The San Francisco call., 1899-08-11
MYSTERY Wells
LAND|S' DEATH
A Question of Murder
or Suicide.
NO MOTIVE FOR EITHER
SUSPICIOUS BULLET FOUND IN
THE CEILING.
Whitmore and Aber, the Two wen
Arrested, Have Been Released
and Detectives Are Still
at Work.
SUSPICIOUS BULLET FOUND IN
THE CEILING.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

SACRAMENTO, Aug. 10.-Can 1t be
possible that Frank Lands met his
death at his own hands? Rumors are
so thick at Lincoln and Auburn to-
night that it is impossible to form any
conclusion that is not shaken the next
minute by some new and apparently
reasonable theory.
From Auburn tonight comes the
story that members of the COroners
Jury have declared that they felt some
doubt as to the manner of Lands
death. Up to the time bullet from his
revolver was found imbedded in the
ceiling Of his store it was thought that
he had committed suicide, but the dis
covery of this bullet, coupled with the
fact that it matched the one empty
chamber of his revolver, seemed to be
conclusive evidence that the shot had
been fired in a struggle with his muir
derous antagonist. The bullet taken
from his body was also of the same
caliber as that found in the ceiling.
A circumstance which the authori-
ties at Auburn mention as singular is
that on the night he met his death
Lands is declared to have taken two
glasses of whisky, although it is not
known that he ever before INDUCED in
LIQUOR, but no theory of suicide can be
advanced in the face of the fact that
only one chamber of his revolver was
empty and that a bullet of the same
size was found in the ceiling of the
store. No explanation of suicide can
stand unless it can be made to appear
probable that in order to conceal his
Intention Lands fired a shot from his
revolver into the ceiling and then re-
moving and Secreting the shell reloaded
and killed himself with another dis
charge But then there is the over
turned lamp in the office to be ac-
counted for, besides the open door in
the rear of the store, with the wedge
which secured it thrown some feet out
side.
Nobody can advance a single reason
whv Lands should have committed
suicide. but on the other hand there is
no apparent reason why anybody
should have murdered him, for nobody
in Lincoln was more generally eS-
teemed. Certainly nothing about the
case indicated robbery as motive. un-
less there is excepted the feature of the
overturned lamp on the office floor, de-
noting possible struggle in an at
tempt to make the young groceryman
open his safe. The Sheriff and three
deputies are still securing Placer Coun-
ty, but up to midnight no arrests had
been reported at the Sherif's office at
Auburn.
The two men, F. Whitmore and J.
Aber, whose arrest was chrOnicled in
this mornings Call, have been released,
as the suspicion against them did not
appear to be warranted.
Some Importance is attached to the
finding of an old suit of underwear
wrapped in paper in front of Landis'
store at the time his body was dis
covered Nothing about the under
i +1a nd tIO Of
ficers have little hope of connecting the
discovery with the person or persons
responsible for young Lands death.
The case is completely mystifying, and
one theory seems almost as plausible
as another.