The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1912-03-19
Extraordinary Case Of Doubtful Iden-
tIty

Extraordinary Case OF doubtful loen-
tlty
The Kimmel case in st. Louis,
which has once more been left In the
air by the inability of jury to agree
is one of the most remarkable In the
history of imposture. If 1t has made
little impression on the public as com
pared with other celebrated trials
this is partly because of the queerness
and hopeless completely of the affair
AS art it is very bad indeed, like the
fantastic inventions of jaded back
writer of mystery stories. II has no
moral and 1t takes one nowhere yet
in its separate parts the tale is as
interesting as it is bizarre
In March, 1898, George A. kimmel,
a banker in small way at Arkansas
City, Kan, took out three life insur-
ance policies, one for $4,000, the other
two for $4,000 each, in the New York
life insurance company. The benehc-
larry was his sister, Edna Kimmel'
then unmarried, of Niles, Mich, his
former home, who later assigned the
policies to the First National bank at
Niles to cover her brothers. debts. In
July, only four months after this
heavy insurance OF his life, Kimmeml
disappeared. According to the theory
of the insurance company's lawyers
he was promptly murdered In Oregon
while engaged in an eXtravagantly ro-
mantle adventure which in Itself
would make the story fantastic.
According to this version, kimmel
went with three other men, the late
r. NJ. Snyder of Kansas City, one j.
a. Johnson, and John Boone Swinney
who alone Of the quartet survives, to
dig up $40, 1000 Of gold secreted in a
vast Oregon forest. In August they
found the treasure and a Stevenson
ian tragedy followed Instead Of s4O,-
600, there was but $4,000, half-hlling,
by Swinneys testimony, two half-gal-
lon glass fruit jars. In their disap
pointment they quarreled. Johnson
killed Kimmel, Swinney killed John.
son. Snyder promised to keep the
secret and the story of the treasure
hunt did not come to light till 1t was
needed in the court room. But son
OF Snyder says that his father was
in New York at the time alleged, and
lawyers at St Louis have quarreled
with other details, such as the space
filled by $4,000 in gold pieces, which
is said to make only a sixth Of a gal
lon instead of a half-gallon. This
whole chapter is incredible but nc
more so than the story as whole.
In 1904 suit was brought against
the insurance company by the Niles
bank to recover the $4,000 policy, bul
in 1904, before the case was brought
to a trial, man in the Matteawan In
sane asylum OF New York wrote tC
the company that he was Kimmel anC
advised them not to pay the claim II
1906 the case came to trial in st
Louis, merely for the reason that the
chief counsel. Frederick H. Bacon
lived there; the dramatic center OF in
terest Is Niles, Mich. The verdic
was against the insurance company
the Matteawan claimant. who was no
brought into court. being taken FOL
an imposter or a victim OF hallucina
ton. The case was reversed on 1
technicality, and in 1908 came up FOL
the second trial. The jury was un
able to agree, being struck by thl
number of identi1cations OF the claim
ant, yet unable to reconcile certain
glazing discrepancies.
There the case was left and th'
third trial, long searching and tedious
has had the same unsatisfactory ter
mlnation, and the jury has been dis
charged. Judge Amidons charge II
considered lucid and fair, possibly IA
voring the insurance company slight!
as for example. ip the evident skepti
clsm with which he treated the storl
OF the treasure hunt and murder. II,
put equal stress, however, on the i'm
portant fact that Kimmels mothe
does not recognize the claimant al
her son. This part OF the case Is ful
OF battling contradictions The claim
ant has been identified by numerou
old acquaintanoes and has shown a
much knowledge OF Kimmels life a
could be expected from his shaker
brain after the hard usage he has en-
dured Nor has the effort to find an
other identity for him been success
full, the Identification as a railroa,
brakeman and gambler named "TuI
key" White resting on slender evl
dence. Yet the difficulties OF sup
posing the claimant 20 be Kimmel ar
quite as great When examined 10
Insurance, II the records are trust
worthy Kimmel was five feet and tel
inches tall and had black hair an,
eyes. The claimant is five feet ant
seven inches tall and has brown hal
and nondescript blue eyes. Doe
hardship make a man In his 40'
shrink three inches? Or were IN
records carelessly made? II is Sc
dom that a case Is brought into cour
with both sides so lame. The natura
supposition of the outsider Is likel
to be that both the murder story an
the claims of the man from Mattea
wan are faxed. and that what becam
OF the real Kimmcl has not yet bee
revealed.-Sprlngdeld Republican.