The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1912-09-13
THE sZABo MYSTERY
Warrant Out for Attorney Gibson
Charging First Degree Murder.


Charging First Degree Murder.
New York, Sept II. Lawyer Bur
ton w Gibson, calmly smoking
cigar on the porch of his home in
Rutherford, N j., last night awaited
the arrival of Sheriff William c. De
graw of Orange county, ~ Y, with
a warrant for his arrest ON the
charge of murder in the first degree.
The warrant was issued late yester-
day in Middletown, N. Y, and
charged Gibson with having caused
the death of his client, Mrs. Rosa
Menschik SZabo, who was drowned
on July 16, while boating with the
lawyer on Greenwood lake New York
The warrant was granted by Judge
Herbert c. Royce of Middletown, n.
Y, after District Attorney Rogers
had laid before him information indi-
eating that Mrs. Sazabo had come to
her death as a result of strangulation
instead of drowning. When told by
newspaper men that Sheriff Degraw
was on his way to arrest him either
last night or this morning, Gibson did
not appear to be affected Il will be
very glad to see him. he said, with
scarcely a change of expression,
either here tonight or at my office in
New York tomorrow morning. 1t
will make no difference to me-"
IF the sheriff attempted to arrest
you here, would you wave extradition
proceedings? he was asked.
why, certainly | would, I'm not a
fool I'm ready for them any time
they want me-" When told later-that
it was planned not to arrest him I'M
til his arrival in New York this
morning, the lawyer smiled, and after
putting nonchalantly at his cigar for
a moment, said "All right I'll be
there at the usual time"
Gibson then took his-four-years-ol
daughter upon his knee and request
ed interviewers mot to bother him
any more" The little girl, not cap
able of understanding the serious
charge overhanging her father,
kissed him affectionately and began
to sing him a popular song The
lawyers house 10 which he returned
after a day spent in his office in New
York city awaiting developments in
iio Ndctt was ldSl HlHnN DS
private detectives employed by the
. Austrian consulate. which instituted
tn investigation of Mrs. Szabo's $10,-
900 will, leading TO the bringing of
the murder charge yesterday The
detectives had ready in front of the
house a high-powered automobile for
emergency in case the lawyer should
make an attempt to escape.
Soon after dark the headlights of
the machine were trained upon Glib
sons porch, throwing the figures of
the lawyer. his wife and daughter in
to bold relief When a curious crowd
OF townspeople gathered the family
retired indoors. When called up on
his telephone at o'clock Gibson
complained that he had been routed
out of his sleep" Early in the even.
ing he had a conference with a law
yer, but refused TO say whether he
had decided upon any plan OF action
in the event of his arrest.
The autopsy performed on the ex.
humed body of the Szabo woman
showed that the windpipe was
wrenched out of place and that the SUI
perficial appearance OF the internal
organs was such as to cause the sur
geons to retain them for both micro
scopic examination and a chemical
analysis. The physicians who per
formed the autopsy. it was said. were |
agreed that Mrs. Szabos larynx was |
found to be so crushed and forced up |
into her throat that it would have
kept any water from entering her |
lungs so that she must have died |
from strangulation and not drowning. |
Private detectives claimed yester-
day to have made important discover
les in the case in the locating of two
Mrs. Menschiks, who say they were
about the time OF Mrs.
Szabo's dead by a man representing
himself as lawyer and telling them
that he could put them in the way OF
cbt2ining an estate that was left TO
-bcm. When he spoke of signing
papers the women in both cases de-
INJURED Officials of the Austro-Hun-
garian consulate at New York made
an investigation In the Szabo case
and alleged that Gibson. in asking for
he probate of the Szabo will, leaving
an estate of $4,000, asserted that
Mrs. Szabo's mother Mrs Menschik
was still alive, and to support that
statement Gibson produced waiver
Of citation signed by the supposed
mother Dr. Fisherauer the Austro-
vice-consul. alleges that
Mrs. Menschik is dead