Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1906-07-15
SLAYER OF FANATIC
KILLED BY SISTER.
Citizens Of Oregon Town Are JubI-
liant Of The Death Of q
Holy Roller.
MANY HAPPY HOMES DESTROYED
Tar and Feathers Bestowed Upon the
Leader Of tho Cult WHO Had Burn.
cd Live Animals as a Sacrifice
immortality Taught by the Prophet
Who Was a Renegade. n
MANY HAPPY HOMES DESTROYED

SEATTLE, WASH. July t4.--An
autopsy held last night demonstrated
TINT George Mitchell was not Insane.
although II Jury hnd just acquitted
him Of the murder of Edmund Franz
Crctficld the Holy Roller" on that
plea.
The autopsy followed tho killing of
Mitchell by his sister Esther, Il rnna-
Teal follower Of CrcflIolh.
George Mitchell the slayer of Franz
Edmund Crcfficld, the self.stylrd LOS.
hnn." leader of The band o. fanatics
calling themselves the Holy Rollrrs
was To have bccn presented with n
handsomely engraved gold medal us n
reward for killing CrcIficld IN First
avenue a few days ago. II the m1dnl
had been presented Mitchell probably
would have been the only man In tho
country who has been so honorcd for
II homicide.
Tho donors were to he n committee of 8
respectable citizens Of Corvallis, Ore.
where Crcfficld ana his band created
so much excitement una Indignation
three years ago. The man who brought
the word To Seattle That The gold med
nj Is forthcoming Is o. V. Hurt, II Cor
wallis resident ana the father of Mnude
Hurt Crcfflcld, the dead prophets"
widow.
Hurt arrived I'm Seattle recently
and he announced TINT he had come
here for the purpose of taking cnre
nr his daughter, but mainly to make
arrangements for the defence of
George Miller, who had been removed
to The county Jail TO await trial on the
chargc Of first degree murder OF
which hc was acquitted ON the plea
of Insanity.
Medal for the Murderer.
O. V. Hurt declares tina! as soon as
the news reached Corvallis that Grief
field had been killed by Mitchell a
committee of citizens AT once started
n subscription for the purpose of rails
Ing money to present Mitchell with a
media and to hire good criminal
lawyer to defend him.
Hurt says that the minute the news
OF Crcfficld's death reached the Ore.
gon town Il spread like wildwirc and
that there was universal joy. For
weeks persons IN Corvallis who had
been disgraced through the Influence
that Crcffield had OH members of
their families had been searching for
the Holy Roller leader. lie had been
driven from one town to another and
FOR Il month lyncLing was threatened
II was generally believed that II was
only question Of time until some cit
izen. feeling the outrage that had been
Dcrpetrated upon him, would take the
law into his own HANDS
others Spared the Trouble.
"Mitchcll's well aimed shot spared
others the trouble Of sending Creffleld
to an eternity that he deserved" said
Hurt in substance.
Hurts entire family mt one time
was under the spell of this religious
fanatic II was at Hurts home in
Corvallis tnat some of the dsgracefuI
scenes of the Holy Rollers were enact
ch. h"it ninSelt was 0nce under the
influence. but ii didn't take him long
to throw IL off and since then he had
been one of Crcfficlds most pronounce
cd enemies.
AT one time during the orgies of the
Holy Rollers all the furniture in the
Hurt house was piled In heap in the
front yard and set OH fire by Cref-
field. who announced that 1t was a
burnt offering to God; that religious
People had no right TO have furniture,
for furniture was a luxury. At anoth->
or time live cats aud dogs were offer.
ed up in the fires while Creffield went
through his incantations and worked
himself and his followers into fren-
ny Of emotion.
Tarred and Feathered.
A short time prior to the, date that
the Corvallis people captured Creffield
and tarred and feathered him he sue, 4
5t-. 4fti