The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, December 17, 1898, Page 1

all to be taken from the Library.+*++* VOLUME LXXXV.—NO. 17. PRICE FIVE CENTS. MRS. BOTKIN HAS MET HER Mrs. Harris Was ' an Important Witness. The prosecutors of Mrs. Cordelia Bot- int ced yesterday most damag- testimony against the accused wo- . The evidence given excited the ience and disconcerted the attorneys the defense. Mrs. Botkin was visi- bly th affected and her face and eyes lost evid s of unconcern which had iem at the trial. The 2 for her and al observer could see the hanging emotions that played features terrible solemnity was The audience had and boister been flippant 1s during the morning ses- and women laughed when d and audibly discussed the Coo! atened to his warning 1 repetition the will k then that r th Judge not soon begged the they were | but in a| ceeding.” he | the death of the life of an- f the day was Harris. who 10st important testimony al issue of her startling evi- »d there was a mur- hroughout the The prose- surprise, and led another gap | circumstantial | Botkin. police mur astonishme the c ad sprung its fir could | prove that the handkerchief found in | the box of poisoned candy had been | purchased at the City of Paris. The| fact t the saleswoman who sold the } could also identify the | een kept a profound se- | Harris took the wit- | xpected the course the ta Mrs. Harris de- | n May or early in June | she had sold two handker- | that in the candy box. | ho gave her address as| 1 Hotel nt seemed to disconcert | Mrs. Botkin to the last| chie to the V This and confus degree. Her face flushed and she fan- | ned herself with , restless -en- | ergy. Her attorr watch- The tes- 1 the stand. ny had come ‘ltke a thunderbolt. ing the witness I ] . Harris had not as yet con- cluded. She declared that she was sure that the woman who bought the handkerchiefs was Mrs. Cordelia Bot- kin George Knight tried in every way to break the force of this testimony, but | he simply added to its effect. Under cross-examination Mrs. Harris was sharp, quiet-spoken and confi- She told Knight that she was sure she was not mistaken in her iden- | tification, as Mrs. Botkin's face re- | minded her strongly of her own| mother’s, he recalled the incident of the sale because in se E | done she violated the of the Knight did succeed, however, in ing from the witness the fact that v of no record of the le or of Beyond this the cross- 1iner could do nothing, and for the first t uring the trial he abandone the attempt and notified Mrs. Harr that he would recall her for further cross-examination. It was left to Mrs. Eimira Ruoff, the former friend, confidante gnd adviser of | M Jotkin, to become the prisoner's v accuser. Mrs. Ruoff was next upon the witness stand and gave the| most sensational testimony of the trial. Her manner was such that even the| Assistant District Attorney urged her not to show i1l feeling upon the witness stand. e replied that what was con- strued to be ill feeling was simply the emphatic assertion of positive facts. Mrs. Ruoff outlined the whole dis- graceful story of the relation between Dunning and Mrs. Botkin. She told of the first assignation, of clandestine meetings, .of midnight suppers and carousals. She sketched scenes after- ward at the races and trips to the park and the Cliff House. She left nothing untold that might lay the foundation upon which the prosecution is building a proof of the motive for the crime of which Mrs. Botkin is accused. ne by Judge Cook him- | | But she was not readin | was characteristic WORST ACCUSER IN MRS. RUOFF | STERN ACCUSERS OF MRS. BOTKIN. emarkable Recital at the Trial THe Porrion OF SeacL Founo N MRS, 5 BoTKiINg Room. The witness digressed to say that she | also had seen in the poss: on of Mrs. Botkin a handkerchief similar to that found in the box of poiscned sweets. | Mrs. Ruoff was armed with pertinent | and incriminating facts. the anonymous letters as written by Mrs. Botkin. She swore that the ad- dress on the package of candy was| written by Mrs. Botkin. And then the witness told how Mrs. Botkin begged Governor Budd to appoint her a Red Cross nurse that she might go to Cuba and the war with her lover. The great courtroom with its throng of people was in absolute stillness while the woman related this story. Her | sharp, shrill voice rang out in accus- ing accents, and Mrs. Botkin tried not to appear concerned. Many eyes were upon her, and she bent over a book. and now and | again her eyes turned in fascination | toward the witness-stand. This remarkable story related upon She identified | | the witness-stand created a profound | impression. Ge.rge Knight conducted a brief cross-examination and did not | succeed in shaking