The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1908-11-08
PLAIN STORY OF CAUSES
LEADING UP TO SHOOTING
Hains Says That Neither He Nor His
Brother Sought Annis and Didn't
Know He Was at Bayside
On Day of Shooting.

New York, November Z-Thornton Jen-
kins Hams, in his cell in the Queens
county jail, today made a statement in
which he gave additional details of the
circumstances Immediately preceding and
leading up to the murder of William Z.
Annis by his brother, Capt Peter c.
Hains, Jr., at Bayside l.. [.
Thornton Hams was present at the time
of the shooting, and is charged with hav-
ing assisted his brother in the commits
sion of the crime by holding off at the
point Of revolver members of the Bay
side Yacht club who had attempted TO
go to the assistance of Annis. Both
brothers are under indictment for mur-
der in the first degree.
While Thornton Hams, unshaven, col
larless and with a strand of rope about
his waist doing duty for belt, was re-
lating his grim story, the captain, gaunt
and unkempt, stood less than 10 feet
away mis- long monl1ish bathrobe trailing
the floor, his eyes staring fixedly at the
white walls of his prison. lie took no
part in the conversation.
Too Many Untruths.
"There have been so many untruths cir
culated concerning Peter and myself
said Thornton Hams, that / must ask
the Associated Press to set us right in
the eyes of the world. I am not a des-
perado and neither is Peter.
'ion the day of the shooting I imagined
| Annis to be in Mount Vernon. Neither
| Peter nor I had any idea that we would
( run across him at Bayside. Ever since
the terrible night when my brothers wife
admitted her wrongdoing with Annis /
had been Peters constant companion.
General Hains feared that Perer would
kill himself and so he gave him over into
| my keeping. l took him with me to live.
and In order to take his mind off his
troubles 1 took him out with me whole
days at time, cruising in little motor
boat had"
Thornton Hams then told of his plan to
buy site along the water somewhere
and this led him to Bayside.
'sThey have made much of the fact that
we went armed" he continued. LAS far as
Peter is concerned. I did not know he had
a gun with him. 1t was not until he had
used ii on Annis that | realized the situ-
alton. AS for me, the gun | had with me
is the same I carried for IA years. Most
of my life has been spent at sea. where
primitive passions rule and where men
in their anger need more than words to
subdue them"
Did Not Seek Annis.
"They have also said that when we ar
rived at the Yacht club our first move
was to ask where Annis was There was
never anything said farther from the
truth. We had not been on the ground
long, however, before the name OF Annis
came to our ears. l Immediately began
to urge Peter to come away. He could
not be persuaded, however. and after
a while L gave up trying. IL was so
unexpected and it all happened so quick
ly that | was powerless to interfere As
soon as Annis came up to the float,
Peter opened fire. 1t over in a sec
ond. A dozen men made rush fer
him and Isaw the big Swede boatman
grab him by the throat and swing his
fist to strike him. 1t was then l pulled
my gun.
Il certainly had no feeling of affection
or regard for Annis, but had saved him
from being shot by Peter once before and
] would have done so again II | had had
the chance.
1.-The night that Peters wife made tho
witten acknowledgment of her miscon-
duct with Annis she asked that ! get
word to Annis of what had happened.
Annis was expected at the fort the next
day and she wished to warn him to stav
away. She wrote the letter and gave it To
me to mail. Peter had seen her give me
the letter however, and guessed to whom
It was addressed. Before I could remon-
strate with him, he had torn it open and
read its contents.
"He Knows Everything"
''It said: All is over between Peter and
me- He knows everything. Don't come
tomorrow
Peter put the letter in his pocket and
said + want him to come. have
something to say TO him.
From his tone l knew that he meant
to shoot Annis on sight. | determined
that the only way to prevent a meeting
between the two was to drug Peter.
went TO Dr. Wilson, the post surgeon and
got him to give me a double dose Of
chloral. When l got back to the house,
persuaded Peter to take 1t. keeping him
In ignorance OF what 1T was. When Annis
came the next day Peter was still un-
der the influence of the opiate, Annis
saw Peters wife and left again for New
York. Twenty minutes after he had
gone Peter awoke.'
Fight Against Railroads.