The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-02-05
CANTRELL ON STAGE.
CONCLUDED FROM FIRST PAGE.)

CONCLUDED FROM FIRST PAGE)
the jury. CantrelPs testimony during the
morning session of the court was substan-
TALLY follows:
II have been i'm Jail for four months and
am under indictment for Decorating
graves. L have lived in Indianapolis for
ten years, and came originally from GaIla,
TIN. Tenn. Previous TO my arrest l llved
at 405 West North street. 1 first met d.
Alexander I'm his office in the Newton Clay
pool building in June. 1902. My meeting
with him was arranged by a telephone call
received from DIR. Alfred f. Bretz, and l
went TO see him, accompanied by SamueI
Martin. / called on him between and
self as the fellow from down to the col
lege. He told me he wanted to make
contract with me to secure material Tor
dissection purposes. but 1 told him that. l
had quit the business. He said he thought
after he made a proposition to me l
wouldn't quit. He explained that he would
pay me the top price for the subjects
brought in and also help me out, and In
addition would make me custodian of the
college. 1 told him If he assured me of a
place ] would work. l told him didn't
think L could make much because OF the
notoriety 1 received last winter. He said
that he would fix that. That was about
the extent of the conversation"
What did he say about the price to be
elshaus.
WOULD PAY TOP PRICE
HE said he would pay me the top price
and he knew what that was-$30 He said the
college needed about twenty or thirty
corpses and would pay $50 for each. 1 told
him would do my best but he would have
to furnish the tools. 1 bought brace and
Bit but we needed revolvers and a rig and
also shovels and other tools used for lift
ing bodies from their graves. Alexander
bought the shovels and gave me an order
"a
volvers. i went TO him and got the guns
and also was advanced $40 by the doctor.
After the first meeting L started out to
work and went with the doctor TO the
Board of Health office"
An argument over the admissibility of
this testimony interrupted Cantrell, but
finally when the objection was sustained
Cantrell continued
IL came to the courthouse with him CDR.
Alexanderl and he told me to wait until
he came from the office of the Board of
Health. L waited about ten minutes and
then he came out and told me of a good
many places. He said there was somebody
buried in Longwood. Another argument
about the location of Longwood cemetery,
which is outside of Marion county, delayed
the testimony for few minutes.
II went to Alexander the next day." con-
tinued Cantrell, land he said he had found
a number of places and asked me if could
work around Danville. He gave me s. to
go down and see about the work in DAN
Vile and L went there and talked with DR..
Fairview. When / came back to Indianap-
oils j told the doctor that everything was
all right in Danville and he told me to get
the boys ready and start there that even
ing as ii would be a long drive. He made
arrange ments for the trip and while L was
in the office telephoned to a liveryman for
rig. | tried TO get the boys TO go but they
| didn't want to and L went by myself
A question as TO whether he brought a
body back with him was objected to and
the admisSibility of evidence any other
theft excepting that of the Neidlinger case
prompted a general objection from the de-
Tense of all the testimony that they con-
Sidered irrelevant
William II. Brown and Martin Hugg ar
gued the point. Brown said the introduce
ton of the testimony was necessary to es-
tablsh knowledge of guilt in Alexander s
prosecution. Finally Cantrell was permitted
to go on with his testimony but was
stopped after he had started to tell OF the
theft of the body of an old man OF sixty
years from the Lick Creek Cemetery. The
argument was commenced and during his
argument Mr.. Brown cited many other
criminal cases to bear out his contention
that the testimony was admissible. During
his talk he said:
I'VE will show that DR.. Alexander in
Structed the ghouls not to shoot anybody
his card to a pawnbroker in order that
| Cantrell might purchase shotguns with
which to arm his band OF ghouls. We VIII
show that Alexander is as guilty of drag
| ging from their graves the bodies of the
stolen subjects as though he had done 1t
| with his own hands instead of instrustng
| ii to those black devils in his hire. We will
! show that he on more than one occasion
/ was with the ghouls in person and was
/ known to be there by several persons who
saw him as well as others who knew of his
| presence by recognizing his voice."
| After Martin Hugg had concluded his ar
| gument Judge Bailey, in a lengthy review
| of the points of law involved. decided that
/ the general evidence to establish motive
/ for the crimes was relevant and could be
admitted, after which the court adjourned
I for the noon recess.
AFTERNOON SESSION.
/ At the afternoon session or the court
Cantrell was again placed on the witness
stand and continued his testimony as fol-
! lows:
/ 81 took the bodies of Meredith McMullen
! Glendora Gates, Wallace Johnson, Rose
Neidlirger. Catherine Green and Mrs Stilz
and four others to the Central College of
| Physicians and Surgeons. The four others
/ were from the graveyard at the Insane
/ Green. Mrs. StlZs body was stolen from
the EbeneZer Cemetery, north of the State
fair grounds Before | went after the
bodies of Johnson and Stilz DIR. Alexander
! told me that Wallace Johnson. of 40 East
Walnut street had been buried by Flanner,
but Mrs. Stilz had not been buried yet.
| When / brought Johnsons body in DR..
| Alexander said it was not worth $50 be-
cause il had been mangled by train. l
told him to give me the $50 and IL il was
| not fit for dissection at the end of the sea-
| son l would make il all right. The next
/ day | got the StilZ body and took il down
+ TO the college. Alexander said il was a
/ good subject and paid me $50. L had con-
/ versation about Catherine Green with the
l doctor. He said he had fixed IL with the
/ undertakers, and that the physicians had
| talked with him about her the day follow
ing her death. | got the body and he paid
SIS for ii. l got SO for every body from
the Insane Hospital yard.
| II got the body OF Catherine Doehring
/ from the German Catholic Cemetery south
| OF the city. Before | went after IL DIR.
| Alexander asked me III / thought / could
work the Catholic graveyard. and / said
| / could. but | wouldn't mind taking look
| at il first. He said he would go with me.
| / met him at the Hotel de Hoss Ga livery
| stable) We drove out to the cemetery. and
| when got there | got out OF the buggy
and went into saloon. | looked over the
! situation and told the doctor that l thought
/ could work there We then came back
! TO the city and l got out at the livery
! barn. We went the same night TO get the
/ body, but did not get IL until the next night.
! | got the body and brought the shroud in
with IL. and DR.. Alexander asked me why
/ did So | told him that IL was early and
| lots of people were passing and 1 didn'i
| have chance TO take IL of. l got the body
| OF Stella Middleton at the Anderson Gem
etery.
JURY INSTRUCTED.
Before Cantrell could explain the method
OF stealing the Middleton body. Judge
Bailey instructed the jury In the fact that
all the testimony aside from direct EVIL