Kansas City daily journal., 1897-01-03
MRS. MAYEs CoNFEssEs.
Practically Admits That She Killed
the ImbcciIe Daughter of
Farmer Williams.

Topeka. Kas.. Jan. 2.-CSpecialD Nancy
Jane MayeS. who was arrested here yester-
day on suspicion of having killed Anna
Belle Williams. the 12-year-old imbecilc
girl. whose mutilated body was found near
Eudora a few days ago, confessed to the
commission of the crime to-day. as pre-
dicted in this mornings Journal. In ner
confession. which was made to Deputy
Sheriff Jones, she does not implicate Al
Hert Williams. the father of the child. in
the least, and he will likely he released
from custody as soon as the ease comes up
before Il magistrate in johnson county.
The prisoners will be taken to Olathe to-
morrow for arraignment.
The story told to the officer. in which
Mrs. Mayes practically admits perpetrating
the awful crime. does not differ from the
one printed to-day. so far making
rangements for getting rid OF the child
is concerned. The woman. however. says
that the story that she gave the child To
Il stranger and his wife who overlook them
on the road is not true. She also says that
she crossed the Eudora bridge to the south
side OF the river. something that she denied
last night. After leaving home on Decem-
her s. she started toward Kansas City with
the girl in the buggy. They stayed all
night with a German farmer and the next
day resumed the journey. At EudOra. she
drove across the bridge. At this place she
says the child took sick and had fits; the
further she went the sicker the child be-
came. Il felt certain that she was dying"
said she. 80 l just drove up draw and
took her out and laid her on the edge of
the ravine. 1 knew that someone would
find the body and bury it. 1 then started
back home. and that night slept at the
home of a friend at PerryvilIe. 1 got home
the following day"
While Mrs. NIayes did not say so in so
many words, the authorities assert that
the sickness of the child was caused by the
woman choking her. Her admission that
she left the body in the ravine, knowing
that someone would find it and bury it.
and the finger marks on the throat of the
dead girl, show plainly the cause of death.
Deputy Sheriff Jones said tonight that
Williams could not he implicated and
would be released shortly Williams was
afraid that the woman would attempt to
saddle the charge on him in order to clear
herself and he felt much easier when he
learned that she had confessed and cleared
him of the charge.
Lawrence kas.. Jan. 2.-(SpeCial0 The
authorities are more convinced than ever
that the team and outfit that passed
through Lawrence on Monday of this week
had some connection with the murder of
the little Williams girl. who was found
near Eudora. There were two men and Il
woman in the party. They stopped over
night at livery stable and slept in stall.
The stable employees say they would allow
no one to go near the wagon. and it is
thought the dead body of the girl may have
been in it then. When they left the stable
early in the morning they stole a whip, and
when it was recovered three miles cut of
Lawrence. toward Eudora. the employe of
the stable who got it told them that the
sheriff was after the crowd. This is thought
to have caused them to get rid at the first
opportunity of the body they We're sup
posed to have in the wagon and then to
return by another route. When the sheriff
of Johnson county passes through Law
renee with his prisoners, he will be met at
the Lawrence depot by the men working
in the livery stable where the party stayed,
for the purpose of identification. If Will
Jams and the Mayes woman prove to be
two of the party, it is believed that Mayes
himself will be found to be the other man.