the woman in any of her assertions. His first question | of him. “How long were you in the Stockton Insane Asy lum?” he asked. It is not necessary to | say more than that Knight knew the | witness had been a nurse and not a pa- tient in the institution. There was a storm of objections, and a recess was taken until the afternoon. During the recess Mrs. Ruoff was coun- | seled not to show ill feeling on witness-stand. She changed her man- ner, and so did Knight. Both were | suave, quiet-spoken, courteous. But Knight could glean nothing directly to contradict or entrap the witness. After a brief examination he released her. The proceedings, which during the day | developed so much of dramatic interest, opened quietly. B. K. Icklund, a candy | maker empl d by George Haas, was the | first witne called. He had put no ar- senic {n chocolate. A juror drew from him that arsenic could be inserted in candy and the aperture closed, but the witness | thought it would show. He was followed by Mrs. Grace Harris, | one of the strongest witnesses for \he‘ prosecution. Like many of those who | preceded her, she seemed touchy on her past, declining to state her resi She had apparently read the paper she alluded to the employes of the of Pari “sales persons’’ people,” not the recurrent * of the candy counter. She was handkerchief which accompanied the poi- soned sweets to Delaware and identified | It as one sold by her. Tt still contained the price mark which she had placed upon | it with a red rubber stamp. She sold it | to a woman who asked that it be sent to and 1 | 1104 Market street, a lodging house. | sons. the |3 | they the Victoria Hotel. She had seen Mrs. Botkin in court and recognized her as re- sembling the woman who had made the purchase. To Mr. Knight she refused to give her present address, but finally said it was She as sure the purchaser-of the handker- chief was Mrs. Botkin, for several rea- The witness knew a man who was employed at the Victoria Hotel, and when Mrs. Botkin gave that address the saleswoman looked up quickly and saw in the woman before her one who bore »semblance to her mother. The She had no doubt that Mrs. the purchaser of the two hand- .. Wimira Ruoff, one time nurse and friend of Mrs. stand 1. told wt \Us movements for an extended period . Hosmer she said: My home i in Stockton. 1 am a widow, and have g Mrs. Botkin for se or elght For the last two years I have v well. I know John P. ng seen him in both San kland. I have seen them y four or five years. known her v At that time a mes n 1t Mrs. Botkin a note. After reading it she told me she expected a visit from a friend and asked me to let him in without his ringing the bell and at yacting any attention. ~She did not want any one to know of his visit. Mr. Dunning came and I admitted him as re- quested. He stayed about a half hour. A week later he came again under ex- actly the same circumstance: ‘he next time I met him was in Gold- en Gate Park. Mrs. Botkin and myself were on our way to the Cliff House and passed through the park. Mrs. Botkin expected to meet him at the'Cliff, but he did not come. This was in July, 189%. The next time I saw him at the home of Botkin at 927 Geary street, between Ik and Van Ness avenue. ayed a few minutes. Some day: ter I went to stay all night and knocked at the door of Mrs. Botkin's room. She asked me to go downstairs and walt for her. Shortly afterward she called me and I went up and found Mr. Dunning in the room with her. The witness_was shown the handker- chiéf sent to Delaware and said: ‘“‘Mrs. | Botkin and_myself were in the City of and_ she pointed out a ke that and said, ‘Ain’t pretty? The handkerchiefs had been marked down and were being sold at an_unusually low price.” The witness identified a card as being fn Mrs. Botkin’s handwriting. The latter acknowledged it, and the letter was ad- mitted in evidence. The witness identified Paris one da; handkerchie The first time was at | Botkin's sister, Mrs and. s was t | had invited her to dine He came in | the follawing letter as being in Mrs. Bot- | Kkin's handwriting: San Francisco, Apr. 1888 ywvernor Bud Most Dear Sir: ¢ grant cere request which to ba It will be my heart plac felt wisl re and sympathy that such a position would demand. My ref- erence in t ity is Dr. Thorne. Trusting my request will recelve an early response, I am most respectfully, rs. W. A. Botkine, 1105 Hyde Street: This was written shortly after Dunning | civil case. went to Cuba as a war_correspondent. The witness identified the anonymous Wiil you | | strychnine was too harsh: letters, saying they were not in Mrs. Bot- kin's usual handwriting, but that there were many points of similarity. The writing on the wrapper, she thought, was the same as that of the anonymous lotters ani that one and tie same person wrote them all and that that person was Mrs. Botkin. 