The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-08-14
STORY OF THE CRIME.
Murder of James R. Hay and the Ar
rest Of Mortensen.

murder OF James Z. Hay and the Ar
rest of Mortensen.
The murder for the commission of which
Peter MOrtensen has been condemned TO
die was committed on the night of Dec.
IS 1901, According to, the evidence that
was afterward brought ont. Mortensen on
that day called az the office of the Rom
ney Lumber company and announced that
he was ready TO pay a. bill of $500
which he owed the company. He asked
that a receipt be made out and that Sec
rotary James r. Hay bring the same TO
his house in the morning and get the
money
Supposedly by request, Mr. Hay left his
wife and babies about s o'clock the even
ing of the. 18th and said he was going to
Mortensen's TO collect some money. All
night the wife waited in vain for her hus-
band to return. The next day came and
he still did not return. Peter Mortensen
took the word TO the lumber company
that Hay was missing and stated that he
bad paid him $500 the night before
The inference was given that Mr.. Hay
had Gbsconded and the police we're nOt-
fled TO look out for him. Mortensen
made the statement that he had the mon
Cy i'm $50 gold pieces, that il was in three
glass Jars and he had kept them on the
cellar wall. He declared that he carried
the money upstairs and counted il out
to Hay while the two OF them sat on a
settcc ian the parlor. He further asserted
that Hay took the money in a sack and
went out the gate towards home. That
was the last he saw Of him, he declared.
Thought Hay Had Absconded.
The general impression was that Hay
had absConded. But on the night of the
18th. before the dead body was discovered,
James Sharp father-in-laW of the muir
dCrcd man. said to Herald reporter:
Peter Mortensen murdered my boy and
his body VIII be found within a mile of
MOrtcnscn's house within the next TWEEN
ty-four hours I know this is true, be
cause God revealed it 10 me-
The following morning a boy who was
trying TO catch a horse in a pasture with
I'm half-mile OF Mcrtensen's house,
stumbled over piece of loose sod. In-
der this ne spicd a piece Of cloth. With
I'm twenty minutes the dead body Of Hay
was dag out Of small and narrow grave
into which IL had been crammed and but
half covered. NOrtenScn helped lift the
body on a strctCher and into the police
patrol Standing on the steps OF the
wagon, James Sharp accused MOrtensen
OF the murder Of his son-in-law.
MOrtenSen made no denial and he was
Immediately placed under arrest At the
police station Mortensen made a detailed
statement OF tho alleged money trans
action between himself and Hay. but al
most every feature of this statement was
afterwards proven 10 be improbable and
most of them impossible under the cir
cumstanccs. When confronted with these
impossi bilitiess Mortensen only sat like 4
sphynx and refused from that time on 20
mako any statement to anyone about the
crime.
Motive For the Murder.
The motive for the crime was discovered
when a note was found. payable 10 the
lumber company and secured by mort
gage on MOrtcnscn's home. The note was
due the morning of the 18th, the day after
tho murder. The note was to have been
cancelled when the $3.50 due the lumber
company was paid MortcnSen had this
note ia his possession after the murder.
but 10 was uncancelled-
At the trial it was shown that Morton
sen did not have the s. 500 which he
claimed 20 have had. and il was proven
10 the satisfaction of the jury that Nor
Jensen killed Hay to get the receipt for
money and 20 get the note that he could
not pay and which on the following MORN
ing would have left him and hiss family
homeless
Tho trial of Mortenscn was one OF the
most famous I'm tho country. More men
were examined before a sufficient num-
Der could bC secured for jury than I'm
any other case on record in the state.
When tho case was given over 90 the
jury selected e took them hat a short
time TO return a verdict Of guilty.