The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, December 16, 1898, Page 1

from Call VOLUME LXXXV,_NO. 16, SAN FRANCISCO, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 16, 1898. PRICE FIVE CENT 'DUNNING AND MRS. BOTKIN. PLANNING TO PROVE THE MOTIVE OF THE MURDERS. Sensational Incidents in the Trial of% the Accused Woman—Secrets of the | Victoria Hotel—The Discovery 3 of Haas’ Seal in Mrs. Bot- kin’s Room. | might affect this issue was asked. HE prosecutors of Mrs. Cordelin Botkin scored four im- portant points yesterday in the presentation of their case, yet when the was over and twenty-four witnesses had passed on and off the stand Mrs. Botkin shook the hand of herlending attorney in congratulation and thankfulness. The Assistant District Attorney is submitting his proofs with an unusual Jogical severity. He laid the foundation yesterday for the testimony that will be introduced to show that Mrs. Botkin wrote the address on the box of poisoned candy. Everything the prosecution possesses in reference to the mailing of the package was given to the jury. The clerk who passed the box from this city on its way to Dover was on the stand and told why he remembered the incident. Then the offi- cers for the State shifted the scene to the establishment of George Haas and summoned every employe, from the highest PEOEEEEOEEO® ® ® to the lowest, in every department, to show that the poison found in the candy did mot come from the confectioner’s shop. Agnain the scenc was changed to the Victoria Hotel, where Dunning and Mrs. Botkin lived for a time. This phase of the ® | inquiry developed two important results. It was shown that the @ | relations between the nccused woman and Dunning were most @ intimate snd that Mrs. Botkin claimed to be distracted to the point of desperation at her parting from Dunning. This evi- dence is but preliminary to the textimony that will be given to establish = motive for the murders of Mrs. Botkin is accused. The proceedings of yesterday closed with the evidence that a seal, used on the wares of George Haas, was found in the which | room of Mrs. Botkin a few days after she left the Victoria | Hotel. | | OJOJOJO OJOJOJORORORCROROXOXOXO] | | MOB of men and women fought ; vances, vet notwithstanding this Mrs. A their way yesterday murr Botkin was jubilant. Her whole man- the courtroom of Judge |ner changed. The day before she had | The Botkin case rivals been reserved, fearful, fretful and al- | the Durrant trial in local interest. The most unnerved. Witnesses were point- | s invariably crowded be- | ing at her the accusing finger of identi- | and the corridor l¢ fication, and Mrs. Botkin e | by hundreds, | suffered under the ordeal of the morbid | she was sprightly, laughing, almost 1 the prisoner as she |solent, in an air of confident defiance. in the custody of the | The prosecution had tried and failed During the long hours cof the | to connect her with the mailing of the the courtroom becomes | package of poisoned sweets. | h heat, yet hundreds| It was a point in favor of the defense le and crowd with craned | anq Mrs, Botkin was happy. She did the slightest word that | n.¢ seem to care that the prosecution | witness sta | had 1214 the foundation for the ev { dence that will show the disgraceful | | relationship that existed between her | material ad-'and Dunning. | y sessions ppressive W nd and jo ke to h nt T ¥ were re- arkable from several points of view. The prosecution made proceedings yesterd She seemed to be un- | | present. concerned at the fact that a stamp bearing the name of George Haas had been found in her room. She was happy, and after the day was over she rushed over to George Knight and gratefully shcok him by the hand. Everybody employed by George Haas had been summoned as witnesses, and when court opened most of them were | Candy makers, candy dippers, makers, clerks, managers, janitors and the human | odds and ends of the confectioner’s | store trooped on and off the stand to | show, each within his or her knowiedge, that the poison found in the candies did not come from the store of George Haas. Every possible question that| cream alesladies, | guest. He zlso told- how the police sent a dummy package, similar to the poi- son bo¥, to the ferry postal station. The purpose of the police was to assist the clerks in recalling, if possible, the passage of the original package. This information gave Knight an- other opportunity to insinuate against police methods, and he accepted it quickly. Postal Inspector Irwin testi- fied that it is impossible to tell from the marks of cancellation at which local _postal station a package is malled, as all packages are canceled at the ferry station. A letter carrier who delivered mail to Mrs. Botkin was called, but his testimony