Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-10-07
Special to Times-Republican.

revealing the presence Of the body re-
warded their efforts. If the body is in
the Sioux the river guards its secret
well. Even the dock at the Riverside
club house, where it was thought Mrs.
Burns might have fallen in attempting
to land, was moved and the river bot
tom dragged thoroughly beneath it., but
without success.
To add to the mystery surrounding
the case are circumstances which might
point to other possible explanations of
the mystery, and speculation and theo-
ries were rife yesterday. Many who
had examined the circumstances sur
rounding. the case expressed themselves
as certain that Mrs. Burns was not in
the river, and the sus picion, almost too
horrible for credenc,., was advanced
that she might have been waylaid by
tramps. The officers do not subscribe
fully to the drowning theory, and to
investigate the latter thoroughly
tramped over the surrounding country,
thru woods and corn fields, but with
out results. Inquiry was made at sur
rounding farm houses for suspicious
characters, but none had been seen.
Mr. Burns will listen to no other ex-
PLANTATION Of Mrs. Burns disappearance
than that she accidentally drowned.
He persists in the belief that she fell
overheard while putting on her jacket
I'VE have been on the river many
times" he said yesterday, "and 1t was
her invarfable custom to handle the
oars. for she loved exercise. On nearly
every occasion she would rise In the
boat and put her jacket on when 1t be-
came cool. am convinced that she did
so this time and lost her balance. The
way In which the oar, were found make
me believe that was the way it hap
pened. It was her custom before rising
to ship the oars. They were found In
just the, way she was accustomed to
leave them"
So wildly has the occurrence been
mind that, waking or sleeping. he sees
the body OF the drowned woman lying
white and cold in death, with the black
waters running silently above her. Do
what he will. Mr.. Burns can not rid
his mind Of this awful picture.
There is one peculiar fact that still
remains unexplained. Mrs. Burns had
left word at home taat she was to re-
turn Tor the purpose Of going to the
concert in the evening at the Dean mu-
sic store At the club grounds she told
Mrs. Meadow and Fred Evans that she
waE expecting some. women to bowl
with her and that she wished to go out
On the river to warm up. Why did Mrs.
Burns make contradictory statementsc
No explanation for them has yet been
offered.
A party did assemble at the Riverside
Club bowling alley Friday night. Among
them were Mr.. and Mrs. Fred Taylor,
Mr.. and Mrs. Roy 7,yler, Mr.. and Mrs.
G.. w. Ashley, Mrs. A. A. Auburn, Miss
Grace Allgood. Fred Morgan and one
or two others. With none of these peo-
pie had Mrs. Burns arranged to bowl,
nor has any one been found with whom
she had made any such arrangement.
w. II. Burns, brother of T. F. Burns,
when asked last night concerning this
discrepancy, could offer no explanation.
The report became current yesterday
that Mrs. Burns had arranged to go
Jennings street. Mrs. 1ngerson last
night said this was not so.
Mrs. Auburn, Mrs. Burns predecessor
in the Office of president of the club.
was one OF the party at the bowling
alley.
Mrs. Burns said nothing to me about
and don't believe she knew
that I was going out" Mrs. Auburn
said. II am sure there was nothing in
her life to induce her to commit sui-
eide" she continued.
Mrs. Auburn was loath to entertain
the theory that Mrs. Burns might have
been waylaid by trlmps on the opposite
bank OF the river while gathering au-
tumn leaves, as she had told her hus-
band she wished te, do.
"Still, that might have been," she
said. Mrs. Burns wore valuable jew
elry. No one had finer rings than she
and she wore a brilliant diamond
brooch that was very valuable
While there is no evidence to show
that Mrs. Burns w:is waylaid by tramps
on the farther shore, 1T is not impossible
During the summer tramps have been
in the habit of congregating here, but
the police believe hat 1t Is little cold
for them to be hanging around in the
woods now.
The last seen OF Mrs. Burns was at
up stream after getting the boat from.
Fred Evans to the point where she was
accustomed to stop. The night watch
man at the government docks saw her
turn around and S art back in the gath
eting twilight. That was the last seen
OF her.
The theory of tie accident, as held by
Mr. Burns, is in detail as follows:
Mrs. Burns left Sioux City on the
o'clock car. She arrived at the River
side Park at $3.50 o'clock. Ten minutes
later she was given boat and started
north. She has Il favorite trip on the
river, rowing always to point nearly
opposite the government boats. 1t re-
uuired twenty. minutes for her to reach
the end of the journey. She turned and
started back for the dock. The wind
was blowing from the northeast at least
fifteen miles an hour. The Riverside