The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1910-08-05
Oriental Admitted Crimes
To Mrs. Starbuck But
Tale Was Not Believed
REMAINS OF son ARE NOW ONLY
MISSING LINK IN THE TRAGEDY

~ AKLAND, Aug. Am a state
Il ment made today by Mrs. Mar
garet Starbuck, owner fthe
ranch near Cazadero where the Ken
dali murders occurred, to District At
torney Clarence F. Lea of Santa Rosa,
the crimes were fixed upon Henry
,Yamagachi, the Japanese employed
on the ranch, whose story when he
appeared Monday at the Starbuck
home in Lake street, at first thought
to be an erratic, foolish yarn, is now
looked upon as confession of his
crimes by the Japanese.
Was Greatly Excited
According to Mrs Starbuck's state
ment, Yamagachi appeared at her
home the afternoon of Monday, July
rs, greatly excited, and bearing the
marks of struggle He brought
with him the dog belonging to the
StarbFucks, and which had been kept
on the ranch The mans actions
were SO peculiar and his excitement
so great that Mrs. Starbuck asked him
what was the matter The Japanese
replied
Il have had trouble bad fight"
with whom'" asked Mrs Star
buck.
Those Kendalls,' he said. "They
come at me-all-they beat and shoot
me. l killed them in defense. l put
them away
Mrs. Starbuck, not knowing just
how to take the mans statements,
telephoned to her husband, who left
his Office and went home The three
and Miss Crystal Starbuck then talked
together, and Yamagachi again told
of his fight with, the Kendalls and his
killing of the three The story OF the
alteration and subsequent murder of
the Kendalls seemed unreasonable TO
the Starbucks, and no credence was
placed in it. Mrs. Starbuck and her
husband both thought that the affair
amounted to nothing more than a fist
fight, and paid no serious attention to
the orientaPs incoherent narrative,
other than to repeat it to Attorney
Brunk, her legal adviser
Promised Protection
H. f. Starbuck told the Japanese that
If he had had any serious trouble with
the kendalls and had done any shoot
ing in self-defense not to worry. that
the matter could be taken up and he
could be protected and given justice.
Yamagachi then said:
My life is no good will end my
life"
While the Starbucks were comforting
about Yamagachi's story the Japanese
slipped out by way of the basement Of
the home and has not been seen or
heard of since by them. He was TO ap
pear the next day to confer further
with the Starbucks. who are now con
vinced that he has committed suicide
When asked at what time the fight
with the Kendall family took place
Yamagachi said: Why. last week"
which fixes the date of the crime some
where between July 16 and July 2s.
Believed Insane
The day after the visit of the Japanese
Starbuck telephoned to Attorney Brunk
at Berkeley reciting the peculiar story
told by Yamagachi., Both made light of
the story and attached no particular
Significance to it. Brunk laughed and
said thai. the man was probably wrong
in his mind.
No more was thought of the matter
until the strange disappearance of the
three Kendalls. followed by the rumor
that they had been murdered. Even
then Mrs. Starbuck made the statement
that they had in all probability fed
from thesrcountry to escape criminal
charges that were pending against
them, brought by Starbuck for stealing
cattle from the ranch and misappropri
ating money. Starbuck was out of the
city at the time and knew nothing of
the horrible crime and the connection
of the Japanese with it until he read
the account in a morning paper as he
was returning home this morning.
Starbuck said today:
Now that 1 have ascertained the
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