Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1899-03-04
CELL FOR MoLINEUX.
He Ia Held by the Coroner's Jury 10
De Guilty of the Murder of
Mrs. Adams.


Adams poison cases came in with it's
verdict at s:43 p. m. Monday. 1t was as
follows: 1--WE find that the said Kath-
crime j. Adams came to her death on
December 2s, 1898, in 81 West Eighty
sixth street, by poison by mercuric
cyanide, administered by Harry S.
Cornish, to whom said poison had been
seVt in a bottle of bromo seltzer by
Roland b. Molineux." The coroner i'm
mediately issued warrant for the ar
rest of Molineux, and the latter was at
once arraigned before him. Through
his attorney Barlow S. Weeks, he de-
manded an immediate hearing, but AS
sistant District Attorney Osborne OBJ
| jected, saying it was impossible to pro-
ceed with the hearing. The hearing
was then set down for Wednesday
morning at 1880 o'clock. Molineux
was committed to the Tombs without
bail.
The curtain rose on the last act of
the melodrama MeNday afternoon. A
shop-keeper who rented private letter
boxes swore positively that Molineux
was his patron, using the name of "H.
! c. Barnet" 1t was proved long ago
that the bottles of medicine had been
sent to that letter box. Then the hand
writing experts were called and one af-
| ter another declared that the hand that
wrote the address on the poison pack
age and forged the names of Harry
Cornish and H. C. Barnet to letters sent
to drug firms ordering powder medi-
cine was the hand of Roland B. Moli-
l. AL
tain in their Identification of the PEN
manship. and would make no qualifica-
tion of their statements. District At
torney Gardiner then summed up the
case, directly accusing MolineuX. The
jury brought in it's 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 promi-
nent member of the Knickerbocker Ath-
letic club. from which he resigned be-
cause of that quarrel. Molineux's faith
er, Gen. Leslie Molineux, of Brooklyn.
is paint manufacturer. and is reputed
to be a millionaire. The prisoner has
address and manners, and prospective
heir to great fortune.
MRS. Kate ]. Adams was murdered on
the morning of December 2S, 1898, through
taking to relieve headache, bromo seltzer
which contained mercuric cyanide. The
poison had been sent to Harry Cornish. ath-
letic director of the Knickerbocker Athlet-
ic club who lived with Mrs. Adams. as
Christmas present. Mrs Adams was so
years of age and came from a well-known
family of Hartford, Conn. Her daughter
Florence, who was a witness at the inquest
is the wife of Edward Rogers. an insur-
ance agent. Mrs. Rogers lived apart from
her husband. Harry Cornish has divorced
wife living in Boston. Aside from specula-
ton. the only thing the police had as clews
as to the probable murderer or murderers
| were the wrapper of the package which
contained poison and a vial holder OF sill
yer containing the engraving: STERLING
silver, No. S14," and the vial of bromo self
ger. Neither Cornish nor Mrs. Rogers
could throw any light upon the case, and
after several days, during which time a
facsimile of the handwriting on the pack
age was published, and also likenesses of
the vial and bromo seltzer bottle. Newark,
N J., turned up as the place where the vial
holder had been sold. The young woman
who sold it spoke OF man with a red beard
as the purchaser; wigmaker al the same
place claimed to hSve sold a wig to a man
about this time, but he could give but little
description of the purchaser.
The police worked on every clew that Of
fered. Then 1t was discovered through q
man named Koch on January rs that
a man had rented private letter box un-
der the name of III. Cornish" on Decem-
ber p. This discovery was followed on
January 26 by the most important develop
ment of the case. Nicholas Hickman, pro-
prietor of a store in West Forty-second
street, through a dispatch from Won Mohl
' & Co., of Cincinnati, learned that he had
| I.,I .tN - IaKN 49,.
far back as May, 1898. Mr.. Hickman said
l at the time that he could easily identify
= the man who rented the box under the
, name of H. c. Barnet" II he should see
him again. The "H C. Barnet" had writ
ten to Won Mohl & Co. for drug samples.
The discovery was made that the hand
writing of the request to Won Mohl by the
supposed Barnet was almost Identical with
that in the letter of the supposed Cornish
; for samples. The supposed Cornish" who
) sent a box from Koch had also written
for samples of medicines of various kinds
, | The writing corresponded to that on the
wrapping of the package sent to Harry
! Cornish at the Knickerbocker Athletic
club. This fact 1t was that clinched more
, | than anything else a supposition and the
ory that the police had all along, that the
death of Henry GTossman Barnet from
. supposed diphtheria and the death of Mrs
Adams from poison which had been sent
to Harry Cornish were the result of deep
laid plot, and directly to be laid at the door
| of the same person or persons.
About this time the name of Roland
? Burnham Molineux was brought into the
| case as the known enemy of Barnet anc
Cornish. He, Barnet and Cornish had al
been members of the Knickerbocker Ath-
, letic club. They were each of them, it was
openly said, particular friends and ad,
> mirers of the present Mrs. Roland Moli.
neuX-Miss Blanche Chesebrough, as she
5 was before her marriage. There had beer
, trouble between Molineux and Cornish, anC
MolineuN had resigned or been forced tc
" resign from the Knickerbocker Athletic
g club. He then went to the New York Ath.
E letic club Felix ]. Gallagher, who was IN
the Knickerbocker at the same time with
Molineux and Cornish, also left the clut
1 about this time, whether from friendly
feeling toward Molineux or otherwise, anC
, went to the New York Athletic club. Oper
talk connected Molineux with the case. anC