3 ““I saw Mrs. Botkin,” continued the wit- ness,” on the 27th or 28th of July, 1808. She came up on the boat and I was not overjoyed to see her. She noticed this | and I explained that I had expected to see | her in the city. I made coffee for her and | Dramatic Warn- ing of Judge Cook. ‘‘She next came to my house on Au- ust 18, and was accompanied by Miss ivernash. The story of the murders | had then been published. I looked at her | and said: ‘For God's sake, who sent you here? Have you read the stories printed | in the papers? | “She "said, ‘Do you believe it? Why | should you? “Miss Livernash went out and Mrs. Bot- kin laid down on a couch. T asked her if she remembered the conversation she had had with the doctor. She said, ‘Yod put : all those thoughts in my head.’ She then | went into hyster and fell over on the | floor. I went for the doctor, who came and attended her.” | “The first time I heard of the anony-! mous letters in this case she mentioned them. She said there were three, and | that they referred to acts at 927 Geary | street. 1 asked whom she thought did | the writing, and she said she could not ! tell, unless it ‘that singed cat | Forcade.” She said, ‘If ever you scrawl in all your life they are the worst.” She said Mr. Dunning sent them to I and she had returned them. I told her| she was a_fool for doing so. She denied | a lot of things attributed to her in the paper, but finally said she had made the statements, but not for publication. She | talked a great deal about Dunning, but I | can’t remember all. | “In May at the Victoria Hotel she asked me what I used for bleaching hats. I | recommended sulphur. She asked if I| had used arsenic. She had been told it | was good for bleaching purposes.” | Mr. Knight took the witness for cmss-[ examination and had proceeded but a short distance when some of the specta- tors laughed at a tart answer he received to one of his questions. Although the regular hour for adjournment had not ar- rived, Judge Cook declared the noon re- cess and instructed the Sherlff not to ad- mit more spectators at the afternoon ses- | sion than could find seats. opening of court for the after- on Attorney Hosmer, for the n, addressed Judge Cook. He said that during the examination of Mrs. Ruoff he had objected to a question ad- dressed to her by Mr. Knight. He thought (h?\l he might be misunderstood and de- sired to withdraw it. The question w: fow long were vou in Stockton Insan Asylum?”~ Mr. Knight did not avall him- | self of the opportunity of asking the ques- | tion again, but it afterward brought out by Mr. Hosmer that Mrs. Ruoff had been ‘employed in the asylum for three | years as an attendant. Mr. Knight con- | | veyed the impression that she had been | committed there. She was then asked as to the whisky she drank at Mrs. Botkin's house on Geary street, and sald that Mrs. Botkin handed it to her-and insisted upon her | drinking it, against her wishes. She was | asked if she was put to bed that night | drunk, and said she was not tippling. She Was never ii a condition where she tould not go to bed without assistance, sie was not. Intoxicated. ‘ rs. Botkin first discussed pofson wl her in June and asked particularle as oo | the deadly effects of poison. The morning of the publication of t\e story of the | poisoning of Mrs. Dunning, Mrs. Botkin | called on Mrs. Ruoff and the latter ad- C00000000000000000000 then she entered upon a discussion as to yarious pofsons. I told her that in poison- Ing r uld vehnine. She | asked if .1 ever used arsenic and I said I | i, but found the . She | ed particularly as to what would be a dose that would kill and T {old her that it varied in s She then asked how she could purchase the drug and I told her at | any drugstore, but would have, to explain for what purpose she required it. She then asked particularly as to the rates ot postage on various Kinds of matter. ed her if she desired to make sure fe transmission she should register she sent. She asked if she would not then have to sign her name.” “She then asked me if a person was in trouble and hired a lawyer would they have to tell him everything. I answered by reminding her of the old saying that it is best to employ a good doctor or lawyer if one needs such services as they can render. | “She then explained to me that she came | up to see the ‘governor, as she always called Mr. Botkin. She had some dia- monds in pawn and wanted money from him with which to redeem them. She went out, but returned shortly and said she had 'seen the ‘governor and that he was displeased to find her there, but vith him. ' She | complained of feeling ll and said that 1f she had not promised Mr. Botkin she ould not dine with him. | “Mrs. Botkin went out and returned late in the afternoon and said: ‘I have dined with the ‘“governor” and have been to his room. That cuts him off from a divorce for one vear. That night she complained of being I, saying it was acute pneumonfa. She was very excited and nervous, and said she had taken poi- | son. I said, ‘I don’t believe you have; you | are too big a coward.” The doctor called and found her in a high fever and sald | she had the grip. | “While the doctor was in the house she plied him continuously with questions re- garding polsons. 