The daily Alaskan., 1910-11-16


 BUrcb, carrying the bottle holder by it's stand part left the house, promis- ing to return soon Within twenty minutes he was back. Then he went to the telephone called up the police and reported that his uncle had died suddenly under very suspicious cir cumstances The coroner was not long in coming and. after carefully inspect ing every thing in the room, went out locking the door behind hIm and put ting a policeman on guard
 While this was in progress William Burch was locked in his own room with a detective.
 My uncle has been poisoned he said, "by some one whose left thumb Is missing wish you Co find that person. IT you don't ! shah either be executed for murder or imprisoned for Ute or 80 forth man with a bHghted reputation was Che last person known to be with my uncle before his deatb. In a few days or at most a few weeks shall ue arrested.
 These are my q. advantages. On the other side. ! am heir Co my U1c,e's estare and can pay mr lawyers and you we'll care nothing for them provided you succeed G1. Find The man with the missing thumb"
 In just two days from that day Wii- Hm Burch was arrested for the mur- der of his uncle, John Trevor After Che usual delay Che case came to trial Mrs Morton was the first witness for lla prosecution. and one of the first questions asked her was if there had been a holder for che soda bottle found .u rae leeeased's room, She replied llat there had been aud when ques- toned further testified that the ac- euseI had taken iJ away.
 Ilis without any other evidence was enough to convict Burch Another fea- uee alone was also sufficient to that end HuwB was his uncles heir A tarl feature admitted by Burch him self eHueaed tue other two Being ret. on Che stand by his counsel and asked what had passed between him
 aI his uncle aJ their last interview, Erel salJ
 My uuclo sent for me to tell me t..l be was intending to marry This would turn his property away from ua He proposed to make my inter- est in i- dependent upon the will of t.e lady he was to marry. To this l alaelsI
 All wondered at this admission, which Indicated plainly that in order .l save an estate which was Co pass .a another the prisoner had murdered ..a owner
 A witness for the defense had been summoned u che person of Edgar Wlnnle. a b00kkeepcr at the bank. At this point Burcb's counsel called Wa..-e to the stand. He was a pale, nervous man. who seemed to be dread ua tle ordeal before him
 The examination of the witness de .eored that he had been carrying on his books a deficit of some S5oO0O which he had lost in speculation. The
 .Nr move of the defense was an att .au.- Go prove that he had visited Mir. Trevor oa the afternoon Of the mur- Lar .ha. A-r Trevor was the only per
 who Gnew of his dedication and ta.t che two held a conversation on la.r subject All this the witness de- H.f. and as there was no proof of it -Ee opinion of those In the courtroom was llat m.staka had been made in attempting to establish it
 Without dismissiug the witness coun- a. ar tle defense gave an order to aa attendant who disappeared and re- turned carrying pasteboard boN which be placed on a table before the lawyer The cover was removed, and aa .leI by its base from the box a silver bottle holder
 Every person in the courtroom bent forward with eager attention Nam- rally .- was Inferred that this was the
 sing article that Miss Morton had testified the prisoner had removed. A
 .Ha was expected, and a scasa- ..a vas realized Counsel for the de- a d holding the bottle holder by Hs base carried it to the jury box, lraatlgl 1g ir handed a microscope to the fuyuau nearest him and invited him Go examine the surface This process was repeated with every jury man Then. carrying the holder back to .-e cable. the lawyer set it down and said
 Gentlemen of the jury this stand held .ae bottle used when the murder ed man took bls last drink The soda vas poured into the glass of whisky by some one who held lJ in his left hand the thumb of which was miss ue This person then dropped in the glass a dose Of prussic acid, which has since been found there by experts. You have examined the silver surface and have found the imprint of a hand with the thumb missing That imprint came from the moisture of the hand that grasped the silver. It dried out, but 7 revived 1t with my moist breath, that you could an see it. that you might an have proof that the person who committed the murder was a man with a missing thumb