The Hawaiian gazette., 1903-03-31
ATTEMPTED MURDER AND ..-
SUICIDE IN CITY PRISON


that any OF the witnesses heard.
| Immediately after firing the shot,
Kaapuni turned and saw the turnkey
starting toward him and the others
standing there. For a moment he held
the gun on them. 1t seemed that he
} was about to run amuck, to fight his
way out of prison, to add three more
murders to his already long score. The
turnkey kept coming. The clerk. Nc
Kinnon, started for the Office at the
same moment and armed himself. And
then Kaapuni turned the gun upon
himself and fired the shot into his own
breast that finished the tragedy and
his own life at the same time. 1t was
but a few feet, but he was dead al
most before the turnkey got to him.
STORY OF M'KINNoN.
up from the prison, at about four
O'Clock, that there was something
wrong with Kaapuni," said Desk Clerk
]. NJ. McKinnon. II was sitting at the
desk at the time, and he came in be-
hind the railing and sat down there and
began to tell me how much he loved
me. He had never been like that be-
fore. He was thoroughly trustworthy,
not given to demonstrations of affec-
ton. Well. I pushed him away, and
he fell back over a chair but he did
not seem to get angry. On the con-
trary, he continued to tell me how
much aloha he had for me. That was
at about four o'clock in the morning.
well, he went back into the prison,
after awhile, and then he went up into
the offices to go about his work.
was down in the yard, when 1 saw him
next, talking to the turnkey and Van
Giesen. We had Just found out that
Nahale-a was drunk, and the turnkey
had locked him up in the cell for pun
ishment. He was pretty noisy. He had
not been locked up but few min
utes when Kaapuni came down from
the office with his hand in his shirt
front. We paid no particular attention
to him until we saw him go to Ma
hale-a's cell, and then as the turnkey
thought he was going to unlock it he
started to stop him. AT that moment
I heard Nahale-a say: go ahead!
Shoot! I no scare!" and there was a
shot. The murderer turned after the
shooting, and for moment he covered
us with the weapon. Then, as he look
ed away, l ran up to the Office for a
gun. and heard another shot. That |
ended 1t.
II did not smell liquor on Kaapuni
when he was behind the railing, and
did not know that he had been drink
ing But he acted strangely. There
can be no doubt, however, that Naha-
lea was drunk. I don't know where
ne got the liquor"
TURNKEY KUPIHE.A TALKS.
II saw Kaapuni come running down
INTO the yard with his hand in the
bosom of his shirt" said turnkey Ku-
Dibea. lie started for Nahale-a's cell,
md I started for him. Then he shot.
light through the grating In the cell
ioor. He turned with the revolver in
lis hand and pointed it at us, and then
u, at once he wheeled 1t around and
not himself There had l cen no words
between the men, KAPPA, another
rusty. told me that they had made up
heir quarrel about the Japanese wom-
IN. Both men had been drinking, but
<aapuni was not drunk. J. had locked
lp Nahale-a because he was drunk and
oisy.'
Van Giesen was the man who told
laapuni to lock up the okolehao in
l.,
he liquor came from. :
FEARED THE DISCOVERY. |
All the witnesses agree, substantial
Y, with the story told by these. There
ad been an old grudge between the
len. about a Japanese woman, and
here was bad blood between them, al
hough they had become reconciled over
he bottle of stolen liquor. The police
Lvance the theory that Kaapuni, him
elf half drunk, at work in the Sheriffs :
flee, heard Nahale-a creating dis d
lrbance, altogether drunk, in cell )
lmost Immediately under him and, !.
moving that there would be an inves-
cation and that the theft of the liquor u
ould be discovered, knowing that If
nc theft was found out he would be Il
ent back to Oahu prison, away from c
is easy, privileged life rs a trusty and Z
to work on the roads, con- $
uded to take the punishment Of his a
ID enemy into his owa hands. He )
as a desperate man, and his enemy /
as desperate man. Also, there was q
he old ranking hatred about the
oman, only reconciled in the easily l;
'rgotten comraderie of the bottle. The
eapon was ready to his hand, In the
IN room Of the prison. to which he
I'D a key. And he took the weapon
nd ran down, hot in the head with s.
IS aroused murderous Instincts, and n
lot his enemy dead. He might go to
'ison but his enemy should be pun u
he'd first. d
Then. when he saw what he had b
me, when he saw the big turnkey g,
ming toward him, there came a re- a
ization that this was more than the II
ere punishment of his enemy. He CT
I'd faced the gallows before. He was fl
eng 1t now, for the third time in h,
$ life. Once, indeed. he had been
ntenced to be hanged. And he took Ia
e shortest way Out. 81
THE INQUEST. nj
The facts as given in this story of III
l1.iihla crime oil hraiiarht out -