The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1904-02-12
South DaE0ta's Foremost pgsieTyt
A Sherlock Holmes Is Needed at MNler to Clear
Up the Strange and Fascinating Criminal Razsle.

Up the Strange and Fas
In all of a. Conan Doyle's detective
stories. none furnishes a more intricate
plot CT more complete mystery than
! The Hattie X. Pitcher case. There's q
Job for Sherlock Holmes in Miller, S. d.
With practically every citizen of that
Nttle town in Hand county turned
sleuth, little more is known of the affair
of the night of January II than was
apparent the morning of the 18th. when
Wilbur Quirk was found bound, gagged
and drugged in the Collins drug store,
and Miss Pitcher, the school teacher,
shot through the shoulder in her room
at the Henshaw hotel, q half block
away.
Will the mystery ever be solved?
Sentiment Is about equally divided on
that point. Most of the business men
Of the town believe the truth will come
put--sometime. But when? No one
can say.
There is a determination, however,
Notwithstanding Miss Pitcher was set
free, to get to the bottom Of the mys-
terry. When. after Justice Douglass a
rendered his decision, friends and SYM
yathizers of the girl, wrought to a point
Of enthusiasm by Judge Pusey's speech.
were taking UP a collection for her in
the court room, in another part of The
town a crowd of business men were
contributing to a fund to employ a de-
tective work on the case. States At
torney Cole. Sheriff Abbott and other
county officials declare the investiga-
ton shall go o.
Did Miss Pitcher AVE anything to do
with the holdup of Quirk? The ma
jority of the citizens of Miller believe
she had, or II she was not actually n
Of the robbers, that she knows who
was.
There wasn't a man, woman or child
In Miller who failed to take the most
Intense interest in the case 1t was
talked at the Preside, on the street, at
church-everywhere. While the trial
was in progress the court room was
damned. Business men left their
half day and then allowed the clerks
10 attend the other half day. The Mil E.
Ter school teachers had few pupils to
teach the first day or two, resulting in
IN order by the school board that pu-
pills %absenting themselves We're liable
TO suspension. Even then 1t was inn
possible to keep the children from
playing hockey" Those who did at
tend school rushed to the court room
he moment they We're released at 4
o'clock and with them came the teach
srs. The ministers of the churches, of
which there are five. We're present with
Practically their entire congregations.
A singular circumstance in
Ion with the case was the unanilnity
If the Presbyterian church members in
heir hostility to Miss Pitcher, who was
b member of the church, and of the
Christian Endeavor society and on the
social committee of the latter organi-
cation with Mrs. U. G.. Lacey, wife of
The pastor. AT the trial Rev. Mr.. Lacey
vas strong in his statements assailing
Miss Pitchers character, although ap-
1arently basing his opinion upon ru-
nor, the authors of which he couldn't
Or wouldn't name. Rev. D. r. Murray,
pastor of the Methodist church, was
also active in the prosecution. He at
one time studied law. He consulted
with the states attorney during the
first two days of the trial. Rev. Mr..
Murray was also n of the half dozen
prominent citizens of Miller who signed
the complaint asking for the arrest of
Miss Pitcher. He and the others who
signed the complaint were questioned
closely by the defendants attorney,
and admitted they had no positive
knowledge as to her guilt, but figured
she was guilty or account OF m
1t was evident the defense laid the
foundation for damage suits, all the
signers of the complaint being men of
property and responsible.
The state examined about thirty
witnesses--the defense ffteen-the lat
ter almost solely on character OF de-
eendant. From the mass of rumor,
sidelights, facts and guesses, HI state
was able to CLEAN but fragmentary ev-
.ldence tending to show that Miss
Pitcher was one of the robbers. These
81, a- fLo ppipfo 1Innn which tho state
based it's case:
The shooting of Miss Pitcher the same
night that Wilbur Quirk was assaulted in
the drug store.
handed. Miss Pitcher is left handed.
The fact that in accounting for the rea-
son no one heard the shot at 1880 in the
evening-when, she claimed she was chloro-
formed and pistoled by her sister-in-law
with whom she had been at outs--that
the woman used a "noiseless gun" The
told him they would kill him with noise
less guns" If he refused to Or their bid
ding.
tel, when she heard of the robbery at the
drug store, that it was likely her sister.
in-law dressed In mans clothing and did
the job. Miss Pitcher was believed to have
At 10 o'clock the morning after the rob
sefy and after the girls wound had been
dressed, the Henshaw house chimney
0urned OUT, giving OIL smoke heavily lauen
with the odor Of burned clothing and kerr
osene. No one was near the office stove
Whence the fire came except Miss Pitcher
or possibly an accomplish. an employe Of
the hotel who is now under suspicion. 1t
was the theory Of he state that the
masks worn by the robbers and the sui.
worn by one of the roboers-presumably
Miss Pitcher, was burned at that time.
The conflicting stories Miss Pitcher told
to account for her condition. She first
said she had been shot by a sister-in-law;
lastly that she attempted suicide. The lat
ter story she adhered to.
The fact that she was penniless and
owed for her board, the motive being rob-
berry. which vas only averted by the
strategy of the drug clerk who concealed
the cash when first alarmed.
Miss Pitcher claimed she had returned
to her room about 8 o'clock in the even
ing and had remained wounde all night.
TIL landlord, Charles Henshaw, testified
he had her room at l o'clock in
the morning and she was not there.
This was the strongest testimony the
state could offer. The defendant from
the beginning denied any knowledge OF
the drug store holdup and persisted In
this declaration to the end. Efforts
were made to get the girl to confess to
her lover, Dick Romig, who visited the
fail repeatedly and. had Interviews with
her in the presence of Sheriff Abbott
Others talked to the girl before her ar
rest five days after the crime. but the
sheriff, who was criticized severely by
the public for permitting indiscriminate
Interviews with the girl, practically
Clicked tho sfah1a after tho horse uyo