The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-04-28
.pHELAN SNAPS RIBBON
 ON COWL'S PISTOL AS
 HE ATTEN| PTS TO SHOOT
Miss Wheeler Could Not Have Discharged Weapon Is Belief of Coroner After Exhaustive Inquiry Into All the Circumstances.
DIsCREDTTs STORY or
 MEDICAL. IT A.MINER

-EAd1E1O14AA4GA4G kS A. N1si AA4A$S1S - ment Ring is sMoonshine
 Miss Wheeler to Attend Funeral Tomorrow.
 Coroner John J. Phelan today hot only exonerated Miss Emily Wheeler fianeee of Arthur Hearn Cowl, from all blame in connection with his death, but declared that in his belief Miss Wheeler was not even respon- sible for the discharge of the weapon which fatally wounded the young millionaire at her home on Academy Hill Monday. night
 Coroner PfeIan made q visit to the Wheeler home, and to. the home of the Stratford medi- cal examiner, Dr. William B GogswelI. While at the latter home he experinented with the pistol and the ribbon which, tied to the trigger, was placed hy Cowl insthe young woman's. hands. On trying to pull the trieger Coroner Pheian was surprised to discover that the resistance was SO great that the frail ribbon snapped asunder- and the trigger failed to re- spond.
 That young sCow1 may faave in- tended only to play g. prank upon the girl and did not know that the sin gle bullet in the pistol chamber was ifs position to come under the ham 1ner when the trigger was puliedss is one theory of the coroner.
 He makes it plain that he regards young e,owa as having been men as7ll E F Irresponsible, given to mock heroies- and aItigether not in condition to have been accountable for what happen ed
 Coroner Phelan's investigation dis closes the fact that Medical Examiner szar1sck did not make a thorough fn- autry- The coroner says the story Of the atEachm ea1t oE ring to the end of the ribbon is s-moonshines" but Dr. Garaick in his official report to tHe coroner details the circumstances o1 the ring as a matter of record
 MISE w 499E6I, III lIJ1I l<fS35 OA SA$7<3k and nervousness faced the coroner fbraveIy in the parIor of her residence an Academy HE'LL Between paroxysnna Of grief she recounted the events of lfhe fateful night and accused herseM Of having unwfttdngIy caused young EovPs death
 Moved deeply by the young woInan's condition the coroner went further dnfo the circumstances. and as result Of his inquiry issued statement avvhfch decfaree his a,eaief that the girl could not have caused the action ot Efhe pisto7, with the ribbon device given H7er By her sweetheart
 Miss Wheeler is determined on at tending the funeral services, which il Is planned to have tomorrow morning ECowTs body will be inferred in Wood s1ay7n cemetery
 The coroner did not critfease the haste with which Dr. GarIick prepared hhe death certificate, on which the re fnlova1 permit was given to the parent. lof the young. man. He said, in connec ktion with thds review Of the circurn stances, that he had made the inquiry stto see if there could be any error il pr. GarIick's conclusion
 The coroner this afternoon state to a Farmer reporter: eI saw tn pistol kept by .Dr- William B. Coggs well and examined both the pistol an the ribbon tied to it. This rlbbo was tied in loop of perhaps five in ches. was half an inch wide and per haps three feet long.
 eT attempted to pull the trigge as Miss Wheeler would have don but was unable to do it vzithou breaking the ribbon. She made tw attempts and it did not go off hrs and she tried again. In my attenr broke the string about S-4 of tn way across.
 sI pulled it gently to overcome tn stiff action of the trigger. I foun one bullet of .5s cahbre, center fir, Very likely the young man though that bullet was not in the right plac to explode. It may not have bee properly placed. I am of the belle that at both. times he must have ha his finger on the trigger for sh could not have pulled it withot breaking the string.
 saw both the young lady an her mother. We conversed in tn drawing room She appeared . though she had been under gre< mental strain and wept upon man Instances during my talk with he and upon reference to the youn man. Miss Wheeler told me th story as well as she could I am ga. fsf7ed that she had nothing more do with the final action of the tricex than ! had. She might have helpe the least little bit in doing what he fance told her to do and she told n just what that was. She pulled u cord seent1y.'
 ssAs to any estrauge nnent, Dr. Cogs