The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1931-09-04
Wife OF LOVE
BUTCHER HELD
AS SUSPECT
Made Prisoner in Home
While Woman Aid in
Crime Is Hunted.
GUILTY PLEA RUMoRE0
Powers May Try to Dodge
Death With Clever Sci
entifiC' Defense.
BIZ United Press

HARRISBURG, w. Va, Sept A..
Mrs. Louella Strouther Powers. wife
of Harry Powers, matrimonial
agency "Bluebeard," practically was
a prisoner in her home here today.
it was learned as police continued
their efforts to determine whether
Powers was assisted by a woman
accomplce in the five killings
charged against him.
Mrs. Powers has been placed un-
der 24-hour surveillance, it was re-
vealed. No orders have been is
sued regarding her conduct, but po-
said she would not be permitted to
leave Clarksburg until the inves-
tigation is completed.
The surveillance of Mrs. Powers
was barred as defense counsel init
mated that a clever Scientific" de-
tense might enable Powers to es-
cape the moose for the hanging and
beating of two women and three
children in his Quiet Dell garage.
May Plead Guilty
It was reported that Powers
might plead guilty on condition
that he be offered to science as a
scientific subject for tests to assist
authorities in combating similar
criminal tendencies in others.
Under the reported plan, Powers
would be given life Imprisonment
and in return would bare the COM
plete story of his bizarre sex-com-
plexes and alleged lust for killing
At the same time doubt was ex-
pressed that Barrett O'Hara. who
defended Virgil Kirkland, Gary
gin slayer" will enter the case.
Strong dislike of O'Hara is ex-
pressed by residents and reports are
current that he represents Al Ca
pone or the Detroit matrimonial
agency through which Powers
operated.
Letters Believed Forged
Theories that West Virginia's ia
nous mail order lover had wom-
an accomplice were developed ear
lier today.
Checks, letters, and other written
messages, purporting to be from the
pen of principals in the murder
orgy of Quiet Dell, were believed
after investigation to have been
forged-and in the handwriting of
a woman.
Handwriting experts expressed the
opinion that check on the account
of Asia Buick Eicher, widow and
mother Of three children among the
slain, was forged by a woman.
They said the same of a letter
purporting to be from Mrs. Dorothy
Pressler Lemke, written at Union
town, Pa, to her sister, Mrs. Charles
Fleming, Worcester, Mass.
Doubted by Relative
1t was recalled in that connection
that Charles Fleming declared the
day following discovery of the MUIR
der that he did not believe the let
ter they had received from Mrs.
ASAANO wac WAAISC44 Wy it'll
ut didn't look like her hand
writing" he said, land, besides, she
could not speak English that well.
She was born in Germany"
Mrs. Powers has not yet con-
WINGED authorities that she knew
nothing of her husbands activities
during the years he has been Woo
ing and winning the hearts of mid
dle-aged women of wealth by mail.
They can not understand how a
man could carry on correspondence
with more than 100 women, promise
to marry many of them. bring at
least two of them and children Of
one Of them to his garage, and kill
them, as he said he did, without his
wife, with whom he lived at the
time, knowing a thing about it.