The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1899-03-03
MOL|NEUX IS ACCUSED
Coroner's Jury Declares He Was
the Man Who Poisoned
Mrs. Adams.
BROUGHT HOME WITH A RUSH,

Is the Mysterious Death of Two Persons to
the Young Society Man and Heir to
Fortune-TwO Positive Identifications,
the Man Who Hired the Private Mail
Box and the Man Who Wrote the Let
ters in Evidence.
New York, Feb. 28.-Roland Burnham
Molineux. son of General Leslie Molin
eux, of Brod&!yn, was arrestedlast night
charged with numbering Mrs. Katherine
j. Adams in this city on Dec. %, 1898.
He was locked up in the Tombs prison.
The arrest followed the verdict of the
coroners jury accusing him Of the
crime. While the inquest was into the
death Of Mrs. Adams it also went into
the circumstances of the death of Hen
ry G. Barnet of the KnickerbOcker
Athletic club, who was poisoned by a
powder received through the mail, as
was Mrs. Adams The cases are so
closely connected that they can scarcely
be considered separately. The proceed
inGs Of the final day Of the inquest were
sensational in the highest degree. The
case had dragged along monotonously,
witnesses being examined for the sole
purpose, as it seemed, of contradicting
Harry Cornish's testimony in minor de-
tails or of eliciting suggestions as to
motive that might have led Cornish to
commit the crime.
State Had Something Up Its Sleeve.
The prosecuting officials apparently
"a Y q fhnnOht
of MOlineux. The examiner was kind
and gentle when Molineux was on the
stand, gruff and severe when dealing
with Cornish. The curtain rose on the
last act of the melodrama yesterday
afternoon. A shopkeeper who rented
private letter boxes swore positively
that MoIineuX was his patron, using the
name of "H. G.. Barnet" It was proved
long ago that the bottles of medicine
had been sent to that letter box. Then
the handwriting experts were called and
one after another declared that the
hand that wrote the address on the poi
son package and forged the names Of
Harry Cornish and II. G. Barnet to let
ters sent to drug firms ordering powder
medicines was the hand of Roland B.
MolineuX.
The experts were absolutely certain in
their Identification of the penmanship,
and would make no qualification Of their
statements. District Attorney Gardiner
then summed up the case, directly &C
cusing Molineux. The jury brought in
a verdict charging MolineuX with the
murder and he was at once arrested and
committed to the Tombs without bail.
MolineuX is a member of the New York
Athletic club and was until his quarrel
with Harry Cornish, a prominent MEM
Der of the Knickerbocker Athletic club,
from which he resigned because of that
quarrel Molineux's father is paint
manufacturer and is reputed to be
millionaire. The prisoner has gone in
good society, being of excellent address
and manners and prospective heir to
great fortune. His counsel is Barlow S.
Weeks, of the New York Athletic club,
and personal enemy of Harry Cornish.
Declares He Is Not Guilty.
There was a moment of silence.
Molineux, although he must have ex-
pected the verdict, paled visibly and
his lips quivered. He soon braced up
and smiled at whispered word of en-
couragement from his counsel. The
warrant had already been prepared and
Coroner Hart handed it to two de-
tectives who stood near him. Molineux
walked around the table to meet them
and stood before the coroners bench.
He put his hands upon the edge of the
desk, but they did not tremble, and he
seemed TO have no apprehension Of what
was to come. The coroner asked him
if he had statement to make.
Il am not guilty, and [ demand an
immediate examination, replied Mo-
lineux The coroner set the time for
Il 80 a. m. tomorrow.