Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-09-14
POLICEMAN APPEAlS'0N DOUBLE CHARGE
Takes Dismissal From Force Antonio Melano May Be Held
Into District Court for Arson and Murder.
CITES FAULTS IN TRIAL POL ICE EXPECT INDICTMENT
Members Several Months Likely Eapse
Hearing. He Says fore the Trial
CLAIMS RIGHT TO SILENCE ON SEARCH FOR WITNESSES
AIKEN to y Who Are Said to Have Wit
Antonio MeIano May Be Held
for Arson and Murder.
POLICE EXPECT INDICTMENT
Several Months Likely to Elapse Be-
fore the Trial.
ON SEARCH FOR WITNESSES
Police Trying to Find Two Girls
Who Are Said to Have Wit
messed the Tragedy.

Antonio Alelano. the Italian cobbler
/ held to answer for Staying Harry Smith,
/ a fourteen year-old boy who happened
| into his shop a. II and 18th streets last
Saturday to get change for quarter.
| and whose dead body found early
! Sunday morning behind an old sofa in
| the rear room Of tho shop after the fire
men had eNtinguishcd a fire started tol
/ conceal the crime. the police say. will
be indicted by the grand jury Of the Dis
| trict Of CoIumbie row sitting at this ses-
sion.
Willfu murder and arson will. the po-
lice say, undoubtedly bc counts of the
indictment. Whether a charge of muir
der in tho first degree be proven
against Tho prisoner is something that
cannot now lac determined, as the Gle
ment Of generalization has yet to be in
troduced hy any witness 50 far produced
by the police. Conviction Of the offense
of arson is punishable by 4 term OF fif
teen years or less i'll the penitcntiary,
Must Wait for Trial.
| II will be four or five months. perhaps
| longer. before Melano be arraigned
for trial. There are ten or more homi-
eide cases pending. which will be dis
posed of in their order.
The detectives are still in quest of
| some one the prisoner will Identify as
| the alleged custodian Of the keys TO his
shop on the night of the tragedy, and
| who, the cobbicr declares. is the only
man that could have committed the
crime. They are also looking for two
| little girls. supposed to have been peerins
/ in the window of the cohblerS shop while
| Melano was alleged to be beating in the
| skull of the boy.
Mrs. Hooper, witness at the coroner
| inquest. tho says she SAW Melano struS-
/ Cling with some ono In his shop. de
clares that the cobbler afterWard came
out to tho door and drove away two
| children who had been looking in on
| him at the window. These are tho wit
nesses sought by the police. although no
one else noticed them in the vicinity.
Victims Sister Recovering.
| Miss Myrtle Smith. sister of the slain
| boy. who was overcome with hysteria
| at tho grave III Mount Olivet cemetery
yesterday. and who was temporarily out
| of her mind is still al Washington -tsy
| um Hospital, where she was taken from
the cemetery She has been docle and
quiet since hen Sojourn i'm the hospital.
and has not once gwen way to her emo
| tons nor made an outbreak or cutlery
OF any kind
| The physicians At tie hospital, while
they regard her "a in highly nervous
| condition. and given {" bro"d'ns over the
tragedy. do not consider that her mind
| i affected hevond the passing result Of
abnormal emotion. They are ready to
deliver her into the custody Of her rcla-
tiveS at any time.
Antonio Melann several weeks ago
metropolitan police force. some IF his
friends rccila