The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1901-12-03
MYSTERY UNSOLVED
LUBECK DECLARED TO HAVE
BEEN MURDERED.
But no Light is Thrown Either on the
Motive or the Agents of 1.-THE
Inquest.

The inquest on the body of Herman
Lubbock was held last night. A large
number of witnesses We're examined.
The jury returned the following YER
dict:
That the said Harry Lubbock came to
his death in Honolulu, oahu, on or
about the Goth day of November, 1901,
from drowning, said drowning not be-
ing due to an accident, nor to any in
tent on the part of deceased to commit
suicide, but was the direct result of
premeditated plan to murder said H.
Lubbock by certain person or persons
to this jury unknown. And this jury
finds from the evidence adduced that
said II. Lubbock was murdered by a
perso norp ersons to this jury un-
known, on the days and place first
above named.
ROBERT ]. ROWE, GEOPGE WILL
SON FRED NAYLOR, HARRY
RATHKE c. b. PERRY w. B. MOTT
The testimony brought out was far
from clearing up the mystery sur
rounding Lubecks death. 1t did how
ever make it almost certain that the
man had been murdered, probably as
saulted and rendered unconscious and
then thrown into the water where he
drowned.
But while the testimony threw little
light on the agents of the tragedy, 1t
did clear up a good many seemingly
suspicious incidents. especially some of
the incidents upon which Mrs. Lubbock
laid much stress. The Monday night
incident of the hack, the drinks at the
Criterion saloon, the alleged hurry
up" telephone message for Lubbock at
the Criterion saloon, Lubeck's trip to
the Brewer wharf, and the interview
the next day between Lubbock Mrs
Lubbock and Rooney, seemed by the
testimony to be pretty clearly disso-
ciated from relation with Lubeck's
death, unless out of it grew desire on
the part of someone to get rid of Lu-
beck, of which no tangible evidence, to
say the most was developed.
So far as Oscar c. Lewis was connec-
ted with this incident all the testimony
went to clear him of any connection.
except the most casual and accidental,
with it, and even made his actions
quite creditable to him. inasmuch as he
very promptly declined to remain in
the hack when it became evident that
convivial party was aboard. There
was no evidence that there were any
antagonistic relations between Lewis
and Lubbock, or any relations except
the most casual, beyond the statements
of Mrs. Lubbock and Willie Lubbock
about Lubeck's statements of doing
him up" Even these simmered down
to Mrs. Lubeck's testimony that her
husband had said that if anything hap
pened to him she would know who did
it, but he didn't say it was Lewis, or
in fact give any name; and Willie Luz
beck'S testimony on the same subject.
But Willie Lubbock could only say that
two or three days previous to his faith
er's death, his father had said that If
anything happened to him it would be
that Lewis had done him up. But Will
lie Lubbock was unable to give any fur
Their of the conversation than this or
to relate circumstances that would lead
to corroboratiOn or refutation, and the
whole effect of his testimony was to
create the impression that his recol-
lection of this conversation had been
very much stimulated and made defin-
lite by after events and things he had
heard after his fathers death.
Lewis own testimony, while not very
clear or precise on some points, was as
to most facts entirely corroborated by
Mrs. Lubbock and Rooney, and wherein
it differed was quite as probable as
theirs.
There was nothing in the testimony
to vitality connect any of the incidents
prior to Friday night with the tragedy.
Further than to make it fairly presum-
able that between being out of work
and the incident of Monday and it's
sequel of Tuesday. Lubbock was prob
ably not in a peaceful frame of mind
but whether respondent or in fear,
does not appear.
The last seen of Lubbock before his
death so far as direct testimony is
concerned, was at 7:3O Friday night
when he was seen by his son Frank
leaving the Drill Shed grounds in the
direction of Hotel street and town, in
company with a man of good height
and strong build, with a red face apd
a brownish mOustache, whom Frank
says was not Lewis nor any one of sew
eral men produced at the inquest for
his Identification.
The statement that Lubbock was at
the Aloha saloon at 8 o'clock that Fri
day night proves untrue. He was there
early in the afternoon, but not later.
Captain Frank Dalton in charge of
the United States Quarantine launch
Oahu testified that last Saturday morn
ing Charles Dillon the deckhand of the
launch told him that there was a body
floating in the water Dillon's atten-
ton had been called to it by someone
at the pilot house. When Dillon first
saw the body it was floating in about
three feet of water outside the piling
at the edge of the wharf. The body
was partly doubled up the head and
legs being pretty well down and the
back sticking up. The arms were bent
under the body. The coat collar was
torn partly away from the coat and was
Dalton took a fishpole and with it put
a small line under the body and made
a running bowline and lifted the body
up until it could be seen that the shirt
was badly torn and hanging in shreds
below the coat which was buttoned |
across the breast with one button. The
body was towed to the seawall. The |
body was in such a position that the
shirt could have been torn either by the |
action of the water or by striking |
against the piling. The floor of the wharf
overhangs the piling and the body was
far enough out from the piling so that
the rope let down from the edge of the
wharf vertically reached the body. Cap
tain Dalton was quite certain that in
the position in which the body was
neither the action of the water nor of
anything at the time in the water could
have torn the shirt as it was torn.
Dr. j. T. Mcdonald who made the au-
topsy on the body described ii as
healthy in all it's organs. Two or three
uhing abrasions about the head which