The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-07-30

HE case of Charles Tucker of Bos-
ton, who was convicted OF the
murder of Miss Mabel Page pure
~ on circumstantiaI evidence, reused
interest in other cases of a similar
character. In the Tucker case the mo-
tive for the crime was singuiarly
lacking. 1t was not shown that Miss
Page and Tucker We're at all intimate
although the Pages and fuckers were
known to each other They lived some
distance apart. There was no love
affair" in this, and the murder was "a
particularly brutal one. Miss Page hav-
ing been attacked while alone in her
room in her fathers house and re-
peatedly stabbed.
1T did not appear that robbery was
the incentive. In fact, the trial estab-
lished merely that Tucker had been in
the vicinity of the house at about the
time the murder was committed, and
that it was possible for him to have
killed Miss Page. The points on which
the prosecution rested were that a
note left by Miss Page to her father
in which she stated that she had gone
to her brother, who had been injured,
was written by Tucker after he had
killed her; that he stole a pin valued
at $40 belonging to the murdered girl:
that he possessed a knife of the kind
sheath for this knife, and that he
afterWard attempted to dispose of the
knife. Various handwriting experts
We're examined with reference to the
note. with the customary disagree
ments. AS to the knife, which Tucker
had broken up and endeavored to Sc
crete, he explained that this was not
done until after he had been suspected
of the murder, and that he did it
through fright. He declared that the
stickpin found on him he had owned
for two years He stoutly denied his
guilt.
The effort of the defence was to pro-
duce an alibi. Witnesses testified as
to fuckers whereabouts at the sup
posed time of the murder. 1t was be-
heved that the defence made strong
case. The verdict of guilty was a
great surprise, and one Boston news
paper has declared editOrially that ii
was impossible
In recent cases circumstantial evil
dence has played a far more important
part than formerly, owing to the more
strenuous defences possible by reason
of the advance of science, in the analy
sis of blood i'm photography, in the
study of handwriting and in many
other ways.
An extraordinary case, in which cir
cumstantial evidence that was subse-
quently proved to have been manufac-
tured led to a fathers conviction for
the supposed murder of his daughter,
is described in the records of Gibral
tar.
The story is one that would afford
a plot for a novelist, yet it is vouch-
safed for by official records.
There lived in Gibraltar an English
merchant named James Baxwell who
had married a Spanish woman and
reared a daughter named Elezia, re-
markabIe for her beauty. In 1871,
when the girl was il, she returned the
affection of one of many suitors, a
young man named William Katt.
BaXwell refused to allow his daugh-
ter to marry Katt, as their religious
threw herself at her fathers feet in
supplication, but to no avail. He was
deaf alike to her entreaties and those
of the young man.
But the girl had inherited a high
spirit from her mother, and vowed she
would marry the man of her choice.
This reused her father TO intense an
ger, and a violent scene followed, dur
ing which he declared he would strike
her dead before he would give his con
sent to her marriage The threat was
heard by Katt.
The merchants house stood at the
base of the rock, and near it was one
of the many natural caves of GibraI-
tar which he used for a storage place
in his business.
Two days AFTER the scene With nef
father Elezia disappeared & Passers
heard walls and groans in the cave,
which died away as they listened. They
reported what they heard. In a few
days BaNweH was asked to explain
the absence of his daughter. He said
he could not. She had gone away, and
that was all he knew about it.
He was arrested on a charge OF
having murdered the girl. The cave
was searched and a piece of her dress
and a lock of her hair, matted with
blood, were found.
Baxwen protested his innocence. but
was brought to trial and was found
guilty. On being sentenced he was
overcome, and remained in a state of
collapse until the day set for the ex-
ecution. On going to the scaffold he
cried, Before my maker. 1 am guilt
less of my child'ss death
In the crowd at the foot of the scat
fold was Katt, who had been an i'm
portant witness in the trial
Catching sight of him, Baxweu ex-
tended his hand, saying:
MY friend, in one minute I shall be
in eternity 1 wish to die at peace
with all men. Give me your hand-I
pardon you freely for the injury you
have done me-"
Katt became pale and agitated on
hearing these words. BaXwell mount
ed the steps slowly, and the black bon
net was put on him and the rope ad-
justed.
According to custom the hangman
then called in a loud voice: Justice
Is going Justice is donet' and pre-
pared to perform the final act
At that moment William Katt cried
in a broken voice: 1T is 1 who am
guilty alonei"
He then declared that he had car
ried off the girl and married her. and
that she was now concealed near Glib
raltar- To revenge himself for the
scorn of her father he had planned to
throw suspicion of foul play on Bax-
we'll He had cut off a lock of Elezia's
hair while she slept and had dabbled
1t in the blood of a sheep, had pur-
Joined piece of her dress and hidden
them in the cave, while he had himself
made the cries at time when he knew
they would be overheard.
Remorse aroused by the forgiveness
Of the merchant had led him to con-
fess.
Before Ka.ts story was all told the
eXecutfoner turned to Baxwell to re-
move from his head the insignia of
death He found the old man had
sunk down in collapse to a sitting pos
ture. The black bonnet was drawn off
and Baxwell was found TO be deadr
katt was seized and imprisoned The
girl wife retired to a con-
vent.
An analysis of the blood on the lock
Of hair found in the cave would at this