Evening star., 1907-07-01
BOYLAN CASE ARREST
FATHER OF THE GIRL TAKEN
INTO CUSTODY.

NEW YORK, July IA sensational turn
was given today to the case Of Viola Boy
maltreated and murdered in the cellar Of
her parents home in I'd avenue, when the
girls father, Thomas Boylan, was arrested
Boylan was held by the police charged
with being a suspicious person. The police
searched Boylan's apartments, after which
he was taken to the police station and
questioned about the disappearance of the
child. His arrest followed.
The police were evidently as far away
yesterday from an arrest in connection with
the murder of the Boylan girl as they were
on the first day of the murder. The de-
tectives of the East 1O8th street station
and the central office men were busy on the
case. but 1t was said at the station that
there had been no developments.
Excitement is still rife In the neighbor-
hood where the little girl was killed, and
all day yesterday a crowd Of women and
children hung around the station house In
expectation of arrest. A large number
OF detectives have been stationed at all Of
the steamship piers and ferry houses to
watch for any men answering the descrip-
tion Of the men wanted for the crime. Sew
eral steamships which sailed yesterday for
Italy carried large numbers Of steerage
passengers, but they were subjected to
close scrutiny in vain.
Some of the detectives working on the
case think that the child was killed In the
cellar where she was found and others
"a md
of darkness to divert suspicion. On the
supposition that the crime was committed
somewhere else. the detectives have been
searching number Of houses in the neigh
borhood inhabited by Italians. to discover
II possible, the scene of the crime The
cellar Of the house at No. 229O I'd avenue is
easy of access, and at night the body OF
the child could have been stored there
without attracting notice.
The Boylan house was also the gathering
place of morbid throng yesterday, which
found evident satisfaction in looking at the
walls of the house.
Drummond's Suggestion.
Ex-Chief A. L. Drummond OF the secret
service said yesterday:
When the mystery of the murder of lit
tie Viola Boylan has been solved it will be
found that the crime was committed in her
own home.
"And if 1 were the police searching out
the murderer l would look for his trail
much closer to the home of the child he
killed than the spot where the suspects
are alleged to have made their headquar-
ters.
Il have investigated this extraordinary
crime, though not as thoroughly yet as /
could wish. 1 have called at the bereaved
house at 2290 I'd avenue, and have talked
with the father and mother Of the dead
girl. Both tell the same story. throwing
suspicion upon men who have fled the
reighborhood since the crime.
Doubts Child Left House.
AS a result of these interviews and an ex-
haustive search Of the neighborhood for evil
dence 1 have come to these conclusions:
1 do not believe Viola left the house on
her errand to buy bread. That she was MUIR
dered somewhere else on the block and car
ried back dead to the rear of the Boylan
home. seems to me a fruitIess theory. How
foolish it would have been for the murderer
to take chances of entering the house by
the rear after climbing over an old rickety
fence with the body flung across his shoul-
ders, when he must have known that not
only the front door. but the cellar door as
well. were left unlocked botn day and night.
OF course. there were rumors that a man
was seen In the cellar on Monday afternoon
in company with little girls. ana that he has
since disappeared from his accustomed
haunts.. If this is true 1t is almost convinc-
Ing that 1t was he who committed the
crime
Still. am not yet prepared to adopt this
theory. and want to interview the persons
who made this statement and judge the
truth OF their stories before l give them
more than passing thought.
Il have been informed that. after Viola's
disappearance. but before her body was
found, Mrs. Boylan. the mother, had ac-
cused the suspects of kidnapping her daugh
ter. If this be true the accusation in itself
might have suggested flight when they
learned the corpse had been found. Fear
ing arrest and knowing the mothers sus-
picion against them they would very like
ly seek safety in flight, even though they
were innocent.
Police Face Hard Mystery.
'Only one thing is certain, so far as
have yet learned. That is that. the police
are face to face with one of the hardest
mysteries Of late years. Still 1 have faith
in their ultimate success and hope to add
more light than l have been able to, thus
far after longer investigation"