Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-09-25
The Mysterious Murder Case in San
Francisco.
TIE TRIAL has LASTED THREE MONTHS
The Prosecution Closes Its Circum-
stantiaI Evidence.
THE ACCUSED HOPEFUL

aEated. Durrant has throughout maintain
ed cool, resolute demeanor, and even the
most convincing testimony against him has
failed to unnerve him. The case for the
prosecution practically closed Friday. 1t is
wholly circumstantial, yet it is strong, and
nothing short Of the miraculous would seem
to be able to save the young man from the
gallows.
The case has occupied such large place
in the news of the day that a resume of the
leading facts involved is of special interest.
On the morning of April Miss Blanche
Lamont. young woman twenty years old,
left her aunt's home with her school books
dcne up with a leather strap. She was
rever cen alive after that by her relatives.
Three days after her disappearance her
aunt, Mrs. Noble, received by mail a pack
age containing the rings which Blanche
wore when she left home They We're done
Up clumsily in piece of the Examiner
newspaper, on which were scrubbed the
ranes of Prof Shoenstein, Blanche's music
teacher, and George r. King, the organist
OF Emanuel Church. There is similarity
between the disguised handwriting on this
piece of newspaper and the writing of Dur
rant as shown in catalogue which he was
pre- pairing for the Baptist Church Sunday
school. The return of the rings with these
rames scrubbed on the newspaper was evil
IDENTIFY an attempt to throw suspicion of the
crime on the men whose names had been
Used In this insiGious way by the murderer
of the girl.
Strange Disappearance.
On the 14th of April three Sunday school
girls going into a book closet off of the
library room of Emanuel Church in search
of material to decorate the church for
Easter found the body of young woman
there, which was later identified as that of
Minnie Williams. member of the church
and Sunday school. The girl had evidently
been strangled and assaulted in the library
room, after which the body had been drag
ged into the smaller room, where the VIC
tim was repeatedly stabbed and her body
mutiiated with case knife, part of the
Kitchen utensils in the church basement.
Circumstances led to the belief on the
part Of Chief of Police Crowley and his de-
tectives that W. H. r. Durrant a young
man OF twenty-four, medical student and
assistant librarian of the Sunday scilool
had guilty knowledge of the murder At
hrst the pastor. Rev. ]. G. Gibson was sus-
Pected, but he had no difficulty in clearing
church, Who, as well as Durrant, had a key
to the side door of Emanuel Church, was
also Swallowed, as we'll as several other
young men connected with the church The
murder OF Miss Williams led the police to
think Blanche Lamont had met like fate
This Impression grew out of the fact that
Durrant had been seen with Miss Williams
prior to her murder, which occurred some
April II. Connecting these facts with the
known friendship existing between Durra MT
and Miss Lamont, the police decided to
take possession of the Emanuel Baptist
Church and make systematic search for
evidences of an earlier crime.
A Memorable Easter,
The police search began Saturday, lasted
through the night and ended only with the
finding of the body Sunday morning. AL
though it was Easter, the police took pos
session of the church. and a placard was
hung on the front door giving notice there
would be no services. The streets were
filled with an immense crowd while the
search was In progress. Carpets were lift
ed, drawers emptied, bookcases opened and
firally the third floor of the church. the
gallery, was reached. 1t was bare of fur
niture. the light was dim and uncertain.
In one corner was door that led up into
the steeple. The detectives were told that
the sexton kept this locked. They discov-
eled however, that the doorknobs had
been removed and that the door was lock-
ed in some way on the inside. The door
was broken open, and they assembled to the
next floor along rough stairs with rough
handrail. On up, higher and higher. the
officers pushed their way, till they reached
the last gallery, or rude platform in the
belfry. Over in one corner, like a marble
statue, lay the nude body of the missing
girl. She had been brutally murdered. The
body had been laid out with care by the
back, her hands folded over her breast
and her head turEed slightly to one side.
and held in that position by block OF
wood under the neck. She had been stran-
gled, and the marks of the murderer's fin
gers were around the throat. There was
little pool of blood near by. Further
search revealed the clothing of the muir
dered girl slowed away in chinks and dark
holes high up in the belfry. The wretch
had literally torn the clothes from his vic
tim. Not single garment was found in
tact.
Durrant was arrested while out with a
signal corps party. From the first he had
rot shown a particle of fear. He had offer
ed his services to find Miss Lamont and
gave the police numerous suggestions.
On the day of his arrest Durrant, IN
an Interview, stated that he knew moth
ing whatever about Blanche Lamont's dis
appearance or the murder of Miss VIII
ifams. He stated that the morning of April
he had ridden in a car part way to school
with Miss Lamont, but beyond this he had
rot seen her on that day. One Of the strong
points in the commemorative case was the
finding Saturday morning after the muir
der of Miss Williams of her black purse
at his home. He explained this by saying
that on the night before he had found the
purse at 30 o'clock lying on the sidewalk
at the corner of sd and Bartlett streets.
This was square and half from Eman-
tel Church.
The Trial Begun.
The trial began July %. The state show
ed by its witnesses that Durrant had been
seen twice with Miss Lamont on a street
car the day she disappeared.
The organist of the church. George King,
met Durrant in the church with hat and
coat off and acting wildly in consequence
he said, of inhaling gas while trying to fix
electric light wires in the upper part Of
the church. King went to a drug store
and brought some bromo-seltser back 10
Durrant, who went into the kitchen and
drank dose.
Then King asked Durrant If he would
help him carry down stairs a small organ
that was in the Sunday school room. After
they had carried the organ down Durrant
asked King to come into the little library
room for a minute. Durrant had the key.
He unlocked the door.
In that room they found Durrant's coat
folded and laid on a box, and his hat on
the coat After Durrant had put his
things on they walked out nearly to Kings
house, although Durrant's lay in an eX-
actly opposite direction.
Goes to Prayer Meeting.
The evening of the same day there was
a prayer meeting in the church. 1t was
one of the regular Wednesday prayer
meetings which Blanche Lamont was in