Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-01-15
Minister DiscIoses Confession
Made by Ray Lamphere.
GUINNESS HOUSE MURDERS
Corrected Version of Statement Made
by the Condemned Man.
DENIAL OF THE HOME BURNING
Lamphere Declares He Was Not
Guilty of That Crime, But COM
panion May Have Done So.

CHICAGO, ILL.,. January 13.-The Tri-
bune prints the following this morning
under Mount Pleasant. Iowa, date:
The Rev. DR.. L. A. Schell, president
Of Iowa Wesleyan University, broke his
long silence today and gave to the Tri-
hume the confession of Ray Iamphcre,
made to him in the county Jail at La
porte. Ind, April, 1905.
DIR. Scheu authorized the publication
OF the confession and described how it
given to him. When seen by a rep
resentativc of the Tribune in his Office
at the Iowa Wesleyan University he die
tatcd the following statement of his
seasons for making public the confession:
Reports Were Conflicting.
In view of the conflicting reports
which continue to keep alive interest in
the Guinness case and the interrogations
which must continually arise in the
minds of Borrowing friends. and recog-
nizing that the principal facts already are
made public, l have concluded To relieve
myself or further responsibility by COM
niunicating to the public through the
Chicago Tribune the details of my three
conversations with the late Ray Lam
Dhere in the Jail at Laporte. the state
nlentS he made to and the circum-
stances under which they were made
Here follows the story of DIR. Schcll's
visits to Lamphcre, after which the state
mcnt continues:
II promised not to tell the prosecuting
attorney and after some two hours of
general conversation about Mrs. Gun
Ness he told me the story of the night
as follows:
Purchase of Chloroform.
II had been with Mrs Guinness from
June. 1907, while carpenter and man
OF all work around the house
Three times at her request I purchas ed
chloroform and once l dug IL hole in the
hog lot for her and helped her put in
the body Of some one who she said had
died suddenly about the house, and she
thought the easiest way was to cover
aim up and say nothing about il
'Lamphere went on to say that he had
no suspicious of Mrs. Guinness having
murdered any one until one night when
ne returned suddenly from Michigan CITY
and. having bored some holes through a
WALL saw her administer some chloro-
form to a man and hit him in the back
OF the head with Ratchet. He then
said that he had taken money from Mrs
Guinness several times. making her dig
up or he would tell on her. Once she
gave him 500, at another time S15 and
again So. He would then go to the sa-
looms and when he was sober once more
he would find the money all gone
Sunday night after he and nerTess
ne mentioned had been drinking about Ii
O'Clock the two went together to the
Guinness house. letting themselves in nv
a key which he had. and going quietly
so as not to disturb another hired man
who was in the house.
Drugs Woman aud Children.
with some of the chlorofoiIn which he
had purchased for Mrs. Guinness, before
2T1Ier
he had put into another bottle the two
gave Mrs. Guinness some chioroforrn,
holding 1t under her nose until she be-
came quiet. The little boy was in bed
with her. They then gave some to the
two children, who were in bed in another
room. ] asked him to explain how all
were together when found. He said he
did not know, that he was pretty drunk
but that was the way he remembered it,
They then searched the house for
tho large sum of money which they felt
sure hidden in the house but found
only d small amount. He did not set
the house on fire, though lie said he was
not certain that the negreSs did not do
it for she was drunk AS he lie
stoutly protested that he had not ar
ranged a candle that it would burn
down and later set fire TO the place, and
that he had nothing i'll his mind more
than to get money enough to have a
'biS time with
Leave House Together.
''ie and the ncgress left the house to
Eether, and at certain point in the road
sue went home and he went running
away. greatly afraid because he saw the
house burning. j advised him TO tell the
story to the prosecuting attorney and
save the county the cost of the trial and
his sisters the expense of defending him.
j told him would sec Attorney Smith
and ask him to be easy on him, aud al
low him to consult with lawyer before a
Plea of guilty Was made. / met Smith
almost Immediately after leaving the jail
and told him Lamphcrc was going to con-
Tess.
Il advised him to arrest the ne.ress,
blit he attached no Importance to it, and
j urged him to let Lamphere have a law
YER He asked me If Lamphere had con-
fessed. and / made an evasive answer
FIFTY WIVES HAS FAKE BARON