Omaha daily bee., 1902-08-16
CASE IS STILL A MYSTERY
Police Making But Little Roadway IN Bar
thOlin Murder oast.
JOIN cLAFFY MAkIs 4 eENlRAL DENIAL
Mrs. TaIitfaay ~ wranr ana
That He was Asiscp when the
women Claims she
saw TMem.

saw Tnem.
CHICAGO. Aug. 1b.-LiftIk progress was
made BY the police today In solving the
mysteries Of the Barthoiin case. inspector
Hunt was convinced that he would obtain
important Information from John Clauy.
who was positively identified By Mrs. Taller
day as one Of the men she saw with the
laundry wagon on the morning following
the night OF the dIsappbdrkhce Of Minnie
Mitchell Clafty has been accustomed 10 q
supply OF liquor. and, the Inspector was Of
the opinion that he would weaken after he
had been deprived Of his allowance for a
few days. Late this afternoon he concluded
that Claify should be about resdy 10 tell
what he knew ana had him called into the
oeioes I'll result wae a allure. Clany
not only refused to admit that h was one
Of the msn seen By mrs. Tallerday, but de-
cleared with great positlvensts that he
was not there At ALL
Vixen asked how he ~expialned Mrs. Tai
ierday's Identification of hihi.g he replied
that It was not for .hlik TO dkblsln IT, She
had simply made a mistake hhd that was
her AFFAIR andvn not his He insistsa that he
was at home IN bsd ct tue time Mrs. Tai
lerday declared thar ahesdw HIM with the
laundry wagon, ~andzaenfed ANY connection
with the case. The police could make moth
ing whatever Out Of him and he Nas iOuked
up again. n x n
Ihspsetor Hunt said tftst ihs interview,
I thought snat 1--we would get the story
from ClanTr but We Old not get q single
hing re denied everything and stuck to
that night and he said he Was at home In
bed. ! asked him II he had not gone to
/ diton, he might not have done some things
he cannot now recall. and he said he was
sober night ee.i W 81
Milton Edwards. who arrived today from
Denver. was able 20 do no more than 20
strengthen the suspicion OF the police re-
gardlns the guilt Of Thosnpsoh. He reclted
no facts that bore directly upon the killing
of either Mrss 8artholin orrof Minnie Mitch-
ell.
Oscar Thompson still declines to tell the
police anything and insists that he has told
all he knows and that he cannot remember
where he was OF what he did on the night
OF the murder OF the Mitchell girl.
Edwnrds la Statement.
Milton L. Edwards, one Of the former
roomsrs Of Mrs. Anns ~Barthoiin, and a
new witness who the police think will prove
valuable IN clearing up the mystery in the
murders Of Mrs. BafthoIiha and Minnie
Mitchell. arrived IN thIs city early today
from Denver and at once placed himself IN
the hands OF the police.
Edwards was .excsptionaliy~weIh dressed
and IN practically no detail resembied VII
liam .. 6aE tluiin, VINO n wuu1va - sxpiuin
the deaths Of his mother and sweetheart
He wds franz In his statements. showed no
signs Of nervousness and said Aissast6A in
coming to Chicago was voluntary.
To a representative. Of the Associated
Press he made the following statement:
have besn very rrss TO discuss the lit
have told about evsrythinS that Is matsri.
ply o. value. l am now IN the hands OF
hays paid my sspensss here Tifseii that !
isn1rety SHOULD say mnfeis4 Jovte< srcsi1
spoken 70 him only thSss Or four times.
never wss.sa. qectgr or Al hXpnotist and
have already said that I thought fhines
Is the reason / left there a.
have a few things more 20 tell the CHIEF
the p chisf s aes ns ipse n ssro, Eeit until
q woman In the house, but What bearing
nas ann ms %iI nIiSXs % on ts shs tS SssSd g g Sots aRGw:
may soea Be out % this dlsasrrsssasabSlss
be drawn into the afair 80
Edward reITs ytrnigkt stsrx.
Edwards was oross- examined BAN BIZ
Chief Of Police o'Nefl ana. ~ Inspector
Hunt. who is directly In charge OF the muir
der investigation. Practically nothing new
was ELECTED By the Questioning. Edwards
told In the same straightforward manner
rs he had 70 intersiewers what ne remom-
bered of suspicious actions about the Bar
thoiin house. OF his fear that Mrs. sBarthoIIn
had been murdered and his fear for his own
safety II he stayed longer In the house.
The story was repeated how he had been
awakened by the bowling OF q cat. OF how
he had seen Thompson leaning over his bed
one night and how Thompson had explained
his presence in Edwards room BY saying
he thought William B~aFfholip was sleeping
there.
Edwards met ThcIgpsoa today In COM
pany with the police The men nodded to
each other, but sale nothing. Thompson
was quiEzed By Inspector Hunt again. but
reiterated mis- former statements that his
mind was . blank on the niEht Ct the sup
posed Minnio Mitchell murder.
Thompsen Mikes an Admission.
Oscar Thompson last night admitted 10
a newspaper man that he no longer denied
the story q Are. Tsilerday. who makes
the charge that he and Daddy" ciaHy and
a man supposed to bo william Bartk0lin
we're quaFfeling under her window at 4
o'clock In fha mofnins after Elnnls MIseh-
ell diaappsafedi ana that with them was
Thompaon's launafy wagon. IN which It 4
supposed the mnFdsred girls body was
carried to the pfflFiA'et seSenty-feurth aad
state streets r
Il turned Ia m5 laundry wagon at the
Aagard stables TIA Minnte Mitchell
was killed about SD oebch" he said. Il
stopped and had seVStll dfinkA at Clancya
saloon "a then I went HtttN house on
Calumet avenue. It must taen shout
10 o'clock VIXEN ! reached usf
i met Barthoiin IN the houa6.fU do mol
know that happened there. ! went to my
room ana after that / cannot say anything
~ 10 what tranapiFed II the house. I may
have been drunk. Or 4 mar have been
druesed. I Do net know.
Whatever ! ala J. doeRot know. do
not deny nov that 1 Wsik 6ht with him,
but ! canno rsmemherr Whatever I did
b made ms do. ] may h4tt sohs With him
in the wagon. a. this woman aaya sAs saw
me with the wagon IN tte street the nexf
morning. II I was thefe 4 Il an q blank
10 me-
Oscar Thompao1 has heen sn6teoted 70
such severe .sweatnk' By the polioo that
be - said to b on he verge Of q collapse.
and hfn frInnAa whn have hara4nrfnaa