The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1912-11-07
CONWAY WOMAN SAID
TO have CONFESSED
Suspect, Under Terrible Grill
ing, Changes Story First
Told TO the Police.

LoPeu " S.icaso VII vvla. q
day before h was to have been
married, was reported by h police
to have been obtained today from
Mrs. Lillian Beatrice Conway, who
with her husband. Charles n. Con-
way, circus clown and high diver.
was brought here from Lima, Ohio,
earlier in the day.
she has owned up to the MUIR
DER said a police official, but she
had little to do with 1t.
She says that Conway knocked
the Singer girl down with a billy
made of a doorknob In a handker-
I. chief, with a shoe Lac as q handle.
with the intention Of robbing the
I'VE thought&she had more money
than she did, b said. Charlie did Il.
All 7 did was throw the blanket over
her when we left. I didn't know shs
was dead"
Will Tell Whole Story.
The woman then told the oficials,
they announced, that h would tell h
William r. worthen. fiancee Of the
Singer girl, who has been held by the
police pending clearing up OF the mys-
terry. though they accepted his story
OF innocence, became hysterical with
THANK God they have con-
fessed," he shouted. Now / am cleared
and my father and mother will bo
comforted with the knowledge that !
had no hand in the brutal murder. I
can go back to Baltimore now with Q
clean hand. I knew they did 1t. / told
her so when I saw her this morning.
She could not face me. Now Conway
might as well confess"
1t vas announced Conway will be
given an opportunity to tell his side
of the case after copies OF the woman's
story could be prepared by a stenog-
| rapher SO that Conway first could be
| confronted with 1t.
Hears Wife's Screams.
Conway, the woman's husband, paced
back and forth in a cell without knowl-
| edge Of the accusation being made
against him. A door opened n he
could hear the screams of his wife,
hysterical over the fact that the police
| had wrung from her an admission that
placed their lives in jeopardy.
Mrs. Conway, said the police, admit
ted that she had quarrelod with Miss
Singer about going out to some enter
tainment and said Conway took up the
quarrel. When the victim was struck
down, she said, she was in the kitchen
adjoining the room in which the quar-
to tell of the actual killing, because OF
her weakened condition.
Another dramatic scene came when
| Worthen was brought before her again
and told she had confessed. Tears
streamed from the eyes of both and
for a time neither could speak. Then
the woman began to cry for mercy
and forgiveness. Withoutstretched
arms she sobbed: "Oh. please forgive
me, forgive him, Will; kiss me and
mean to Kill her. Will, honest he did
not"
worthen extended his hand and she
covered 1t with kisses.
After his arrival in Chicago Conway
refused to talk.
Mrs. Conway or Beatrice Ryall."
apparently and i'll at ease,
talked in a high, falsetto tone and
from her the police said they expected
the first break She TESTED with her
ton. but their refusal to reply and
their constant stares at her wore on
her nerves and she was on the verge
Of hysteria when Sergeant Crotty, at
the police station where Worthen In
locked up, began to question her.
Blood Stained Objects.
Captain Halpin, whose kilograms
caused their arrest. sat by and watched
the woman steadily. One by one the
blood stained objects found in the
were brought out and h was asked
what she knew about each of them.
Later the police plan to confront her
with Worthen and to question Conway
regarding the same articles. The stor-
les had begun to diverge the police
said.
Changing their plans. the police
brought William Worthen, the Singer
girls fiance, into the inquisitorial
chamber, after they a talked to the
actress only q few minutes. Worthen
was told to say nothing, but to listen
to the story she was telling.
Accuse Each Other.
Almost Immediately Worthen broke
out in a bitter denunciation of the Con-
way woman and his voice could be
heard throughout the police station az
he shrieked:
You enc you did 1t. You both did
it. You know you killed my Sophia"
The woman cried aloud and became
hysterical, shouting wildly:
IT'S not so! It's not so! You know
you killed her yourself"
This continued several minutes. tho
police interfering to advise the Two
to leave off p%retense and to tell the
truth. Then all was quiet and a de-
for Mrs. Conway. She had become
faint Under the strain and the police
officials directed that the inquisitors
be not too severe with her.
Following Is the story Mrs. Conway
first told:
Mrs. Conway recited in detail their
actions on the night of the murder and
their movements thereafter. She de-
clared that Miss Singer had told her
she was tired of her %fiance, William
Worthen. and was to meet a man
whom Mrs. Conway believed to be
Claud Stillman.
She said Miss Singer exhibited to Mr..
Conway an iron door knob, wrapped in
a handkerchief and said she would get
the man whom she was to meet in a
lonely place and wanted Conway to
hit him with 1t SO that she could get
his roll" Mrs. Conway said her hus-
band declined to do it and they left
Chicago that night and did not hear Of
the murder until later.
Mrs. Conway's statement to the do
t%ectives in part follows:
THE last Mr.. Conway n I saw of
Sophia Singer was about 1880 o'clock
Monday night. We were preparing to
leave Chicago. She had given us s35
and W suits of clothes for my hus-
band.
SOPHIA SINGER WENT TO
CITY TO STAGE PARTY
Chicago, Nov. 2.-Search of the per-
sonal ~belongings Of Conway found al