The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1903-12-25
No Other

ished his Investigations for plumber he
sprinkled her face with chloroform
some of which got into her eyes and
caused eXcruciating agony. The out.
rage was committed about 8 o'clock in
the afternoon, and she lay in this
bound, gagged, mauled, kicked and
chloroformed condition until her hus-
band returned at 6 o'clock.
The police in making the investiga-
tons found many conditions to Dear
out the statements of John s. Hennes-
sey, the man whom Mrs. Basche 40
Which her hands n ankles We're bound
We're altogether too tiimsy to hold a
woman of Mrs. Basche's magnificent
physique. The purse containing the SIS
had not been disturbed, and jewelry
amounting to several hundred dollars
in value hat lay on the bureau in
plain sight had been ignored.
On the evening OF her assault Mrs.
Basche CAV a description of her as
s%ailant. and declared she had never
seen him before. The next day, how
ever. she made the startling statement
that the man who did the work was
John Hennessey.
Hennessey was interview by the DO
lice, and acknowledged readily thai he
had tied up Mrs. Basche, but that he
had done 1t at her special request.
Imprisoned for His Folly.
AS Mrs. Basche swore that Hennes-
Sey was the criminal, there was nothing
to do but to put him in Jail, and a more
disguised man never lived than Hen
nessey as he gaZed at his interrogators
from behind the bars. Mr.. H~ennessey
tells the following remarkable story in
regard to the affair:
Il have known Mrs. Bache for four
or five years. One afternoon ! met her
on Main street and she asked me to
come to her house On Vernon avenue.
She wrote the address on a slip OF pa
per. See, here it is, I'm mighty glad
l kept 1t. Well, soon after l took the
car and went to the house. She told
me her husband was going to leave
he following day on a business trip,
and that she did not want him to go.
Now, she Says, I want you to tie
my hands behind me, tie my feet, and
put a handkerchief over my face
Il warned her hat it was risky play,
and advised her not to do it, as she was
liable to get into trouble.
20, she said, it's just a josh on my
huband.
s. got the ribbons and handker-
chief and tied and gagged her. Then
i Ntl llc manu- heIcillel WIN water
She complained thai the handkerchief
was not tight enough, and so l stuck
some paper finder it. She said she
wanted to have the thing one just to
frighten her husband so that he would
not go away, After [ got her fixed the
way she wanted to be fixed | left her
lying on the floor, jumped on a Central
avenue car, and came right uptown.
That was about ) O'Clock in the after
EOon.'
Couple Refuses to Prosecute.
a sensational feature of the affair
was that after Mrs. Basche had de-
clared Hennessey to be villain
both h and her husband refused to
testify againstHh him.
The time was set for the trial. Mrs.
Basche, who had been in most vigor-
Gus health, sent word she was suffering
from a sudden and serious Illness when
the summons came for her to appear
in court.
The suspicious of the police author
tiles were aroused. They sent a physi-
clan to examine into the condition of
the invalid. He found no indications
of i'll health and wrote out an afida
Wit to that effect.
Mrs. Basche was obstinate and re-
fused to go to court. She feigned faints
and Mysteries and various other things.
But it was no use. The doctor de-
clared she was not sick. There wa no
alternative. An ambulance was sent
for. She was taken out on a stretcher,
placed in the wagon, and carried in
state to the city hall.
She was lifted from the ambulance
and borne into court on a stretcher.
Though lacking some of the grandeur
and splendor of royalty, her appear
ance as she entered the tenn pie Of law
in her night robes and eiderdown quilts
created quite as much furore among
the attendants as did the fair Cleopa-
ira when she recllned in h ,midst of
an addring throng. The court room
was crowded. Never before in the his
tory of the city a anything so start
ling occurred as a woman being
brought into court in her night gown.
She was inVulnerable, however, to the
remarks, the glances-to everything
and lay on her stretcher as If in a
deep sleep.
Woman Defies the Judge.
The judge was powerless. In spit,
Of his ~entreaties, his growls, and his
admonitions, the beauty slept on like q
veritable female Rip Van Wrinkle
There was nothing to be done excep,
remove the obstinate woman to he1
home.
Another medical examination tool
place and the statement of the frs
physician was verified-b by two or thre,
others, who unanimously declared tina
the woman was well. Because of thi,
Mrs. Basche was fined $65 for contemn
of court.
Mr.. Hennessey has been release,
from Imprisonment, an9 as Mrs
Basche refuses to testify against hin
it is probable that the entire matte
will be dropped, but it will be a Ion,
time before the strange case Will b
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