The San Francisco call., 1897-02-06
MRS. WELLER'S DEATH.
Detective McHattie Was on That
Case and Knew the
Husband


Detective McHattie of Newcastle Is
doubly connected with the Butler case
as sleuth and as valuable witness. He
knew Butler by sight in Newcastle and
he knew Captain Lee Weller quite we'll
During piece of detective work he did
at the time of the sudden and rather sus-
picious death OF Mrs. Lee Weller aboard
the ship South Esk in Newcastle last
March, McHattie had an opportunity not
only to see a good deal of Captain Weller,
but of all the wifes effects.
The story of the death nearly a year
ago of Mrs. Lee Weller, whom the
Examiner styles the widow of Captain
Weiiers though Weller survived his wife
about seven months, is an interesting in
cident in the history OF the crimes with
which Butler is primarily associated.
Lee Weller and his wife went TO New
castle lom Cape Town, South Africa, last
March as passengers in the ship South
Esk. Weller left his wife aboard ship
while he took a trip down to Sydney,
about 104 miles distant from Newcastle
He went for short visit to an old friend
of his. reporter on the Sydney Weekly
Bulletin, who, as events proved, was later
to figure very prominently in the Butler
case, for it Was by the newspaper man
that the attention of the police was first
called 10 Weller's disappearance.
Mrs. Lee Weller was a very attractive
woman. The captain of the South Esk
was believed to be in love with ner. They
were often seen together in Newcastle
One evening this captain returned to his
ship at O'Clock and found Mrs. Lee Wei
ler dead. When he had gone ashore at 6
O'Clock that evening she was alive and
well.
The police were suspicious. Detective
McHattie, the foremost man of his pro-
iesslon at Newcastle, was put on the case.
An inquest was ordered, but it showed
nothing. The Coroner's jury brought in
verdict of heart failure.
From his work on that case, Detective
McHattie became familiar with all the
things that had been in Mrs. Lee WeIer's
cabin. Among Buffers effects he recog-
nizet many things that he then examined.
The Gladstone bag. the plaid blanket
shawl, much OF the jewelry, ard some of
the photographs that Butler brought here
McHattie i'm mediately recognized as Mrs
Lee Weller's or Captain Lee Weller's. The
plain gold bracelet was present from the
captain of the South Esk to Mrs. Lee
Weller and had been bought in Newcastle.
The photograph of a man with full short
dark beard is that of the captain of the
South Esk. He had given it TO Mrs. We'll
ler.
McHattie's particular dutv at Newc as
tie is to watch for absconders from Sgd
ney, who come TO the coal port to take
passage in some of the coalshlps. Heis
on the lookout for new arrivals that go
down to the ships. 1t was in this way
that he took notice of Butler before he
sailed, and long before he suspected him
of any crime.
That Butler felt that he was hunted
after he suddenly left Sydney is evident.
1t was woman's shrewd observation that
frightened him out of Sydney.
Mr.. and Mrs. Sharp who had a fruit
store in Sydney, replied to Buffers adver-
tisement. but Sharp could not make sat
isfactory arrangements for a prospecting
tour. So he inserted an unsigned adver-
tisement himself the next day calling for
partner to go prospecting. Butler un-
Willingly answered the advertisement in
person, declaring then that his name was
Frank Harwood. Mrs Sharp insisted
that she could not be deceived, and she
told Butler that she would not be sur
prised if he were the man that went off
with Captain Lee Weller. No murders
had yet been even suspected.
Butler left He showed up few days