Evening journal., 1906-07-11
DECORATED FOR
KILLING A MAN
Medal For the Murder Of a
Religious Fanatic on
Western Coast

SEATTLE, Wash, July 11.-George
Mitchell, the slayer of Franz Edmund
Crefield. the self-styled Joshua"
leader of the band of fanatics calling
themselves the Holy Rollers" is to be
presented with a handsomely engraved
gold medal as reward for killing
Crefield in First avenue. When the
medal is presented Mitchell probably
will be the only man in the country
who has been so honOred for homi- |
eide.
The donors are to be a committee of
respectable citizens Of Corvallis, Ore,
where Crehield and his band created
so much excitement and indignation
three years ago. The man who brought
the word to Seattle that the gold medal
/ is forthcoming is o. " Hurt, a Cor
wallis resident and the father of Maude
Hurt Crefield, the dead prophets
widow.
Hurt arrived in Seattle and announc-
ed that he had come here for the pur-
pose Of taking care of his daughter
but mainly to make arrangements for
the defense Of George Mitchell, who has
been removed to the county Jail to
await trial on the charge OF first de-
gree murder
o. V. Hurt declares that as soon as
the news reached Corvallis that Cref-
field had been killed by Mitchell a COM
mittee of citizens at once started
subscription for the purpose Of raising
money to present Mitchell with a
medal and to hire a good criminal law
yer to defend him.
"Mitchers friends, or more especially
the good citizens who were opposed to
lCrefield's immoral teachings, will go
to the limit Of their resources to de-
lfend the young man." said Hurt I'VE
do not purpose il 1t is in our power to
prevent to have Mitchell punished for
an act which deserves commendation.
II would have been better had that
frauds life been ended long ago. There
would have been fewer unhappy famil-
les in Corvallis"
Hurt says that the minute the news
of Crefhelds death reached the Oregon
town It spread like wildfire and that
there was universal joy. For weeks
persons in Corvallis who had been dis
b graced through the influence that Cref-
&. field had on members OF their families
l had been searching for the Holy Roller
( leader. He had been driven from one
town to another, and for a month
lynching was threatened. 1t was gem
orally believed that it was only a
question of time until some citizen.
feeling the outrage that had been per-
petrated upon him, would take the law
into his own hands.
d "Mitchelrs we'll aimed shot spared
| others the trouble Of sending Creffield
e to an eternity tina he deserved" said
y Hurt In substance.
Hurts entire family at one time was
under the spell of this religious IA
matte. 1t was at Hurts home in Cor
wallis that some of the disgraceful
scenes Of the Holy Rollers were enact
ed. Hurt himself was once under the
! influence, but it didn't take him long
to throw it off and since then he has
been one Of Creffield's most pronounced
enemies.
IS At one time during the orgies of tn,
Is Holy Rollers all the furniture in tn.
20 Hurt house was piled in a heap in tn,
n front yard and set on fire by Creffield
!, who announced that It was a burn
4. Offering to God; that religious people
>, had no right to have furniture foi
"a furniture was a luxury. At anothei
y time live cats and dogs were offered ul
ID IN the fires while Crehield wen
through his incantations and worked
D. himself and his followers into a frenzl
N Of emotion.
ct A short time prior to the date tha
a the Corvallis people captured Crefiell
of and tarred and feathered him he sue
v ceeded i'm Inducing Maud Hurt, o. v
Hurts daughter, to marry him. Cref
-, field hid in the woods after he wa
y tarred and under cover of the nigh
y returned to the Hurt house, where h
81 crawled beneath the floor and remain
T. ed week, where he was fed by Mr..
y Crehield.
Later Credield sought refuge in tn
house of b. E. Starr of Portland. Dur
ing his stay there the husband of Mr.
Starr filed a charge against him tina
led to his sentence OF two years in tn
%, penitentiary. Mrs. Creffield. i'm tn
meantime, had become insane and wa
sent to an asylum about the same tim
III that Crefield went to the Salem prison
Mrs. starr is a sister Of George Nit
H. chell, the slayer. Mitchell also claim
'b that Crefield enticed his younger sists
Is Esther into the ranks of the Hol
yn Rollers and disgraced her for life. FC
these two acts Mitchell swore reveng
ra girfeatheredfidsg dooa attn mcf emf