The herald., 1895-04-15

positively identified by Miss Williams
father as he gave it to her as Christmas
present.
Upon examination in my Office this
evening. l asked the young man the fol-
lowing: Young man. you will be placed
on trial for your life. only want to ask
you one qestion and do not wish to con-
vict you from your own mouth. Did you
ever see this purse?'
He said, yes | asked him when.
He said: Last Friday night. found it
about twenty minutes to II O'Clock at the
corner of Twenty-third and Bartlett
streets
Durant appeared confident and COM
posed in his cell, which is one of the
steel tanks in the new city hall. His at
torney was present during the interview
given to reporters and when he made the
statement that he had not seen Miss
Williams for three weeks which is said
positively to be at variance with the
facts. his attorney interrupted him. say
ing he had talked enough. Durant's
father and mother were with him and
they feel keenly the position in which
their son is placed.
DR.. Gibson, the pastor of Emanuel
church, had an interview with Chief
Crowley today. He stated that he had
no knowledge of the terrible crime and
referred bitterly to the fact that the
newspapers were unfriendly to him be-
cause he had refused to accord them in
terviews in regard to the tragedy.
The autopsy on the body Of Miss La
al ;oh+ shomo1 hot
the girl had been strangled to death, her
slayer using his hands, as shown by he
deep imprint of fingers and nails.
The physicians making the autopsies
on the bodies state that both Miss Lamont
and Miss Williams had been outraged
before being killed and further stated that
there was no doubt that both girls had
led virtuous lives. In the case of the
Lamont girl the autopsy indicated that
the assault had been made on her about
ten days ago, which was the time she
disappeared.
Coroner Hawkins today complained
that his office is overworked at present.
He has thirty suspicious deaths on his
books upon which inquests have not been
completed. During the month of April
there were six deliberate murders. This
number does not include the deaths of
Blanche Lamont and Minnie Williams.
These two make the total of eight vio-
lent deaths at the hands of persons
known or unknown since April.
The coroner will not be able to hold the
inquests on the matter of the murder OF
the two girls until the latter part of this
L. ~. In l. -
with the cases. In the meantime separate
juries will be impaneled who will re-
view the remains. Miss Lannon'S body
will be shipped to her home at Blu tie.
Mont, for burial, while Miss Williams
remains will be buried in this city.
The name of the suspected medical
student is Durrant and not Durant.
Miss Turner's Story
Miss Lucille Turner is the name of the
young lady referred to in Chief Gro wiley S
statement as the person to whom Durrant
made the insulting proposals one Sunday
night, on escorting her home. Since
then their relations have been somewhat
strained. Miss Turner is a teacher in the
Sunday school and has known Durarnt
since she first entered the churc last
May. She says that he was very much
interested in his studies and work, fond
of describing the horrors of a dissec ting
room and seemingly lost to any feeling
OF reverence for the human body. Miss
Turner has been connected with Durant
in compiling a catalogue of the Sunday
school library. The first pages of the
catalogue were written by Durant, others
were written by George King, and the
rest by Miss Turner herself. She identi-
fed Durrants' writing in several places
and when shown the scrap of paper in
which Blanche Lamont's rings we're re-
turned to Miss Noble. positively identi-
fed the writing OF the name George r.
King, on the paper: as being that of Dur
rant. she said that it would take con-
elusive evidence to prove to her that any
one other than Durrant wrote that name.
The detectives have two theories with
regard to this paper and writing. One is
that Durrant wrote the name of King,
thinking to connect the absence of
Blanche Lamont with him. The other is
that Durant picked up stray paper
without noticing the names on it and
sent it off, seemingly anonymous.
During conversation with the detect
ives. when Miss Turner was examining
the different handwritings, she exclaimed
suddenly in an excited and passionate
tone, II would have fallen a victim to
him too if | had not said no.
4 Then followed the story as to Durrant' S
action. Miss Turner also said that on
the Sunday night following Blanche's dis
appearance Durrant seemed worried and
she had a conversation with him. Using
the fyleaf of a hymn book. she asked
him what troubled him. Writing: Mon
ey matters or love? One or the other
know it is" He wrote in reply: "No;
it is som ething hundred times greater
in Importance to me.
1t has been learned that Durrant had
been engaged to Miss Flora Upton. gov
eIness in family at Mitern, MERGED
county. She was graduate of the high
school in this city. Durrant told Miss
Upton that he was expecting to graduate
from the medical school this summer.
He was an earnest student, and his
standing in none of his classes fell below
81 per cent The young people had not
looked forward to any termination OF the
engagement on graduation, as Durrant
had a name to make in his profession be-
fore he could think of matrimony.
"GentIe and Conscientious
Measured by the characteristics which
are usually found in murderers, Theodore
Durrant is the last man whom nybody
would suspect of committing a murder
He is described by his friends as a gentle
ron ri oil ct ous vpJny man Of moral ri n r.