was material only in laying the foundation for evi- dence on handwriting. One of the most important witnesses of the day was Mrs. Loretta Simpson who formerly conducted the Victor: Hotel and enjoyed Mrs. Botkin as a | that | Mrs. Simpson declared Dunning also lived at the house for a short time while Mrs. Botkin was there. The two were inseparable companions. | They took their meals together, came | George Haas himself was placed on|and went together and seemed to be on the witness stand and was compelled | terms of the closest intimacy. When to tell all he knows about his own busi- | Dunning left for Cuba Mrs. Botkin de- | secrets that may | ment. ness. During the ordeal he revealed be of value to the‘ lovers of confections. Mr. Haas testi- | fied that it was impossible for the ar- | senic to have come from his store or factory, either by accident or design. “Salesladies,” agitated and fluttering, tripped on the witness stand and | swore that they did not poison the | candy and did not know anybody who | did. Men and women employed in| every department of the store told how scrupulously clean the place Is and how careful is the conduct of each depart- No poison surely could have | come from the establishment of George Haas: Even the mice in the place are killed not by poison, but by cats. Miss Sylvia Heney offered another fact to her testimony by declaring that | the woman who bought the box of bon bons from her on July 31 carried with her, when she entered the store. a small package. Knight at once saw the significance and purpose of the question. “Could you tell whether or not the parcel contained lump or powdered ar- senic?” he asked sarcastically. The girl replled that she did not | know what the parcel contained. | While the store of Haas was under consideration the proprietor declared | that he could not swear to an identi-| fication of his own candy. He believed | the poisoned sweets to be of his manu- | facture, but beyond that he could not | go. During the morning session the | prosecution showed how, and approxi- | mated when, the box of poisoned candy | was mailed from this city to Dover. [ J. D. Dunnigan, a mailing clerk at the ferry postal station, testified. al- though with apparent unwillingness, that early in Augnst he noticed ‘a pack- age in the mail addressed to Mrs. John | P. Dunning. The similarity of this | name to his own attracted his atten- tion, and he remarked the incident. clared that she was prostrated and dis- tracted. She said she was very fond of Dunning and did not see how she could endure her solitude when he was gone. This testimony will have a very im- portant bearing on what will follow in the case of the prosecution when the State will attempt to show the motive | for the murders of which Mrs. Botkin is accused. Others who know the af- fairs of Mrs. Botkin better than Mrs. Simpson will take up the story where | she left it. Mrs. Birdte Price, the present owner of the Victoria Hotel, also proved yes- terday to be an important witness for the State. She swore that on Sunday, July 31, the day when it is claimed Mrs. Botkin bou~ht ‘the candy, the accused woman pleaded serious illness and had her breakfast sent to her room. Later in the day Mrs. Price saw Mrs. Botkin on the stairs as Mrs. Botkin was re- turning ‘rom what Mrs. Price thought was a shopping tour. The landlady re- marked the incident as curious for a double reason. She believed Mrs. Bot- kin to be confined to her room and she thought it strange that a woman should go shopping on Sundav. Mrs. Botkin carried several parcels, one of which, in size, shape and color, resembled the wrapped box of candy that was sent to Dover. W. € Rosello was the medium by which the prosecution introduced the fact that in August, shortly after Mrs. Botkin left the Victoria Hotel, a seal used by George Haas was found in her room. Rosello now occupies Mrs. Bot- kin's room. When he rented it he found the paper seal on the floor and gave it to W. W. Barnes, the clerk of the hotel. | It was then handed over to the police. | Barnes was piacid om the witness stand - and corroborated what Rosello nad sald. There Wwas a minor contradiction in the story of the two men. Each de- clared that he urged the other to go to TEHOSE WHO KNOW THE STORY OF THE DOVER CRIME. The Prosecution Discussed Three Points Yesterday in the Presentation of Its Case Against Mrs. Cordelia Botkin. It Showed the _lail- ing of the Package in This City, the Such as Are Used for Fastening Candy in the Morbid Throng Attracted to Judge Cerroll Cook’s Courtroom. Relations Existing Bétween John P. Dunning and the Defendant and the Finding of a Portion of a Seal, Boxes, in the Room Once Occupied by the Woman Accused. Interest in the Trial Is Increasing, as Shown the police. Knight