The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1901-07-30
HORNEF IS STILL MISSING THE WILL Of THE KING.
JEwELER STILL FAILS TO SHOW
UP IN TOWN.
Police Say Suicide, But Friends of the
Man Remain Hopeful-Incidents Con-
nected With Disappearance.


Ernest G. Hornet, the matchmaker at
Wichman's who has been missing since
last Thursday, is still puzzler for his
friends. The police are firm in the
opinion that he has committed suicide.
probably in some isolated locality with
the intent that his body should not be
discovered. At the same time some
friends of the young man still cling to
the belief that the missing man is sim
ply taking a little tramp in the noun
tains and will show up all right in
time.
Mr.. Hornet came here about four
years ago from Germany. At the time,
he spoke but a few words of English.
He went to work for Mr.. Wichman as
a repairer of watches, in which busi-
ness he was an expert. Up to a short
time ago he drew a stated salary. but
deciding to branch out for himself he
opened an office in the Boston building
on Fort street and accepted work from
various jewellers. including Wichman,
Dietz and others.
Last week several watches were sup
piled from Wichmans store for imme-
diate attention. The fact that these
time pieces have been found untouched
in the Office of the missing man seems
to strengthen the opinion that suicide
has been committed
Hornet dropped out of sight last
Thursday. He left his room in Kaimu-
XII with the statement that he would
shortly return. At about the same time
pistol and a bottle of carbolic acid,
which he had kept on his bureau for
some weeks, disappeared. That is
about all that is actually known of the
matter.
On Sunady Captain A A. Fox, of the
mounted patrol, had two men follow
the beach all the way round from
Waikiki to WaiaIae in search of the
missing man. Mr. Wichman and an
other friend OF Hornet took up the
search from there They visited the
various haunts of the matchmaker, in
Guiding a particular rock upon which
he used to take his lunch when out for
moutain tramps. Their search was in
vain.
series of circumstances is offered
by the police in support of the suicide
theory. Some two years ago Hornef $
wife died in Italy of consumption.
About ten weeks ago house which
the matchmaker had built at Kaimuki
was accidently burned to the ground,
everything in it being destroyed. 1t is
also stated that he had lost consider
able money T. sugar stocks On top
| of it all he was engaged to a Spanish
! Mexican girl, with promises, as ii oc-
| Cured to him, of an unhappy alliance.
He said as much to a friend. The
police figure that these several things
so preyed upon his mind that he took
the extreme step suggested by them.
Yesterday an agent of the German
| Consul, A. Won Damn, visited the office
and living room of the missing man
and took note of the belongings there
| The object of this visit was to obtain
correct inventory of Hornets effects
| to be utilized in case he failed to turn
| up at all.
Nothing out of the ordinary was dis
covered by Mr.. Won Damn except what
seemed to be a shortage of clothing
| For instance, there was one collar, two
pairs of cuffs and one pair of half hose
| This led the consular agent to suspect
| that some of the belongings may have
| been taken away by the missing man
but it turned out that Chinese laun
| dryman had a considerable bundle
which was accepted as accounting TO
the shortage. Mr.. Won Damn made
complete list of everything belonging
to Hornet. He found no money.
j. w. A. Redhouse, another watch
maker at Wichman's, with whom Hor
nef was living. gives this account o
the disappearance: Hornet and
. drove out home Thursday afternoon
arriving there just before dinner time
= Hornet went over to look at hous
he was building on the site of tn
one burned nearly three months age
Returning. he had dinner went TO nj
room for a time and then came ou1
AS he started out of the yard l aske
him where he was going. He rephe
, that he was going over to see abou
Gears stable. told him that though
: he had enough in his own house an
: new business venture to look after, an
he had better let me attend to the sta
bles. He replied in an Indifferent sol
of way Well, all right and starte
on. l asked him again where he wa
: going and he replied in drawl 'Of
4 no where
S MY wife and I. sat on the verand
t until or $3.50 o'clock, Hornet did nc
return. We thought he had probabl
gone over to a neighbor's with whoI
he sometimes visited and paid litt
( more attention to it. Next morning h
e did not show up at 6:15 for breakfas
! so l went to his room and found tha
he had not occupied his bed at all.
II felt at once that there was some
I thing very wrong. On his bureau h
= had kept for several weeks a box col
tanning a bottle of carbolic acid an
: another bottle the label upon whic
= had been carefully scratched of. Tn
box and a pistol disappeared on n
same night with Hornet,
! Mr.. Hornet and l were bosol
friends. He told me all of his bushes
and other plans and ! told him min
He had been worrying a great de-
lately over several matters. not II
least of which was his engagement
a young lady at Moanalua which hf
to be broken off. He has repeated
stated that If he ever got into troub
so that he could not see his way ol
he would blow his head off This thre
was not only made TO me but to other
From what I know of his affairs he n
reached this stage and has followed o
plan formed sometime ago"
Sergeant Scott, at Camp McKinle
te was very close to the missing ma
Scott knows nothing of the circur
stances just related, however. The la
he saw of Hornet was on Monda
when the matchmaker went to t
camp and talked with him in regard
, opening a business OF his own 1t a
pears that Hornet was figuring