Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1904-03-24
Mis-. DYE IS
EXONERATED
Fully Cleared of Suspicion In
Poisoned Candy
Case.
is NO LONGER SUSPECTED
Rumor That Miss Nelson Suicided
Gains Ground-Mystery Surrounds
Stamp of Package Which Con-
tanned the Deadly Candy.

Boone, March 1S.-Just before TAX
ing the train for his home at Pierre,
S. D., last night, County Attorney
Goodner of Hughes county, s. d., who
has been in Boone investigating the
Rena Nelson poisoned candy case,
said that he was satisfied he had
solved the mystery of the poisoning,
but refused to give out his theory.
He said the developments would come
to light in a day or two, and that he
does not suspect Mrs. Dye.
Farther than this Mr.. Goodner re-
fused to give out any definite intorma-
ton, but he as good as said that one
of two things must be the case.
Either Miss Nelson sent the candy
herself, using for the address an en-
velope from a letter to herself from
Mr.. Dye, or else some one in Boone,
who has escaped general suspicion,
mailed the package. Mr.. Goodner in
timated in a way to leave little doubt
that Mr.. Dye is also cleared of sus-
picion.
Attorney GOOdner and Sheriff
Laughlin were clOseted with Mr.. Dye
in the Wells hotel for two hours yes
terday. The interview, which Mr..
GoOdner said was friendly throughout,
seems to have cleared up some dark
points in the minds of the South Da-
kota officers.
Corroborative of the theory that
Miss Nelson sent the candy to herself
is the fact that the pOstmark on the
envelope used as wrapper bore a
pOstmark Of Boone for January /.
Mr. Dye says he sent Miss Nelson a
letter on or about that day. The post
mark on the package would not bear
any date, SO the envelope must have
been used before.
The mystery of the stamping of the
package deepens. The stamps have
been used on the front of the package.
BY lifting up the edge of the second
stamp it can be seen that the cancella-
ton lines run under it, which proves
that the stamp was put on after the
envelope had been used on letter.
But the cancellation marks on the sec
ond stamp are in lines, which could
only be made by machine, proving
conclusively that the second stamp
was cancelled before it was put on the
package. 1t appears then that the
postage which carried the package
was on some other part of the pack
age and must have been r-EICved by
some one who handled the package
before it came into the hands of the
officers, probably by Miss Nelson her
self.
Frank Eppel, an eccentric chap who
has acted as a medium between Miss
Nelson and Mr.. Dye, has made mix
up of his evidence. Wednesday he
said that a letter from Mr.. Dye to
Miss Nelson had been sent him by the
latter in October to be handed to Dye.
Later he changed his mind and said
that it was about January IL. Mrs.
Dye admits sending a letter to Miss
Nelson on January T. The handwrit-
ing on the letter on the package was
evidently disguised, but there would
have been no object in Mrs. Dye haV-
ing attempted to disguise the hand
writing with which she addressed her
letters to Miss Nelson.
The post norton held on the body
| of Rena Nelson at Pierre showed that
she was a pure girl, and there was no
evidence of violation.
The postal authorities here, while
not having made any public state
ments, individually, incline to the
opinion that the package was not
mailed in Boone, but may have been
mailed on any of the trains running
ouf pf Rome