Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-10
BELIEVE IT MURDER
ALEXANDRIA POLICE INvESTl-
eating CURTIN's DEATH.
Little Progress Made in Case So Far
Officials Can Find Few Clues
Arrests Expected.
Special Correspondence of The Star.

ePcSini correspondence Oh Iue Stars
ALEXANDRIA. Va. January 10, 1905
Interest in the mystery which envelops
the death Of George Curtin. whose mangled
body was found In the river Monday. has
increased with the accumulation of evil
dence pointing to crime of unusual atroc-
ity and with the deepening of the uncer
tainty surrounding the whole matter. The
most painstaking investigation of the police
department has revealed nothing beyond
few general and probably unimportant
facts and theories. The main thing estab-
lished is that the case is one of extraor-
binary mystery. The police are sure that
Curtin was murdered early Sunday morn
ing. December "a, either somewhere in the
eastern part Of the city or OH some craft
on the river. They are also convinced that
he was dead before his body was thrown
overheard. while from the nature and ex-
tent of the wound on the body. and from
collateral circumstances. 1t is believed that
Curtin was attacked and overpowered by
two or more men. There are also reasons
for believing that the victim offered des-
perate resistance to his assailants.
A fact of some significance on account Of
Its bearing on the question of motive es-
tablished by the investigation of the police
IS that Curtin had some money with him
the evening preceding the murder. The
amount is not known. but it is said to be
doubtful that it was as much $500, the
sum which his relatives thought probable
he had with him at the time.
Theories Advanced.
There Is no evidence at hand TO account
for Curtin's whereabouts between the time
he was seen about o'clock the morning
of December "a and the time when his body
was fshed up from the river bottom in the
King street dock last Monday. 1t is
thought that he was induced to go to some
Snf, r,1r,a }1n -,
there murdered for his money, or that the
crime was committed in some ark other
vessel on the river. At any rate robbery is
ascribed as the motive for the murder
The police are in possession of evidence to
the effect that Curtin spent some time the
evening prior to his disappearance in re-
sort on North Lee street: that he had been
drinking, and was probably more less
under the influence of liquor at the time he
was overpowered But 1t Is not thought
that he was so much intoxicated as to prove
an easy victim to his assailants. The posi-
ton and direction of the terrible cuts on
the left side of his body indicate that when
he was struck he was defending himself,
with his left arm uplifted. A close eXami-
nation of the wounds shows that they might
easily have been produced by an ak or other
heavy instrument of that character.
Investigation by Police.
The quest of the police for information
took a rather unusual turn last night when
about thirty-five persons, most Of whom are
residents of North Lee street, were put
through a kind of a sweating process at
the station house which lasted until 3
o'clock this morning. The sum total of the
facts aScertatned was as stated above.
Nothing was adduced to fix strong suspicion
upon any one man. but the police learned
certain things about few men which will
lead to a fuller Investigation of their
whereabouts and acts about the time of the
murder well as subsequently. 1t was
stated this morning that the information
possessed was not by any means of char
acter which would justify making the
names public, much less the issuance of
warrants. But the police hope to be able
to make one arrest more before many
days have passed.