The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-06-12
Occasion and Motive for Killing
Mrs. Scott Castle Charlton
Unknown.
SOCIETY OF THE MAFIA
BLAMED FOR THE DEED
American Colony in Milan Is
TerrOr-Stricken, and Many
Women Depart.
BY CLARENCE J. BARRETT.

Special Gable to The Tribune
MILAN, Italy, June IA msytery,
whose fabric rivals the product Of the
Imagination. confronts the Italian po-
lice in the strange death of Mrs. Mary
Scott Castle Charlton, whose bruised
and beaten body lies in the morgue at
Como Found in 81 trunk in the bottom
Of Lake Como, whittier no one had seen
it borne. this newest intrigue or murder
holds all the elements which usually
charact erize the work Of Siciliau Malta
The death of Mrs. Charlton is similar
TO that of Miss Estelle Reid, the Amerl-
can girl who was killed several weeks
ago. and whose death mystery has not
been unraveled.
Through fear Of the power, OF the
silent and avenging Malta. the pol lice
will not admit that they hold this ter.
rible band responsible. However,, 1T
is evident from indications and de"
velopments of the day that the
strange agency which brought MRS.
Charlton to her doom is suspected by
the authorities here to be linked with
the Sicilian society. When ! arrived in
Milan today the body of Mrs, Charlton
lay in the public morgue at Como
thirty miles from the city.
Americans Aroused.
The American colony here is vastly
excited, and we'll it may be, for, since
the murder of two American women In
such a short time, fear has grown to
such an extent that many American
women here are preparing TO leave
Italy entirely. The king s. Procurator
has announced that Mrs. Charlton was
murdered He has also announced that
her identity is now established beyond
doubt, and the statement is supple
mented with some of the detail. which
lends further horror to crime hldeous
as any contrived by the author OF
stories of violent death. Mrs; Charl-
ton was alive when her body was
placed in the trunk. Whether she was
murdered for the purpose of robbery,
or whether she was a victim OF haCred
and revenge, is not positively estao-
lishcd
it is held here that the Malta were
really responsible for her death al
though the police will not admit TINS.
The police are searching for the wo.
man IS husband, Porter c.. Charlton, and
for another man.
Whether the Malta struck down Mrs.
Charlton as they did Miss Reid, to ere
ate terror in the hearts of Americans
and to show the utter futillty of ar
ity of the band is a puzzling question
which American residents would like
to have solved.
The post.mortem showed seven
wounds on the American woman s head,
any one of which would have caused un-
consciousness but none death. After
striking the woman viclously the mur"
dcrers had wrapped the body in strip
OF cloth, crammed it into the trunk and
dumped the trunk into the lake, most
likely under the cover of darkness.
That the murder was not done for rob
berry is shown partially by the fact that
rings were upon Mrs Charlton IS fingers
when her body was taken from the lake.
No effort had been made to conceal the
identity Of the victim. Letters writ"
ten to her and bearing her full name
were found with the body.
More Than One Slayer.
The police say the trunk was Of such
weight that it could not have been
carried to the lake by one person. The
police intimate that more than one
person was implicated in the crime.
A Russian, Constantine Ispolatoff,
with whom Mr.. and Mrs Charlton be-
came friendly in Rome, is detained IN
custody, although he pleads entire ig-
Dorance Of the crime. The second man
being sought is supposed to have fled
into Switzerland.
Americans from western cities arc
much interested in this strange case, for
Mary Crittenden Scott Castle was a
belle in San Francisco several years
ago before her marriage She was a
beautiful woman until her features
were marred by the death blows, Fish
ermen at Lake Como told me today that
the couple were apparently deeply at
tached to each other. One fisherman
said they frequently rowed together on
the lake in a small boat which they had
purchased when they leased cottage.