The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-09-25
TO HEAR M'NALLYS CASE.
1T WILL COME UP IN POLICE COURT
THIS MORNING.

McNaIIy Kept in Close Confinement.
No One Allowed TO See Him Ex-
cept His Brothers and They Only
in the Presence of an ORcer-The
Detectives Claim to Have n Strong
Case-Thomas f. McNaIIy's State
ment in His Brothers. Behalf.
The charge OF arson against James Nc
Nally was not investigated in police
court yesterday morning.
Mayor Myers was present for the pur-
pose of presiding at the hearing. Maj. P.
w. Meldrim, who has been engaged as
council for McNally, did not appear
promptly. and Mayor Myers announced,
after waiting a short while, that he had
an important business matter to attend
to and that the hearing was adjourned
until this morning. Maj. Meldrim ar
rived shortly after the mayor had left.
McNally is kept in close confinement.
No one has been allowed to see him ex-
cept his brothers, and they only in the
presence of an officer. Maj. Meldrim was
denied permission to see him yesterday.
The detectives claim to be able to make
out a strong case of circums tantial evil
dence against McNally, suffiviently strong
at least to warrant his being held. What
evidence they have beyond what has
been made public they decline to say.
McNally, in spite of the fact that he has
been very dissipated of late has a good
many friends who do not believe in his
guilt, and regard his arrest on suspicion
as unjust. To those who know him, Nc
Nally has always appeared to be a light
hearted clever fellow, ready to do any
body good turn, and his own worst en-
envy.
Thomas f. McNally, the twin-brother
of the prisoner, is very indignant at his
brothers arrest. The twin brothers re-
semble each other so much that they are
frequently mistaken one for the other.
IF the detectives had nothing more
against my brother than suspicion, they
had no right to arrest him." said 7. f.
McNally. Arson is too serious a charge
to arrest a man merely on suspicion. The
fact that he was always among the first
to arrive at these fires proves nothing. Ev-
cry policeman who does duty on Bay
street has seen him on the street at all
hours of the night. Jim has been very
dissipated and has given us a great deal
of trouble. He is often out nearly all
night and his favorite haunts are in the
northern section of the city. Naturally
on hearing a fire alarm in this section
he would be one of the first to respond,
having nothing else to do and loving the
excitement. That he telephoned to Mr..
]. NJ. Dixon to inform Mr. Hull of each
of the three fires proves nothing. He was
formerly in the employ of Mr.. Hull and
his brother Frank has been employed
there for some time and is yet. 1t was
only a friendly interest that prompted him
to inform Mr.. Hull of the fires Every
body that knows Jim knows there is
nothing malicious in his disposition.
Neither is he so silly as to set fire to a
place just to see 1t burn or simply to get
a few days work as watchman."
Mr. McNally said that he learned
last spring that his brother was
being Swallowed by detectives. A man
named Murphy, who claimed to be
former trainer of John L. Sullivan, and q
protege of Jake Kirain, who came here
from Jacksonville. told him, he said, that
he had been employed to shadow his
brother, who was suspected of setting fire
to the Savannah Grocery Company and
other places. Mr.. McNally said that he
went to the city officials and demanded
if there was any truth in these reports
Tine officials, he said, denied knowing any
thing about it, and he concluded that
there was nothing in the reports
An unfortunate feature of the affair is
that the mother of the prisoner is lying
at the st. Joseph's Inhrmary at the point
of death. The news of her sons arrest
has been kept from her as yet and an
effort will be made to keep it from her
entirely.