made much of this after a cross-examination of insult. Tpon the opening of court Judge Cook said he would sustain the objection of the defense in regard to the introduction as evidence of the package of arsenic pur- chased at the Owl Drugstore by Chief of Police Lees. The Judge said it did not seem material to the case unless it was from the identical bulk as that from which the Botkin purchase was made. D. F. C. Droge, manager for George Haas & Son, was the first of the twenty- two witnesses who were on the stand during the day. He knew Sylvia Heney and Kittle Dittner, the two candy girls who were on the stand the previous day. He was in the store the afternoon some candy was sold to a woman resembling Mrs. Botkin. He saw Miss Heney take an empty box from the case and fill it, but did not see any customer, although he knew one was there. The girl used a box without the firm name on it. The witness identified the box and the candy and said the latter was made by Haas, although he is not a confeotioner by trade. The witness was mildly cross-examined by Mr. Knight, the chief thing brought out being that he was not in charge of the making of candy but only in the sales | department. He was succeeded by Henry J. Pape, foreman in the candy factory, a position he has held for fourteen years. He testi- fied that he made all the candy and hand- led all the material used in the store. It was his duty to make the mixture of which chocolate creams are composed and then they are turned over to girls, who dip them in melted chocolate. To a query he sald he had never used arsenic or any polson in the manufacture of candy. In all his experience he had never seen lumps such as the arsenic shown him in any candy. He recognized those candles in evidence as having been made in the Haas store. He was asked If a pilece of chocolate were opened with a knife If a foreign substance could be inserted and leave no outward signs. He replied in the affirma- tive, saying the aperture could be covered by heating. The foundation for the choce ate drops was composed of cream tartar, water and sugar. Mr. Knight took up the cross-examina- tion by an extended inquiry as to the cleanliness observed in handling the cop- per kettle in which the candy is made. MIDDAY GHOULS RIFLE LILLIAN - BRANDES' CASKET Dr. E H Woolsey and Attorney J. E. Benmett Desecrate the Body of the Murdered Child. Grewsome Work of Representatives Comcerned in the Defense of Brandes---Took the Skull of It Secretly the Little Girl and Are Holding for Evidence in the Case. OOR, unfortunate, little Lilllan Brandes has not been permitted to rest undisturbed, even after death had freed her from the in- human treatment which was her daily lot. | Within an hour of the final closing i 7 %S i / /’”} /"//% .&746 i 01 o I Mr. Knight was In quest of verdigris, | which the witness said he had seen on | the outside of the Kkettle. but never on | the inside. As it was admitted they never | made candy on the outside of the Kettle, | Knight's search for information was not productive of any great result. However, he induced the witness to v that he | kept the implements of his trade shining brightly so that he might see his image reflected In them each time he passed. Later with the aid of Mr. Hosmer he cor- rected this and said the kettle was kept | clean of necessity, as it was used for | making so many different kinds of candy. | He told of glucose sometimes taking the | place of cream tartar, and sometimes con- densed milk was used. The witness said he identified the candies shown him as being from Haas' store by the color of the chocolate, the shape of the mold and the manner in which they were dipped. On being asked as to the coloring matter used he sald he never knew of it being poisonous. The material from which green is produced he had often placed in his mouth without suffering any ill ef- fects. He had never known of any “Rough on Rats” being kept about the premises. In fact there were no rats about—only some mice. George W. Haas, proprietor of the store which has jumped into such no- toriety, was the next witness. He at once identified the box that carried death to Delaware as having been sold ir his store. The candy he sald looked very much ifke his manufacture. He had never heard of any poison in candy. Being asked as tc the number of emploves he had he | replicd that he did not care to sta‘2 it would give his competitors a cha estimate the amount of business ne was doing. He compromised finally by giving | a iist of his employes to the Prosecuiing | Attorney. Mr. Knight merely some questions as to the severity of the | competition between the lzading B stores. Mr. Haas was also secretive ns where he purchases the seals he piaces on his boxes, but finally he said he or- London. Mrs. Loretta