The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-12-18
is QUIRK CRAZY?
Close Confinement May Have At
fected Soldiers Mind.
Confession" Believed to Have
Had Food for Object.
PREACHER NOT HELD.
Woman Is Free and Prisoner Is
Still in Guard House.
Record of Youth May Have Been
Held Against Him.
PREACHER NOT HELD.

Junction City, Dec. 1S.-Have three
months Of "close confinement affect
ed the mind of Private Quirk, the SOL
der who confessed to blowing up gov
eminent bridges and buildings at Fort
Riley? 1t is believed here that such
is the case. This belief and the re-
lease of Mrs Anna Jordan and Rev.
are not to be pressed aginSt either the
man or the woman. But what of
Quirlx? Report is that he has been re-
turned to solitary confinement" and
the "one square meal every eight
days" program.
Close Confinement Terrible.
Solitary confinement is a terrible
thing for the guilty. No one is allow
ed to see or speak to the prisoner.
Even the guard is not allowed to talk
to him. There are no papers or books
to read and nothing to do. Further
than that Quirk, the report here is.
has been on a ration of bread and
water with full rations for one meal
every eight days. Is it any wonder he
confessed to something and blamed
Meanwhile it is declared there will
be new warrants issued for the arrest
of the accused preacher and the wO-
man. And Quirlx's relatives. who re-
Gently attempted to secure the release
of the soldier may take further action.
Despite the fact that United States
Marshal Jack Harrison has a warrant
for the prisoner it is unlikely that he
will be turned over to the civil auth
critics.
Quirk Ia Young Soldier.
Quirk is only II years old. Before
the boy was put into prison in Fort
Riley he was in trouble in Junction
City, although a soldier at that time.
The soldiers are allowed to go to the
town whenever they are off duty.
Quirk was arrested one night in
August while attempting to enter a
house. This followed a long series of
robbeIies in Junction City.
The private was not punished in the
city but shortly after he returned to
the fort he was put into the guard
house and has not been free since.
Many of the soldiers in the fort and
persons in the town generally believe
that the boys mind has been affected
by his confinement.
The feeling here also is growing that
the Rev. Charles NJ. Brewer, former
chaplain at the fort, and Mrs. Anna
Jordan, formerly a waitress in a res
taurant here, could not possibly have
had anything to do with the incendiar-
ism and dynamite explosions at Fort
Riley.
Feeling Favors Two.
Mr. Brewer is married and has
three children. Before he went to the
fort he was pastor of Baptist church
in this city. He is man we'll liked
in spite of indiscretions for which he
was dishonorabIy discharged from the
army. He is an orator and man of
fine appearance.
The feeling here is favorable to Mrs.
Jordan. She has been married two
times. While her husband was in
prison at the fort under charge of
stealing a rifle she worked in a res
taurant here as waitress. She is I'M
der bond of 5000 to answer to a
charge of helping her husband to es-
cape. Jordan attempted to escape May
3. It is charged that Mrs. Jordan
went to the fort in a buggy and hid
around a turn in the road, where Jor-
dan was working. It is said that at
prearranged signal Jordan jumped
on his guard, tore his rifle from him
and ran to the buggy. The charge is
made that Mrs. Jordan then drove to-
ward town. When the chase became
too warm Jordan jumped from the
buggy and hid in tree, whose
branches reached out over q stream.
After dark Jordan fell from the
tree into the water. Soldiers, hear
ing the fall. captured the man. Jor-
dan is now in the federal prison at
7 v.fS1