Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1906-09-01

earth as friendless as Esther Mitchell,
Is years old?
Not a soul will say kind word for
her No lawyer will take her case
Not a newspaper will publish line
in her defense. Not woman will
come forward to cheer her up one
particle.
And" say the men of two states,
Washington and Oregon, 1T serves
her right"
Esther Mitchell killed her brother.
He had just been acquitted on a
charge of murder himself; he dared
take the life of Joshua" Crefield,
head of the sect of Holy Rollers This
religious pervert, this fanatic, this
arch-conspirator against family and
home, had peculiar fascination over
women. He took wives away from hus-
bands, mothers away from babies,
sweethearts away from lovers, daugh-
tiers away from fathers, sisters away
from brothers.
Creffield took Esther Mitchell away
from her father and her brothers. He
told her that she was to be the mother
of the second Christ. And she be-
lieved She left her home; she sat at
the right hand of Creffeld at the wild
goings-on of the Holy Rollers. She
forgot everything
The brother begged her to come
home. She refused. He knew the
fate of other girls like herself who had
joined the Holy Rollers. So he saved
her from that fate. He killed Crefield,
the man who said he was immortal
And Esther Mitchell killed her bro
Their in the very self-same way be-
cause he killed the man whom she
took to be the personification of God
upon earth, says correspondent of
the New York World. In cold truth,
on the other hand, Satan could have
learned much from Creffeld. And,
for this very reason, the girl who
killed her brother because he killed
the man she believed to be divine has
not a friend on earth
Once SaIvationist.
Once upon a time Franz Edmund
Crefheld was Salvation Army officer.
Three years ago he dropped that and
started a sect of his own. He gath
cred about him a little company of
followers on Kiger island, in the Col
umbia river, Oregon. Most of them
came from the town of Corvallis and
the little hamIets in the neighbor-
slip of a girl, just Is. She became
one of his first converts. Her sister,
Mrs. Burgess Starr, also forsook her
husband for the man Crefield. Maud
Hurt was his third convert, or rather
victim. She married him.
Il am to be the father of the sec
ond Christi" he proclaimed, and they
believed him.
More and more the women f1ocked
to Creffield. Then the law took hand
and he was sent to the penitentiary
for second term. Most of his victims
went insane after that and, one by
one, were sent to asylums and re
treats. A few recovered. Nothins
daunted, after serving his term Cref
field started in again. Once more Mrs
Starr and Esther Mitchell, now q
beautiful girl of IS, came at his bid
ding. They ran away from theil
homes to do it.
And George Mitchell a farmer boy
of 20. made up his mind that he would
save them if he could Other mer
who had suffered in the same way
went with him to find Creffield. They
were armed, and they meant to kill
George Mitchell was the first tt
run down the man. He heard thai
this self-styled Joshua" was in Seat
tie. He came here; he found him il
the heart of the town.
There was just one shot CreffielC
fell dead with a bullet through the
middle of his brain. The whole state
was af1ame with joy at the deed Cit
liens who had suffered at Crefield'.
hands hailed young Mitchell as thei
: deliverer. Corvallis raised hand
some fund to defend the young man
HonorabIy Acquitted.
The boy was put on trial His tech
meal defense was emotional insanity
But his attorneys did not attempt t,
disguise the fact that this plea wa
simply a legal loophold- To the L
jurors was told the whole sad story o
the Holy Rollers. They needed NJ
more. George Mitchell was honorabl,
acquitted. 1t could not have been 9th
erwise.
Esther Mitchell demanded to be
witness against her brother She wa
heard.
He has killed a holy man and h
ought to be hanged she said, wit
perfect composure. 81 want to see m
brother live long enough to make hi
peace with God. then he should die.
All this time her closest companio
was Mrs Maud Hurt Creffield, wide,
of the dead Holy Roller. She wa
near the prophet when he was she
by young Mitchell She screamed ono
and then grew calm, as she leane
over the man, already gaSping for hi