Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1912-11-28
WHO MURDERED
JENNIE BR|CE
Puzzling Case to Be Tried
in the High
School.

IQc mysterious uISapFcai auC0 or
Jennie Rrice will be the subject for
investigationga the mock trial to be
held at the high school on the evening
of December under the joint auspices
of the Y. M. q. A. and the High
School Athletic association. The plot
of the story Is ingenious, intricate, ex-
citing and interesting to the highest
degree. The story is by Mary Roberts
Rinehart and has been appearing in
serial form in Everybody's Magazine
for the past two months, the last in
stallment appearing in the December
number.
The plot, in brief, is as follows
Jennie Brice was an actress, married
to Philip Ladley. They boarded with
a Mrs. Pittman in Pittburg and on the
night of the disappearance of Jennie
Brice, Mrs. Pittman !heard the Lad
legs quarreling, as they had been
known to do on several previous
occasions. About 2 o'clock in the
morning there was acommotion in the
quarters occupied by the Ladleys and
Mrs. Pittman, upon arising to investi-
gate, found Mr.. Ladley returning to
the house. He reported that he had
been out to get some medicine for his
wife. The next day Mrs. Ladley
| Jennie Brice) did not appear and
Ladley, upon being questioned, said
that his wife had gone away for the
week. Mrs. Pittman was suspicious.
At breakfast time the Pittman dog
brought in the water-soaked slipper of
Jennie Brice, then broken knife was
found in the yard and then blood
stains were found. Upon examining
Ladley's room when he was out, a
blood stained towel was found, also a
piece of paper with the words, ''rope,
knife, shoe, towel, Horn," on 1t. The
police were sought and Ladley was
arrested, accused of the murder of his
wife. He was later released for lack
of evidence and returned to his old
room with Mrs. Pittman. His actions
were watched though, and later on he
was rearrested. Then headless body
of woman was found near the out
skirts of the city and partially recog-
nized as that of Jennie Brice.
At the inquest over the body, Lad
lev testified and remained calm and
cool, saying that he had no reason TO
believe that his wife was dead or that
she had been drowned. He did admit
that she had left him in a rage that
morning and that if she knew that by
keeping out of the way she could em-
barrass him in the affair, she probably
would do 1t. The doctors said that
the deceased did not come to her
death by drowning but that the body
had been put into the water after
death. Ladley was confined by the
police upon nothing but circumstan-
tial evidence. Later on a doctor APP
peared who testified that he was GER
tain that the body was that of Jennie
Brice because of peculiar scar over
her heart. It seems that Jennie Brice
had had the word "John" tattooed on
her body over her heart and that later
on she had come to this doctor to have
it removed and he had done so but
had left a peculiar shaped scar
on tho skin This soar was on the hodU
that had been found and seemed to
positively identify it as that of the
lost Jennie Brice.
With these facts as basis Philip
Ladley, her husband, is held by the
police and will be brought to trial
charged with murder at the high
school auditorium on the evening OF
December 9Th.