The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1909-03-29

nan house, she returned and told the
girl to go for her husband but Farm
er refused to return home. Mrs.
Farmer then went to the sisters
home with a package which proved
to be the black olicloth pocketbook
fof Mrs. Brennan, containing the deeds,
insurance and other papers, and said
she wanted to leave it for while.
Brennan upon his return from work
o st afternoon was unable to get into
Ie snse. The keys which his wife
w. "fos:-e habit of leaving were not
in th> <ca, stoned place. While he
was tryl-E s. 7 in she saw Farmer
standing ne.-, ocIas =. remarked:
Brennan. do1-I know bought
this place?" Brenl.>. IL finally secured
ladder, entered second story win
dow and occupied the house that night.
The next morning he went to work as
usual.
Mrs. Farmer that same morning
went to the sisters house, took Mrs.
Brennan's oilcloth pocketbook from
where 1t had been hidden in a chair,
and with her husband went to Water
town, where they had an attorney
prepare papers. ordering Brennan off
the premises, which were served on
him that night.
Brennan went to Watertown and
made inquiries for his wife but failed
to find her and Saturday morning
left for his work as usual after spend
ing the night in the house. He re-
turned home however later and
found Mrs. Farmer and her husband
occupying the house. Mrs. Farmer
told him that SO long as he used the
Farmers we'll he could stay. Brennan
then reported the matter to the dis
trict attorneys office and engaged a
constable to search for his wife.
The Evidence Found.
The Farmers, in the meantime, with
others who were induced to help by
free access to ale which was furnish
ed, commenced moving their goods to
the Brennan house. In one of the
back rooms was large black trunk
which Mrs. Farmer asked one of the
lifted the ends Of the trunk while q
clothes line was wrapped around it
and tied securely. Mrs. Farmer said
"she had stuff in there she didn't want
broken" and had two men carry it to
along and directed where 1t should be
placed in a back room where other
things were piled upon it. She then
proceeded to. do some washing.
When the constable who had been
employed by Brennan went to the
house and asked where Mrs. Brennan
was, Mrs. Farmer told him she had
"gone to Watertown to get her teeth
dxad." She sent for the parish priest,
told him y similar story and had him
bless the home..t@' ~ 'Fi's7': s'~%1 'iS%F- *
On the following Monday the sherife
with several others again visited the
Farmers and asked Mrs. Farmer to
produce the deeds, and after some de-
lay she pulled the black oilcloth en-
velope from cradle and showed the
papers. Then q search Of the house
was begun: Inquiry was made in re-
gard to the trunk tied with clothes
line whereupon Mrs. Farmer denied
that she owned It, saying it belonged
to her husband, and he with an oath
said it did not belong to him. The
rope was removed, the lock broken,
and in the trunk the sheriff found
the body Of Mrs. Brennan fully Dress
ed. The head and face were horribly
mutilated by many blows from blunt
instrument but the body was not in
5ured. The turban hat which the wo-
man wore was missing but the burned
wire framework of q hat similar to
the one she wore was found in Mrs.
Farmers stove.
Mrs. Farmer and her husband were
arrested charged with the crime
which the woman at first stoutly de-
MED. Then she stated that Mrs. Bren-
nan was In her house and stood by
the door looking out Of the window
and that she stepped up behind her
and hit her with an axe. Subsequent
ly she said to the sheriff that she had
not told the truth; that "Jim" did It.
She sa1d Mrs. Brennan had been with
her uptown and that when they came
back. "Jim" was angry because she
had left her baby at a neighbor's. She
said she then went for the baby and
on her return Jim" was Just putting
the body in the trunk.
AT the jail Mrs. Farmer made anoth-
er statement In which she said that
Mrs. Brennan came to her house and
said she was not feeling we'll. She
said that Mrs. Brennan said "she
would give anything II she would take
that old axe that laid there and knock
her brains out and ! said all right,
here she goes, I takes tho axe and kills
her." She said then she put the body
In the trunk. washed up the things
that were bloody and burned up tho
things from which she could not re-
move the blood. She said Mrs. Bren-
nan was sitting down In a chair by
the window when she killed her.
The cases Of Mrs. Farmer and her
husband were appealed to the court
Of appeals which has yet to determine
the husbands case. Mrs, Farmers
conviction was affirmed and E. r. Will
COX, her counsel. asked the governor
to appoint commission to examine
into the woman's mental condition,
expressing the belief that the woman
was insane.
FURNACES CLOSE