1 told the doctor not to answer her, as she would be taking poison. The doctor did tell her that | arsenic was | quieter in effect. but that the morphine | route was better than either.. Mrs. Bot- | kin referred again to arsenic, and had the | doctor, tell her the symptoms of arsenic | poisoning and all particulars about the | lethal poison. The doctor recommended | her to remain quiet several days, but she | decided to go the next day. | “She told me that something indicated | to her that her association with Dunning would be stronger than it had been. She did not think he would get a divorce, on account of his child. At this time she told me I might be summoned as a wit- ness, but that I would get my fee. I toid her T knew_the law allowed a fee in a She said, ‘How about a crimi- nal case? This all happened before the Dover tragedy. as! | her heart that Mrs. | the words. to something one has heard mitted that she thought the “Old Harry" had sent the woman to the house. The witness said that by that time she had put two and two together and thought in Botkin was the B Rt Mr. Knight asked her if, having fo Mrs. Botkin, a married womans en:ler:E taining Mr. Dunning, a married man, sha had formed a favorable opinion of her. The witness said she had not formed a favorable opinion. She was asked if she recalled letting Mr. Dunning clandestinely intc her own house in Oakland, and sald she dld not at that time. She also said she found Mrs. Botkin an unwelcome visi- tor. Mr. Knight showed her a letter writ- ten by the witness to Mrs. McClure, Mrs, Bot! s sister, in which she spoke of the latter's safe arrival at her house and of being_tenderly cared for. She explained this difference of feeling by saying that ::hehllktcthrfil'. :;?cclulx;e and did not want o hurt her feelings by letting he her opinion of Mre. Botkin. & hor KnOW She acknowledged having examined the pencil letter “over an_ hour, or long enough to satisfy Chief Lees.” “Oh! that's easy, sometimes,” said the accommodating Knight. Mrs. Botkin appealed to her sympathy and as a Christian woman she gave it to her, although many times since then she has wished that she had never met her. Regarding the two anonymous letters she was sure one was written by Mrs. Botkin, e “Bohemian life,” being, she said, a ‘“dead give away.” Asked as to the meaning of the latter expression she said it was a slang ph%\se applied | efore from | any person. Mrs. Ruoff dissected the letter, picking out all the earmarks of Mrs. Botkin's writing and. going into detail as to arm movement, finger movement and muscu- lar recoll, as though a writing teacher. She said’ her expenses were pald here when she appeared before the Grand Jury and once when she went to Stockton, but she had been promised no compensation for her testimony. Asked as to the rea- son she went to Stockton looking for letters to aid the prosecution she said she did so for her own ‘“pleasure.” Appar- ently she did not mean she was hounding Mrs. Botkin for the pleasure it gave her, but that one expression was all the satis- faction the defenders of Mrs. Botkin could extract from the unshaken testi- mony of the woman. The jurymen will hear of it again when the case is argued. | Captain of Police John Seymour an tective Idward Gibson testified that | | neither of them had placed the bit of a | | seal in the room formerly occupied by | Mrs. Botkin in the Victoria Hotel. At- torney Hosmer then asked for an ad- journment until Monday, as Miss Liver- nash, the next witness he desired, was out of town. The prosecution had six more .witnesses and would conclude the | presentation of its case on Monday. The | court adjourned until that time. B S SN e 8 ) S ARRANGING THE " FIRST MEETING - PAGES FROM MRS. ELMIRA RUOFF’S STORY OF MRS. BOTKIN. l. . RS.RUOFF . SURPRISES DUNNING AND MRS .BOTKIN. THE INVITATION MEETING IN > THE PARK.. TO THE RACES. 