The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-05-07
SELECT AUDIENCE OF SIXTY
ALL THAT WILL BE PERMITTED TO
WITNESS THE EXECUTION.
Brief story Of the killing OF Pitezel
and How the Officers Learned
of the Crime.

been his meditations, they were accompanied
by the Cater of the hammers on the scat
fold. which was being erected few yards
from his cell.
After the murderer had finished light
breakfast this morning Father Daily, his
spiritual adviser, visited him and remained
more than an hour, preparing him for the
end. In the afternoon the condemned man
received visit from his attorney and it is
sard that a will was drawn up. The rest
Of the day Holmes spent reading devotional
books and taking short maps. According to
Father Daily, Holmes is fully prepared for
his fate and is sincere in his repentance.
His stolid demeanor remains unchanged and
unless he should collapse at the last moment,
there will be no hitch in to-morrows ar
rangements. 1t is said that Holmes will
make a final statement from the gallows
in the form OF confession and an express
sion of his pentence. 1t is hardly posi-
bic that Sheriff Clement will permit of any
long va,edictory. believing that Holmes
might talk until he collapsed. At noon to-
day everything was in readiness for the
execution which will occur shortly after 10
o'clock in the morning. There will be but
sixty persons present, including twelve jury
men, twenty-five deputies and twenty-five
newspaper men.
Herman Webster Mudgett, better known
under his alias of H. III. Homes, was con-
victed of numbering Benjamin F. Pitezel,
and there is not the shadow of doubt that
he subsequently murdered three OF PitezePs
children and plotted to kill their mother and
the other two. Since he has become con-
WINGED that he cannot escape the gallows,
he has confessed TO the killing OF several
.sA&tA @f IIA1x
special credit attaches to a member of the
Philadelphia police department, Frank p.
Geyer, who has just published book con-
tanning an account of the efforts in that di-
recton 1t is an interesting book. particu-
larly because it is detective story that is
true According to detective Geyer Herman
Webster Mudgett was born at Gilmanton.
n. H. on May 16. 1860. so that at the present
time he is not quite thirty-six years old.
HIS STRING OF WIVES.
On the Fourth of July, 1878. he was mar
ried at Alton. in his native State. to Clara
A. Lowering. In 1887, Jan. 3. he married
Myrta u. Belknap, but as his first wife was
not dead he decided for obvious reasons to
change his name and called himself Harry
Howard Holmes. Less than month after
his marriage to Myrta Belknap, Holmes
filed i'm the Superior Court of Cook county,
Illinois, libel in divorce against Clara A
Lowering Mudgett. but this action was
thrown out of court because OF his own
failure to appear. Then in Chicago, two
years later, he met Georgiana Yoke, who.
on Jan. II, 1874. became his third wife,
neither of the other two wives being dead
or divorced a fact of which she was un-
aware. She knew him as Henry Mansfield
Howard. She was a beautiful Blonde from
Franklin Ind, of a venturesome DISPOSE
ton, and was much taken with "Howard's"
ways. She is still living in Franklin
In the fall of 1893 Holmes made his first
move-not his first on the chess board Of
crime-but the first in the game that led
to his undoing He made application to the
Fidelity Mutual Life Association for $4,000
twenty-year policy. which was granted. A
few months later the same company in
sured for $4,000 Benjamin F. Pitezel.
Holiness partner in crime and his first
victim. In August this man, under the
name of b. F. Perry. rented a house at
1916 Cailowhill street, Philadelphia. On
Sept Pitezei was found in an upper room
of this house dead. 1t was arranged be-
tween the two men that Pitezel, or Perry,
as he was known to the neighbors, should
be burned by an explosion, from the effects
OF which he should apparently die, but in
stead corpse hired purchased for the
occasion should be PANIED off on the in
as PiteZel knew 1t. Holmes intended, how
ever, that the explosion not only should
burn but also kill his confederate. Dead
men tell no tales. and there would be one
less to share the $4,000. Geyer tells how
Pitezel looked when discovered.
The upper part of the body was found to
be much decomposed. The left arm was ex-
tended along and close to the left side. the
right arm across the breast-altogether
very peaceful, posture. He was rigid and
straight, If he had been tremendously
laid ont in death. The left side of the
shirt and the left breast had been burned.
and the mustache on one side and the
under the arm was not burned at all.
. At the side lay the fragments of
bacco and a burnt match. The tobacco in
the pipe had been but slightly charred.
The coroner's physician found. the
brain normal, the body we'll nouriShed, the
lungs congested. the heart empty and nor
NAL and free from clots, indicating that
death had been very rapid with him: Death
from congestion of the lungs caused by the
inha. alton of flame, or of cAloroform or
other poisonous drug was the verdict rem
dered. Pitezers body lay in the Philadel-
phia morgue for eleven days. Then Ii was
buried in potter's field. Before this. how
ever two letters were received in Philadel-
phia from a st. Louis lawyer named Jeptha
ID Howe, who said that he represented
Carrie A. Pitezel, wife of Benjamin f. Pite-
eel. ,,,,,,,
TIfE GLEN III
The man who was known. he said. as Il. r.
Perry and who was found dead in the house.
in Callowhill street. was none other than
Piteze,. The Insurance company 10 which
one of the letters was addressed, notified its
Chicago branch oftice 10 find out all it could
about the dead man. particularly to ascertain
the names of people who had known him in
Chicago The company received word from
the Chicago Office that the only man who
knew Pitezei well was II. III. Holmes. OF Will
mette. Ill. Communication was opened be-
tween the company and Holmes. and through
the iatter's instrumentaity the body was
identified. Howe and Holmes claimed not 10
have known each other until they met in
the insurance office Philadelphia. Alice
Pitezel the dead mans daughter. who came
from ST. Louis with Howe, also identified the
body. The Fidelity company accepted the
Identification, which was apparently so hon.
estly made. and paid over the $4,000. OF
which Mrs. Pitezes got about $500 Holmes
took about $500 and Howe the rest. Had
these two consprators given 500 of their
ill-gotten funds 70 another man the murder
of Benjamin Pitezel might have remained
undiscovered. Fortunately for the public
good there was in this instance no honor
among thieves. and il is due 10 Marion G..
jail fer train robbery, that the insurance
had been perpetratei upon ii. Holmes seems
10 have been attracted 10 Hedgepeth by his
reputation for nerve. AT any rate. he went
Ia him and ouflinpd q MA IN arranged NTH