The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-12-05
BOY May HAVE KILLED LEYH.
OLD MANWAS CRANKY, HOWEVER,
AND had FAMILY TROUBLES.
Lad Who Worked for Him Tells Conflicting
Stories About the Fatal Bottle Of
Beer and Escapes While the Police
watch Him as He caves the store.

iI'l' II Io lollRtI ,hly upubl III tHS HlIOS
Of the Brooklyn authorities that George IA
Leyh. the aged trusslnaker. who died in
great agony on Tuesday morning In the rear
Of his store al 70 Broadway. Brooklyn. after
drinking IA part Of a bottle of beer, was
murdered The developments Of yester.
day indicate that Leyh was the victim Of a
carefully plar ned poisoning plot. laid by
one or more persons, and that at least ono
person In the conspiracy had knowledge Of
the old mans habit of taking a bottle of
beer with his luncheon at about 10 o'clock
every morning Enough poison TO kill
regiment was placed in the bot tie Of beer,
out of which Leyh took scarcely two mouth.
fuls, and 30 powerful was the drug that even
this little killed him within an hour and
half after he took IL
1eyh was man of some wealth. In the
thirty years that he had been in business in
the Eastern District of Brooklyn he had
piled up fortune of about $50 GEO. and hs
had added to this in life insurance about
100000 more, the last Of his policies having
been taken out some thirteen years ago,
Despite this he lived IN the simplest fashion,
denying himself many Of the luxuries OF
life that he was able 10 enjoy. Because Of
his niggardly ways lac quarrelled wit h mem
beers OF his family and with utsiders. One
of his sons and one Of his daughters had
been estranged from him for years; two
other daughters are married and live with
their husbands; one SOD is a doctor and lives
with his family In another section of VIII
liamsburg. ard the remaining daughter,
Miss Isabelle Leyh. lives over her fathers
store, and for several years had been his
IL, nj -. 4
presiding over his establishment.
Only one person was with the aged truss
maker when he took the poisoned beer,
and that was Robert Westphal, a fourteen.
year-old boy, who lives with his parents
at 267 Stockholm street. Brooklyn. After
Mr.. Leyh's death the police questioned
Westphal. He told a straight enough story
and was not suspected Of any wrongdoing.
Later the Coroner questioned Westphal
and he told another straight story, but I'M
fortunately II deviated slightly from the
story he had previously told, as we'll as from
stories that he had told to members Of the
murdered mans family.
1t was noon yesterday before the sig
ni6oance Of young Westphal's inconsist-
encies sifted its way through the brains Of
the police Of the Bedford avenue station.
Then there was sudden activity. Two
detectives. who had previously questioned
Wsstphal, went to Leyh's store with orders
from Capt. Short to arrest Westphal. They
saw him in the store as they entered. While
they were shutting tho door the boy walked
from behind the counter and into an alley
In the rear. This aihy icals 10 a lEo.
family house on South Sixth street, which
was one Of the pieces Of real estate the old
trussmaker owned
The detectives thought the boy was
going into this house by the rear way on
some business and that he would return.
SO they sat down to wait for him to come
back. But he didn't come back, and when
at the end OF an hour tho two detectives
looked around and saw that the boy hadn't
taken his coat with him they made up their
minds that he had escaped They imme-
distely ran through the alley into the other
house. but all the informal ion they got
there was that Westpahl had pass cd through
the hallway Of the h ouse an hour before,
had greeted one Of the tenants and had
passed out into the str eet.
The detectives who W ere thus outwitted
by a lad OF IL, were Detect ives Collins and
Tracy. They reported the escape of tho
boy to Capt. Short and at midnight last
night Tracy was on guard at he boys
home on Stockholm street. and Collins
was Watching the Broadway store. But
the lad, who Is not allowed by his father
to remain out late at night. and who has
always been ohedient in this respect, had
not shown up at either place.
Beyond any doubt the murderer OF I'll,
old man got into the cellar, poisoned tha
beer and then put 1t back in the case vita
the other beer, knowing that sooner or
later II would reach Mr.. Leyh Miss Ieyh
has not been able TO tell of any stranger
who has been in the cellar lately.
In recent years Leyh has been GRANNY,
and even members of his own family had
especially abrupt with people who cane
into his store to buy anything. If thcy
didn't buy at once he was likely to invite
them to get out. About five years ago one
Of his daughters married an elderly man
who was not agreeable 10 him, so he dis
owned her. year later his son Edwin
had trouble with his wife, She got d.
vorce from him and married another man.
The old man was SO angry over the scandal
which the case made that he turned FL
win out of his house, and thNyoung man
has not been seen in williamsburg saco,
although lie had great many friends thnrc
Mr.. Leyh's quarrels with his daughter.
Miss Isabelle, were frequent, but they
were over trifiing things. In his store he
never kept a man: always a boy. Dutlg
"A
dozen boys working for him. Few boys
would stay in his employ more than wcel;
or two because of his habit Of browbeat.ng
them.
He was constantly complaining 10 tho
police about street boys annoying him or
looking into the window of his place, and
in the neighborhood he was regarded AS an
extremely eccentric man. Young Westphal,
according TO ncighbors, took Mr.. Leyh's
outbursts better than any other boy who
had ever worked for him. Only last week
the boy had row with the man. and IL was
said that Mr.. l.eyh chased him about the
store with stick. The truss maker was
violent in temper, especially where small
boys were concerned and ne wasn't averse
TO using stick on the youngsters h. en-
ployed.
Mr.. Leyh got up early mornings, ate a
light breakfast and was in the habit of taxi
ing some luncheon at 10 or 1890 O'clock
With this luncheon, which was always pre-
pared by his daughter, Isabelle, he ALWAYS
drank a bottle OF beer. The beer he kept
in IA box containing two dozen bottles, in
the cellar. In the bottle of beer which he
had al his Luncheon on Tuesday was the
poison that killed him. Because Of his
poor eyesiRht the old man might not have
seen the white sediment in the bottle cX-
tending up almost a half inch from the bot
tom, but there seems TO be no reason why
Nestphal, who was with him, could not sea
it, especially after the old man complained
of the peculiar taste Of tho beer and asked
him n lac not iced auvt hing 4 p p,attar With