0000660000060 MRS, BoTKIN FALLS IN HYSTERICS . PLUNGER GILLETT AND HIS ATTORNEY 'TO LEAVE MEXICO Being Afraid of anm Extradition Treaty They Will Seek Safety in South America. The Skyrocket Cattle Operator Has Plenty of Money and Is Followed by Detectives, Who Have No Power to Arrest Him. Bpecial Dispatch to The Call. (] g cattle plunger of Woodbine, o g Cruz, where they will take the steamer for South America. o but President Diaz’s action in absolutely safe. [+ S from leaving Vera Cruz. ad 09 EOODO000000N0000000000CC000000000 CITY OF MEXICO, Dec. 16.—Grant G. Gillett, the who disappeared with him, left here this morning for Vera Their ultimate destination is Argentine Republic, where Gillett says he will go into the cattle business. Troxel have been here three days, being registered at the Ho- tel Coliseo under the names of Willis F. Wilder and George E. Fisher of Fruita, Colo., but both admitted their identity. Gillett had intended to remain in Mexico indefinitely, extradition treaty, which expires next month, and his propo- sition to make it retroactive, decided Gillett that he would be safe in South America. He had been counting on being able to resist extradition until January 13, when he would be Gillett and Troxel have a considerable sum of money with them, and they have been spending it lavishly, but it is not thought they have $300,000, which they are credited with having brought from the United States. Detectives are still following them, but have no power to make arrests, and can do absolutely nothing to prevent them and his attorney, C. R. Troxel, Gillett and applying for a renewal of the 000000000 0000000000000000000C00Q00S FIRE IN FRESNO'S BUSINESS CENTER Voorman and @Allen Blocks De- stroyed and a Fireman Fa- tally Injured. FRESNO, Dec. 16.—One of the largest fires since the destruction of the packing houses occurred to-night. Radin & Kamp's large department stores on I street, in the heart of the city. were totally destroyed. The fire start- ed in the rear of the store in some unaccountable manner and smoke soon filled the building. When the alarm was turned in the department drove all over town in the fog, and when the fire was located by the firemen it was too late to save the structure. The flames soon broke through the roof, and for a time the entire block seem doomed. %\ The people in the Hughes lodging house were awakened, and there was much scurrying in getting out trunks. The fire was finally got under con- trol, so that there was no danger to the Hughes block. Two buildings, adjoining one another, were destroyed. Voorman block and the Allen block. They were the They extended a third of the block. The downstairs portions of both were occupied by Radin & Kamp, who had one of the largest department stores in the valley. The loss of the stock was total, and it is conservatively Max Radin said that at this time of the vear he carried a stock $125,000. valued at between $130,000 and $140,000. estimated at He refused to say how much in- surance he carried, but it is understood that the stock was fairly well in- sured. The loss to the building will be almost total. The walls are still stand- ing, but they probably will have to be torn down. The entire loss is placed at about $150.000. Fireman Cochran fell from the Voorman building and received injuries which will prove fatal. TERRIBLE TORTURE OF THE CARLISTS Savage Cruelties by the Spaniards at Bilbao to Extract Information. MADRID, Dec. ports of th upon the ana 16.—Count Casa Sola, ; Marquis Ceralbo, In an interview has confirmed the re- e savage cruelties, similar to those inflicted. rchists confined in the fortress of Montjuich at Barcelona, having been applied to.the Carlists arrested at Bilbao in order to extract information from them re- garding the armament and designs of the Carlists. It is apprehended that these tortures will lead to terrible re- prisals should the Carlists take the field. 0@@@0@00Q@O@@000@0000000@@9@00@0090 brother -of the V0000000000 TWO LEAGUE BASEBALL TEAMS AMALGAMATED Brooklyn rd Baltimore Manage- ments Yool Issues for the Coming Season. NEW YORK, Dec. 16.—That some- thing of a startling nature was to be sprung during th2 meeting of the Na- tional Baseball eague was an open secret and to-day when the announce- ment was made that the Brooklyn and Baltimore clubs had amalgamated no one was surprised. As a business venture the deal is re- { garded as a promising one financially for both clubs. Both have been losing money of late. Close figures estimate that the new blood which is to be in- fused into the “Bridegrooms” will make the Brooklyn ball grounds a much greater attraction than heretofore for the rooters, and that a handsome bal- ance will be placed to the credit of the Brooklyn Club at the end of next sea- son. By the terms of the amalgamation the respective clubs shall pool all gains and losses. Those who figure a profit on Brooklyn say that this will more than counterbalance the Baltimore losses.