The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-05-07

of the Fidelity Mutual Life Assoeiafion
oI Philadelphia, were hot on Holmes
tral u for defrauding the concern out of
$iV,00O IN connection with Pitezels death,
the latter being insured for this amount,
! ana, as the accused believed horse steal
ing to be high crime in Texas, he
intendent Hanscom to the insurance
fraud He did not for moment dream
snat he was then suspected of the MUIR
del dei,hta ~ Pltiezei. it. and ne came to Phila-
aeipnla without requisition papers. He
expressed a Willingness to be tried here
on the conspiracy charge in preference
- - !nal OF morse stealing at Fort Worth.
Before leaving Boston made this .scon-
lesson to Mr. Hanscom:-
Wnen l concluded it was time to carry
OUT our scheme to defraud the insurance
company l secured stiff in New York
ana shipped 1t in a trunk to philadelphia.
1 turned the check for the trunk over to
rrltezeI on the Sunday nearest the first of
September. I instructed him how to pre-
pare the body, and in three hours we We're
on our way to New York Ten DAYS after
ia tae payment, payment of the money l saw Pitezel
70 70 unat city, where the father saw them.
IltezsI agreed to go South and he took
one on ce, eehlld, Howard took. the two girls
W All met againlin Detroit PitezeI took
Ine cnlldren and went to South America.
hpurlng Pun al this time Mrs. Pitezel knew
know that he had the children. If She
was aware OF that she would insist that
the crooked business be wound up right
away. In order to keep Mrs. Pitezel aWay
from her husband had to tell her he wa :
to another" s'
ieged admissions that Holmes Nsubseo1lenf
" made. In fact, he acquired a penchant
t1r making confessions that Surprised
the authorities. = -Se =
The insurance officials had good ground
LOT LOT pellevlng Holmes had murdered Pite-
s.i nsi anu the three children, SO when the
prlsoleF prged T. arrived IN Philadelphia he was
ne ala SO without any hesitat ton, but If
varied somewhat from the one he made
ZIP ~ Eosl Ion. II graphically narrated how the
Eoiy Sody was substituted for Pitezel in the
1aLo.Wnlil street house, and its identifica-
eion py Allce Pftezel as that of her father
aon week sha afterward. Holmes also related
now the money was received from the in
surance company and its subsequent divi-
sion between Mrs. PitezeI' .ientbs ~ n :
IT1toWe, q We the St Louis lawyer, and himself.
accused Howe of receiving 81. 500 for HE
snare in the transaction.
HoWe was indicted for conspiracy but
ped. ii was oiop-
soon after Holmes was brought to Phila-
oe,pnla oeiirit detective Geyer visited him in the
the body at No. 1916, Callowhiil street on on
september 4, 1894. After an hours con-
terlatloa tecfiva with the willy Holmes the de-
confession in which the accused sa;d
the body was not that of Pitezel. but was was
one substituted to defraud the Insurance
GGeyer with another Confession" aMr
Geyer,n he said, that story told Won
about substitute body is not true. # #
IS the body of Benjamin PietzeI hut I
ga Sie not murder him or his children. On
P2qf1ay P1tslayl dnsT morning, September 2. found
Callowhill street house. fo1ind a nnte
N a bottle telling me that he was tired
o. ne and had finally decided to commit
s5e ne ne requested me to look after
Wl5e and family. I then fixed up the
pSdy IN the position it was found. These
are, with Minnie Williams in London 7
gave Howard to Minnie Williams in De-
sroft, and | sent Alice and Nellie to her
from Toronto They met Miss Williams at
Niagara Falls, and sailed for Eurone from
New York - oi'e - ON
Between this time. and the trial for con-
70 which he pleaded guilty, Holmes made
many other confessions but they differed
very very lutte from those already given
Each time he pretended to tell the truth
but he sedulously avoided doing SO. No
pody believed what Holmes said about
PIetzel, and he would not tell anything.
all right
In his many interviews with District
attorney Al th Graham Holmes persisted that
with Minnie Williams in London. He even
persuaded Mr.: Graham to have an adver-
tlsement !I,r in the shape of cipher. puzzle
purpose Of bringing Minnie Williams and md
the little Pitezels back from Europe. The
htr District t1o; Attorney PLACES little faith in
yertisement was published as sort of
last and hopeless effort When the bodies
Of Of n Nellie e and Alice ,Pitezel were un-
killed them. When Howards cnarred
bones We're located in a superanuated
stove in Iryington, Ind, Holmes calmly
When the murders of Minnie Williams
and her sister were discovered. Holmes
said Minnie killed Nancy in. Jealous
Michigan He vigorously denied having
property. The disappearanee Of Of Emily iifg
criminal said he knew nothing nothing OF Of the the
girls fate. The partially Consumed
bones that We're found in the Chicago
of Holmes victims. About the last a time time
that Holmes. was taken to the District
Attorneys Office to CONFESS Mr.. Graham
repet6n leTt Rience oe gth Ss him aas5 gae
He actually gave the District Attorney
a veritable '.ioly'' about the Pitezel family
and Minnie Williams being still alive. The
scene that ensued was extremely dramatic
Mr.. Graham said
Holmes you. are an Internal lying
murderer | Will hang you in Philadel-.
Holmes nerve was still with him, and
he said:-
- II defy you; You have no evidence to
Mr.. Graham looked with disgust and
determination at Holmes, and said
''You will surely hang in Philadelphia
for numbering Benjamin Pitezel.''
The trial and conviction followed. The
District Attorney endeayored to prove
during the trial, through Detective Geyer.
that Holmes also killed the Pitezel chill
dren, but Judge Arnold, before whom
the case was tried, declared this to be
murder of the children after a prolonged
investigation, and the Commonwealth was
prepared to prove that Holmes also COM
mitted these crimes.
Holmes embraced the Catholic faith
when it became evident to him that he
must hang and the Rev. Father Daley
ministered to his spiritual wants Through
his trial and subsequent imprisonment
this arch-crininal maintained a noncha-
lance that was remarkable.
Herman Webster Mudgett was born
at Gilmanton, N. H., May 16 1860 On
July 4, 1878, he married Clara A. Lover
ing, at Alton, N. H., and on January 2S.
1887, under the name of Harry Howard
Holmes, he committed bigamy by marry
ing Myrta q. Belknap. A few weeks
thereafter Holmes applied in Chicago for
a divorce and the suit was pending un-
til June 4, 1891, when the Court dismissed
it, owing to the non-appearance of the
complainant. Holmes continued his big-
amous career by marrying Georgianna
Yoke in Denver Col, on January II, 1894
he assuming the name of Henry Mans
field Howard on this occasion q son