New Britain herald., 1917-03-03
No Trouble Antici- , pated in Identifying
 High Priced Revolver
 Found Near Scene :'
MAN AND WOMAN ARE
 REPORTED IN AUTO

Hartsord Chauneur Says He Saw
 Victim Late Thursday Night and
 Was, Told of Engagement.
 Fully loaded with the exception of one exploded cartridge, which form erly contained the bullet that sent Charles A. Taft. Hartford taxi-cab proprietor. into eternity Thursday night at a lonely spot on Kensing- ton avenue. a .38 caltber hammerless revolver, of, the latest Harrington & Richardson type with the imprint of a blood stained finger still to be seen on the handle, is believed to be the
 most tangible clue possessed by the authOrities in solving the mystery of the tragedy. Identification of pur-' clia4er and whore the high-priced in- strsinaent of death was purchased. the authorities believe, will uncover the trail leading directly to the person, or personx, responsible. Tracing 6f the revolver will not, it is believed, be dif-i f1cuit as 1t is Of . type seldom sold in any but high1class stores and then comparatively unto4uently as ones of a smaller caliber ordinarily i.32, are much more In. demand. Possessed of the number on the revolver, de- tectives have communicated with the manufacturers in an attempt to trace its history.
 Arrests Expecaei Soon.
 Arrests are likely momsntarily as result of clnss coming Into the handxsof the poll it tx1as intimated at lpsai eTs today. 33eEI
 
 connect supposed respectability with the, eordid fife Of the underworld. As the ation progresses and de- defnite In naturGs from the chaos of previously conflicting evidence. official belief increases that robbery was not the primary motive for the crime but an attempt to give this impression led the search in false channels and away from those responsible. De- tectives admit the presence of a ee.mysterious something about the case that leads them to believe i'm portant information Is being held back by those in al position to give 1t and the presence of interests work ing to lead the search away from dangerous grounds. There is a be- lief that those cloSe to the victim and intimately acquainted with his pri- vate life are able, If they will, to sup ply some of the missing links be- tween mystery and solution. At the local detective bureau today, intima- ton is given that arrests are likely at any time.
 Calculations of detectives relative to the time of the crime may be wholly upset by reported converse fIon of Ray Hickey, Hartford taxi chauffeur, intimate friend of Taft. last night with . passenger in which he h reported to have said that he was in a saloon with the victim late that night, that they had several drinks together and Taft left hurriedly saying that he had been engaged to take a man and woman from the Hotel Garde on a rather lengthy trip. Hickey is reported to have said that ,Uaft informed him the engagement was at 12:30 yesterday morning. Hartford detectives will attempt this afternoon to verify the report and visit the Garde for clues relative to the mysterious couple. An attempt will also be made to identify them as the couple that Taft is reported to have taken on trip towards East Hartford and Manchester the previous night.
 New Theory Advanced.
 Acting on reports from several resi- dents on Kensington avenue near the scene of the crime, the authorities were led to the belief that the fatal shot was fired between 8:30 and 9. In view of Hickey's reported story, it is believed possible that the automobile seen by Miss Ruth filling and others vas that of physician making a night call and resembled that driven by Taft, as seen in the fitful light of the small street lamp and observed only hurriedly. It is considered pos- eibl9 that Taft may have made two trips to New Britain Thursday night aS local detectives have evidence tend- ing to show that his automobile was seen on Main street about S:30 o'clock with an unidentified man and woman as passengers
 Much speculation is rife as to the presence of the taxicab on Kensington avenue, nearly as much as to the identity of his passengers. If his passengers contemplated the deed there are more lonely spots to, be reached more easily, where a success sful getaway could have been much kbstterss planned. The scene of the Enrf,,,a Although not heavily fravAlnd