The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-08-10
ST. .PHUL POLICE MYSTERIES.

clothed only in an underShirt. He was
taken to the city hospital in the pa
troll wagon, and told the conductor that
two men, wearing masks, entered his
place, and without warning shot him.
He claimed to have dragged himself
to the door and got out on the street
after being shot
Middleton told the same story at the
city hospital, and died at $3.50, before
the county attorney could take an
ante mortem statement. During the
time he was in the hospital it was only
with the greatest difficulty that Mid
dleton could be got to speak of the
shooting. He said that it hurt him to
talk, but on any other subject he would
converse fluently.
When the detectives began their
work they Immediately found many
circumstances that tended to prove
that Middleton was not telling the
truth. The window through which
Middleton said the burglars entered
was covered with dust and cobwebs
and showed no signs of an entrance
having been forced Middleton's key
ring was found near the front door, but
the key to the door was missing from
the ring, indicating that he had not
unlocked the door, as he had told the
officers.
When the doctors examined his body
it was found that the powder from the
revolver had been blown into the
case had the shooting been done as he
said. The testimony of those who
heard the shots was conflicting. Some
heard four, some three, While others
were willing to swear that but one
shot had been fired. Middleton said
he had been shot at four times, but no
marks of the bullets could be found
in oil oh 90 of nj
search possible was made.
A sick woman, living across the
street, who was awake at the time the
shooting occurred, claimed that she
heard Middleton and woman quar-
reling about some money matters. She
told a long story of the alteration.
Middeltons previous career led the Of
fcers to the belief that there was a
woman mixed up in~ the case some
where, and that it was quite likely that
she did the shooting. One witness saw
woman waiting in Middleton's door
way late at night.
There were so many women" theo-
ries that the police became firmly con-
WINGED that when the murderer would
be brought to justice IT would be a
woman. Work was at once begun to
discover Middleton's female friends. It
was learned that he was very friendly
with Mrs. Ardelli Yarne1l, who kept
boarding house at 334 Sherman street.
Further investigation revealed the
fact that Middleton accompanied Mrs
Yarnell and her sister, Mrs. Gallagher,
to the union depot the night before he
was shot He and Mrs. Yarnell return
ed together from the depot, and, &C
cording to Mrs. Yarnell, separated at
her house for the night.
Mrs. YarnelPs arrest followed in a
few days. She denied all knowledge
of the shooting, claiming that the first
she heard of the affair was in the
morning, when she was told by one of
the neighbors. She had a preliminary
hearing in the police court, and was
discharged. The detectives worked on
the case for some months afterward,
but could find nothing that could be
construed as clue, and the affair be-
came one of the mysteries of the de-
partment, which time alone can solve,
if it ever will.