The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-06-25

In Memory Of
BERTHA l. BOTHAMLEH,
Il. Beloved Wife of
CItment l.. Bothamley-


cnRraven in marble to cover the sin of
a woman. The rearing of this modest
marble slab marked the close of one
chapter in tragedy that had its
scenes laid in two continents. ran the
whole scale of human emotions and
ended i'm murder.
Il is seldom that an operative in the
secret service Of the United States Is
selected 10 unravel crimes other than
those against the currency of the coun-
Try. Ny connection with the BOtham-
ley case came about through a request
made by James J. Brooks. at that time
chief Of the secret service. for the fed
eTal department of Justice John W
Carr. secretary of the British AssOCia-
ton OF Kansas. had written to the
British ambassador at Washington.
asking that he solicit the aid of this
government in clearing up the murder
or cOuntryman and securing the con-
Victiou of the murderer or murderers.
Chief Brooks assigned me to the work
because the crime had been committed
IN territory with which l had become
familiar in the constant search for
cOunterfeiters-
=
1t often happens that the man who
makes the unraveling of crimes a pro-
fessiOn is called upon to take up a case
long after the commission Of the crime
he is detailed. to solve. Such tasks are
the most difficult in the detectives
calling. Time is the criminals strong
est protector. This is illustrated al
most daily in our criminal courts, in
prosecutions which fail to result in
convictions at the first trial. Before a
second trial can be held some wit
nesses die or disappear. the recOIIec-
ton OF others loses its clearnesS, and
various considerations in favor of the
accused appear. These same COnsid-
70 he n MT of =
criminal before the case gets into the
courts This DEPRESSION applies aptly
70 the strange case 1 am about to re
late. Had the same efforts been made
In the early part of a certain October
as were started the latter part of the
following January, I am convinced that
the closing scene of this story would
have been laid at the ScaffoId- Had
certain significant Incidents in the do
meStic history OF a man and his wife
I'm a small Dakota hamlet been care
fully investigated several months be
fore I was called upon to go over them,
! am certain they would have led to
startling revelations that would have
proved one murder and prevented an
other.
Briefly stated, the mystery before me
was the murder of Clement L. Botham-
ley, a good looking middle-aged Eng
puted in the west at that time. and
while on his way over the Arbuckle
trail from Kansas to Texas with 1900
sheep The Arbuckle trail was one of
those great highways of the plains
that then served the nOmadiC cowboy,
sheep herder and immigrant as wagon
road aud railroad combined. It's wind
ing course from Caldwell Kan, to
Fort Reno, Indian Territory. was dot
q on either side with lonely graves,
unmarked, and in most instances spell
ing fms to one OF LIES tragedies.
Tn such d grave the body of Botham-
ley had been buried the same way he
was found dead, his final resting place
being near 4 small post known by the
grewsome appeliatiOn of Skeleton
ranch"
This border country was plagued by
murderous Indians and white despera-
does, one as much to be feared by the
peaceful settlers as the other. and each
willing to cut throat or Use the deadly
SiN-shOOter Al the slightest prospect of
gain.
Three months or more had elapsed
between the murder OF the EngliShman
and the time 7 was assigned to the
clearing up Of the case, and this made
II necessary for me to secure all the
data concerning the finding Of the body
and the incidents attending it At sec
oUd hand. Fortunately. a 17-yeaT-OId
boy, Wesley NetteT by name. who had
been i'm the employ Of the murdered
man, was in Wichita and disposed 10
ten an unvarnished tale Of the CiTcum-
stances surrounding the death Of his
employer. With this lad I visited the
scene Of the murder. seventy miles
from Caldwell. This visit resulted in
nothing except the fixing In my mind
OF the events IS related by Vetter.
70 reduce the statements Of his Kan
sas friends TO "a connected history. Gle
ment / BOthamiey had arrived in
Florence. Kan, some months before
the murder in company with a stately
and handsome woman, whom he intro
duced as his wife While the appear
ance of two persouaEes Of such evident
distinction and wealth at the frontier
town would naturally excite unusual in
terest at any time, the advent Of the
BOthamleys was an UnCOmmOnIy mem
OTable event, owing to the fact that
their luggage consisted Of thirty-One
trunks, TO say nothing of innumerabIe
boxes and portmanteaux- Bothamley's
manner was that OF a lord, and his
companion indicated plainly by her
hauteur Of manner that her new en-
Vironment was far different from that
TO which she had been accustomed. In
his talks with Florence people Botham-
lev was a native of London. who, with
his wife. was seeking a home in from
tier America. He talked Of cattle and
sheep raising as his intended vocation
Attempts 10 learn more of him than
he told i'm a business way were futile.
After two weeks he moved from Flor
ence to Newton. soon after moving to
a ranch Of $40 acres several miles from
the town.
Two months after his arrival at New
ton his companion died in childbirth
and was buried there. As there was
no reason 20 doubt the truth Of his
claim that the woman was his wife,
she was buried as such, and he as
suned custody of her personal effects.
including a 5000 pair Of diamond
bracelets and other jewelry and wear
ing apparel. amounting 10 much more
in value. Despite the distance at which
Bothamley had always kept bis neigh
bors and the reticence he practiced in
regard 20 his personal affairs. there
was "A wave Of sympathy for him at
the death OF his wife He retired to
his ranch went in for the raising of
sheep. and. in a measure, dropped from
view. Throughout that section Of Kan
sas there were several of BOthamley's
couetrymen engaged in the same occu-
patton he had taken UP. One Of these
vas William II. Phillips. who was made
the administrator of Bothamley's es-
tate after the murder. and who told
me that Bothamiey's connections IN his
native country were high. Later, among
his effects we found a uniform of an
officer in the yeoman cavalry. which
had been his together with other evil
dences of his former prominent posi-
ton in England
According 10 the story Of Netter who
x,--iS af1arlnvpd at the Bofharllev ranch