The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-12-28
AN AUDIENCE WITH HIS SON
FAMILY'S PECULIAR ACTIONS ADD
TO MYSTERY OF CASE.
The Alleged Motive Was n Refusal
to Allow the Woman to Use
the Telephone.


Il. Coleman, a lawyer. was the first to find
him, and the alarm was Immediately given.
Soon a large number of friends. detectives.
policemen and newspaper men were on the
scene, and upon the first and only state
ment of Mr.. Smythe that the shooting had
been done by blonde woman" search
for her was begun.
Elmer Smythe, a son of the injured man,
was advised and shortly after. his arrival
DR.. Hodges arrived. After an examination
of the wound Mr.. Smythe was removed to
the Deaconess Hospital. The bullet was
found buried under the scalp and was re-
moved in pieces. 1t had not penetrated the
skull. At the hospital last night it was
said that Mr.. Smyths was resting easily
and there was no probability of death re-
sulting from his injury.
The office of Mr. Smythe in the Masonic
Temple at Washington street and Capitol
avenue has two entrances, one on WASH
ington street and one. leading directly to
his private Office in the rear, on Capitol
avenue. Coleman entered by the Washing
ton-street entrance and not finding anyone
in the front room walked back to the rear
room. Upon approaching the room he
heard groans, and upon looking into the
room found Mr.. Symthe lying on the floor
a few feet from the door. His head was
covered with blood and there was a small
pool of blood beneath his head. After ascer-
tanning what had happened he insisted upon
knowing who had done the shooting and
was told that a blonde woman" whom
Smythe claimed not to know, had done it
after having been refused permission to
use the telephone which stands in the hall
between the main Office and his private
rooms. He said she had been in the Of
fee three times during the morning, and
upon her return about noon asked to use
the telephone and being denied permission
drew a revolver from her dress and fired
at him. He claimed never to have had any
dealings with the woman and not to know
her except as one who had annoyed him
by frequent requests to use the telephone.
SEEN BY THE SON.
Elmer Smythe said he had seen the
blonde woman IN the Office using the
telephone and yesterday morning when she
came in the second time was in the Of
flee and heard his father deny her in no
uncertain manner the use of the instru-
ment. He said he at that time demonstrated
with his father for the manner In which the
request had been refused. He claimed not
TO know the woman, although he under
stood she had said she lived at the Lor-
raine Hotel, and at the time she wished
to use the telephone, said she wanted to
talk with friend living In the hotel, which
was Just across the street.
Mr.. Smythe, before the arrival OF his
physician, asked that all persons leave the
room as he wished to converse privately
with his son. The two were left alone for
some minutes. What passed between them
no one knew. When Mr.. Smythe was urged
to tell something more OF the affair he re-
fused to say anything except to refer ques-
TONERS to his son, whom he said knew the
woman and all about the affair. The son
when asked for information denied any
knowledge of the woman or the events be-
fore his arrival.
Mr.. Smythe's statement relative to the
blonde woman was taken at first by de-
tectives, friends and newspaper men as
the true statement of the facts, but after
inquiry among the dodgers at the Lorraine
Hotel and those in the offices in the imme-
date neighborhood, and the mysterious air
of the son and his refusal to make any
disclosures after his father had said they
were known to him, Investigations were be-
gun along other lines. 1t was not long UNI
til the detectives and newspaper men
stopped looking for the blonde woman,
thinking the attempt to find her was use
' THE SHOT HEARD.
The shot was heard by a number of per-
sons in the Masonic building and in near
by offices, as we'll as by several persons on
Washington street. None OF them, it seems,
was able, from the sound. to locate the
place from whence it came and paid but
little attention to it, and it was not until
Mr.. Coleman entered the Office that it was
known exactly where the shooting had
taken place. There was at that time
no one in the office but Mr.. smythe,
and no one was found who had
seen the blonde woman" or other person
leave the office either by the Washington
street or the Capitol-avenue entrance.
Several of the persons living In the Lor-
raine Hotel said they were looking out of
the windows facing the large windows in
Mr. Smythe's Office about that time, and
not one of them had noticed anything
wrong. or any indication OF any excitement
I'm that vicinity Miss Myrtle Smythe who Is
a clerk in the office, had gone to dinner.
and Elmer, his son, had gone to get the
carriage in which the injured man usually
rode TO and from his home.
DIR. j. w. Robb, who has an Office on the
second floor over Mr.. Smythes Office, said
Mr.. Smythe had been in his office during
the morning and told him of the blonde
woman" who had wanted TO use the tele-
phone.
RESORTS SEARCHED.
The detectives made thorough search
OF the immoral resorts without finding any
clew which would lead to the apprehen-
sion OF the supposed aSSdiiant. NO woman
such as had been described could be found
in the neighborhood, and at the Lorraine
Hotel 1t was said that no such woman had
lived there.
The Investigations Of the detectives later
in the afternoon were upon the theory that
the shooting had not been done by a
woman or other person. but by Mr.. Smythe
himself. They declined to express any
views in the matter, but among them
selves IL was discussed and the belief in
the theory freely expressed. There were
many friends of Mr.. Smythe calling at the
office throughout the afternoon, and none
of them thought there was anything I'M the
attempted suicide theory, though it was
admitted by them that the secrecy which
was maintained and the unusual manner
in which the shooting was said TO have
occurred made the story OF the BLONDE
woman" hard TO believe.
During the afternoon the detectives Sc.
cured entrance TO the Office after IL had
become known that Mr.. Smythe kqbitually
kept loaded revolver in his desk, with the
| expectation OF finding this with all is
chambers loaded. No revolver could bs
| found by n thorough search OF everything
| except the safe and there was no way
| to account for the disappearance of tbs
weapon. though working the theory 81
| suspected attempt at suicide, IL wa.
| thought Mr.. Smythe might have told hi.
| son Elmer and during their secret con
ference have given him the weapon Tn.
wound I'm his head just behind the
right ear, and was thought TO be in 2