Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1909-08-02
JAMES PHILLIPS IS ACCUSED
Truck Gardener Believed to Have
Fired the Shots.
JEALOUSY MOTIVE FOR MURDER
Phillips Said to Have Suspected His
Wife and Hamilton.
SIMPLE STORY OF THE CRIME
Charles Pate, who slept with Ham
iItOn, Gives Details of the shoot
ing, which Was PartIc-
uIRrIY AtrOcious.


uIRrIy AtrOcious.
One Of the most cold blooded murders in
the history of Douglas county occurred at
1880 o'clock Sunday morning, when Mar
shall c. Hamilton. manager of sawmll
on the Missouri river, near the line between
Omaha and Florence, and one OF the best
known citizens in that section, was shot in
his sleep and almost instantly killed.
James Phillips, a truck gardener and
small farmer, who lives only a short dis
tance from Hamiltons home, is accused OF
the crime, for which jealousy of his wife
is believed to be the prime motive, and the
officers of the law are bending every ef-
fort to capture both Phillips and his
younger brother, who was present when
the crime was committed
The place OF the crime is a sawmill To-
Gated at the north end of sixteenth street,
on the river bank, on a strip of ground be-
tween the limits OF Omaha and Florence.
Hamilton ran the mill and slept in the mill
office, a one-room building only few feet
from the mill.
Charles Pate, a distant relative OF Hamil.
ton and employed around the mill, slept In
the office also. both men taking their meals
with Charles Hamilton, a brother of the
IluIutISu man. WHO lives Oulf wv Sdlud
south.
Awakened 10 BE shot.
Hamilton was sleeping on a cot and Pate
was sleeping on the floor with his head
near the door when shortly after midnight,
the latter was awakened by two men rap
ping at the screen door. The man outside
asked IL Hamilton was home saying he
wished to speak to him about a bill of
lumber
Pate unfastened the screen and one OF
the men stepped inside and as he did so
Pate remarked, IT'S Phillips isn't it?" to
which the man replied, Yes, it's Phillips"
He walked toward Hamilton's cot and Pate
stepped outside on the porch. AS he did
so. two pistol shots were fired inside. Pate
ran in his bare feet to the home of Charles
Hamilton and as he reached the house three
more, Shots were fired The brother
instantly aroused, and both men returned to
the office, to find Hamilton lying on the
ground at the side OF the porch and not
more than twenty feet from the river bank,
Alarm Given at Once.
No one was sin sight and without wait
ing to examine Hamilton's wounds the two
men started for Florence, more than
mile away. to give the alarm City Marshal
Mari was first notified and he in turn noti-
in Florence, and the coroner All the men
then returned to the mill, where Hamilton
was found dead with two bullet wounds in
his head.
The first shot was evidently fired as
Hamilton lay in his bed The bullet en-
tered through the lower lip and passed back
into the head. the revolver being held so
close that there is a large powder burn on
the chin. Another bullet passed through
the right ear and into the base of the
brain, the latter probably being fired after
Hamilton was outside the house. In all
five shots were fired, two inside and three
outside the house, but an examination of
the body made last night by Dr. Dunn
showed but the two wounds in the head.
Search for Phillips.
Within a short time Coroners Assistant
T. r. Jameson and Sheriff Bradley arrived
and almost from the first suspicion began
to point to Phillips. His house was visited
but was found to be empty the neighbors
stating that his wife had gSne away two
weeks previously, taking w0h her their
child.
It is said there had been trouble be-
tween the two and II has been the Inn
preston of those living in the neighbor-
hood that the two had separated, but this
is denied by Phillips parents. who live
at Thirty-third and Lake streets in Omaha
They claim that Mrs. Phillips is in St.
Paul. Mimi, on a visit, and that she is
expected home on Wednesday Of this week
Both Of Phillips parents refuse to discuss
the case and could give the sheriff little
information, but from a remark OF his
mother to the effect that II her son did
the deed he had cause for it It is be-
- Al
between her son and his wife and that
HamiIton's name has been mentioned be-
fore this by the woman's husband.
Search for Phillips.
As yet little is known as 10 Phillips
movements Saturday night previous to the
time the crime was committed He was
seen in Florence about o'clock in the
evening and was next seen there about
ll:9O o'clock, about an hour before Haml-
ton was shot
Sheriff Bradley is personally directing
the search for the murderer and was out
all Sunday and last night with Deputies
Flanagan and Dobson from Omaha and
Deputy Thompson of Florence. number
Of the Omaha police who know Phillips by
sight have also been detailed 10 work on
the case.
1t is not thought that either Phillips
or his brother have gotten away and II
is the theory Of the officers that they are
in hiding either In Omaha or in the neig-
horhood Of Florence.
HamIItOn's Friends Defend Him
Friends Of Hamilton in Florence, where
he has lived all his life and where he
has been held in the highest esteem. re-
fuse 10 believe there has been any ground
for Phillips jealousy. He had been mar
ried. but his wife died some years ago.
His father came 20 Florence in ls49, and
for many years was one OF the best known
OF Missouri river pilots. Charles, the
brother, was also pilot, and the murdered
man ran on the river during steamboat
/ days he was about 50 years Of age.
The body was taken in charge by the
coroner, who will hold an inquest the
first part Of the week