The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1901-04-11
SLEW HIS EMPLOYER
Confession Of Valet Jones In
the Rice Murder Case.
ALSO IMpLICATEs LAWYER PATRICK.

4 ----------.
= Remarkable and Sensational Recital
! Which Laid Bare the Awful Details
Of an Alleged Subtle Conspiracy
That Had FOR lts Object the Seizure
OF Millions.
New York. April 3.--At the prellmi-
nary hearing of the murder charge
against Attorney Patrick, Charles F.
Jones, secretary and valet to the late
William Marsh Rice. confessed under
oath that he had ended the life of his
employer with chloroforn.
| The self-confessed murderer told
the story of the alleged plot from It's
inception. The capital crime he com
mitted and all the minor offenses that
preceded 1t were, he declared. at the
instigation and direction of Attorney
Albert T. Patrick. 1t was Patrick, he
said, who conceived the idea of forg-
ing q will and forging transfers and
conveyanees. 1t was Patrick who de.
termined that Rice should die, and II
| was Patrick who sought to have him
killed slowly, and then, becoming i'm
patient, determined upon quick action.
And, according to Jones, remarkable
as it may seem. Rice never knew Pat
rick during his lifetime and never saw
him but once.
Jones, according to his story, first
began his acquaintance with Patrick
when the lawyer called at the resi-
dence of the millionaire Rice on Mad.
ison avenue, this city, In October,
1899, The witness told of the growing
friendship and the gradual approach
to the discussion of the affairs of Mr..
Rice, which finally resulted in the
proposition to defraud. and Jones
finally yielded. Then came the details
ofthe story of the transfers and con-
yeyances of real and personal prop
erty to Patrick, over the forged sig
natures of Rice; the stealing OF blank
checks from the mililonaires check
book: then delivery to Patrick and
the forgery of Rice's signature; the
proposition to put the aged million
aire out of the way. first weakening
him by continuous doses of mercury;
the calling in of physician at fire.
auent intervals, thus apparently pro.
yiding for the issuance of death Ger
tificate; and the extreme care with
which this plan of slow poisoning was
carried out.
According TO this remarkable con-
fession the poison was too slow,
and Jones was asked to use chloro-
form and laudanum, Jones said he
was afraid to buy the drugs In the
ueighborhood and he sent to his
brother in Texas for them. They
came by express This was followed
by meeting in the street with Pat
rick, who told him that the old man
was lasting too long; that he must be
put out of the way at once; that Jones
should do the work. and that there
would really be no harm in 1t. be-
cause Rice had poisoned his wife
years ago and deserved punishment
Jones described his return to Mr.
Rice's apartments and the discovery
of the millionaire sleeping peacefully
in bed; he told Of the stealthy search
for napkin and the fashioning OF it
into a cone shape, as directed, he said,
by Patrick. He detailed the story OF
the pinning of small sponge at the
point of the cone. Then he told of
saturating the napkin and sponge
with chloroform and holding 1t over
his own nostrils to test its effects.
Jones described his approach to the
bed with the saturated napkin In his
hand; of tine placing it over the face
of the sleeping old man; of the flight
from the room; of the weary wait of
80 minutes in accordance with Pat
rick's alleged instructions; at the ex-
piration of the half hour he returned
and found Rice dead. He then threw
open the windows. telephoned to Pat
rick that Rice was dead. sent for
physician and then. after expressing
his grief at the loss of SO good and
kind an employer. he said he went to
bed and fell into sound sleep.
Patrick, accused by the witness of
being the arch-criminal. listened to
the witness with attention and occa.
sionally made hotes of the testimon.-
He was cool. calm and collected.
British Ship Eniojned.