Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1908-10-20
Jury Simply Finds That Sleuman
Killed Himself and the Girl.
FORMERS WILL IS ON RECORD
Contains No Mention of the Name of
Woman He Killed.
AMPLE PROVISION FOR FAMILY
Business Affairs OF Dead Grain Dealer
Are Wound Tn, Making the
Day Busy One I'm This
Case.
sIeuman-Hart In0ue.t.

Sleumnn-Hart Enauest,
That Eva Kart came TO her death from
q Gunshot wound ~ the hands OF sewsn
sleuman, and that sswslI sleuman came
20 his death from a Gunshot wound In
flieted by his own hand In . house at
1904 Burdstts street, city OF Omaha,
county of Douglas, state OF Nebraska, ON
the night OF October ~, 1905, between the
hours OF IL and ls O'Clock.
This is the verdict OF the coroner's jury
| In the inquest OF Sewell Sleuman and
Eva Hart. The inquest was held by cor
oner Brewer at the Davis undertaking
parlors, 709 South sixteenth street Mon
day afternoon, beginning at > o'clock.
The jury consisted of these men:
Harry Wilkinson, foreman, 24O7 Dodge
Oscar Peterson, us South sixteenth
street.
Martin Durham, 7Is South Seventeenth
street
r. il. Herbert 1902 Douglas street.
George P Windheim, l4i2 South six
Max Becht, 144s South Seventeenth
| street.
Much Progress H. Made.
Yesterday was busy day for officials
and relatives to whom fell the lot of look
ing after the bodies and affairs of seweu
Sleuman and Eva. Hart. The coroner $
jury held an inquest, returning the verdict
stated above, the body OF Smeman was
taken by his brother, George, to Hastings
for burial. and that of Miss Hart by her
brother, Byron Hart, to Regar. Mo-: tho
business affairs of sleuman were wound
up, his office closed and his will filed for
probate in county court The relatives
took the bodies to the respective burial
places last evening on the first trains pos
| sible after the coroner's inquest
Only a small number of persons was
| present at the inquest. which started
promptly at the hour set. Byron Hart.
| the brother of the young woman. took the
| witness chair after the Jurors had taken
! their places. In answer TO a question, Mr..
Hart who Is a booSkeeper for tho Omaha
I Printing Company stated that his sister
had known sleuman for about two years.
Did Not Go In Death Room.
Young Hart, according to his testimony,
met the special police officer, Harry
! Timer. at the door OF the Hart residence,
| the officer having been at the house when
| Hart arrived there. The two men entered
the house together, but Hart SAYS he did
not 60 into the room where the bodies
| were fou"G.
In his description of the interior of the
! house the young man told practically what
has already been related Of that part of
the case. The greater part of his testi-
mony was In answer to questions put
by Attorney James II. Adams, who is rep
resenting sleumans brother, George, and
the other heirs He took particular pains
! to ascertain the extent of the damage
! done to the house furnishings and clothes
by Sleuman in his destructive frenzy, dur
! ing which according to Byron Hart, he had
! thrown the pictures onto the floor and
| trampled on them, thrown a vase down
! the cellar stairs, cut big Sits In the leather
! upholstery of the lounge in one OF the
| rooms and sashed the carpets with
! butcher knife.
]. p. Comstock. sleuman's local manager,
testified that he was a telegraph operator
by profession, and that he had been in
the employ of sleuman for some time.
! sIeuman Acted Uneasy.
| II saw my employer alive Saturday
afternoon for the last time and he did not
! act then as he had acted before. appearing
uneasy. we we're out 10 lunch together
Saturday, and then returned to business
81 next heard from him over the tele-
phone, when he called me late Saturday
night. At first / thought he said that
something awful had happened but no"
I think he said that something awful was
going to happen. lie told me to phone
his brother at Hastings. and then hung
up the receiver.
| "Cauing up the operator at central,
learned the number from which sleumsn
had 'phoned-I think 1t was Webster $50
and | tried TO get It but failed. l am not
sure whether / put in call for George
! sleuman at Hastings. or 'phoned the police
station and told them what seuman had
told me about something awful going 10
happen. | made both calls"
Mr.. Comstock was asked II sleumsn had
ever talked of Miss Hart to him, and said
that he had never heard his employer men
ton the woman
The note which sewel sleuman. had writ
( ten on one of his business letter heads, ask
ing that II anything happened his brothoS
| George be notified, was read by CorOnAS
Brewer and Identified by Mr. Comstock as
being in the handwriting Of his employer.
sIeumRn's Mental status.
| one Of the most Important bits OF testi-
I mony elected at the inquest was Mr.. Com
stocks statement concerning the apparent
mental condition Of sieuman before his
death.
| HAD he ever spoken to you OF going TO
the great beyond?" asked Coroner Brewer.
quoting a phrase from sleuman's own note.
NO" replied Mr.. Comstock, 'he never
did"
Then in reply TO queries by Coroner
| Brewer and Attorney Adams, the witness
testified that Sleuman had not been paying
much attention TO his business lately, and
seemed nervous and unnatural OF late and
had made a number Of mistakes in figuring
| up margins on stock and in other work
connected with his business.
Harry Timer, the police officer who had
been dispatched to the Hart home on the
emergency motorcycle as soon as the police
station was notified Of the tragedy, stated
that the authorities first heard from Mr..
! Comstock about 1880 o'clock Saturday
night, and that after receiving his instruc-
tions from Captain Dunn, he made the
run TO the Hart residence at 1870 Burdette
street. and arrived there at II As o'clock.
| There WAS a light inside and / rang IL