The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-02-13

POLICE BELIEVE WHAT SHE SAID
IN HER RAWLINGS WAS THE
TRUTH.
AT LEAST NOT ON A BLIND TRAIL
Have Evidence Enough to Warrant
Holding the Pair-News of
Minneapolis.


woman has been showing signs of
breaking Down. She has been subject
ed to heavy strain since her confine-
ment, and, as she has been deprived of
liquor, in which she INDUCED to great
extent, she seemed to have collapsed
yesterday. Thursday night she showed
the first signs of a mind which had
! undergone too severe strain and she
| muttered incoherently. Occasionally
she would talk out loud mentioning
the fact of Bensons death and calling
for her husband. She slept compare
lively we'll that night, but yesterday
! she seemed to be in a worse condition
than ever. DR.. Weston was called, and
he gave it as his opinion that she was
! suffering from an attack of delirium
! tremens, as a result of being deprived
! of her customary liquor and the men,
| tai strain to which she has been sub
/ jected.
All day yesterday she seemed out Of
her mind. Matron Paine had consid-
! cradle difficulty in making her take
! the prescribed medicine, as the woman
seemed to fear that she was about to
/ be poisoned. Last night she continued
nearly midnight before she had gone to
! sleep. A nurse from the city hospital
was detailed to watch her.
Naturally the subject most on the
woman's mind was that of Sunday
nights tragedy. However, she also
talked Of a great many other things.
For a while she called for Hansen,
| saying: Tell my man to come up
here" Then she would wander off into
! memories of the past, frequently ex-
pressing her sorrow that "Nels' had
| been killed. During the evening, how
| ever, she called out several times, say
! ing: my man killed Nels,'' my man
| killed Nels." Jailer Bradley, who was
present, asked: Did he kill him with
a club?" NO" she replied, "he killed
Nels with a knife Then she wan
dered off into the details of the after
| noon; how she had drunk alcohol
| punches with Nels, and how they
walked along till they met the man
who had the quarrel with Nels.
Just what beating these statements
will have upon the case IS difficult to
foretell. If Mrs. Hansen tells the same
story when she RECEIVERS from the de-
Hansen. At any rate the detectives
expect to be able to find out for a
sure thing whether she knows who the
murderer is by telling her what she said
when she was deliriouS. DR.. Weston,
when seen last night, said that there
was no doubt the woman did not know
| what she was saying. She was suffer-
| ing from a bad attack of the delirium
tremens, caused, he thought, by not
! having her customary stimulants and
also due in part to the strain to which
she has been subjected. In his opin-
| ION she would recover in two or three
| days.
Yesterday afternoon, a party COM
posed Of County Attorney Peterson, his
stenographer, Superintendent of Police
Smith, Dr. Weston, Inspectors Stavlo,
| Howard and Doyle held a seance with
| Mrs. Hansen at the central station.
The conference lasted for about half
an hour. Those present at this gather
ing. looked wise when asked what was
done. Superintendent Smith said:
! II am of the opinion that Hansen
is the man who committed the murder.
The detectives are all working hard on
little clue. The evidence gathering
seems to point to Hansen as the man.
Father than this 1 cannot talk
What was done at this interview
with Mrs. Hansen this afternoon"
~ am not at liberty to say"
The fact that the county attorney
| and his StenograDher were clOSeted
with the woman yesterday afternoon
| gave the impression that she had con-
fessed. AS the facts of the interview
are kept secret, it is not known what
transpired. However, it is regarded as
doubtful if the authorities secured any
| new information. which is authentic,
for Mrs. Hansen was not in her right
mind, as testified to by DR.. Weston,
who says she has been out of her head
since Thursday night If She repeats
that Hansen is the man who did it,
after recovering, it will be just the
confession the police have been labor
ing for ever since Bensons death.
The man around whom suspicion
centers is still held at the South side
police station, and it is not likely that
he will be liberated for some time to
come. He at first occupied the cell
nearest the door leading into the wait
ing room from the cell room. He has
been transferred to a cell on the farther
side in the corner, where he Is all alone.
He still maintains his silence, and the
police have given up hope of securing
any evidence directly from him. They
| regard him as a very ShreWd individual
although his picture would not indicate
that he was above the average in men
tai powers. If the police could find
the handle Of the knife which did the
bloody work they would have a much
wanted piece of evidence.
According to the opinion of local authority,
who has been watching the case the police
have not sufficient evidence to hold either
Hansen or his wife any length Of time. He
sad that if they knew enough to secure legal
advice, and the proper proceedings were insti-
tuted, they would soon be released. When
told of the above opinion Superintendent of
Police Smith said: There might be something
in the opinion If the lawyer happened to know
Just what evidence we have in possession
trail exactly in our attempt to place the re-
sponsibility for Benson's death where 1t be-
longs. While we have not evidence enough
to convict Hansen, we know enough about him
and his actions to warrant US in keeping him
in custody. The detectives are working hard
on the case, and are picking up little scraps of
information having a bearing on the case
daily, which are convincing me that we have
the right parties in custody. Hansen is
naturally endowed with far more cunning than
some people imagine, and his ability to de-
ceive one by his manner is astonishing. He is
not man who would be drawn into a fight
before striking man, but once aroused, his
nature is such that he would turn like a
tiger on whomsoever might be the object of
his wrath
HE knows We having hard time in
getting information against him, and that
difficulty may be experienced in proving how
end where he spent his time Sunday espec-
tally at the time of the murder therefore he
Is cunning enough to maintain silence and
he has possibly cautioned his wife as to how
she should act"
The rumor afoat yesterday that the
much-wanted person. who had seen Hansen
the night Of the murder had been discovered
man, who was closeted with Superintendent
| Smith for time and afterwards took look
at Hansen may possibly be the person.
The fact that Supt Smith constantly al
| lud0S 10 evidence having hoor