Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1914-03-20
DOUGLAS CALM SINCE
CRIME LAST FRIDAY
.j YEAR-OLD GRAND MOUND
RANCHER CHARGED WITH
FIRST DEGREE MURDER

Calm and apparently not remorse-
full, Hamilton Douglas, the 75-year-
old Grand Mound rancher who shot
and killed his 39-year-old wife in
their little home mile from the
Grand Mound postoffice last Friday
because, as he told Centralia news
paper, he thought her faithless, has
been quiet and orderly since his in
generation in the county Jail here,
has been quite talkative to the news
papers and has made a sworn state
ment of the crime to Prosecuting At
torney Thomas l.. O'Leary. He was
rs years old last Saturday, his birth
day being spent in Jail.
Information charging Douglas with
murder in the first degree was filed
in the local superior court Tuesday
by the prosecuting attorney and he
was taken into court Wednesday
when arrangements were made for
Attorney G.. E. Collier to represent
h,n in his trial.
Old Resident Here.
Douglas has lived in Centralia and
the southern Part of Thurston coun-
ty for the last 43 years. The wife he
killed was his fourth. BY his first
wife he had one daughter, Mrs. w.
E. Acker now living in ,Centralia, and
by his second twin sons. William H.
Douglas, now living at Palestine,
Texas, and Walter H. Douglas Of
Grand Rapids, Mich. The woman he
killed was formerly Miss Emily Il,
Walker of O'Dell Ill, he says, had
been married once to Clarence
Leaver. by whom she had son now
rs years old, but divorced him and
WAS living witha man named Charles
J Simmons, he says. by whom he says
she had two children Just before
Douglas married her.
!, The, shooting occurred shortly af-
ter noon Friday, After it had been
done, Douglas started down the rail-
road track toward Centralia when he
was overtaken by A.. L. Preston. !
deputy sheriff, for Lewis county who
happened to be in the neighborhood,
and taken. to Centralia. Sheriff Nc
-Corkle, who went to the scene Of the
crime as soon as news Of it reached
Olympia, went on to .Centralia3 and
brought Douglas back to the Thurs
ton county jail Friday night,
@ First Met in 1911.
Douglas says he met the woman
first in the spring, of. ,19l1,, when hb
says he sold some, property on FprdP
prairie to her and a. man named
Charles Simmons with whom he says
she was living. they agreeing to- pay
him $500 for 1t. He says they paid
but $25 ON 1t and then hadia quarrel.
Simmons going away and leaving her
destitute. At that time Douglas says
he was living in an adjoining house
and that he and the woman became
friendly and were finally married h
July, 1911. by Judge Mitchell. Dout-
las says Simmons has family now ih
Seattle. IS sf
7 Upon their marriage heAdeeded all
of his property to her, Douglas sayp.
and when Simmons later wrote to her
and told her it was mortgaged. she
threatened to kill him. He left hSrI
and went. to Raymond month, be-
says, and after he returned they DIS
agreed for some time but finally MADE
up. 4
f Objected to Boarder. \
Everything went nicely until
three weeks ago." he said last Satpr-
day, when she took IN a boarder
named McDavit. They became too
friendly and ordered him away, 1ut |
my wife said II any one would leave.
/ would have to go.
"A Mrs, Gill. who lives nearby, |
came in Friday morning and my wife
got dinner for her but never Offered!
me any Then l asked her for thei
horses to drive to Centralia. hut she;
refused, and / said, If i can't drtves
them, you can't and went outsidei
and got my gun.
81 entered the house and pointeds
the gun at her as she sat in chair
mending some socks" he continued.
"Mrs. Gill reached up her arm to
point the gun in another direction.
l hit her arm with the gun and then
l must have showed the rod that put
a shell from the magazine into thes
barrel. The first time | snapped the
trigger il didn't work. | didn't think
il would go on.
! "rhe two women rushed at me.
/ Woman Died Instantly.
.,-au, aH 7 xrapf - toll Won