-
sultation with Chief Crowley and Captain
Lees, but they could tell the policemen but
little that was of value in determining the
authorship of the crime. After that con-
sultation Chief Crowley went to Oakland,
where he spent the afternoon.
Two theories were abandoned yesterday
and fourth came to the surface. The
last connects well-known racing man of
this City with the crime, but his name is
known only to the police and they will not
divulge 1t. They do not build upon it very
strongIy-from their own tell-yet it was
deemed important enough to have couple
of detectives at the racetrack Saturday
afternoon and have the same men follow
up the clew till late last evening. 1t is be-
ieved the name of this man was found on
the stub-book that Miss Harrington kept
of money received from all her dodgers.
Captain Lees has the stub-book and will
permit no one to examine it.
IL 4l1&4
nected the Japanese, +. kano, and the IN
known tramp with the murder. Kano's
abb seems to be correct, and besides, he
could have had no motive for the deed,
The tramp also has an alibi and likewise
could have had no motive for such a crime.
Mrs. Crouse'S nephew saw the tramp wal
up the steps to the front door, remain
there for moment or SO, and then retrace
his steps and go up the street. And then,
too, it was nearly l o'clock when the tramp
made his appearance, and he could hardly
have secured an entrance to Miss Harring-
tons fat unless she had opened the door
for him and invited him to come upstairs.
But the strongest argument for believing
that neither the Jap nor the tramp could
have been the murderer is that neither can
be imagined to have had motive for the
deed. And it was evidently a crime with
a strong and hidden motive behind it.
Robbery could not have been that motive,
for aside from the woman's missing watch
she was not robbed. Even the gold chain
attached to the watch at the time it was
snatched from the victim was not stolen,
and there were several valuable pieces OF
jewelry within easy sight and reach that
were not taken, besides some gold coins
hidden in not very secure or obscure
place-in the bottom of the hair-receiver
beside the bureau.
And yet the murderer had ample time
to have secured all the valuabes in the
room, for he took time to ransack the
bureau drawers and go through his vic
TINS private correspondence. He might
have had three-quarters of an hour to
spend in the room. 1t was few minutes
before II o'clock when Mrs. kellogg, who
lives in the rear fiat on the same floor, last
saw Miss Harrington, and it was about Is
minutes of l o'clock when the first alarm
was given.
Fifteen minutes would have been long
enough for him to have finished his work