Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1897-12-16
JACK EASION DISCHARGED.
His Arrest Was a Mistake From the
Start.
He Was Given Hearing Before
Justice Kcllar, ar Martins Ferry
Yesterday = New York Officers
Present-Tn Decision of the JUS
too Greeted With Cheers.

prom the evidence given l find
none that will warrant the holding OF
the prisoner, and dismiss the case.
These were words, spoken by Squire
Kellar, at Martins Ferry, yesterday
afternoon, that made "Iack" Easton
free man and took from his name
the suspicion of being murderer. BY
the crowd in the court room these
words were received with cheers,
which were followed by q general hand
shaking with E2ston, even by the au-
thorities who had travelled so far with
a view of taking him away to answer
for the crime.
The party that came from Renssa-
laer county, New York, to identity
Easton consisted of Sheriff G. V. Col
Inns, District Attorney W. o. Howard,
Detective John Murname, of Troy, and
Fred O'Connor, Of Hudson, N. I.
Upon their arrival at Martin IS Ferry,
they were taken to the jail, where
Collins and MurnaIne closely question
ed Easton, and came to the conclusion
that he was the wrong man.
Fred O'Connor, who witnessed the
murder, and was personally acQuaint-
ed with the murderer, after carefully
looking at Easton, said he was fully
convinced that he was not the man
that committed the deed.
Matters rested here until two o'clock
in the afternoon, when a hearing was
held before Squire Kellar with the
result as noted above Marshal Burns,
under whose direction Easton was ar
rested, was the first witness. He.
stated that Easton was placed under
arrest because Of the close manner in
which he tailed with the description
furnished him of the murderer.
Sheriff Collins was next sworn and
he, after stating the cause that had
brought him here, said that he was SO
we'll satisfied that Easton was the
wrong man that he would not ask for
custody OF him.
District Attorney w. o. Howard fol-
lowed with q statement in which ne
said that while Easton bore g rasem-
blance to Allen, the man that commit
ted the crime, and that the photograph
looked much like him, there were 9th
er points which plainly proved that
he was not the man. The man Allen,
he said, was about ten years younger
than Easton, had his initials tatt0Oed
Oh his right arm with India ink, and
was not Of as heavy build. In JUS
tice to Marshal Burns, he thought
that he had sufficient evidence to war
rent him in the arrest of the prisoner
and was Of the opinion that any OIL
Ger might be mistaken in such close
resemblance, as far as features and
dress we're concerned.
Fred O'Connor, who had known AL
len five days previous to the time Of
the murder, said that Allen was eight
or nine years older than Easton, that
he wore pink shirt and that the coat
worn by Easton was of coarser tex
ture than the one worn by Allen.
Alex. Dixon, the labor boss under
whom Easton has been working a. the
Aetna-Stan6ard mill, brought the con-
clusion to the affair by producing time
cards showing that EastCn had been
at work from September Z to the
24th.
The whole affair seems to be the
outcome of the close resemblance
Easton bore to the murderer in looks
and dress, and any conservative per-
son could not blame Marshal Burns
for making the arrest with the infor
nation he had on the subject at the
time.