The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-05-04
AMERICANS MAY DIE
TWO MEN UNDER DEATH SEN-
 FENCE IN MEXICO.
0. T. Richardson and William Mason Will be Legally Executed Unless President Dias of Republic
 IHferYeueR

Chihuahua, Mexico, May 3.--Unless an appeal to President Diaz is pro- ductive of executive clemency, which is regarded as improbable, this city will be the scene within the next two weeks of the exeution of two Ameri- cans, c. T. Richardson and William Mason. They were convicted of mur- dering two men here for life insur- ance money, Richardson being the in- surance agent, and Mason, his broth CT in law, an assistant1agent. By or der of the court they are to be shot to death. c. s. Harle, the examin- ing physician. and the third member of the conspiracy, Is also under sen- tence of death.
 The case has occupied the Mexian courts for the past five years and is one of the most extraordinary in the criminal annals of the republic. The two victims of the conspiracy were a man named Devors, decoyed from El Paso, and a man named Mitchell, said to be half-brother of Mason.
 The prime mover in the plot was Richardson, whose real name Is Hull bert. He has a Rochester lawyer who ran away to Mexico with seven in- dictments hanging over his head for running a divorce mill" Mitchell was another Rochester lawyer who followed him later. With the help of Dl. Harle of Chihuahua. they poison ed their victims with strychnine after having insured their lives in New York company for $25,00O.
 After the murders the gang, except Harle, moved to Texas. Suspicion was aroused, and detective was sent to Texas. Posing as a lumber merchant, he worked into intimate with them. He took part in another plot to steal $50,000 and had himself arrested with the others. Besides the men there were two women mixed up in the affair.
 The discovery of the insurance plot was quite accidental. In the fall of 1902, while looking over some Mexi- can policies, the solicitor-general of the insurance company in New York Chihuahua claims. The claims came through the same agent. Richardson, were certified by the same doctor, Harle. and in both cases Dr. Harle had been the examining physician. The men had both died after short illnesses One of them, Harry Mitch ell, insured for $15,OO0. had died on February Ii. The other. James Dow errs. who was insured for $1000O, died on February 22. Yet the Mitchell claim was presented in February, and the other not until July. In both cases the insured had no other relative than the poHeHCldTy Tn the first case the beneficiary was Hut burt's wife; in the second case 1t was William Mitchell. who posed as Dev- ers's half -broher.
 Upon investigation 1t was shown that the men had died and been bur jed as stated. It wasn't d case of "burying the rocks on the company" Then the check for the Devers claim came back to the New York bank. It h,v al, otherwise Hulburt. The other had been previously paid to his wife. the murdered Harry Mitchelrs sister.
 After the crowd had removed to Dallas, Texas, a detective named Gray was sent to Dallas in the Euse of a lumber merchant. He succeeded in meeting Hulburt and after the two had become intimate Hulburt broach- ed a scheme to cheat the insurance company out of $50,O00. He said he had had experience. Detective Gray proposed that they insure Gray's brother in law for $50,O00 as a begin ming. A detetive named Evans was imported by Gray as his brother in law When the scheme had been thor oughly worked up and all the pre- liminary steps taken the whole crowd, including Gray. was arrested, A fel- low detective of his had already over heard Mitchell and Hubert scheming to kill off Gray. By accident in the prison. at Fl Paso. Mitchell discover ed what Gray really was.
 Mitchell at once went into a sham cataleptic fit that lasted two months Medical experts watched him. and de- clared that he was shamming. But all the usual tests failed. He paid not the slightest attention to needles stuck half an inch into his foot. He was dropped into a tank of cold water and sank to the bottom stiff His teeth were clenched n . he was fed on milk introduced thu uugh hts nose by a glass tube. Finally the detec- tives hit upon the idea of mixing