Los Angeles herald., 1909-05-30

FOLLOW EVERY
POLTERA CLEW
OFFICERS OF LAW EXHAUST
RESOURCES
MYSTERY AS GREAT AS TWO
WEEKS AGO
Ben Elliott Transferred from Emer-
aency Cell in County Jail to
Place Among General
Prisoners

sheriff Hammel and his force of dep
mites passed yesterday gathering up
what few remaining threads are left
to the clews on which they have been
busy all week trying to clear the mys-
terry in the murder of Anna Poltera.
Despite the strenuous endeavors OF
the sheriff's force and scores of detec-
tives and myriads of amateur deec-
tives the solution of the mystery to-
day remains as much of a problem as
on the day when the grewso1ne dlseoV-
cry was made.
When the search was resumed last
Monday Sheriff Hammel and Chlet
Browne of the bureau of criminal in
vestigation of the district attorney 5
office had many likely leads TO tolloW,
and 1t was expected that by TINS time
the guilty person would be ensconced
behind prison bars.
Every cIew Followed
Everv clew has been worked out.
Rem Elliott has been arrested and eN1-
IDENTIFY has proved his innocence; MeXl-
cams galore who have been under the
nall of suspicion have been arrested
and then given their freedom every
plausible story has been run to ground
and witt no result. .,,,
The murderer of Anna Poltera is stu
at liberty. SO zealously have the OH
GERS performed their duty that even the
aged father of the slain girl was taken
before the district attorney on trlday
last and questioned still further, that
no item of information that might lead
to a clew would be overlooked.
Disheartened but not discouraged the
trail will be taken up. again Monday
morning. for Sheriff Hammel has stat
ed he will not be satisfied until the
man who committed the murder has
expiated his sin on the gallows. The
sheriff is one of the many who hold
that the axiom, Murder will out" is
a true saying.
Sheriff Receives Advice
New clews are constantly springing
up, each one of which is thoroughly
investigated, but 1t can be truthfully
said that from the outlook today, and
as each day goes by, the chance OF
catching the guilty party becomes min
mid.
AS is always the case in a great muir
der mystery, there are many who are
ready to criticise the conduct of
case Every one has different ideas,
and each mail the sheriff receives is
filled with letters containing sugges-
tions and asking why this and why
that was not done. Those on the out
side who CLEAN their information mere
ly from reading the papers are in a
poor position to judge of those who
are constantly on the scene.
Anna Poltera was murdered on Mon
day, and 1t was not until the follow
ing Thursday that the discovery was
made, allowing three days in which
TO afford the guilty party an opportu-
nifty to escape. In three days the MUIR
derer could have safely landed in Mex
leo or placed himself hundreds of miles
from the scene of the crime
Elliott to Keep Silence
This is a handicap that should be
considered by those who are apt to
judge harshly and hastily. If the muir
derer has not fled and is still near the
scene of the murder, it is certain that
sooner or later his faculties will give
way under the strain and some slight
slip will mean his doom.
AS long as there is the slightest
hope of a capture the wheels of the
law will be kept in motion and others
spurred on by thoughts of the large re-
ward will work on the mystery
Yesterday Ben Elliott, who was re-
leased Friday from q charge OF burg
larry and later rearrested at the COM
manu- u ollEIllL I1dlulDGl, WAS lIdnS-
ferred from the emergency cell in the
county Jail, where he has been kept
among prisoners of his own age, and
placed among the older prisoners. The
youth has evidently profited by his
grueling experiences of the past week,
and stated yesterday he would no
longer talk concerning any crimes with
which he was concerned.
Sheriff Has New Plan
His father visited him in the county
jail and a long conference was held.
The father was deeply disappointed
that after the release at Burbank he
was unable to take his son back to the
South Dakota home and give him a
new start In life
Unless something startling breaks
today will be a quiet day with the
officers who have been working on the
case, and with minds and agility fresh
ened new start will be made Monday
morning.
Sheriff Hammel has in mind a new
plan of procedure which he does not
wish to divulge but which viii begin
Monday morning, and a dragnet will be
instituted to remove all possibility of
the real criminal being at present in
the vicinity Of the crime.