The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-04-08
III THREATENED COL, FRIES.
IT. n. ELLIS or NORTH CAROLINA
SENT TO BELLEVUE.

c,m. Here After Failure In the Tobacco
business and Has Been writing Let
ter, south-Demanded s3SO. 900 and
William B. Ellis, formerly q tobacco
r.rchant of Winston-Sale N. c., but
lately connected with the Nutshell Pub
Hshine Company Of IS Fifth avenue. this
ctv. was committed to the Bellevue insane
nayilion by Magistrate Pool in the Tombs
polce court yesterday afternoon.
Ellis, who il 20 years old, and appears to
No in his senses, has been living at the Hotel
Albert, University place. from which hotel
no has written 10 Col Frank II. Fries Of
Winston Salem. formerly president OF the
Roanoke and Southern Railroad Company. a
series OF threatening letters demanding
money settlement for Imagined grievances.
Or Emmett p. Dent. the chief alienist
at Wards Island, aPRe,a ar,d u court land and
eel for Col. Fries. DR.. Dent made affidavit
thst Ellis was hopelessly insane and 80
dangerous that he ought to he restrained
Although DR.. Dent declined TO tell re-
porters what his connection with the case
was, il developed that he had made several
examinations Of Ellis when the latter didn't
know what he was after.
Ellis was arrested at the Office OF the
Nutshell Publishing Company yesterday
afternoon Oh a warrant issued by Magis-
trate Pool. ,
He made no resistance and when asked
il he had anything to say In court merely
announced that he wasn't insane at all
He followed this up with the remark that
he wanted 70 Re tried by the Geneva CON.
mitted him to Bellevue for examination,
without further questioning.
Ellis, according 70 his friends In this city,
was worth 500 900 UP to few months ago
and had big tGb s, e. business .n N %n
North 10 repair his fortunes. leaving. his
wife and child behind. One Of the things
that he did was to write q pamphlet en-.
titled, Around Washington. copies OF
which, accompanied by BILLS for them. he
many cases the books were returned :,
Ellis spent q good deal Of his time around
the hotels, using quires OF hotel paper IN
letter writing. He was frequently In the
Hotel Empire. at Broadway and md sixty;
North Carolina, a friend OF his. He e1-
hibited there number of letters written in
spanish WI ich he said he had received from
The first intimation that the friends Of
Ellis had that he was writing threatening
letters to Col. Fries, came when Mr. Buxton
arrived here from North Carolina several
days ago and summoned a number Of them
10 his apartments at the Hotel Victoria,
where he showed them some Of the letters
that Ellis had been sending to Col. Fries.
Els's friends agreed that something
ought to be done. as in several OF the letters
Ellis threatens to shoot Fries on sight.
Dr. Dent was called in. He reported to
Mr. Buxton that MIR. Ellis Is insane, suffer-
ing with paranoia and is dangerous dangerous In IN
Ellis was arrested yesterday afternoon.
The first letter that Ellis sent Col. Fries
was in the shape Of a claim for $3.50, 900.
He divided his claim into three parts, as
follows.
r GP: sSSs.nde dSt r.: s6ss sa %
mann a S' vs.a {. shS had from Carried
IN his sleeve. and while acting as chief execu-
se q the fr ccm sa f Fise ssSs
lection. but in the faces Of IL plainly defined
$; .E.n ' q sHass foot s.
t y ,raSors' perjurers and msrsuders with
credit and nnSsnoe te sS,andaliz E.; defSms
Fifty thousand dollars Ellis demanded
because Col Fries sent him blank Wills
to sign when he was sick in bed and 100000
for running him In business.
Just before sending this statement to
Col Fries, Ellis, under date OF Feb. 81, last,
sent a letter TO Mr.. Buxton, stating that il
Col Fries tried TO dodge his claim on any
legal technicality, he would regard that as
No New York Judge would punish him
for the act under the circumstances, he
wrote.
In "a letter to Burswell Il Canister Of Char
lotte, c.. on March IS. Ellis engages
them to bring suit against Col. friee ana
winds up his letter as follows:
Its well advise you in advance that much
Of my claim is barred by statute OF limi-
taton. but honest men cannot honorably
iorn n that i intend to shoot Ii. r. Fries on
sight In the event he did not meet me sauarely
letter Of March IS to Mr.. Buxton con-
tanned this paragraph:
reiterate that Col. Fries and myself shall
II proposition to meet me In an honorsblss
Emah;to.n man wsy be not Forthcoming and
In another letter Ellis tells Mr. Buxton
that Col. Fries IL no more willing to give
his victim fair play than Jesse James was.
What idss o. jury would punish q victim
hands il the said Jes.e were to attempt TO
plead statute OF limitations'
As late as April 8, Ellis wrote letters de-
Ginning to take back his threats OF per.
sonal violence and adding that he would
horsewhip Col. Fries every time an oppor,,
tunity offered unless Col Fries submitted
their differences 10 Q board OF arbitrators
who were to be guided by the laws as in
terpreted by the Commissioners at Geneva
IN the case Of the United States VI. Great
Britain.
In many Of his letters Ellis accuses Col.
Fries Of owning the North Carolina Judiciary
and getting any decision he wants In his
favor. When asked in court about these let
tiers and what they all meant Ellis declined to
talk A number OF physicians viii examine
Ellis at Bellevue to day.
IQlDI1E EAEIR AARREn AGAIN