The New York herald., 1922-10-25
HENRY STEVENS FAR
FROM SAVAGE HERMIT
Mrs. Halls Brother Lives i'm
Most Comfortable House
in Lavallette, n. J.
DEVOTED TO ASTRONOMY
Books Prove Him Cultured
Sportsman-Town Resents
Intrusions From Detectives.

Special Dispatch TO THE New York HERALD.
LAvALLETrE. N. j.. Oct. 24.-Among
the persons who for one reason or
another have come TO notice in the
Hall-Mills murder puzzle Henry
Stevens Is card indexed in the readers
mind as the brother of Mrs. Hall who
is skillful with firearms. lives in some
remote place in New Jersey, and is the
envy OF many man because he spends
his life hunting and fishing without
ever having to don the iron collar
and go mosying off to business.
Henry Stevens has been imagined
as an unkempt hermit, buried away
in shack among the marshes and
being dragged out now and then to go
over to New Brunswick and tell the
frowning district attorneys for the
forty-eleyenth time that he was fish,
ing in the Atlantic Ocean. forty seven
and one-half miles from New Bruins
wick. on the night of the murder. and
that he not only abhors small arms,
and would not have a revolver or pis-
tol around but that the only weapon
that he handles expertly is "a. shotgun,
aside from nconsequential trick tar
get work with .22 caliber rifle.
Largest Home I'm Village.
But the fact is that his home is prob
ably the largest and most comfortable
In this shore village OF IFS houses, and
Mr.. Stevens, as well as being a sports
man OF parts. Is versed in astronomy and
archaeology and conforms accurately TO
the description of a cultivated gentle
man. At night he follows the march OF
the consultations with a sky map or
freshens his own memory of the cliff
dwellers by reading the latest reports
from the Southwest. Tee range OF hts
hobbies is suggested by books on these
topics that the correspondent saw I'm his
gun room to-day. There were such vol
rmes as Astronomy with the Naked
Eye" North American Shore Birds,
THE Call OF the Surf" Game Cookery"
american Ornithology' and Pheasant
Keeping for Amusement" As for dead
ly weapons his New England bred wife.
graduate of Teachers College In New
being good pistol shot
HE couldn't" she said. using the
good old figure. 'hit the side of barn"
Detectives have been shopping in and
out OF the village for several weeks.
The last one. presumably State trooper
! from New Brunswick, was here yester-
day. They stall around with such a
laborious air Of secrecy that the whole
town knows In ten minutes their iden-
tity and business. Mr.. Stevens receives
them cheerfuly and goes over the whole
story in a few words. for he hasn't the
gift of loquacity He tells them Just
what he was doing at the time of the
murder and names the men with whom
he was fishing.
Offers Ills A1fbts.
He lets them inspect his old Ford sta
tion wagon and his wifes seven pasSen-
ger touring car and he tells them the
Ford is the only car he knows how 10
drive. He invites the detectives % go
where they will and check what he says.
They do so. they find az least two men
with fine regulations for veracity who
are ready 20 swear anywhere that they
were fishing beside Henry stevens on
the edge OF the surf almost IN front OF
his house until 10 30 on that night. and
another man who Is almost ready to
swear, but says he can't be sure. be-
cause he sees Mr.. stevens fishing so
many nights he can't separate one from
another.
Mrs. stevens said a woman also saw
her husband on the night in question
and spoke with him as late rs II o'clock
This woman. a ncighbor, would will
ingly tell this under oath II necessary.
Henry Stevens doesn't believe his three
year-old much-traveled Ford could =,
as far as New Brunswick. Certainly 1,
would take at least two hours to do a.
4 larger car would. OF course. 20 faster
but nobody can be found here who ever
saw Mr. stevens drive larger or any
kind OF a three shift car. In fact
| his inability 20 do SC Is notorious. HIS
| wife had n Dodge Until last year when
she bought a Chandler and. II Is under
| stood between them. the Ford Is his and
tho other hers. AS for Mr.. stevens s
| reputation In Lavslotte, II IL TOP hole.
Towns Sentiment.
"whats all them detectives want "a
keep coming around here for?' piped a
weather SCARED retired fishing captain
| in the group around the stove in Gus
! Iielmuth's store tonight by crlminy
we've all told 'em Henry stevens Is as
| fine a gentleman as you ever laid eyes
| on, that ought TO be enough for rea
detective, but Il seems Il ain't. 'Spose
/ ~ they change Prosecutors few more
times over TO New Brunswick or wher-
ever Il is the KILN is done. they'll b.
detectives stompin around here all win
ter preventing honest people from, get
1 y -