The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-06-22
TIGHTER IT CROWS
Hickman Van Horn in Web of
Murder Mystery.
More Evidence That He Is the
Guilty Man.
SEEN ON THE ROAD.
Twelve Year Old Girl Saw Two
Men on the Hack.
When 1t Came Back There Was
But One.

Tighter and tighter grows the web
OF circumstantial evidence which the
authorities are weaving around Will
burn V. Van Horn, the hackman, who
has been formally charged with murder
in the first degree for killing William
Morkinson, tn fruit peddler. whose
dead body with crushed skull and a
gaping bullet wound in the right temple
was found Wednesday noon on the
Kaw river bank just below the three
bridges to the east of North Topeka.
J. H. Wilkerson, the sheriff, and ]. J.
Schenck, the county attorney, put in a
lot of work on the case yesterday af-
ternoon and not without some import
ant results.
Mrs. Robinson. who lives with her
family on a place on the Granville
road just this side of the three bridges,
testified at the inquest yesterday that
she saw hack between seven and eight
o'clock on Wednesday morning being
driven along the road towards the city
by a man with gray trousers on. This
is the color of the trousers that Van
Horn had on Wednesday morning. She
also said that her twelve-year-o old
daughter had seen this hack.
Mr.. Schenck and Mr.. Wikerson look
ed up the daughter yesterday afternoon
and she told them that she had seen
the hack twice that morning between
seven and eight o'clock. She saw it
first being driven toward Granville at
a rapid pace. At that time there were
two men on the box seat. She deScIib-
ed one of the men as being short and
swarthy and looking a good deal like
a Mexican. This is good description
of the murdered man. She said the
complexion and wore a gray pair of
pants and coat considerably lighter
than the trousers. She was positive
about the color of the coat.
l. IL ,oI-
within a short time after it had passed
towards Granville and that only the
red faced man with the light colored
coat and gray trousers was on the
box seat The fact that the girl in
sisted that the man driving the hack
had on a light colored coat bothered
the authorities for a time. When Van
Horn was arrested he had on a dark
coat. John Wagner. who rode over to
North Topeka with Morkinson and
Van Horn on Wednesday morning was
looked W by Mr.. Schenck and Mr..
Wilkerson and he declared that on
that morning Van Horn wore a light
colored canvas jumper.
A daughter-in-law of Mrs. Robin
sons also told the county officials that
she had seen hack being driven back
to town on the Granville road between
and O'Clock in the morning with
man on the box, the description of
whom corresponds with that of Van
Horn. She stated further that the
horses Dulllng the mack were d SOl CT
and a roam and this is the color of the
RechteIheimer team that Van Horn
drove. A number of other persons
were found by the county officials who
had seen a hack coming back on the
Granville road between and
O'Clock Wednesday morning
Van Horn has been talked with
some by the county officials since the
charge of murder was preferred
against him. He sticks to his pro-
testatfons of innocence, but tells a diff
ferent and contradictory story about
every detail of his trip with Morkin-
son across the river on Wednesday
morning when he is asked to go over
the particulars
van Horn was formally arraigned
In the city court this afternoon and
the charge of murder in the first de-
gree was read to him. He was then
committed to Jail without bail until
Wednesday, when he will have his
preliminary.