Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1902-08-10
Cement Floor Had Been Raised and Body
Of Woman Carefully Hid.
SON BELIEVED TO BE GUILTY
Police Think he Murdered His Mother and
Later Killed Miss Mitchell
BODY ALMOST Nude WHEN FOUND
Wound in the Head and Fact that
Koung BarthoIinD Was Last seen
with bliss Mitchell strong
Points AgRinst Him.

CHICAGO, Aug. s.-with a Jagged
wound in the left temple and physical
evidence that she had been strangled or
smothered, the almost nude body of Mrs
Annie Bartholin was found this evening
buried beneath the cellar floor Of the house
In which she had lived at 1910 Calumet
avenue.
Soinciient with the finding Of the body.
the police redouhled their efforts to fnd
the missing son, william Bartholin. who
is also suspected OF the murder of Miss
Minnie Mitchell whose body was found in
vacant lot at Seventy fourth and state
streets last Thursday evening.
The police have evidence that BartholIn
slept In the house on Calumet avenue last
Tuesday night. three weeks after his mother
bad been murdered and six days after he
Is supposed to have killed Minnie Mitchell.
The body OF Mrs. Bartholin was found by a
party OF newspaper men, after the police
nad searched the house and had concluded
tnat II the woman had been murdered, her
oooy was concealed somewhere away from
the residence. All the rooms OF the house
nao oeen ransacked, partitions torn down,
walls sounded and the basement and the
premises searched
Earlier in the day persons who were
searching In the basement found a nlaca
where the cement floor seemed to have been
disturbed. Digging there they found what
was at hrst supposed to be Fragments Of
human body. Later they became salts
ned that dog had been buried there. A
cropar apparently stained with blood and
hatehet wl,leh he-e a.=as -=-=
FOUND In the basement and the searchers
were unwilling to abandon their task even
after It seemed that there was nothing
further for them to do.
Body. of Woman IL Pound.
Finally tonight someone foupa a small
creviee in the cement floor. Indicating tina,
the cement had been disturbed ana them
skillfuliy patched In a moment the .men
were attacking the floor with picks and
spades, while a large crowd Of nsiehbors
AnQ other curious ones watched the wori.
from the stairway or through the basement
windows. The cement was quickly broken
away and the diggers came on bed Of
white sand. Digging through this they came
upon q dress skirt. This was dragged out
and other articles OF woman's wear were
found. When these had been removed the
body of the woman was found. II was
wrapped In blanket and practically was
without clothing. there being only a stock
ing on the left foot and a corset cover
around the chest.
From the appearance Of the body it was
believed that Mrs. Bartholln was struck
down either while dIsrobing for the night
or when dressing in the morning.
On the woman's left temple was a deep
and ragged cash two inches long, but DR..
2. P. Noel, physician who was summoned,
said that In his opinion It could not have
caused death.
The wound is superficial. but may have
served to render the victim unconscious. %
DR.. Noel said. After the blow was struck
the woman was either choked or smoth-
cred"
The body was removed to an undertaking
establishment where the coroner's inquest
win be held on Monday.
Thinks BarthoIin AIave.
The police have abandoned the theorv
that Bartholin is dead and Police Inspector
Hunt. in whose district is the home Of Mrs.
Bartholin. declared tonight that he was
confident that the man is alive and has not
left Chicago. The clerk OF a real estate
agent, one OF whose clients holds a mort
gage on the property of Mrs. BarthoIln. met
William Bartholin in front Of the house
on the morning OF July 81 or August 1, he
does not remember which. This fact causes
the police to believe that they win cap
ture him soon. as he has had less than
one weeks start Of them.
Today a man was killed by cars at South
Chicago and another committed suicide At
Washington Heights Both, In a general
way. answered the description OF Bartholin,
but both proved to be other men, Neither
death had any connection with the Bar
tholin case. There is no apparent motive
for the killing OF Mrs. BarthoIln or OF
Minnie Mitchell, but the police are follow.
ing every possible theory. The one that
finds most favor at present Is that the
young man. being IN debt, killed his mother
in order that her equity IN the mortgaged
property might revert to him. While this
theory viii not cover the murder Of the
Mitchell girl in any way. the police be-
lieye that Bartholin had the idea that she
either suspected him OF killing his mother
or that she had taken him to task for
telling conflicting stories regarding her dis
appearance
Bartholin and his mother were not on
good terms. although they lived in the same
house. Beyond a desire to inherit her
property there is at present no known mo-
tive for the murder.
Dr. Springer, the coroner's physician.
conducted an autopsy on the body OF Mrs.
Bartholin tonight and announced that her
death had been caused by strangulation. the
assassin having made sure OF his victim by
first breaking her skull with a blunt instru-
ment. fracture having been found beneath
the wound on the temple.
cI 0tIDRlIRST IN IN0IS