Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1903-03-24
Woman Bound and Gagged
is Found in Room at Keo-
kuk Nearly Dead.
LIFE WAS THREATENED
Mrs. Kimberly Had Received Many
Anonymous Letters.
Ak FOUND ON FLOOR NEAR WOMAN
Police Apprised of Assault But Have
Been Unable to Establish Clue to
Assailant-Woma From West Lib.
erty Had Been Warned to Leave.

erty Had Been Warned to Leave.
Keokuk, March 23,-(SpeciaD-
Bound with ropes made from the
sheets of her bed, gagged so that an
outcry was impossible, with her head
thrown back over lump of coal expos
ing her throat and an axe lying by her
side e,supposed to have been the weapon
with which it was intended to end her
life, Mrs. Pearl Kimberly was found in
her rooms in fashionable part of the
city, early yesterday morning, the vic
tim of a murderous assault, with only
spark of life remaining. Medical at
tention was at once summoned and aft
er several hours of strenuous effort
the woman was brought back to con-
sciousness.
Police Puzzled.
The police were at once appraised of
the affair, but all day yesterday they
were unable to secure any clue to the
identity of the assailant and the affair
still remains great mystery.
Received Anonymous Letters.
For several weeks Mrs Kimberly
has received anonymous letters threat
ening her life. and early Sunday morn
ing a man who declared that he had
come to take her life. appeared in her
room Little is remembered by the
woman after this until she regained
consciousness after being freed by her
friends.
A Resident of West Liberty.
Mrs. Kimberly is a resident of West
Liberty and has been in Keokuk some
time receiving medical treatment She
states that she has no idea as to the
originator of the letters she has been
receiving and is at loss to know the
reason for them or for the assault.
The Assault.
With her memory dimmed by the
long state of Inconsistencies and con-
siderably unsettled as the result of the
nervous shock she received, Mrs. KIM
berly has been unable to give very lit
tie definite information with regard to
the assault or her assailant. However,
she has responded to some of the ques-
tions asked her and according to her
replied the following story has been
secured
In regard to the anonymous letters
Mrs. kimerly states that she has been
receiving them for some time and that
the last one gave her until Saturday to
leave the city. She states that she has
bene unable to detect in any of the
communications anything that would
lead to the Identification of the writer.
RuthIessly Awakened.
Mrs. Kimberly states that on last
Saturday night she retired to her room
about 10:30 o'clock. During the night
(supposedly early Sunday morning)
she was suddenly awakened by the
noise of someone in her room Jump
ing from her bed she struck match.
and there in the dim light of the flick
ering flame she was confronted by a
masked man. Demanding to know
why he was there she received the re-
sponse, II am the man who is going to
kill you"
Is OverpoWered.
With that Mrs. Kimberly states that
the man grabbed her, mufflirg her
head with wet towel and that short
ly afterwards she lapsed into state
of unconsciousness from which she
recovered late in the day to find her
self surrounded by friends.
Was Securely Bound.
When found, Mrs. Kimberly was
bound around the arms, hips and an
kles with ropes made from the strips
of muslin torn from the sheets of her
bed, and her feet were fastened to the
door knob. Lying on the floor on her
back in this position with her head
. thrown back over lump of coal, she
was in very critical condition when
found
Was Doubtless Frightened Away.
Lying by the woman's side on the
floor was an ak, mute witness of the
sort of death with which she was
threatened. 1t is supposed that the
man mad gotten this far in his prepa-
rations to commit his murderous de-
sign when he was suddenly frightened
and left the house before his work was
completed.
Was Medium Sized Man.
Such a short glimpse did Mrs. Kim
$ berly get of her assailant, that she is
able to give only a meager description.
She states that he was man of medi-
um height and that he wore a red
handkerchief over his face.
Is Puzzler
The members of the police force in
this city have been working on the
I case ever since first appraised of the
assault early yesterday, but as vet
have been ur~5le to get on the track
Of any clue that will likely result in
the capture of the man.