The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1908-07-28
MAINE HOTEL GETS
INTO THE L|MEL|CHT
Prosecuting Witness Tells of Visits
to Hotel in Company With Other
Young Girls and Grand Jury In
vestigation May Follow After the
Present Trial.

Today in Judge w. w. McMahon'a
room and Judge LeGrand II. Meyer,
frail little girl, I6 years of age. neat
ly dressed, wearing three cornered
straw hat and light wash gown, ap-
peared at the preliminary hearing i'm
which she charged her father, a thin,
nervous man with gray hair, with an
unspeakabIe crime.
The girl was Mary e. Geib, and the
was caused by Mr.. Anna Geib, the fos-
termother of the girl. who a few days
ago was informed of the girls condi-
tion by n local physician and at once
Hammond contractor called into court
to answer fer his alleged crime.
Grand Jury May BE Called.
The hearing this morning served to
| reveal the lines along which the coun-
sci for both state and the defense will
proceed and the evidence which was
introduced this morning indicates that
there will be developments of a SENECA
| tionaI character which will reveal a
condition TO rid the city of Hammond
of institution which makes such
| crimes possible
Attorney Joseph Conray appeared for
the State and Attorney Fred Crum-
packer Tor the defendant. Mr.. Coons.
The most important fact brought out
by the preliminary hearing is the fact
that Mr.. Coons will not deny that he
I ic fa+ of rirI hut tIa
defense of Mr.. Crumpacker will be that
Mr Coons did not have improper re-
lations with his daughter.
Says They Occurred Mt Maine.
The burden of proof will therefore,
will be on the state to show that the
many clandestine meetings to which
Miss Mary Geib testifies actually took
place and that at these meetings, which
are alleged to have occurred in room 27
of the Maine Hotel Mr.. Coons was
} guilty of the crime of which he is
: charged
| Before the court started with it's
: hearing, it gave the large crowd of peo-
pie who crowded into the COON and the
corridors to understand that the mat
: ter in hand las a very delicate one and
that no demonstrations of any kind
? would be tolerated
Girl Herself First Witness.
Miss Mary +. Geib was the first wit
] ness sworn. In response TO the ques-
g tion of Mr.. Conroy she stated that her
name was Mary f. Geib that she lived
!. in 322 Pummer avenue and that she
a was 16 years of age Nov. 16.
] She stated that she came to live with
: Mrs Geib when she was three and one
e half years old and that she remembers
= cT,1 l.,
girl
She testified that he had always been
2 very good to her and had gotten into
5 her good graces by gifts of money and
y candy which had been forthcoming as
t long as she could remember.
) The testimony of the little girl was
that she had met Mr.. Coons on a great
: many occasions prior to November 1st
n Of last year. but that her father had
s been no more than ordina rily friendly
e with her.
He boarded at the house of Mrs. Geit
for some time along about January
2 1907. first and that previous TO thai
4 time he had seen her once or twice g
i day After leaving his boarding house
with Mrs. Geib. she testified that he
went to live in the Central block in q
room in the Main hotel and that She
S went to see him there.
Was Accompanied by Girl.
The occasion of her first visit ther,
was when she called at his room Il
get an umbrella which Mrs. Geib haC
loaned him when he left the house on
=, rainy night some time before. Th'
y time of the first visit Of the girl. sh'
y was accompanied by a little girl frienC
/ whose name is withheld for obvious
II rea sons from this story.
The first visit was made about
year ago and there was not a subse
e quent visit until last November AT
VI ter the visit in November the evidenc
l. shows that there were other visits Il
n the room until on about the 25th o
June when the offense specified in tn
lGor,fInr.ad 4