Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-08-23
NOT POSITIVELY IDENTIFIED
EFFORT TO TRACE REVOLVER USED
IN AYREs TRAGEDY.
Detective Said to Have Learned That
Pistol Was Owned by Mrs.
BOnine's Brother.

BOnine's Brother.
According to press dispatch from st.
Joseph. Mo-. Detective Muller of this city.
who was sent there by the Washington
authorities, has succeeded In establishing
the former ownership Of the pistol which
figured In the killing Of James c. Ayres
the census Office clerk. Ayres lost his life
at the Hotel Kenmore, it Is alleged, at the
hands Of Mrs. Lola Ida Henry BONNIE the
18th Of May last. Later information how
ever, Is to the effect that the Identification
is not complete.
According to the dispatch as printed in the
morning papers. the detective says the
revolver has been identified as belonging
to Mrs. Bonines brother In st. Joseph,
and that he found the place where the
revolver was replated some time ago. be-
fore Mrs. Bonine's brother, Mr.. Henry,
gave her the weapon.
When Captain Boardman's attention was
called to the publication by q Star re-
porter he wired Detective Muller. This
detective telling him he had not positively
established the identity of the weapon.
In the telegram Detective Muller says
the dealer who sold Mr.. Henry revolver
case Is not the one he sold. On the other
hand. the nickel platter says it is the
weapon he replated. He does not say for
whom he replated it, but Captain Board
Detective Muller left here Monday after
noon at 3:15 o'clock for st. Joseph fully
convinced that he would succeed In learn
ing something Of value In the chain of
evidences for the prosecution The first in
formation concerning the alleged former
ownership of the weapon came In an anony-
nous letter from St. Joseph. According to
that letter, the revolver was sold In st.
q
BONNIE, who afterward had 1t replated So
far as could be ascertained today, there
was no attempt made by the writer of the
communication to show how Mrs. BONNIE
is alleged to have obtained possession Of
the weapon.
The letter was received the 10th of this
month, and as soon as its recipient placed
it in the hands Of the police officials they
sent letter of inquiry to the authorities
in the Missouri city. A favorable response
was received, as was request for the
weapon to be sent there, In order that its
Identification might be made complete
Captain Boardman did not wish to risk
losing the revolver. and as its identity was
matter Of great Importance. he decided
to send it to St. Joseph in the custody OF
an officer. 1t was desired that the detec-
tives mission should be kept a profound
secret and in the event of his succeeding
In getting the weapon identified this, too.
was to be kept secret and was to be
used as surprise at the trial.
representative Of District Attorney
Gould's office and the three members of the
police department were the only ones sup
posed to be informed, and before leaving
here Detective Muller was instructed that
he need not wire the result Of his quest.
Inquiry as to Ownership.
During the investigation of the tragedy
the question Of ownership Of the weapon
claimed more attention than anything else
Almost every detective who worked on the
case assisted in the effort to locate it, and
several times it was believed they had sue
ceeded; but at the time the indictment was
found the question had not been definitely
settled. In fact, the information obtained
by the detectives indicated that the weapon
did not belong to Mrs BONNIE. They learn
ed she had owned a revolver, and she said
she had given 1t to a waiter at the Ken
more whom she knew as Walter" He
had then left the hotel. but the detectives
succeeded in finding Walter Gum, an ex-
waiter, and he produced bulldog revolver,
which he said had been given to him by
Mrs. BONNIE. probably year before Ayres
was killed.
Whoever may have owned the blood
stained revolver, 1t was believed by many
that Walter Gums statement showed what
had become of Mrs Bonine's weapon.
Then, too, one OF Ayres' friends told the
detectives that Ayres had owned a revolver
similar to the one with which the tragedy
was committed, but other and more init
mate friends of Ayres declared they had
never seen him with a weapon Of any kind
except his old gun.
When the father Of the young man came
here from Port Austin, Mich, to arrange
for the removal Of the body he said he had
not known of his son having owned a re-
volver. II he did own one, the father de-
clared, 1t was against his wishes and in
structions
Pursuit Of Clues.
At one time during the investigation the
detectives thought they had clue to the
purchaser Of the pistol when they learned
that a weapon answering the description
of the one in question had been sold to
man whose name was given as I. q. Swee-
bill, and whose address was given as 533
H street northwest. The number "5O1' ap-
peared on the record at d. N. Walford's
store where the sale was made. On DIFF
feTent parts of the pistol found In Ayres'
room are the numbers sol" "2.5O1' and
''O92. SOL" There Is no 533 H street north
west, and the number on the dealers book
did not In any way assist the police.
After the police had made every effort to
identify the revolver 1t was placed in the
safe at police headquarters. but not until 1t
had been handled so much that many OF
= ba or had 6isapnaarod