The morning news., 1897-02-05
AUsTRALIA's MURDER FIEND.
story of the Career of Crime of
Frank Butler.

The Morning News dispatches of We'd
nesday told of the arrest at San Francisco
of murderer wanted in Australia, whom
the detectives had chased more than half
around the world. The New York Jour
nal publishes these details of the mans
career:
Frank Butler VIII be known always in
the annals Of crime as the murderer who
compelled his victims to dig their own
graves. lie was known in New South
Wales as Frank Harwood, Frank Ashe
Frank Claire, Samuel S. Simpson and as
Capt Lee Weller-the last the name of
mis- latest victim. He possessed the cum
ming of Deeming and the facility in execu-
ton of II. H. Holmes. 1t is known be-
yond a doubt that fourteen men owe their
deaths to him. And this is his record for
little less than three years.
lie was in San Francisco in 1893, but
what his career there was is not known
TO the police, although they have search
e9 9iiHgently Tor traces of him. He reach
ed Sydney, N. s. W., late in 1893 and ap-
pears TO have been prospector in the
Blue mountains. about loo miles north of
sydney and a doer of odd jobs in Sydney
during the bad season. A man known as
Frank Harwood disappeared in his compa-
ny, and not until later cases attracted at
tention was this thought at all suspicious
when he met o.. G. T. Preston, who had
gone to Sydney from Queensland to en-
gage in mining; Butler, under the name
OIL AarWOod, advertised in the Sydney pa
pers for prospecting mate, and Preston
answered. The Queenslander's parents
had just sent their son Sl,250. Butler rep
resented himself as an expert miner and
prospector, and induced Preston to agree
10 pay all the expenses to Emu PLANES, a
small station forty miles from Sydney,
where they left the railway and walked
| up into the mountains. A few days later
! Butler returned alone, saying Preston was
| working northward"
This was last October. and on NOV. 2
| Butler again set out for Emu PLANES ac-
companied this time by Capt; Lee Weller,
| q retired master mariner, who wanted a
| little excitement and search for gold.
| He had responded to an advertisement for
| a prospecting mate, published by Butler
| IN the name of Simpson. In less than
| week Butler was back in Sydney with Rhe
| tale that his mate was i'll. The advertise
| ing prospector had fallen under suspicion.
| There were many persons who remember
| ed queer facts about him, and Wellers
| friends being numerous they heard these
| suspicious and organized a searching par
! " TO flnd the sick master mariner On
| Nov. % they found his coat beside the
| ashes of campfire in the Blue noun
| tains; Remnants of a pocketbook were
| found near the camp, and trinkets be-
| longing to Weller. There were also found
| some black leather leggings marked Put
Ter, ana par OF trousers the murderer
| was known TO have worn. He had become
| very careless.
Thread by thread the mystery of many
| disappearances was solved Residents
about Emu PLANES We're found who had
| seen Butler with Preston and later with
| Weller. On Dec. / PrestOns undcrshirt
/
| from the camp where Weller's coat lay.
| On the following Tuesday Prestons body
| was found in shallow grave at the head
| of Numaba gully, less than a quarter Of
| a mile from the Weller camp. Preston
| and Weller had been shot through the
! head and stripped off their clothing. On
| Dec. the body of Weller was found be-
| meath a small mound on Glen Brook
| creek, several miles away from Preston's s
resting place, both bodies being doubled
| up in their graves.
| Butler had meanwhile been located at
| Newcastle, where on Nov. 10 he regis
| tered at the Sailors Home as Lee Weller
| He remained there eight days. and then
| went to sydney, where as Lee Weller
| (producing the dead mariners certificate)
| ne shipped as an able seaman on the bark
| Hawaiian Isles. The captain of the bark
| concluded before he sailed that he didn't
| like Buffers face and released him. The
| murderer. still as Weller, applied to Capt.
| Fraser of the Swanhilda bound for San
| Francisco, with coal and was shipped.
| The Swanhlda left Nov. 49, and the sgd
| ney authorities, having learned this, dis
! patched detectives to head off the fugl-
| tive. They then learned for the first time
| Of the disappearance of Harwood, who
! vanished while prospecting with Butler at
| Cobar, and Of Edward Sorenson a Swnlish
sailor, who came from San Francisco.
! A well-to-do resident of Germantown
went prospecting with Butler in Septem-
/ ber and never returned. Frank Campbell,
| young man, just arrived in August from
| England answered one of Buffers adver-
| tisements went with him to Hudges and
| has never been heard of since A young
| man, whose name Is unknown, hut who
| was companion of Campbell went out
with Butler after Campbelrs disappear
! ance, and IL is now remembered that al
| though Butler was back in a day or two
| nothing was ever heard of the stranger.
| These are some of the cases. The mode
| was ever the same. All responded to
| simply worded advertisement, which re-
| quired them TO have at least $l00 in money.
| The victim went with Butler into the
| Blue Mountains, and was set at work dig
| ging a hole for mineral When the hole
was deep enough, he was shot through
| the head, robbed and thrown into the Dit
| When the detectives located Butler al
| the Newcastle Sailors home, they belieV-
| ed he would stay there until he found am
| other victim. They feared TO put watch
| on him lest he discover the SPY and hy.
/ When he did fly they We're astonIshed.
| His profits on his crimes had been slight
] He got more from Preston than from any
| of the others who are known, aud the
\ profit on Preston Is thought TO have been
| less than $1,000, while on some murderers
| he did not get $50.
| But John Roche, Australia's greatest de-
| tective. took a steamer 20 San Francisco
| by way of India, the SueZ, Brindisi across
| Europe, the Atlantic and the United
States. He had 20 travel I've times he
| vet he expected to reach the latter point
! before the sailing vessel Swanhilda reach
| ed port. AT the same time he sailed John
! steamship for Victoria. b. G. TO guard
| against accidents the San Francisco no
| lice were notified by cable, and the Ea-
| waian steamer Taupo week ago spoke
| the Swanhllda and signalled her:
| t"Frank Butler, alias Capt Lee Weller
| rnurdcrer. Is on board your vesseL''
capt Fraser of the Swanhilda respond
| ed: "AN right. I understand" F"
That was the last heard Of the vessel
| or The murderer until the Swanhllda's ar
! rival.
----.-Sr-s-