The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1912-11-01
Confession to Singer Murder Is Secured from
the Woman Who Says Conway Hit Her
With Door Knob.
THIRD DEGREE BRINGS OUT TRUTH
Intention Of Couple Was Merely To Rob the
Woman of Money to Pay for Operation
of his Game Leg.

UNITED Press Leased Wire Service.l /
Conway. the wooden footed clown"
and Beatrice Ryan, THE queen Of
burlesque," arrived heye in the GUS
tody of four detectives today and
were taken to the office of Captain
Halpin OF the city detectives. The
vaudeville couple stuck to their story
told in Lima, Ohio, where they were
arrested yesterday that they had
nothing to do with the murder OF So
phia Singer, the Baltimore heiress, In
a lodging house here.
Captain Halpin was at his desk all
! last night working on the Singer case
and he went home early this morning
to sleep couple OF hours before
starting to question Conway and Miss
Ryall 1t was planned to use third
degree methods in their examination.
So many inconsistent statements have
1 been made by the couple that the po-
4 lice said today they were certain OF q
full confession of the crime soon.
4 In the hope OF quickly breaking
down the story told by Conway and
the Ryall woman, the police started
rat once with -tl1ird Gograe'' methods.
While Conway was being measured
by the Bertillon clerk, to find whether
he had known criminal record, Miss
Ryall was being closely questioned as
/ to detailed happenings before Miss
Singer was murdered and every move
! she and Conway have made since
leaving Chicago ON the night OF the
crime AS soon as q complete state
ment was obtained from her, steno-
graphic notes were taken of Conway's
story and the two were compared. The
police expected to obtain a confess
: sion they stated from Conway and the
J, girl clearing up the contradictory
statements which they have already
made and which they are expected to
make during today's questioning.
i Detectives arranged today to take
; Conway and the Ryall woman to the
Indiana avenue lodging house and
lead them over the scene of the muir
der. Everything has been left just as
it was when the crime was discovered,
except the body of the slain woman
} has been removed Bloodstains mark
! the walls and the door knob which
, was used as a billy on Miss Singers s
; head was restored to the place where
, the assailant dropped it.
The sight of all the familiar furni-
! ture and the trail of blood that led
! from eNIiss Singers room to that of
: Conway, the police figured, would
l break the nerve of the two prisoners.
! Detectives planned to keep the
couple under fire of questioning, al.
lowing them no rest or sleep until the
detectives are satisfied with their
stories OF the murder
Woman Accuses Warthen.
CHICAGO, Nov. 1.-Tearfully and
lhysterically Beatrice Ryall, vaudeville
! actress and lion tanner, pleaded her in.
| nocence of the death OF Sophia Sing
| er, Baltimore heiress, when she was
accused of the crime in the office OF
| Captain Halpin of the Chicago city de
tectives, today. William R. Warthen
who had been living with the Singer
woman and who said he was intending
to marry her, added tears to the
dramatic action in the detectives
office.
you know that | didn't kill Sophia
| You did 1t. You beat her and you are
| the one who killed her" screamed
Miss Ryall at Warthen.
The young mans face turned Grim
son as he glared at the woman who
had been brought back here from
Lima, Ohio, with Charles Conway, al
murder suspects.
You liei" shouted Warthen. "Yo,
killed her yourself.
II did not" snapped Miss Ryall
You know you beat her
| Well" sobbed Warthen, that
| nothing to do with this case
| The detectives who brought Conwa,
the circus clown, and high diver, an,
| Miss Ryall back from Lima, wer
agreed today on the theory that Mis-
II Ryall had no part in the murder an
that she was not in on the plannin
J of it, Her preparations for an IL