Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-04-16
Now Believed Mrs. Knight Was
Murdered and Body Thrown
In River
OMAHA WOMAN SAW THE WAGON
Mrs. John Andrews Claims to Have
Seen Vehicle Driven to River-Tracks
Traced to an Almost Inaccessible
and Lonely spot-May Search the
River.

iNoSt fAHiSilt, WIZ llppppis "sAS tNS'S
oned by her husband a week ago last
Saturday night, may have been thrown
into the river at or near the foot oil
Nicholas street.
The evidence is furnished by MIR. and
Mrs. John Andreas. who live along
the river bank beyond the ice houses
at the end of Nicholas street.
Saturday night, April 4. MIR. and Mrs
Andreas were awakened between IL
O'Clock and midnight by a wagon and
horse being driven by their house and
thru their yard to the river, but a
short distance away. and an hour or sc
afterwards they heard the wagon re-
turn. The dogs were disturbed by the
noise and kept up a barking.
Mrs. Andreas looked out of the win
dow and saw the outfit driving back
thru the yard toward town. She then
thought that the party-there were two
men in the wagon and it was drawn
by single horse-had lost the road
and had turned back toward town
The horse, she thought, had a short
tail and further than this she did
not take any particular notice of the
outfit
1t was not until few days ago that
they heard of the disappearance OF
Mrs. knight and the report that the
body had been buried or thrown into
the river. The wagon incident then
required to Mr.. Andreas and he de-
terlnined to follow the trail thru his
yard toward the river. This he and
two or three of the neighbors did and
they discovered that the wagon tracks
led directly to the river, thru copse
of willows. the tracks showing dis
tinctly thru the willow underbrush
crushed down by the wheels.
Reaching the sand bars, the wagon
tracks stopped, and from this point
human footprints were distinct. as was
a track as IL box or trunk had been
dragged and thrown into the river. The
water there at the time was quiet and
about fifteen feet deep near where the
footprints ended.
The water was low and still at that
time, but now a heavy turbid current
flows there from the high water of the
last few days. The wagon tracks are
still visible, and also the footprints,
as we'll as the trail of the box or
trunk.
The point is good one for hiding a
body in the river, as under ordinary
conditions a heavy box would sink in
the wet sands and probably never be
recovered. Efforts were made yesterday
TO drag the river there, but the current
is too swift and the volume Of water
too great.
The hypothesis that Knight might
have taken the body of his wife to the
river at this point finds some credence
from the fact that the locality is very
seldom visited and can only be reached
by Parker street north OF the Storz
Brewing company's establishment on
Sherman avenue, and thence south on
Eleventh street to what would be con-
tinuat:on of Nicholas street to the rail-
road tracks. A blind road leads from
the end Of Nicholas street up the river
to the Andreas place.
Monday morning Chief Donahue. to
strengthen the chances of catching
Knight at Cheyenne, telegraphed the
sheriff there to get the description from
Chief Ingalls, and assist in looking
for the man. Later In the day the sher
if telegraphed Chief Donahue that
Chief ingalls, had refused to let him
have the description of knight. There
is apparently some jealousy in the
police circles of the Wyoming city.
The way in which Knight borrowed
H. -, nd woo In,
dicates that the rig was wanted by
Knight for foul work. Early in the
week preceding the Saturday night or
which Mrs. Knight disappeared her
husband told Mel Dusenberry that he
would want to use his wagon some
night" He reminded Dusenberry of
this several times during the week ane
in speaking of it he would always say
that he would require the rig at night.
Satur lay evening. soon after o'clock,
as Dusenberry drove past the knight
residence on the way home, he was
hailed by knight. This time Knight
told Dusenberry that he would probably
require the wagon that night.
Dusenberry drove on to his home and
after supper, instead of taking the
morse to the barn at Twentieth and
Nicholas streets, as was his custom. he
kept it standing in front of his house
for several hours, thinking that Knight
would call for 1t. Soon after o'clock
he took the horse to the barn and then
returned home and went to bed. About
1890 Knight came and woke him UP
and told him that he must have the rig
at once.
Dusenberry got up and went to the
barn with knight. He says he hitched
up the horse and then rode with knight
over to the residence of the latter and
then Went home and to bed again. He
adds that he gave the key of the barn
to knight, so that the horse could be
put back into It's stall without waking
him up again. The police, however.
are inclined to believe that Dusenberry
did not leave Knight at the latter's res
idence. but continued on with him in
the work of disposing of Mrs. knights
body
The fact that Knight told Dusen-
berry that he might want the horse
any night that week is taken as evil
derce that he was waiting all week for
an opportunity TO give his wife the
poison. That the chance came Satur-
day evening is believed by the police.
Certainly, they reason, Knight would
not haul Mel Dusenberry out of bed
at 1890 at night to get the horse and
wagon for the purpose of moving
household effects. Then the fact re-
mains that none of the household effects
was moved at any time excepting the
trunk that was taken to the union depot
by an expressman Monday afternoon.