The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-08-21
PICTURE OF VlLLISCA
MURDERER IN EYE
Picture Imprinted on Retna Just Be-
fore Death Photographed and
Used in Discovering Murderer
FACTS NOT GIVEN HERETOFORE
Murderer Believed to be Citizen Of
ViIIisca and Still in That City
MAY Confess.

|
in Perry a short time last week on
his way to his home in Rippey, where
he has been spending the past few
days. While there he gave the Perry
| Advertiser representative some very
interesting facts concerning the Viii
| lisca murder case which have not
heretofore appeared in newspapers Of
this vicinity. Mr.. Brown is farmer
living a few miles south of Villisca,
and speaks with an entire knowledge
of the geographical surroundings of
| the crime. He stated, in the first
place, that many of the stories pub
lished in some of the leading newspa
pers concerning the tragedy were
purely fabrication, and furthermore
that he was we'll acquainted with Mr..
Moore, one of the victims, although
he had not s zen him for some time.
With his family and large number
of neighbors he drove to Villisca a
day or two after the crime was per-
petrated, and said that the crowd of
curiosity seekers around the Moore
house was tremendous. No one was
permitted to enter the house or the
grounds, of course, but the mass of
people crowded the streets and sur
rounding yards.
He made a statement of fact
that did not occur in the newspapers,
and which few people knew that
could be accomplished. He stated
that photograph OF the murderer
which was taken from the retina of
the Stilinger girl, who was awake
when she was killed by the murder
authorities, and that he is man of
heavy build, wide shoulders, with an
extraordinary length between the hip
and shoulders, and showed that he
wore a mask and large apron. The
headgear could not be distinguished,
but that the remainder of the picture
was very distinct. 1t was only in the
last few years that the discovery OF
whatever picture was imprinted upon
the retina just before death would re-
main there for some time and may be
photographed, providing the front OF
the eye was cut away. This picture
will be of great value if it ever comes
to the Identification of the murderer.
Mr.. Brown stated that the people
of Villisca did not believe the maniac
or DRUNK man theory concerning the
matter, and that many were working
en- the theory that the perpetrator
of the crime was Villisca resident,
and was still in the city. In fact, this
theory was stated by fortune teller,
an old lady who was consulted soon
after the crime was committed, and
who gained considerable local fame
for the finding of lost articles, sheep,
-.ogs and the like. This old lady told
the authorities, even before the dogs
w
course taken by the murderer in his
escape, how he left town, where he
passed through the wheat field and
just how far below a certain bridge,
where he struck the river. Here, she
said the trailers would loose track
and the fugitive would cover up his
tracks in an effective manner, either
by wearing rubber boots or by rub
bling the bottoms of them with rel
pepper. All of those statements were
proven true when the blood hounds
We're put on the tra.l and to make GER
tain the same ground was gone over
a second time.
The only feature that was any way
different from the grim tragedy was
the fact that a poor, unfortunate
tramp, who, knowing nothing Of the
affair, wandered into town the morn
ing after, was arrested in double
quick time and given the fright of his
manifold and checkered career until
he proved an absolute alibi. He was
turned loose at 1880 one afternoon.
and at 1875 was long ways from
the scene of the crime
The awful crimes stirred the httle
city of Villisca as nothing has ever
stirred the town in many years, and
the feeling ran so high that it was a
hard matter to keep the poor tramp
from being lynched, who was just
referred to. The opinion of the peo-
pie of Villisca, and also the opinion
of many people is that some time
some one will confess to the awful
deed; the weight on the conscience of
the guilty tiend would sooner or later
drive him to confession. If it ever
does the scaffold is too easy a death.
and although at this time and day Of
education and mental uplifting this
would be the only thing to which he
e