The Madisonian. (Virginia City, Mont.) 1873-1915, 1895-04-20
REVOLVING CRIME
MISS LAMONT
IN SAN
She Was One of DfllOn's FRirest
Daughters-Her Body Found Nude
in the rover Of the Emanuel Church
"A Eiendish Murder.

DILLON, April IS Especial Core
spondence]-The remains of Miss
Blanche Lamont, the murdered daugh-
ter of the late Capt. David Lamont,
will arrive from San Francisco to-mor-
row. The body will be received by a
delegation of the Masonic lodge who
will escort the remains to the EpiscO-
pal church. where funeral services will
be held at 1890. The funeral promises
to be one of the largest ever held in
this city. and friends of the family are
here to attend it from all parts of the
state. The family to whom she be-
longed is one of the most estimable in
the state and public fever is at a white
heat over her foul murder.
The sad story of the cruel fate of
this beautiful young lady and that of
her San Francisco friend, Minnie
Williams, is inseparably interviewer.
"A u1SpdtA uuUSO lIolA q L -
Sunday, says: Blanche Lamont and
Minnie Williams were members of the
Emanuel Baptist church and members
of the Sunday school class. The form
er was a pupil at the normal school in
this city: the latter was a companion
in a family in Alameda, across the bay
from the city. Both were p years old,
brunettes and pretty and modest girls.
Both had been the recipients of at
tention from a young medical student
named w. H. 7. Durant. who is also
the librarian of the church and secre-
tary of the Young Peoples society of
the church.
On April 3. Miss Lamont disap-
peared. Diligent seach failed to re-
veal any trace of her. w. H. T.
Durant, who it appears. had been on
friendly terms with the missing girl.
On Saturday morning the mutilated
body of Minnie Williams was found in
the library of Emanuel Baptist church
on Bartlett street. The girl had been
assaulted and her remains We're cut
and hacked. she having evidently died
from loss of blood. Or further eXami-
nation it was found that she had been
gagged by the assailant. tearing
part of her un~derclothing and thrust
ing it down her throat with a sharp
stick. badly decorating the tongue.
Two witnesses state that they saw a
young man and a young woman the
former answering the description of
Durant and the latter of Minnie Viii
liams. enter the church. Following
this clue the police put the residence of
Durant under surveillance.
Miss Williams lived with Mrs. Voy.
near the church. Friday evening she
was to have attended a meeting of the
Young Peoples society of the church
at DIR. Nogel's house.
At 1:13 o'clock she left Mrs. Voy's tC
attend the meeting, taking a latch key
with her. She never appeared there.
About the same time Durant left his
home on Fair Oaks street in the same
vicinity. bound for the same meeting.
At s o'clock Durant met Philip Per
kins and asked him some questions
about a trip to Mount Diablo. which
the signal corps of which he was a mem.
Der was to make nex day. At $3.50 he
appeared at Nogel's residence. where
the young peoples meeting was il
progress, and none we're merrier thar
he during the remainder of the even.
ing. At II o'clock he left with a part,
of young people and went home. The
next morning Durant arose early an6
went with his comrades of the sigma
corps to Mount Diablo, so miles away.
The two murders are so closely con
nected that it is now necessary to &C
back to the Lamont case.
Yesterday Mrs. Noble, the aunt O
Miss Lamont, received through tht
mails a parcel containing the three
rings worn by her niece the night she
disappeared. On the paper were writ
ten the name and address of Theodore
D~urant. This. together with the fac,
that Miss Williams. as an intimate
friend of Miss Lamont, had beer heare
to say that she knew Blanche haG
been murdered. but had refused to tel.
what she knew and how. led the police
to suspect hat the same person who
had killed Miss Williams had slain