The times., 1899-05-18

Maryland does seek to have Taylor sur
I rendered from the custody of the local po-
| lice to the sheriff of Montgomery county,
! the full pressure of the local District At
| torney's office will be brought into use to
| resist any such course.
Attorney Kilgour thinks that Taylor can
not be charged with the murder of Ser
| geant Passau, as the former was in his
\ own house. and the latter, without the
] warrant which was necessary to make 4
| lawful entrance into Taylor's new nome at
| the icehouse. He maintains that this is
one reason why Taylor should be sur
rendered to the Maryland authorities and
| taken into Montgomery county for trial.
! Attorney Kilgour contends, on these
| grounds. that there is stronger case
against the negro in Maryland than here.
He feels certain that Taylor will be con-
| victed for murder there, while there might
be some doubt of his meeting the same
fate in Washington.
Attorney Kilgour stated that it was the
desire of the Maryland authorities to take
Taylor to Rockville. Nd, not for trial, but
as witness against John Brown and Nell
! lie Turner, who are in jail there now,
held on suspicion of being accessories to
! the killing of Louis Rosenstein. If. !"
said Attorney Kilgour, Taylor will testify
| to what he has stated in an interview with
/ a Times reporter we viii hang three
negroes instead of one. Taylor has said
enough now. If 1t is true, to convict both
Brown and the Turner woman. / think Mr..
| Davis should be willing to let us have
| Taylor. We will return him after We con-
vict the other two. We should cooperate
in this matter, and thus avenge two MUIR
ders by securing the conviction of the
! three parties to them. By doing as / sug-
| gest everybody will be satisfied
The District will insist on its right to
! try Taylor for the murder of Sergeant
| Passau,' said District Attorney Davis. in
conversation with a Times reporter last
night. Mr.. Kilgour came here to see if
We would consent to have Taylor taken to
Boyds, but We were unwilling TO entertain
any such proposition. The negro may
| have been a fugitive from justice and also
wanted for murder but by coming into
| the District of Columbia and committing
another crime, he rendered himself liable
| to our jurisdiction. We will insist that
! Taylor be held in Washington and indct-
ed as speedily as possible. The inquest will
be held Thursday, and the case will be
brought TO the attention of the grand jury.
which is in session, at once. This will
in all probability be on Friday. The Hor-
| ton case is engaging all of our attention
| this week. When that case is disposed of
the trial of Taylor will be commenced. It
| is cur intention TO endeavor to have the
| indictment made out this week and the
| trial take place next. ] do not see that
any objection can be raised to the trial
taking place here. Frequently cases are per-
mitted TO be tried in other places where the
evidence against the prisoner is stronger
than in the place where he had committed
another crime. Were the evidence in the
Rosenstein case much stronger than that
in the Passau case, and there being some
doubt about the killing of Passau by the
| negro. then we might be willing to have
the prisoner taken into Maryland. But it
is our opinion that the evidence of the
murder committed here is strong as ada
mant. and for this reason we do not see
the necessity of having Taylor taken out OF
the District
The matter OF arranging for the inquest
was placed in the hands of Coroner Carr
and Lieutenant Swindells, of the Seventh
Police precinct, who were given full in
strnctions 10 arrange every detail Last
night the Coroner decided to hold the in
quest at II o'clock this morning, at the
Seventh precinct police station in O
Street, west of Thirty-second Street, in
| Georgetown. 1t was deemed best to have
the inquest held in the Georgetown police
station, and thus avoid the transfer of the
prisoner from that station 10 any other I'M
til it is time to convey him to the District
jail The Georgetown station is also more
convenient for the various witnesses and
other interested parties than any other
place.
The Coroner visited the Georgetown Uni
versity Hospital last night and examined
the body of the dead police sergeant, deter
mining the course OF the bullets, and the
cause of death, preparatory TO making
statement on these matters at the inquest
First News at Police Headquarters.
The news of the shooting of Sergeant
Passau came as a shock to the Chief of
Police and detectives and the attaches of
their Offices very soon after the occurrence
OF the tragedy. Most. if not all of them.
had known the sergeant personally for
number OF years. and his death was regard
ed as deep loss. both personally and to
the entire department. Major Sylvester
and Inspector Boardman held hurried con-
ferences and policemen were hastened to
the scene of action with all possible dis
patch. Lieutenant Swindells made a visit
to Police Headquarters in person and sug-
ge5ted that the house be burned If the ne
gro could not be induced to surrender.
Meanwhile Lieutenant Inspector Pearson
was dispatched 10 Fowler's Hill to take
charge of the policemen in that vicinity.
Several difficult questions arose when
consideration of the advisability of burning
the old ice-house was undertaken. II was
pointed out that while it was pretty GER
tain that the man in the house was the
fugitive murderer, there was no positive
assurance that this was so. and that. If
the house were destroyed by fire, the
District might be held liable for damages.
Major Sylvester conferred with Commits
sioner Wight and both went across the
street to consult S. I. Thomas. the Attor-
ney for the District, who informed them
that there might be some difficulty in the
way OF destroying the house Finally
Commissioner Wight agreed with Major
Sylvester in the belief that the Police De-
partment would be justified in applying the
torch on the ground that no other course
of procedure would rout out the murderer
Commissioner Wight and Major Syl-
vester then secured a carriage and drove
with all possible haste to the Seventh
police precinct with the intention OF order
ing the destruction of the house
Shortly after they had disappeared the
tinlile of a dozen telephone bells in as
many District Offices and at Police Head
quarters announced the capture OF the cul-
prit Afterward this was confirmed by an
official dispatch from the Seventh precinct
to Inspector Boardman.
About / o'clock the District Attorney
visited Police Headquarters and advised
that a warrant be sworn out for the ar
rest of the negro. 1t was not known at
first that the murderer of the police SER
geant was Taylor, and a fictitious name