New-York tribune., 1910-01-26
Guardian
Trust Company
Of New York
ITO Broadway
Capital Z Surplus $1,000, 900
DEFENDS HER son
MRS. DENNISON'S TALE
Say Police Tried to Wr7ng
"Confesaon" from Her.

In their efforts to substantiate the charge
OF murder against Herbert Jerome penni-
son, the magician, who is held in conpec-
ton with the death of Arthur Shibley and
Robert Lonlas, the police yesterday put the
man, his mother and aunt through Cruel
ling cross-examination. The detectives in
sisted that Dennison was the man wanted
for the Highbridge shooting, despite the ap-
parent lack of similarity between the de-
scription given by Arthur ShibIey and the
appearance of the man under arrest, The
assaiiant was described as dark man.
Dennison is blond
Mrs. Dennison returned to her room, No.
t52 East 1eSth street last night, after she
had been "heckled" by the Central Office
detectives. The woman was cautioned by
the police not to give any information to
the newspapers, but she insisted on making
public the details of her sons arrest and
the subsequent police inquisition to which
she said she had been subjected. In her
statement Mrs. pennison was generally cor
roborated by Mrs, Mary Rlddick. the house
keeper of the boarding house where Dennison
and his relatives lived since December rs,
The maSician's mother accused the police
of having arrested her son to make it ap-
2 pear that they had solved the Highbridse
the care of her sister or herself. and that
on the only occasion of his disappearance
she at once notified the police. and asked
to have search made for him. The date
of this incident she gave as January 4.
hut the lieutenant of the East 12sth street
station said that the report must have been
sent to Police Headquarters.
Mrs. DenniSon said that the arrest Of her
son came to her as q surprise, She had
been notified by DR.. Lowde1, who is in
charge or a sanatorium at Aniityville Long
Island, TO take her son from that insttu-
ton, as the police had made inquiries con-
coming his honlcidal tendencies. Mrs. Den
nison. her aunt and her son reached Long
Island City on Monday afternoon, They
were about to enter a restaurant when the
detectives stepped UP and informr-
that they would have to go to Police Head
quarters.
Although Mrs. Dennison said that she
pleaded with the detectives to be allowed
to eat, she charged last night that the po-
lice dragged her to headquarters, aud it was
not until after she had been put through a
grillipg inquisition that she was allowed
to get food. This statement was corrob-
Grated by her sister. The women were
taken to their home ct 1 o'clock yesterday
morning, when the police opened their
trunks and searched every corner Of the
room.
According to Mrs. Dennison, Inspector
McCafferty's men then told her that they
had found the gun which her son had used
to shoot Arthur Shibley. The woman de-
MED that he had carried a revolver since
he was an actor Mrs. Dennison said that
the police then told her that her son had
escaped from her room, and when she de
MED this they made every effort TO wiring
from her a confession"
Mrs. Dennison readily accounted for her
sons whereabouts on the day of the double
murder, and unless the police are with
holding evidence which they do not care to
make public the arrest may further COM
shooting of the boys.
Aneen shibley, the father of the boy who
save the description of the Highbridge
murderer, was not inclined to accept tho
solution of the shooting with the arrest of
Dennison. He at once points TO the differ
ence in the complexion of the man arrested
and the man described 1t was also re-
marked that the finding of the revolver
came as a surprise. The weapon was not
brought into evidence until Denntscn had
been arrested. Mr.. Shibley was not in
formed of the arrest by the police
While the mother of the prisoner said
that her son had never been held for houli-
cidal or suicidal mania, it was reported in
a dispatch from Middletown, n. V. that he
was an inmate at the state hospital there
for eight years 1t was said that he was
afflicted with homtcidal mania. and that
he left there in 1908.