The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-08-06

physically. HI family consisted of his
wife and eight children. but all the
children except two had grown up and
left the parental roof. / asked Mrs
Higgins for such information as she
might have.
80 far as 1 know" she said my
husband did not have an enemy. He
had always led a quiet life, minding
his own affairs strictly. Last Sunday
morning he left as usual on that day
to attend mass. He had about S24 with
him and small basket containing
some pork. The meat was a sample
which had not been what we bargained
for With the money he was to pay
the pew rent and some small bills at
the store, which was always open on
Sunday. ] never saw hiA1 alive again.
We became alarmed when he did not
return at the usual time but we did
not learn of his fate Until evening,
after Mr.. Mcfarland found his body
1 asked numerous questions, but the
woman's answers shed no light on the
crime. The county coroner, John Steph-
ems, had made some investigation. It
was found that the money Higgins had
with him had not been disturbed by the
murderer, which disposed of the theory
that the motive of the murderer had
been robbery. Two of the bullets fired
into the victims neck had penetrated
through and Ivere found imbedded in
the ground under the neck, Indicating
with blow first and shot from above
as he lay PROSTATE with his face Up
ward. An examination of the bullets
showed them to be peculiar, in that the
points of the bullets in the cartridges
had been cut off in an uneven fashion.
My Inquiries among the neighbOrs bore
out Mrs. Higgins in her assertion that
her husband had had no enemies of
which she knew. He seemed to have
lived at peace with the world and was
Loo
might have been expected would have
met death in the horrible way it had
OVertaken him. There We're some ru-
mors to the effect that he sometimes
INDUCED in harmless sprees, during
which he was sometimes abusive. but,
like a true freshman, he would embrace
as a friend the one he might have
abused a moment before, 1 could find
where none of these lapseS from sobri-
ETY. had ever led him into enmities that
lasted more than a few minutes and,
from all I could learn. / saw no reason
to attach any Importance to Higgins
occasional drinking bouts. The home
of William Swigert was near Higgins
land. The families We're friendly, Swi-
CERT having worked Tor Higgins and
the formers 15-year-Old daughter for
the Iatter's married daughter. The fur
Their into the character OF Higgins the
investigation was carried the deeper
grew the mystery. But murder most
foul had been dOne-there was no es-
Gaping that conclusion, as every lota
of circumstance argued strongly
against suicide, accidental shooting or
any other theory.
There are two Chicago police detec-
| tives working or this case now" said
| the chief, as I left his Office, but you
| may go about the thing in your own
| way without reference to them
Because there were Chicago detec-
tives already working on the case. and
L
WinnetlCa in the assumed role of a
| newspaper reporter. These ubiquitous
| and unofficial detectives of the daily
/ press in many cases have advantages
1 in working out mysterious crimes
] which are not possessed by even the
! officers of the law and the role. i'm this
! case. suited perfectly Therefore, Tor
( the purposes of the preliminary work.
1 at least. in the Higgins case. ] was
/ James Wilson OF the Chicago Times.
| ! had dropped into Gross store the
J day or my arrival I'm Winnetka and
/ inquired for the Higgins house. The
| proprietor had carelessly indicated the
( course. and without waiting for eE-
/ plicit directions, I set out I had pro-
ceeded what seemed to me about a
( mile when 1 sighted a house standing
on the hillside and steered my course
for IL. A 1O-year-old boy was standing
as this Kean Higgins homer I in
! quired.
| "No," said the boy. "he lives over
there beyond the timber"
''I'll give you dime II you win come
with me and show me the house." J
said.
Tbe transaction was closed in an
instant. and with my guide. L set forth
through the woods, chatting with ths
boy as We walked.
he told me he was the son Of VII
| liam Ssvi@ert e
DO YOU know Eean HfgsiDs2"
asked.