Omaha daily bee., 1917-08-29

between noon anu o p Ins al %
Frank L. Mitigate is the owner Oft
the house and reported to the police
Saturday night that his home was
completely ransacked, but only
number of rings and small amount
of money was stolen. The trunk OF
John Lucas was searched by the
narauder, but Lucas did not think
Of the knife being taken until he read
in the papers the description of the
knife used in the murder. He then
discovered that his knife was missing.
knife is Identified.
Mitigate informed the police of the
theft and Ofhcer Hans Nielsen took
the knife out to the Country club,
when Lucas identified it.
'If that isn't my knife, it is such
an exact duplicate of the one had
that ! can't tell the difference be-
tween thenl," said Lucas.
The knife has deer foot handle
and heavy blade, which was>slightly
bent, and it was the irregularity of
the knife blade that caused the Jagged
wound in the neck of the murdered
woman, say detectives.
Photos Finger Prints. r..
Officer Nielsen also took photo
graphs of finger prints left on the
window through which entry into the
house of Mitigate was made, but the
rain of Sunday night somewhat ef-
faced the prints, although Officer
Nielsen thinks they are sufficiently
plain for the establishment Of an
identification.
There seems to be nobody who OBJ
served suspicious persofl II. the
vicinity of Forty.sixth and Blonde
but Mitigate says that the weeds were
tall enough to hid anybody who did
not wish to be seen. Slx
u. The home OF Frank Mitigate is Eve
blocks directly north of the residence
Of Fred Bascomb. Mrs. Bascomb
identified Charles Smith Monday as
the man who threatened and ANNOYED
her Saturday morning at about 7'5O
o'clock.
After Smith departed Mrs. Bas-
comb searched all the roads except
the one leading north on Fifty-sixth
street for the tracks left by Smith.
Finding no evidences OF, Smiths hav-
ing gone in the roads which she
searched she. concluded that he had
taken the road leading north.
Trying to Connect Smith.
In pursuance of this new phase de-
tsctives are striving TO get the man
who broke into the house OF Mitigate
or il Smith was the person who did
: Il to obtain some proof against him.
II it can be proven that Smith stole
the knife the evidence against him
would be complete.
Captain Dempsey turned over the
clothes Of Smith to County Attorney
Magney.t They will be subjected to
chemical examination to determine
whether the blood stains on. the hat
and sleeve belong to the slaughtered
beeves which Smith still insists he
toted around in the circus at Le Mars.
The examination will take about
four weeks and if it is then disclosed
that they are the blood of human
Smith is the guilty man, according to
detectives.
Funeral servicesfor Mrs. Nethaway
will be held from the Methodist Epis-
copal church at Blair this afternoon at
3 o'clock. -
Deputy County Attorney Piatti,
after holding the inquest into the
. death of Mrs. Christine Anderson and
viewing the body of Mrs. Netha-
way, is of the opinion that both muir
ders were committed by the same
man. 80
., There is no question that the same
man committed both murders he
said. "Both women show the marks
Of a blow on the temple and the
Jagged knife wound is identical in
both eases. It was undoubtedly the
work of madman." -
The inquest into the Nethaway
murder will be held at the undertake
ing parlors of Stack & Falconer
Thursday afternoon at 2 O'Clock, =,