Simpson, who owned the Victoria Hotel, Hyde and California streets, in April, was next on the stand. She sald: I knew Mrs. Botkin as a | lodger at the hotel while I kept it. I sold ‘i out to Mrs. Birdie Price in April of tfus | year. I first met Mrs. Botkin in the lower hall of the hotel last March. She came twice, and then became a lodger, having | a room on the top floor, where she re-| mained after I left. I also knew John P. Dunning. He came with Mrs. Botkin to engage a room, and stayed flve days dur- ing March. He then left in response to | a telegram calling him to Cuba. After he left Mrs. Botkin felt very badly. She went to Oakland with him when he started East, and was almost prostrated when she came back to the hotel. She told me how badly she felt at his golng | to war where he might be killed, Bhe afterward told me that she felt badly about it, es she was very fond of him Contigued ou Fousth Poge 7 2, //,’,/ / 7 dered them 20,000 2¢ a time from a firm in dat the yndertaking pariors of Joha BE. 7 , K Dr. E. H. Woolsey, Who, With Bennett, Took the Skull From the Dead Streightif on University avenue, Berke- ley, and requested permission to ex- amine the remains as representatives of the defense. Mr. Streightif is also Deputy Coroner and he knew they were entitled to this privilege, but the body had been ready for such an ex- amination for several days, the autopsy had been held and the funeral had been set for an early hour that afternoon. Mr. Streightif could not deny their request, but he did prptest against their delaying the examination until the last minute. Furthermore, he said, he was just going to his luncheon and wanted to lock up the place. “Never mind that,” said Woolsey, “you can leave us here and we will ex- amine the body while you are gone.” Mr. Streightif did not like the idea, but knowing both men and believing them to be reputable members of their profession, le finally consented to the plan, though first exacting a promise from both, on their honor, not to tamper with the body in any manner. When the autopsy was held the phy- siclans removed the top of the skull and also the three membranes covering the brain. On the adhesions of these membranes hangs the main point upon which the prosecution relies for the conviction of Brandes. This section of the head was inspected by Dre. Shan- non, Rowell, Fastman, Hoagland. Bu- teau, Whitworth and Payne. Nearly all these docters took part in the au- topsy and when it was concluded they returned the piece of the skull to the rest of the body. Mr. Streightif lifted the body out of the casket and placed it on the operat- ing table for the convenience of the two men, and then left the place. When he returned Woolsey had gone, leaving Bennett there alone. It lacked but fif- teen minutes of the time set for the funeral, and Streightif was anxious to have the body ready for the last rites. As he stooped to lift the remains back into the casket he noticed that some- thing was wrong, and he asked Bennett what they had done to the body. Ben- Body of Lillian Brandes. John E. Bennett, Attorney for the gical Knowledge Has Been the Brandes Hearing. Defense, Whose Remarkable Sur- Subject of Comment in the of the coffin that held the mutilated | remains of the child, and while it was | in the undertaker's parlor in Berkeley | awaiting the arrival of the few good | people who had provided means for a fitting burial and were to escort the remalins to their last resting place, two agents of the child's father plundered the casket of part of its contents and | surreptitiously bore away the crown of | the skull. | These vandals were Dr. E. H. Wool- | sey, one of the best known physicians of Oakland, and J. E. Bennett, one of the attorneys who are defending Brandes during his examination on the charge of having murdered his daugh- ter, The robbing of tha coflin was easy of | accomplishment, About noon on No- vember 2 Woolsay and Bennett called nett made an evasive reply and left the room. A hasty examination showed the Deputy Coroner that the crown of the skull, originally removed at the au- topsy, but replaced and the scalp drawn over, had been abstracted and a bun- gling attempt made to cover up thelir horrible deed with the child’s hair. It was this disarrangement of the hair that made Strelghtif, suspicious. As soon as the casiet had been borne away Strelghtif called up Bennett by telephone and charged him and Wool- sey with the deed. Bennett acknowl- edged that thev had taken the portion of the skull, but advised Streightif not to say anything about it But Streightif did not keep quiet—at lenst he made it po uncomfortable for tho pair that they gave him an order for the return of the erown, which or- der ha now holds, /The matter was made known to the