The Washington times., 1922-12-13
HOW
OHNbRUNEN
WAS SLAIN
Charles Powell Confesses at
F. Trial Harry Mohr Arranged
For Murder.
BY ANNE DUNLAP,
Universal Service,

Mt. HOLLY. n. j.. Dec. 13.-
Had Charles Powelrs eyes been
set closer I'm his head. had he
twitched. or bullied, or whined. this
quiet little Quaker village trans.
planted into its court room, could
calmly have listened to the six.
hour story he told yesterday OF
how he murtiered Honest John"
Brunen. circus man.
But the tight-lipped audience was
not prepared for a boyish face, a
disarminG smile, a straight, unfal-
tering confession And so they
blinked and gasped incredulously
as the fabric Of implication was
drawn about Harry c. Mohr, but
through which the character of
Mrs. John Brunen slipped almost
without notice.
Tells of Tragic Crime.
It Is largely on Powelrs story
that the State asks a verdict
against Mohr and the circus mans
widow.
Guided occasionally by Prose.
cutor Jonathan H. Kelsey ana kept
in the path Of the law by Justice
Samuel Kalisch, the self-confessed
assassin gave the following &C.
count OF Brunen's death on the
night Of March 10. last:
81 was one of the tent men in
the Mighty Doris Show and I met
Harry c. Mohr that way. knew
he was Brunen's brother-in-law.
He came to my house once in
Wilkesbarre and told me OF the
trouble going on in the Brunen
house. He said Hasel Brunen's
siehteen.year-old daughter) had run
off and got married to William
Parkstrom. the lion tanner. and
that a. q result he was afraid
said his mother, who lived at
Brunens, had heart trouble and he
was afraid the worry was going
to kill her.
HE asked me: Can't you help
me think Of some way to get rid
OF John That was the first time
he mentioned this. It was in No
vember. I tried to discourage him
and got him interested In a PROPOSE
ton I had for getting CONCESSIONS
for contests. think q telegram
came about that time"
Here q succession OF kilograms
were introduced and read into the
record. They were communication
between Mohr and himself about
important meetings' and notices
of money transfers between Mohr
and Powell. The witness resumed;
"This went on for five months.
He was figuring all that time about
the best way to ret rid of John
Brunen. He took me to place in
Camden, N. J., and paid my rent
there. He talked about doing Il
with q pistol or q revolver, but
didn't even have II In my mind
to do Il then,
Bought . Shot Gun.
ION December I Harry took me
to philadelphia and waited while I
went into y pawn shop and bought
q shot gun. Before that he had
driven me to the Brunen home in
Riverton to show me how easily
n could be done. The night OF
the shooting Mohr again took me
20 Philadelphia in his car. He
circled around q policeman in leav-
inr town because he didn't want
the officer to see him returnlng.
On the way out to Riverton he
aid he had no money and that
Brunen was soins to New York
HE said: You must set him
tonight
II went around to the Brunsn
sarage and rot the gun out Of the
loft where It had been hidden. The
shades were pulled down. 80 there
was not much light in the back
yard.
far me to SEQ Bruncn sitting there.
+ was TO shoot him when the first
trnin passed GAS. 30 the shot
would not BE- heard. The dog
barked and I let the train 90 by.
Mrs. Bruhen came to the door
and called the dog In. Tho second
train passed and pulled the trig.
] - ana ran"