The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-01-07
INTO THE MILL AGAIN.
U. S. Court Begins to Grind on the
Hillmon Case.
TOMORROW MORNING AT 9 O'CLOCK


Judge Thomas OF North Dakota Will
Listen TO the Evidence-synOpsis of
the Case.
The famous Hillmon insurance cases
will be commenced tomorrow morning
before United States District Judge
Thomas of North Dakota. A special
venire of jurors has been summoned and
everything is in readiness for the trial
There are three insurance companies
concerned in the case, the New York
Life, the New York Mutual Life and the
Connecticut Mutual Life. The original
amount of the insurance upon which the
suits were brought was $4,000, but the
Interest on that amount since the alleged
death of Hillmon doubles the original
sum and $4,000 is involved in the suit
which comes up tomorrow.
The case has been tried three times,
first in June, 1882, in the United States
circuit court at Leavenworth, the second
at the same place in 1885 aud the third
in Topeka in February. 1888. In the
first and second trials the juries failed
to agree, but at the third trial verdict
was found against the companies.
he case was at once appealed to the
United States supreme court and re-
versed in decision given by Justice
Gray. The cases were tried as one, and
the insurance company claimed the right
to three peremptory challenges of. jurors.
Judge Shiras, before whom the case was
tried, refused to grant but three per-
emptory challeges, and the reversal was
secured on that ground and because of
the refusal to admit a letter as evidence.
The case has been dragging along
since that time, the companies hoping
that they might be able to produce Hill
mon himself A dozen times has it been
reported that Hillmon was found, but
each time the companies have failed in
the Identification of the man supposed
to be Hillmon. If Hillmon is not dead
he has proved himself an expert in his
line, for hundreds of detectives have
been on the lookout for him, and re-
ward of $4,000 for his capture has slim
ulated the most active search He has
not been found, but the trial will be
commenced tomorrow on the old theory
that Hillmon is still alive, or if not, that
he has died since his supposed death in
March. 1879.
1t was in the fall of 1878 that John W.
Hillmon, poor teamster, who lived in
Lawrence, began 10 take out life insur-
ance 1t was on November 80 that he
took out his first policy for $4,000 in the
New York Life. On December 10 he
took out $4,000 more in the same COM
panY and $4,000 in the New York
Mutual On March 4, 1879, he took out
out $1,000 in the Connecticut Mutual
and at once left for the western part of
the state in search of a location for
sheep ranch, so he said He travelled
overland in company with a man known
as John H Brown. They stopped in
Wichita two or three days and then con-
tinued their journey westward On
| March IS at a place on Crooked creek
near Medicine Lodge, man reported TO
be Hillmon was shot and killed, Brown
said accidentally as he was taking his
rife out Of his wagon. At any rate a
body was found and coroner's inquest
decided that John ". Hillmon had been
I accidentally killed. He was buried and
Mrs Hillmon applied for the payment of
the policies. Then began an investigation
by the insurance companies which re-
suited in their refusal to pay the policies
and the subsequent action in the United
States circuit court to compel their pay
ment.
The insurance companies claim that
| the man killed at Crooked Creek was not
! Hillmon at all, but a man named Fred
! erick A. Walters, who bore some resem-
blance to him, and they claim he was
murdered by Hillmon and Brown for the
| purpose of collecting the insurance
money.
There is some evidence in support of
this theory. Walters home was in Fort
! Madison, Ia, and he had come to Kansas
to ''see The country" Early in March,
1879, he wrote two letters from Wichita,
one to his sister and the other to wo-
man to whom he was engaged, telling
them that he had secured work with a
man named Hillmon, who intended to
start sheep ranch. (These were the
letters ruled out by the COURT Walters
was never heard of again, and the insur-
ance companies claim that Hillman and
Brown decoyed him to the lonely place
where the dead body was found and then
murdered him.
After the investigation was commenced
the body was exhumed and brought to
Lawrence, where there was conflicting
| evidence on the Identification, some
claiming that it was the body of Hillmon
and others that it was not
A warrant was issued for Brown and
he ran away, but was afterward cap
tured He then made a confession thai
| Hillmon had killed stranger upon the
road and afterward dressed the corpse in
his own clothes and disappeared. Brown
afterward denied the story and said thai
it was wrung from him by the threats oil
the attorneys of the insurance companies
Mrs. HLlmon has married again anC
her name is now Mrs. Cook, but she still
hopes to secure the insurance on hel
former husbands life.
VERY FEW OFFENDERS.