New-York tribune., 1915-03-24
CRINDSTONE CLEW
In CHILD KILLING
Police Find Knives and
Sharpening Apparatus
in Same Building.
WATCH FOR MAN
WITH QUEER HABITS
Woman Believes Assailant of
Her Daughter Last Year
Lives Near COhn Home.

More and more strongly the finger
of suspicion in the murder of Lenore
Cohn, victim of ripper" in the hall
way Of her home at $50 Third Avenue,
points 10 one man, an inmate of the
house, of strange habits and warped
mind This man the police are now
watching day and night in the hope
OF more definite evidence which will
Justify his arrest.
II is known that he had in his apart
mcnt knives, which could have been
used for the commission of the crime,
the blades four inches long and sharp,
with Il grindstonc on which they could
be prepared Yet so cautious are the
detectives working under the direct
supervision of Deputy Commissioner
Lord that no move will be made till
the crime has been fixed beyond the
possibility Of doubt. The police said
yesterday that a premature arrest
would spoil the case.
Early in the afternoon new light
seemed to be thrown on the mystery
by Mrs. Johanna A. Lyons, of 80 West
lS3d Street. whose story Of her tragic
experience in East Northport, J.. l.,
last August. indicated the presence Of
ripper" known to herself, in the
district Mrs. Lyons told her story to
the detectives yesterday at the scene
of the crime.
81 was summcring at East Northport,
r. l., last year." she said, with my
husband and two children-Robert,
eight years old, and Dolly, three. A
boy Of fourteen, whom | noticed to be
acting queerly, took up with my chill
dren. There seemed 10 be something
abnormal and perverted about him, but
for some time he did nothing we could
object to.
Then one day he and the two chill
dren went walking tog> ther, and he
attacked Dolly. Robert tried to help
her, but was thrown down by her as
sailant. My girl died soon afterward.
Her assailant was freed through a con-
fusion of dates enabling him TO prove
an alibi-which was unable to place
accurately, owing to my breakdown at
the time.
"He was living, a short time ago, at
$50 East Thrty-ninth Street, and the
fact that he had done this thing to my
girl made me think he might be guilty
Of this crime"
Police Commissioner Woods was in
clined to belittle Mrs. Lyons's clew.
Her statement, he said, failed 10 sug-
gest anything showing that the two
crimes had been committed by the
sa man.
Meanwhile Valerie Spengler, daugh-
ter of one of the tenants, told the de-
tectives that she was for some months
followed by a swarthy, mustachioed
fellow, who only quilted his annoy
ances when she threatened to report
him to the police. This man, she
thought, might have been guilty Of the
murder, but so far no one has found
trace of him.
Valerie said, also, that one of the
tenants TO whom suspicion attached
and whom she knew well, was right and
not left handed. The finger prints on
Leonore's neck showed, according TO
Henry Ecker, uncle of the dead child,
that the stabbing had been done with
the left hand. The thumb finger print
was under the child's right ear, indi-
eating that the right hand had been
used to choke her.
This would show, said Ecker, that the
SLAYER had been left handed, as he
would not attempt to WELD a knife with
his off hand. No arrest was reported
up to a late hour last night.