The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1899-06-30
KANSAS NEWS.
The History of TESTERS Past lis
a Dark One.
His Sister Tells More OF His
Alleged Grimes.
ALWAYS BEEN CRUEL.
Suspected of Numbering a Man
at Valley Center.
Said to Have Attempted to Kill
Sister in Indiana.

Wichita. June 30.-Sheriff Simmons,
who arrested Alexander Jester at Shaw
nee, o. T., last week. for the murder of
young Gilbert Gates, in Audrain county.
Mo, twenty-eight years ago has re-
turned to Wichita to secure witnesses
for a more complete Identification Of
Jester, who is to be brought here as
soon as the habeas corpus hearing is
finished at TecumSeh. One of the wit
nesses who will be called to see Jester
is John Mott, who lives near Valley
Center, Kansas, on a claim which JeS
ter jumped in 1870. In the trial Mott
beat Jester and got the land. Jester, it
is said, afterward tried to get Mott
out on a hunt to put him out of the
way.
While Sheriff Simmons was at Shaw
nee he got a lengthy statement of Jes-
ter'S life from his sister, Mrs. Cornelia
Street, who wrote the letter to Sheriff
Simmons giving her brother away. In
was totally bad from the time he was
10 years old till he killed Gilbert Gates,
at which time he was so.
In 1870, according to Mrs. Street, while
Jester and his first wife lived on a claim
near Valley Center, a young doctor
went to their place one night and stayed
until after breakfast the following
morning. In a few minutes after the
doctor left, Jester stepped out and did
not return until noon. He had the
doctors horse and buggy and medicine
again. This came out on Jester after
his first arrest for the murder of young
Gates and was told to Mrs. Street by
TESTERS first wife, who died sixteen
years ago.
Jester has been married twice since,
but deserted both women, and was to
have been married last Sunday for the
fourth time. Mrs. Street could not re-
member the young doctors name, but
she said his medicine case sat around in
the Jester house for years. When Jester
was 16 years old, while the family lived
in Indiana he beat one of his sisters
over the head with club until she sank
to the ground, and then took a knife
and tried to cut an artery in her left
arm so she would bleed to death. This
was near HagerStOWn, Ind. At another
time he had trouble with his mother
and, during the quarrel, he threw a big
stone on her feet, injuring her so that
she was cripple for several years.
Mrs. Streets statement was a long
one, and shows Jester to be a man OF
unusually vicious character.
A special from Hagerstown, Ind, says
Jester lived there in 1865. He went west
and returned in the spring of 1871 with
young Gates team and wagon and
leading a young buffalo which Gates
left Kansas with and was taking home
young Gates trunk was split in five
pieces and buried on a farm near Val
ley Center.
J. w. Gates of Chicago. brother Of
the murdered man, thinks Mrs. Streets
story is perfectly straight. He says his
father dug up the pieces of Gates trunk
at the time of TESTERS arrest and that
no one knew of this part of the case ex-
cept Mr.. Gates and the Jester family.
Tecumseh, I t, June 30.-Alexander
Jester, alias w. A. Hill, under arrest
for the murder of Gilbert W. Gates
twenty-eight years ago. still occupies
cell in the Pottawatomie county jail
here and Sheriff Nelson of Audrain
county, No, is still here, pending the
hearing of the habeas corpus case,
which is set for July s. The Missouri
officer will make a strong effort to Sc
cure his prisoner before many days
have passed. County Attorney Pitt
man today filed a petition in the probate
court for the turning over of Jester to
Nelson. The hearing has been set for
next Monday morning at 10 o'clock, and
will be a test of the probate judges
authority to hear habeas corpus pro-
ceedings. Attorney General Cunning
hams opinion will be used by Pittman
in his contention that Probate Judge
Jennings is exceeding his powers.
A. f. Finks of Shawnee, formerly of
Audrain county, No, made a deposition
this morning cOrroborating J. w. Gates
Identification of Jester or Hill. Finks is
sure he is the man tried for Gilbert
Gates murder in 1871. The aged pris-
oner was in better health today than
yesterday, and appears to be in good
spirits.