Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-05-12
FORGING THE LINK
IN LAPORTE CRIME
Revelations Today Point
Strongly Against Lamphere.
A GOLD TOOTH is FOUND
Thought to Have Been One Belong.
ing to Mrs. Guinness.
SLUICING THE ASHES TODAY
Prosecution Claims to Have Impor-
tant Evidence Secured From Pris-
oner Through Daily Visits
of Clergyman.
Thought to Have Been One Belong
ing to Mrs. Guinness.
SLUICING THE ASHES TODAY


which has hitherto been suppressed was
made public in the Guinness tragedy to-
day. II is contained in the report of DR..
j. l.. Gray. who performed the autopsy
on the body which the authorities have
steadfastly claimed is that of Mrs. Belle
Guinness. DR.. Gray In his report tells of
three rings which wer1 found upon the
corpse and also reveals the fact that the
ring hand. hitherto declared missing. 10
still in existence.
The rings which might be expected to
reveal the identity of the wearer only add
to the mystery of the case. Two of them
contain inscriptions one being ''P. S. to J.
s.. August -. 81" and the other. 'P. q.
to ]. s.. 3-3. '95.''
Mrs. Guinness husband was Peter Gun
ness. but the identity OF j. s." and p.
s.. Is puzzle which none of the local
officials would attempt to explain. Jennie
Olsen. 1t is suggested. may have been the
owner of the rings but the size of the cir
cles taken in connection with the date and
the fact that she was born in 1879 pre-
clude this as a definite conclusion.
gold crowned tooth has been found
in the debris of the Guinness home. Ii is
believed to be from the head of Mrs. Belle
Guinness.
The tooth was found in the debris of the
cellar while Sheriff Shutter was con-
tinuing his preparations to begin sluicing
the ashes. The tooth is a hollow molar
with a gold crown. the metal being in
dented and to some extent encrusted by
cinders. The tooth. however. bears every
evidence OF having come from the in
cinerated skull of Mrs. Guinness.
DR.. Gray in his ofiacial report also de-
scribes at length the remnants OF cloth
ing and night robes found with the four
bodies. One of the night robes was that
OF an adiiit. the length of the inside seam
az Al l-N ~lx<
gown was trimmed with lace and ribbon.
and it's total length. according to the
remnants at hand, was fifty-two inches.
Remnants of a child's night dress and
DIR. Gray's report concludes as follows:
From the examination OF the adult fe-
male II is impossible to determine the ex-
act cause of DEATH"
was a report uy DIR. j. H. William Meyer
on the body of the male infant found in
the ruined house. 1t describes the condi-
tion of the corpse as already revealed. tho
finding being that the cause OF death
could not be determined.
90. Sluicing the Ashes.
The mining operations" which have
been promised by Sheriff Smutzer for sew
eral days, started in earnest today In the
ruins of the Guinness home. Louis
Schultze who was employed by the sher-
iff to suice the ashes in the cellar COM
pleted his apparatus early ana began the
tests to determine whether his arraner-
ments were of the character demanded by
the work at hand. Schultze yesterday
constructed sluicing box nine feet long
and a foot square. and connected IL with
the tank of windmill near the house by
means of a line of heavy hose.
An attachment from a street sprinkler
is used to distribute the water through
the box. Additional evidence regarding
the methods by which the persons whose
corpses were found on the Guinness farm
met death was unearthed THIS morning.
Almost two dozen pairs of scissors bent
and curved in the fashion of surgical in
struments. are said 10 have b"en found I'm
the ashes i'm the cellar. anG. in add tion.
three knives. two of surgical character
and another an unmsta ka BILE dirk. were
picked up.
In the absence of evidence to the con-
trary II is believed the dirk may have
been the chief weapon employed in the
series Of murders which have brought
could easily have slipped the snakelike
weapon between the ribs of the victims
and penetrated the hearts.
The fact that there was no mark or
lein's body is a possible refutation of
this theory But II is pointed out that
Helgelein. according to the findings Of
DIR. J. II. William Meyer. as made public
yesterday. succumbed only after a fierce
struggle in which he tore a handful OF
hair from the person OF his murderer.
Deadening Drugs Used.
Chloroform or some other deadening
drug is thought to have been used to
subdue the death struggle of the South
Dakota farmer. after which some deadly
poison was used TO encompass his death.
In all the other bodies found on the
disprove the dirk theory, although the
OF the cadavers preciudes def
mite information on this point. The
knives and scissors are thought to have
been used In dismembering the bodies.
Each corpse was mutiated in practically
the same manner. the bodies of the latest
victims showing particularly expert ana
tomical work.
An interesting side light of the character
of Mrs Guinness has been furnished by
Mrs. c. o. Lapham of Laporte. who for
six years was neighbor OF the woman.
Mrs. Lapham says that on the only oc-
casion on which she called upon her
her hostess sat near open
window "A strong breeze through this
opening blew aside the folds of loose
house dress which Mrs. Guinness
wearing and revealed about her body a
wide belt containing pouches of various
sizes and sheaths which seemed to have
been constructed fer knives. AS sequel
to this experience Mrs. Laphams daugh
ter is said to have related an experience
at the house when she had accepted an
invitation to supper there.
Mrs. Lapham.~i it Is reported. said that
she engaged the Guinness children in con-
regarding their home. but that
In the midst Of their talk Mrs. Guinness
the children and that they
thereupon became strangely silent and
disquieted This happened some two
weeks before Jennie Olsen disappeared.
the latter having been more or less of an
intimate friend of Miss Lapham.
Defense Strengthened.
The legal forces of the defense were
yesterday by the addition OF
Ellsworth z. Weir. an attorney of some
note in this section. His retention fol-
lowed closely on the arrival of William
Lamphere. the father of the prisoner