Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1909-03-04

less than two miles Of Eastwood and
he could get to Woodstock from there
as easily as from Gables Corners. The
man thanked him and walked on to-
ward Eastwood at a rapid pace.
At three O'Clock Miss Alice Smith
arrived at the Eastwood station to
post a letter. AS she was going into
the station gate she came face to face
with Lord Somerset, who had been in
Woodstock the year before, and who
had called at the home of her grand
father, John Hayward at Eastwood.
Somerset wore an astrakhan cap. He
came up to Miss Smith and shook
hands, saying: How do you do?
Don't you remember me?" and asked
after her family and grandfather. He
told Miss Smith he was coming back
later, and then bought a ticket for
Hamilton. Miss Mary Swazie, another
young lady of Eastwood, also was at
the station for the three o'clock train,
and saw the stranger. His trousers
were turned up and his shoes were
muddy. Miss Ida Cromwell of East
wood also saw him at the station.
James Hayward, an Eastwood store
/ keeper, saw him at the station and
recognized the so-called Lord Somer-
set.
At 1888 the train for Niagara Falls
reached Eastwood and the stranger in
the fur cap climbed aboard. George
Hay, a brakeman, saw and remem-
bered him distinctly and Identified
Birchall positively as the man. Other
witnesses also identified him, their
evidence covering Birchall's trail up
to his return to the Stafford house,
| Buffalo, at $3.50 at night. Witnesses
also identified the dead body of Ben
we'll as that of the young man with
| Birchall on the train to Eastwood, and
on the road to the swamp, Birchall,
according to the detectives deduc-
lions, had four hours and "a minutes
in which to walk the four miles from
Eastwood to the swamp, do the muir.
der, and walk back to Eastwood. He
arrived at 11:14 in the morning and
departed at 1898 in the afternoon. II
he took three hours to walk the eight
miles, he still had one hour and "a
minutes for the crime.
As a final proof of Birchalls guilt,
Murray was advised by the London,
England, police that Col. Benwell had
lust received from Birchall an undat-
ed letter, headed with the address Of
Niagara Falls. The postmark revealed
its date as February 20, three days
after Birchall left Benwell dead In
in the swamp. In this letter Birchal
asked that $500 be sent him at once
adding: Il have been talking to your
son to-day about arrangements, and he
Is so we'll satisfied with the prospect
here that he is ready to go immediate
ly into the partnership, and he Ii
writing to you to-day on the subject
The $500 asked for was to be the
first payment on $4,000 which Col
Benwell was to send to his son fol
Pirchell if the farm and prospects
pleased the youth. Pelly identified
the body found on February Is as Ben
wells body, and therefore Birchal
could not have been talking to hin
on February 90. Instead Of writing
to his father on February 20, BenWel
was lying cold in death. Having
found witnesses who identified Biz
chall as the bogus Lord Somerset, witt
had made frequent visits to Blenhein
swamp the years before, and hat
learned the path to Pine Pond, tn
lake in the swamp that is supposed t
be Nbottomless, Murray knew that hi
case was complete.
Birchall had embarked in bushes
as a murderer. He had deliberatel,
planned the crimes and fitted himsel
for the practice of his profession
While masquerading as Lord SomeI
set he had selected the bottomles
lake known as Pine Pond for the gray
that would tell no tales. The Blen
helm swamp he marked as the plac'
of slaughter. He was familiar wit
the emigration business, through hi
father-in-law's knowledge Of it, an
conceived the idea of taking rio
young men instead of poor imm
grants. He created an imaginativ
farm and went back to England seei
ing victims, but made the mistake c
taking two instead of one. Eve
then his plans were we'll laid. He il
tended to kill Benwell in the swan
and shove Pelly into the whirlpool
rapids. Neither body would be foun
for he would bury Benwell in the DO
tomless lake and Pelly would wants
in the rapids. If one of the Elridge
had not slipped in the swamp b
2 would not have stepped upon Bel
! wells body, revealing the crime. BIZ
chall had not meant to leave the bod
! where anyone could find it. He wa
2 heading for Pine Pond when he SIZE
: Benwell and intended to drag tn
body there, but a recent storm ma
4 swept the swamp and choked with dt
bris the path to the bottomless lax
E With Benwell and Pelly vanished frol
' off the face of the earth, Bircha
n would have collected through bogu
letters to the fond parents the SUI
q still due from his victims and the
n returned to England in pursuit {
other prey.
e Birchalrs trial began at Woodstocl
d Ontario, on September %, 1890. Th
case attracted worldwide ~attentio
l and the English newspapers as we
y as those of France, Germany an
$ Italy printed columns upon column
7 of the proceedings. Despite the bri
! liant and desperate fight made by til