The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-12-25
TWO MYSTERIOUS
 LETTERS WRITTEN
 IN POISONING CASE Woman Claims She Killed Guy Coleman Because He Had
 Been Untrue to Her LETTERS SENT TO BOTH HIGDON AND BODEKER Omccrs Have Little to Say About Let ters But Claim Guilty One Will
 Be Arrested Within Twen-
 ty-four Hours

There were important developments yesterday in the mysterious poisoning of Guy R. Coleman and Stephen tL Strickland last Tuesday and officers announce that the criminal will be in custody by tonight.
 Sheriff E. L. Higdon received let tor yesterday morning from wom- ter and declared that she sent the poison that caused the deaths of the two men. As her reason she stated that Coleman had wronged her and that she had determined that no one else should marry him.
 The letter evidenced 8 note Of hope iessness and brought tears to the eyes of all who read 1t. The woman issued 4 solemn warning to all young girls to beware of the men who move in the best society but are no better than dogs" She states that she expects to hang for the poisoning but had rath- CT go to the scaffold than see him marry an innocent girl"
 She repeatedly said that she did not mean to kill Strickland and that she had never seen him in her life. She said that she had gone to the morgue where the bodies were lying and had viewed the remains.
 "It was a pretty hard thing for me to make up my mind to kill MT. Cole man." she said, but when women are wronged as I was they are desperate. . And further down-"I told him that had heard that he was going to marry another woman and asked him if it was so. He said yes, and laughed in my face when I reminded him of his prom ises to me-"
 She closes with: T suppose that you will learn my identity but certainly not If can help It."
 The letter was received by Colonel Higdon yesterday morning and was mailed in Birmingham Friday night and was in long official envelope There dicate where 1t came from.
 BOdeker's Letter
 Chief of Police George H. Bodeker also received an anonymous letter yes .erday morning which he believes will have an important part in the develop inent of the case. The letter is writ ten in woman's handwriting and the words are spelled correctly, sh owing that the writer Is a person of some education.
 The letter merely says that all the police and sheriff's offices and Pink ertons in Christendom could not ferret out the mystery. The letter was mailed in Birmingham yesterday morning al o'clock and was receiced by the chief in the morning mail.
 The two letters have brought con are confident that the guilty one is a woman and will be under arrest in 24 hours.
 The police, sheriff's deputies and the special detectives of the coroner have been working untiringly on the case since the murder, and state that the end Is in sight.
 Comparison of Letters
 A comparison of the two letters brings out some interesting points. The sheriff S letter is a page and one-half long. while that of the chief barely covers half a page. The sheriff's letter is written on cheaper paper than the other. In neither case has there been any perceptible ef- fort to disguise the handwriting which has made the officers a trife suspicious.
 Much speculation has been caused by the two letters, and there are many theo- ries as to the motive of the writings. Some believe that both letters were writ ten as blinds and merely to serve to throw the officers off the track. Others believe that the letters were not writ ten by the guilty person, but by someone in the family. It is thought that both letters were instigated by the same per son, but written by different ones.
 Officers Are Pleased
 The officers are much elated at the outlook of the case, and both Chief Bodeker and Sheriff Higdon expressed the opinion that the culprit will be under ar rest in a short time
 "Things look brighter at present than at any other time, said Chief Bodeker yesterday, land am almost positive that we will have the guilty party under ar rest in a short time. The letter this morning cleared things up considerably and removed beyond all doubt that the person who did the deed was woman.