Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-12-19
|R(|nP.QN'5 WILL FILED
Wealth Of the Unfortunate Coz.
vict Is Distributed Among
the Heirs.
--
The Estate Was Bequeathed to
the Wife During Her
Lie Time.
Relatives Allowed the Body to
Be Sent to the Dissect.
ing Table.

| Dubuque Dec. 19.-The will OF An
drew Thompson was fled for probate
Elkader, yesterday Thompson was
convict who died several weeks since il
the Anamosa penitentiary, and left al
estate valued at $4,000 to s25, 600.
Thompson, at the time of his death
had served the longest continuous term
OF any prisoner in the state of Iowa. In.
Guiding the time spent in jail while
awaiting trial and sentence he had beer
incarcerated for a third of century.
The preamble to the will just filed re-
cites that the testator realizes that he
is in the presenc of death, AYERS he is OF
Andrew Jackson Thompson, known as
convict No. 2065 in the state peniten-
tiafy. The estate consists of govern
ment bonds. money and other personal
property, and $50 acres of land situated
in Monona township, Clayton county.
The estate Is bequeathed to his wife
during her life time; then to revert to
the children OF the testator, to de di-
vided equally. The final clause Of the
document is couched in the following
language:
Il further stipulate and direct that
my body shall be taken to Clayton
county and buried on my own farm
and that the expense Of said funeral
shall be paid out of my effects before
the money is paid to my wife"
This last stipulation OF the dying man
has been so grossly ignored as to cause
much unfavorable comment. After
thirty years In prison, during which
time it is averred he never made or sig
nified a request Of any character to his
family, who enjoyed the Increment of
his comfortable fortune without moles-
tation, it was natural to suppose the old
mans desire to have his remains de-
Gently inferred in ground Of his own
would be complied with, but 1t has de-
veloped that the remains were con-
signed to the medical department Of the
state university by the prison officials,
who 1t is charitable to presume, had
the sanction OF the relatives of the de-
ceased.
The benef1ciaries Of the will were
quick to avail themselves OF those pro-
visions settling the property on them.
but allowed the booy OF the testator to
go to the dissecting table in direct vio-
iation of his dying command.
The crime for which Thompson suf-
fered life imprisonment created GEN
cation back in the early 70s. Having
had trouble with neighboring woman.
widow with two children, the under
took to spirit them out of the country
On an island, situated in the Mississippi
river. the party, camped for the night
en- route to Wisconsin.
An alteration arose between Thomp-
son and the woman, and, fearing dis
covery by the occupant of an approach
ing wagon. Thompson tried to stifie the
loud talk of the woman by placing his
hand on her mouth. At this the chill
dren joined in loud protestations and,
Thompson, wild with apprehension,
threw the woman on some bedding,
dumped the children on top of her and
covered the three with a feather bed,
holding them all down by throwing his
own weight on the covering. 1t re-
quired some minutes for the passing We
the feather bed was removed from his
vtctics all three had been smothered to
death. To conceal his crime Thompson
placed the remains in a box, which he
consigned to the river thru a hole IN the
Ice. With the breaking up of the Ice
In the spring, the box containing the
bodies fioated ashore, and but little
difficulty was experienced in fixing the
for their death on
Thompson, who had given it out in the
that the family had re-
turned to their old home in eastern
Thompson was convicted and SEN
fenced to be hanged The verdict was
set aside on a technicality, but before
1 second trial could be had a compro-
mise was effected by which Thompson
pleaded guilty to murder In the second
legree, and was given a life sentence.
He was incarcerated at Fort Madison
aor twenty years and was finally trans
'erred to the institution at Anamosa on
of falling health At the time Of
ais death he was rs years old.
Nebraskan Shoots His Wife.
Atkinson, Neb., Dec. 19.-Yesterday
4 Cpopcer Rovd corpty Vfl1ta m Par 4