Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-09-16

wen eSlaDllSneu. f1er statement to
REESE that she was going to Kansas
to sell 1arm was clearly a subter-
fuge to escape unsupported from the
man whom she professed to love SO
deeply to go to another admrer.
She left Waut sha still protesting
the liveliest affection for REESE and
went to Newton, Kan, sending to her
Wisconsin lover from several points
en- route messages Of uhdying love.
Bothamley had evidently been advised
as to the exact time of her arrival
for he met her at the train and later
took her to his ranch under the name
of Bertha Bothamley, his sister.
From her journeyings of thousands
of miles subsequent to her marriage
with Shannon Bailey there seemed to
be nothing more obtainable in the form
of evidence against Nellie Bailey, or
Nellie REESE, than l have related. Any
additional evidence must be obtained
in Kansas near the scene of the
Bothamley crime. The sending by her
from Skeleton ranch of the Sarah
A. Laws" deco to the Bothamley rancn
should prove valuable bit of in
formation If the mystery of the identi
ty of Sarah Laws" could be solved
Inc key to this puzzle finally was
found in wichita.
Two days before Bothamey and the
woman had started to Texas they
appeared at the office of a LAWYER
In that city and solicited his services
in the drawing of deed to the $40
acres of land in question. To this
lawyer the woman was introduced by
Bothamley as his wife, Bertha L. Both
amley, and they desired to convey the
ranch property to one Sarah A. Laws"
The instrument was drawn, the fee
paid, and the couple departed, leaving
no suspicion that either was other
than as represented. In the transact
ton the grantee did not put in an ap-
| pearance, but there was nothing in this
| circumstance to arouse suspicion.
knowledge of this visit to the law
| yer enabled me to see what the plan
might have been. Further investiga-
ton revealed the fact that within an
hour from the time Bothamley and the
|
deed was drawn in favor of Sarah
Laws" they had visited the office of
| another lawyer, and asked him to draw
deed to the same land, Sarah A..
Laws" being the name given as the
grantor, and Bertha l.. Bothamley as
the name OF the grantee. In the Of
flee of this lawyer, Bothamley intro
A T
This was the deed that was afterward
sent by the woman from Skeleton
ranch to the clerk Of Harvey county
for record, the character of Sarah A.
Laws" having been purely fictitious.
This was the most convincing cir
cumstantial evidence developed, going
to show that the flight to Texas had
been planned weeks, and possibly
months prior to the start, and that
Bothamley had fallen so completely
under the spell Of the woman that he
had been induced by her to convey
his ranch to her, the roundabout meth
cd described being used for the pur-
pose of forestalling the comment a
direct conveyance undoubtedly would
have caused.
With the facts as here related in
my possession l conferred with Col
Hallowell and we took an inventory
of the evidence in our possession. OF
its circumstantial character there
was, of course no doubt The cut
line of the facts l have related was
strengthened by a search of the per-
sonal effects belonging to Bothamley
at the time of his death, and Of the
contents of the car in which he died
In box in the car, besides large
quantity of jewelry when had be-
longed to the woman with whom
Bothamley had come to America, was
found a bottle of morphine. I tried
to establish the identity Of the pur
chaser of the drug. but was unsuc
cessful, for, after locating the drug
gist who sold it, l found him unable
to recollect the person who had Dough
it. The facilities for the eXhumatio1
+ and examination of bodies on the
f frontier were not such as to make
an analysis of the Bothamley stom
ach feasible, and the part played by
the drug in the death of the English
man. if any, was left in doubt.
When we had finished taking stool
of our evidence Col. Hallowell, known
throughout Kansas as Prince Hal,
, and | decided that we could go int
court with a circumstantial case o
great strength. Personally | wa.
confident of being able to presen
, such evidence as would convince an!
, unprecedented juror of the guilt o
Nellie Bailey or Reise.
t The physical circumstances sur
rounding the death of Bothamley, hat
$ the accused been man, would hav'
g gone far of themselves toward convict
o ing. These circumstances, consid
4 cred in connection with the history o
q Nellie Bailey from the time OF he
t marriage, the disappearance of he
husband, the finding Of the human
; bones and flesh, her possession of hi
jewelry and money, her marriage t
PaiSa opd how G5oroo thot poilo,