The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-07-21
SAD BLOW TO JESTER
His Application for Pension
Under Name of w. A. Hill
ADMITTED AS EVIDENCE
Is a Decided Victory for the
Prosecution.

yesterday. He identified the certificates
and applications for pension made by
Alexander Jester, alias W. A. Hill.
B. F. Wilkins Of Norman, o. T., clerk
of the Second district court, testified that
he knew the prisoner as W. a. Hill and
had assisted him in getting pension and
also a divorce.
When Jester was first arrested at
! Shawnee, o. T., he denied his identity.
He claimed he was not Alexander Jester,
| the man who Travelled through Kansas
and Missouri with Gilbert w. Gates. At
torneys for the prisoner made a fight to
keep out these pension papers, as they
prove conclusively that Jester has been
| known under two names.
| The judge admitted the evidence, and
the letters Jester had written to the pen
sion department and the application he
made were read. 1t was a decided vic
tory for the state and made the old pris-
oner look very sad.
| Taken in connection with a divorce pro-
ceeding in Oklahoma, it appears from the
pension papers read that Jester was mar
ried to Deliah Jester, probably in the
| fft.es. She went to Kansas and died in
1878. However. on June IS, 1870, Jester
| swears he was married in Texas 10
Julia Reynolds, who bore him three chill
dren. From her he secured divorce at
| Norman, o. T., on November "a, 1894 On
May "a, 1896, he was married to Margaret
E. Brown.
In a series of questions submitted to
Jester by H. Clay Evans, the commits
sioner Of pensions, Jester claimed that
he had three children, while in fact, he
had at least eight living at the time the
statement was made. In the same series
of questions he made mention of only one
wife while the courts records show him
married three times at least.
]. E. Roar, W. s. Copp and Charles
Bates of Denton, Texas, testified that
they knew Jester in Texas under the
name of 'fW. A. HILL
In the following letter to the pension
department, Jester explains how he as
sumed the name Of Hill He wrote:
Hill was my own fathers name. Jes-
ter was my step-father's name. I was
about one and one-half years old when
my mother married Jester and I went by
the name of Alec Jester till after the
war closed when I took my own name.
Respectfully, w. A HILL"
The first witness to testify Thursday
was Mrs. Josephine Kennett. She saw
Jester, his team and wagons pass along
the road four miles east of Paris in 1871,
when she was returning home from
school.
State Senator Sylvester Allen liver near
house that winter with two teams, two
wagons and a buffalo calf. He refused
to eat the meat set before him by Mrs
Allen, went out to his wagon, got a piece
of jerked buffalo meat, brought 1t into
the house and gave them a piece. In eat
ing his meat -he cut the pieces off With
a large dirk knife. He was silent and re-
served and refused to sleep in the house
that night. He slept in the wagon
though the weather was cold. He asked
Mrs. Allen for some dog feed. When he
left he said his name was Jester and
that ne came from Kansas.
Hermann Hoferkamp Of Springfield.
Ill, kept a livery stable in that city in
1871. Jester put up at his livery stable in
February of that year. He had two
teams and wagons, a buffalo calf and a
shepherd dog. He told Hoferkamp that
he started from Kansas with two young
men, one OF whom owned one of the
teams. One of the young men got sick
in Monroe county and the other stayed
with him; that he Jester) had been hired
to take the team back to Indiana, where
he was going to see his sister While in
Decatur Jester sold the buffalo calf The
purchaser failed to pay the balance due
on the calf and Jester took him from the
purchaser. A law suit followed and Jes-
ter was acquitted. About that time de-
tectives came hunting Jester on a charge
Of killing young Gates, and Hoferkamp
hid him in his stable. When Jester went
from Decatur ne left the shepherd dog
at his stable.
William F. Miller saw Jester pass his /
house west Of Decatur in February. 1871, I
with two teams and wagons and buffalo
calf He talked about trading off his bay
team, said his name was Jester and that
he came from Kansas.
Hartwell r. Durham was in Decatur in I
1871. He saw Jester then in February
that year. Jester tried to hire Charley
Brewer TO drive a team for him 10 Indi-
ana Some buffalo hides were brought TO
his fathers tan yard 20 be tanned When !
his father examined the hides before tan
ming them he saw spots on them twelve
inches wide. supposed TO be blood spots |
The hair was squeezed out and the blood
flowed from it. a portion OF the blood
was put in a vial and taken away by A
Gates, father of Gilbert Gates. who was
then on the hunt for Jester
Mrs. Matilda l. Dennis, aged rs years, |
OF Decatur. III. saw Jester and outfit IN |
the outskirts of that city in Isl Her |
husband bought some buffalo hides OF /
Jester. The hides were taken 70 the tan /
yard OF Durham % be tanned she did /
not see blood on any Of the hides TIE I
witness IS the mother OF Charles II. /
Dennis. managing editor OF the Chicago |
Record.
Eugene Boone. 4 carpenter q Decatur. |
saw Jester IN that city with two teams |
and a buffalo calf He asked Jester 1
where The other driver was. when Jester /
told him he LEFT him IN kansas Here I
Mr.. Boone pointed out the prisoner and /
identified BIN as the same man he saw /
IN Decatur n ISL.
Mrs. Josephine Clark az Eouroe county 4
recognized a picture prepared TO repre- i
sent the wagon taken ~ Jester from 4
young Gates as the same that SIZE saw /
pass her house In ISL sac also said thai 1
a young MAJ was peiGIiag Dr. Caa8@'s 1
books n her uelzhborhood AZ th2t tine. /
she -stol5 her s.o-y q sssiug t1s body 4
e a nan n ;hs wagon ss Jester drove 4
By Tais Ia6y's testimony confirms TIA; /
81 Shrewsbury, Eho vas Fed6Gng Dr..
Chast's 55cks = he -stxaso-aood ~ 4
Mode Grove a. that sizse- Mrs. C1s-S l
uss accompanied 70 tne witness s-zz1 By /