Omaha daily bee., 1902-08-22
FIRE DAMAGES FINE ORGAN
Blaze Starts from Gas Jet Lit for Purpose
Of Drying Out the Instrument,
LtWcH TAKES NEW TACK ON OFFICERS
Executive Council Concludes the
work of Sending Out the ASSESS
ment scheduIes-APpeal
Murder Cases.
tFrom a star correspondent.l

1870
DIES MONIES, Aug. 21.-(Special.)-The
pipe organ Of the new Plymouth Congrega-
tional church was burned this afternoon
and the loss on the organ, with the damage
to the church, chiefly from water and
smoke, amounted to not less than $4,000.
The organ was largely the gift Of Mrs.
NJ. P. Turner, who gave the money for the
same. The fire caught from a gas jet.
Owing to the continued wet weather the
organ had become damp and an effort was
made to dry II out. The organ was a very
fine one and was dedicated last spring with
a fine concert. The church is the finest In
the city and was erected during the last
year at a cost of $4,000. Both church
and organ were insured.
Levich waived Examination.
When the trial Of Harry Levich, accused
Of the murder Of Isaac Finkelstein, was
called this afternoon he waived examina-
ton and gave bail in 5000 to appear be-
fore the grand Jury. The state has been
making a fight to have Levich put on trial
before Walker, and after he got a change
Of venue today the case was set for i'm
mediate trial. Hence the defense waived
examination. The discovery was also made
that the information does not charge MUIR
der in the first degree, and therefore there
could be no accessory to the crime.
Reward Is Wanted.
Governor Cummins has been asked to
offer a reward for the finding Of the MUIR
derer.or murderers of Mr.. and Mrs. Tuman,
the husband and wife who were found last
week foully murdered at their home, sew
eral miles north Of Muscatine, Ia. When
the bodies were found life had been ex>
tinct for several days. A tramp by the
name Of Dan Williams left the county about
the time of the murder and has not been
seen since. Suspicion pointed to him and
also to a former husband of the murdered
woman. Officers are looking for the tramp,
but now think the latter was not con-
nected with the crime, although he is un-
der arrest. Governor Cummins is out OF
the city, but the petition, signed by some
Of the leading citizens Of Muscatine, has
been forwarded to his office here, accom-
panied by afidavits showing the heinous-
ness of the crime.
Murder Cases Appealed.
Three persons under conviction Of MUIR
der filed transcripts In appeal cases today
with the clerk of the supreme court. Two
were the Albert City bank robbers, who
killed the town marshal of Albert City and
are under sentence to hang. A. G. Phillips
and Lewis Brooks were engaged in breaking
banks in northwest Iowa in November last
and were given chase by a posse. In the
fracas they shot and killed John sundblad,
marshal at Albert City, and for this they
were convicted in Buena Vista county and
sentenced to hang next December. They
hope to secure freedom on a technicality,
claiming that. the jury was improperly
drawn. Another appeal case from the same
nounfv will ~ deoidod hafora fhfc ana anil
1t will dispose OF the question. Ben Nc
Knight of Sioux City has appealed from a
sentence Of twenty-five years for the muir
der Of his wife in June last year. 1t was
proved that he literally kicked and beat her
to death. The exact ground Of the appeal
Is not yet made known here.
Assessment Work Completed.
The making out Of certificates in the tele-
phone assessment matter was completed to-
day by Assistant Secretary Swan of the ex-
%ecutive department. and this completes the
work Of making out the certificates under
the last assessment. The express and rail-
road assessments were already sent out.
The printing of the annual report OF the
council on assessments is nearly all done
and the report will be out next week. The
work was much larger this year than usual
because Of the larger number of new COM
panies to be assessed and the greater num-
Der OF changes from previous assessments.
Goes to Manila Custom House.
Mark Evans of this city has received an
appointment to a position In the custom
house in Manila and will leave next Monday
for San Francisco to take a transport and
proceed ut once to his position. Mr.. Evans
was FIRST sergeant of Company r. Thirty
second regiment. under Captain A. W.
Brandt, deputy auditor OF state, and served
in the Philippines with the regiment. Evans
was also of the Fifty-nrst Iowa, but did not
go to the Philippines with that regiment.
1t was a detachment OF the Thirty-second
under Sergeant Evans that captured the
first guns taken by the regiment in the
Philippines and his record was excellent.