Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-08-11

CLEN ELAND, Ohio, August 1.-THE
Official inquest into the murder of Will
lam L. Rice on Euclid avenue last Fri
day night was begun by Coroner NJ. A.
Boesger yesterday.
Marshall Brockway of Cleveland
Height has recited his knowledge of con-
ditions surroundings the crime as learn
ed from Investigations beginning with the
time he was told of the murder by phone
at 1925 am. Saturday. The newest and
most significant development in the case,
however, came through an investigation
of the bullet taken from the murdered
mans brain.
This development seems to weaken the
theory that the murder was committed
by a personal enemy, and to lend
strength to the suppositicn that the muir
der resulted from an accidental meeting
with chicken thieves Or a quarrelsome
foreigner.
No Ordinary Bullet.
The bullet and an ordinary 32-calibel
bullet were weighed. The bullet which
killed Rice weighed 115 grains. The or
binary 32-caliber bullet weighs but 81
grains.
George Freeman, an ammunition ex-
pert. who examined it carefully. said ii
could not have been fired from shell OF
ordinary bore.
There are only two 115-grain bullets
made" the expert said, lone is the 80
caliber Winchester rifle bullet, made and
sold in this country, the other is a A.
caliber Russian gallery bullet, made in
Russia and sold in this country.
twn l.
ties as to the kind of weapon used in kill
ing Rice. A Winchested rifle or Al
caliber revolver carrying a Russian gal
lery bullet.
I'VE can eliminate the Winchester
rifle easily. A bullet from a Winches-
ter will carry through sixteen inches OF
wood at a distance of fifteen feet. 1t
carries a charge of twenty grains OF
powder. Such a bullet would never
have lodged in Rice's head.
THE Russian gallery shell carries a
charge Of only six grains of powder. 1t
is used for target practice. and would
not be likely to bore through the head
Since this bullet penetrated Rices
frontal bone only and lodged in his
brain, l am certain it must have been
fired from such a she'll. A second bullet,
in fact did not penetrate. but glanced
off the bone"
A canvass of the city of Russian gal
lery "A shells discovered no dealer who
had them in stock. Two ontario street
dealers, however, said they had them
in stock until few weeks ago.
No Obvious Clue.
This evidence has given the police no
obvious clue. A search will be begun
Immediately. however. not merely in
Cleveland, but also in New York, Chi
cago and other cities in the hope OF
tracing a sale of such firearm as
would carry the bullet in Mr.. Rice's
head.
Apart from the testimony OF Mr..
Freeman nothing was learned at yes
terday's inquiry which could throw any
new light on the murder. The theory
that Mr.. Rice left his club on the night
of his death with the intention OF
keeping an appointment with some un-
known person is now being sifted by
the police. Apparently the only thing
to support this theory is that on the
night in question the lawyer started to
walk home after telephoning to some
unknown person He had before in
variably gone home at night in his au-
tomobile.
A will drawn by Rice several years
ago, which was found by Attorney VIII
liam Nelson Cromwell, is believed by
Cromwell to have been superseded by
later testament. Cromwell mace
second futile search Wednesday IN nope
of discovering a later will. The Will
found Monday is declared to be unsat-
isfactory, and the hunt for second
was caused as much by dissatisfac ton
with 1t as by any actual bei1e1 later
will had been drawn.