The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-09-27
FOUND GUILTY AS CHARGED
Circumstantfal Evidence is Enough to Con-
vict In the Notorious Hill Case.


vict In the Notorious Hill Case.
Guthrie, o. tt. Sept. 26.-The Si1lwa-
ter Gazette says: During the past
three days the court room has been fair
ty filed during the daytime with a lot
Of morbidly inclined persons anxious TO
hear every word of the evidence in the
trial OF the case OF the territory against
Frank Hill, a farmer living about four
miles south CT town. charged with bas-
tardy. The prosecution had an array
OF witnesses and evidences which. al
though not completely linked to getheII,
was sufficient to convince any reason
able person that the defendant in the
action was one of the most depraved
and vicious brutes that ever existed ia
human form. His victim is a young girl
Just past her seventeenth year, who is
even yet so completely under his con-
troll that it IS impossible to get her TO
tell anything or even admit that improp-
er relations have existed between them
The facts Of the ca Sc as developed in the
trial are substantially as follows:
'TSarh Mick, the daugter OF a poor
and illiterate farmer, last winter secur-
ed employment as a domestic at the
home of Hill. who lived only about a
mile away. and retniarhdee fhyaKrt
about for months. coming homo some
time June last After being home her
actions We're not as they had former
ly been, and frequently at night she
would leave the house and be gone no
one knew where for three or four hours.
On Sundays she would disappear occa-
sionally IN a like manner until the sus-
picfonS of her parents were aroused.
and they were satisfied that all was not
right Finally, one night in August the
girl, after the family had retired, took
her trunk out of the house and after
leaving a note TO her mother advising
her that she would disgrace the family
no longer. she went away, no one
knew where. The disappearance of her
trunk a. the same time led the parents
TO believe that Hill had aided her in
getting away. and the next day her IA
Their, in company with two neighbor-,
went over to the Hill farm TO see If she
was there Hill was in the field and
upon being questioned il ne knew any
thing of the where2 bouts Of the girl.
appeared surprised that she had left
home, and declared that ne had not seen
her. He granted the party permission
TO search the premises for her. but alb
solutely refused 10 assist IN the hunt
=
a complete search of the premises and
finally, when in some timber. they
found HNi and the girl hidden in draw
surrounded by a dense thicket. Hfl
had Fed TO the searching party. but
when he found that they were deter7n-
lned TO search for her. he took q circuit
Gus route TO where she was hiding and
remained with her until found. This
was sufficient TO start the prosecution
and he was arrested and placed in jail
AT the trial. witnesses were produced 10
prove that he had been seen lurking
around the Nick homestead a. night,
presumably upon the same nights that
the girl would disappear from home and
be gone for an indefinite length Of time.
One witness testified that HiE and the
giry were improper in their conduct
while at Perkins on the Fourth Of July.
Another testified 70 improper conduct by
both Of them at HIS home, etc. etc.
But the crowniag evidence against him
was couple OF decoy letters perpcrt-
ing 10 have been sent MIN by the girl
while ne was IN jal. His answers 10