The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-04-30
SCRAP OF PAPER AS EVIDENCE
SIFFICIENT OFTEN TO PUT ROPE
Round CRIMINALS NECK.
Fragment IN an Internal Machine That
Convicted MomtfOrd-Gun Wad ne
Proof OF Crime-TOrn sheet OF Note
Paper That Led 20 Discovery OF a
MURDERER Burglars Fatal oversight.

Murderer Burglars Fatal oversight.
And this, gentlemen, is what you are
asked TO hang a man on!' said Sergeant Bal
lantine, addressing a jury at the Central
Criminal Court He held up in his fingers
a little piece Of paper, only few inches
big you are asked to return a verdict
which will send that man standing there
before you TO the gallows, on the strength
Of scrap Of paPer!-
The scrap Of paper VAS enough, rays
London Ansucrs. Ballantines client was
condemned. have known numberless
cases in which a scrap Of paper has suhiced
to place the halter round the criminals
neck
In a case tried at Leeds some years back
aprisoner named Mountford was charged
with peculiarly diabolioal offense. Hay-
ing conceived a murderou3 hatred Of a man
who he imagined had done him an injury,
Mountford set to work to plot his death.
few weeks later a parcel was delivered
at the intended victims house. The parcel,
which looked innocent enough, was a tin
case holding several pounds Of gunPowder
20 packed as 10 explode when opened. Be
tween two pieces Of paper was some de-
tonating powder, connected With ingeni-
ousy arranged matches at the top and
bottom Of the box.
The attempt failed the internal machine
did not claim its victim, and the police
were called in TO discover the would be as
Eassin. Underneath the brown paper in
which the box was wrapped the detectives
found a scrap Of newspaPer--a portion Of
the Leeds Intelligepcer Of July S. Other
circumstances led them to suspect Mount
ford, and on their visiting his house and
searching il they found a Leeds Intelh-
esncsr Of that date with a piece missing.
The scrap in the Internal machine fitted il
e1actly. Mountford was found guilty.
Newspaper used az a wad in firearms has
over and over again sufhoed TO convict
murderer. A youth named John Toms
was charged at Lancaster Assize5 with the
murder Of a man named Culshaw Culshaw
had been killed by pistol shot, and the
weapon had evidently been discharged
from close quarters. The evidence against
Toms was meager and unsatisfactory
until there was produced in court a terribly
bloodstained piece Of paper. II was
handed to the fury and examined by them,
and on IL were still plainly discernible the
words Of a north country comic song.
The piece Of paper had been recovered
from the fatal wound IN the dead man
head and had been the wad for the
assassin's pistol A songbook was found
in Toms's pocket and part Of one page Of
Il was missing. The piece found in the
dead mans wound corresPonded with the
lost part exactly. Toms was Of course,
found guilty and hanged,
Franz Muller, the murderer Of Mr.. Briggs
IN q railway carriage on the North London
line. made OF with his victims top hat
When caught several months later, a top
in his possession. Its shape, howeveA,
had been considerably altered, and Muller
declared that the hat had been bought by
hinAeh. Was II Mr.. Briggs bat?
If It Is Mr.; Briggs hat, said the halter
81 tissue paper in the lining. Mr. Briggs
hat vAA too large for him, so l put paper
in to make It Mt
When the lining was turned down, a scrap
Of the paper, which had adhered 10 the
leather, was discovered. Muller had a
bigger head than Mr.. Briggs. and had,
therefore. resolved 10 take the paper out
He left that little bit, however-sufiicient
20 establish the identity OF the hat beyond
all question as that Mr.. Briggs was wearing
when he was murdered.
Never was a murder more deliberately
planned 10 bafle suspicion than that Of
Percy Malcolm by DR.. Lamson. Lamson,
II win be remembered, paid a visit TO NAL
colin at his school at Wimbledon and muir
dered him with aconitin put In the place
Of sugar in a soluble capsule. Az soon as
Malcolm had swallowed the capsule Lam
son get on by that nights mall 20 Paris,
whence he returned to give himself up
when he heard that he was suspected Of
the crime.
own free will from abroad would prepos-
sess people immensely In his favor. The
whole affair was oleverly planned, but the
murderer was in one respect strangely
forgetful When his clothes were taken
from him and searched, the police found
In, ~ HE v,nrEafa a rtiafa ~ gpilaA nd
crlmpled paper, on which we're some notes
made in Lamson's handwTi ting. They
we're notes on the effects and symptoms
Of vegetable irTitant poisons. Among them
was aconiun. Lamson had forgotten that
fatal note.
In a Scotch case. In which a young lady
was charged with the murder Of her father
by poisoning him az the instigation Of her
lover, a scrap Of paper played most inn
portsnt part Ihe Old gentleman had most
daughter marrying her lover and had
threatened 20 disinherit her IL she did so.
His wealth was considerable, and the young
Re ow, after some time, succeeded in per-
suading the infatuated girl TO administer
arsenic 10 her parent in slowly increasing
doses One day a servant surprised the
vretched girl while she was preparing some
food for the old man.
The girl seemed dismayed by the serv-
ants sudden appearance, hastily threw
into ball in her hand upon the FIRE and then
disappeared with the little tray ia which
the food was standing The servant, as
soon as her mistress had left the room.
rescued the paper from the FIRE. Il had
been crushed together 30 tightly that only
the outside portion was consumed by the
flames, and In the creases OF Il the servant
detected a kind Of white dust She kept
the paper, and when her master died and
her mistress was arrested and charged with
his murder, Il was produced in court The
analyst had no difficulty In asceTtaining
that the white dust was arsenic, and the
murderess was condemned to death and
was executed.
Who was the murderer Of Mary Weber?
was question which some years ago sorely
perpleKed the Lancashire police authorities.
Weber was a servant, and left her mis-
Fess's house one evening TO keep an ap- |
pointment with respect 70 which abe had, |
her mistress subsequently, remembered, |
appeared peculiarly anxious. Mary Weber !
never returned home Her dead body |
vas discovered the next day in a lonely |
spot near a wood. There was no doubt ]
she had been murdered-strangled by some |
person with large, powerful hands, the |
hngeTmarks Of which were TO be seen upon I
her throat.
No one could say who Il was she had gone
70 meet, but Il was generally suspected !
that ahn mus haraa had aRr,r41fv,,a,f