Evening star., 1901-12-16
CLUE IN De NNIS CASE
Story Told BY a Butler to a Star Re-
porter.
REGARDED As OF some CONSEQUENCE
Developments Following Appear
ance of Woman's Picture.
PATIENTS CON ION

Z A Il E MI s T. Q N ID Il . N
There was a further improvement shown
In the condition of Mrs. Ada Gilbert Dem
mis- this morning. and Drs. Thompson, At
kinson and Hooe were more encouraged
than they were Saturday. Yesterday there
was rise in her temperature, and during the
afternoon the physicians were somewhat
alarmed. This morning, however after the
wounds were dressed, the doctors found
the patient In an encouraging condition.
Mrs. Dennis Is still unconscious. and her
mutterings are not Of such a character
that they have in any way assisted the de-
tectives.
What promises to prove an important
clue in the case was found this morning
by Detective Hartigan and Star reporter
1t is believed the information thus obtained
will greatly benefit the detectives in the
investigation Of the case. The question of
importance raised by the new Information
is the Identification of a woman, and the
witness who was found is positive that the
woman was Mrs. Dennis
He was attracted to the case by seeing
the photograph Of Mrs. Dennis printed in
The Star.
The witness Is a colored butler at a
house on K street, several squares west of
the scene of the tragedy. and he is a man
upon whom the detectives believe they can
rely. When questioned about the incident
he did not care to talk, but when his en-
ployer explained that he should tell all he
knew in the interest Of justice, he related
the story of a visit to his place of employ
ment Monday night of two women, one of
whom, he is certain, was Mrs Dennis. 1t
was between and 10 o'clock, he stated.
when he answered the door bell, and found
the women on the front steps. The one he
is certain to have been Mrs. Dennis appear
ed as IL she had been drinking, while her
companion did not come close enough to
him to detect the odor of liquor. When
the women wanted to enter the house he
protested that they had made mistake in
the house and motioned them to leave.
"Ain't this a boarding house?' one of
them asked him.
The colored butler answered in the mega
tive and the women departed. second
time he had to show them to the sidewalk,
and after they had gone he thought no
more of the affair until the next day, when.
he Saw the photograph in The Star. Then
il was that he mentioned to his employer
that the picture was a likeness of one of
the women who had called at the house
the previous night. He also recalled that
after leaving the house the women were
joined by two men, and the quartet walked
east along K street. The colored man gives
an excellent description of the woman.
She was dressed in dark or black clothes,
he stated, and wore neat-1tting walking
jacket, he thought: er companion was a
much younger woman, probably about twen-
ty-two years old. She was slender, and her
clothes were either very dark or black.
The butler was unable to give good de-
scrtption Of the men who were met by the
women and who went away with them. The
supposed clue furnished the detective will
be followed and every effort will be made
to ascertain something more definite about
the identity of the men and women. Today
the colored butler said it was between
and 10 oclock when the women called at
the house, but he will make an effort to fix
the hour more definitely. Detective Harti-
gan will not be satisfied until he ascertains
something more definite about the party
He is much impressed with the statement
of the colored man. Detective Horne is
now engaged in investigating this state
ment with Detective Hartigan.
Might Have Been Out.
Relatives and friends of Mrs. Dennis have
maintained that she did not leave her house
Monday night, but, as heretofore explain
ed in The Star she could easily have left
the house without other occupants of the
premises seeing her. The information re-
ceived today, it is believed by some of the
officers, may have some bearing on the per-
sonal encounter between man and woman
near 18th street and New York avenue
about II o'clock Monday night, when the
woman was pushed or knocked down and
was assisted afterward by her male COM
panion. with whom she walked north on
11th street. As is shown by the statement
of the colored man. there were four persons
moving east on K street when he last saw
them. 1t is possible, argue the detectives,
that the couples became separated, this ac
counting for only two persons to the affair
at 11th and New York avenue. In this con-
nection, ii is argued, the scream of the wo-
man heard about o'clock in the morning
may have been uttered by the other woman
who was one of the quartet but just where
she was when she made the outcry or why
she screamed is Of course, not known.
Hoping for n Statement.
When the doctors visited the hospital yes
terday and found Mrs Dennis condition
apparently more serious the detectives in
terested in the case feared the end was not |
far Off Such a condition they realized !
might seriously interfere with their work |
on the case and might result In the affair |
remaining mystery. Todays news from
and, while the patient is far from being |
out of danger. they feel that there is more |
hope for her recovery than there has been |
mitted. Detectives are still on duty at the |
hospital day and night, awaiting the time |
when the patient will be able to give them |
assistance in the way of telling of the af- |
fair in her room. She may be able to tell |
whether man or woman committed the |
assault, and the detectives hope she will be |
able to establish the identity of her assail- |
ant. A number of supposed clues have |
been closely followed since Saturday, but !
until today the detectives had not found |
what they regarded as so important clue |
ing at another house. The officers have |
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