The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, April 10, 1899, Page 1

- all VOLUME LXXXV—NO. 131. SAN FRANCISCO, MONDAY, APRIL 10, 1899. JUSTICE FIELD IS SUMMONED TO THE SILENT MAJORITY . + )¢ December, 1897, and b Venerable Jurist . é,....,..¢...,.;4»5—~«sro ¥ =K ASHINGTON, . April]he \ I 9.—Justice Stephen ] v Field of the United S e Court, retired, died at me ‘on Capitol Hill 1 at 6:30 o'clock thi ever of kidney complication. Abo bedside were his wife d her sister, Mrs. J. C. Smith; Justice David J. Brewer of the Supreme Court, his nephew: Mrs. Edgerton of California, | Mr. Lawton, his private secre tary; Rev. Edward M. Mott, rector of the Church of the Ad ¢ d the family servants. He been unconscious since Satur morning and death ce painlessly. er sir ustice Field's re tirement from the Supreme | ¢ ench in December, 1897, | he has e ed comparatively <« 1 d being relieved 1r¢ [ msibilities which he borne for so many years, he became more cheerful than | seemed to enjoy the friends and ac- intances more than ever be- of h ! during the winter when tl veather was fair it was his m to take daily drives about or through the grounds Soldiers’ Home, and. al- ays returned refreshed. About two weeks ago, how- r, h ride than ol the e took a longer ial in an open carriage and contracted a severe cold, which rapidly developed the kidney troubles from which he had suf- fered, though but ghtly, for some time, ; The disease readily yielded to treatment and on Thursday last he set up for a time and seemed A quite himself again, but on Sat- urday morning a change for the worse took place and about noon B O e S o e .| that time he sank rapidly and ex- - M WY W THE: LATE STEPHEN J. FIELD. This Photograph Was Taken by Clivedinst at Washington Just Before Justice Field Retired From the Supreme Bench in Is Probably the La Sat, Copyrighted, 1897, by Leslie’s Weekly. lost consciousness. From pired at 6:30 o’clock. ‘ No arrangements have yet | been made for the funeral, nor is | it now known where he will. be ! buried. It is probable that his| remains will be taken to Stock- | bridge, Mass., where are buried | his father and mother and. his brothers Cyrus, Dudley and Jon- athan, - two - sisters and other | members of the Field family. 1t is possible, however, that Mr S, mains to California, where a con- | [siderable par® of his active life | was passed before President Lin- coln appointed him a member of | the Supreme bench. Justice and Mrs. Field never had any- children, and the only | surviving member of his father’s | family is the Justice’s youngest | brotl Dr. Henry Field, the| editor of The Evangelist. Dur-| {ing several years prior to his re- ‘ |tirement from the bench the Jus- | tice’s health at times seemed on | the point of breaking, but he usually recovered promptly and | in a few days would again resume | | his judicial duties. For the past | year and more the most intimate | with him knew his mental powers were becoming somewhat im- paired. The results of his long | career of great mental activity | | were beginning to show them- <elves in a failing: memory after | his retirement from the bench, though his physical health | seemed to improve a little. STEPHEN JOHNSON FIELD. Justice Stephen Johnson Field was a member of a remarkable family. He was born in Haddam, Conn., November 4, 1816. His father, Rev. David Dudley Fleld, was distinguished as a preacher, | scholar and historical writer; and his grandfather, Captain Timothy Field, ob- tained his military title by gallant ser- fond son and his name | Field 'may decide to take his.re- | D e = D PDFY B o et R e R R R S S e S ey st for Which the B A e RS e e B e e e S S SICER SRCRY SRORY SRONDAS S DA NS MDA S S vice In the American Revolution. If any father ever had cause to be proud of his sons it was Rev. David Dudley Field. Four of h sons became famous and three of them have left an impress on their times and attained world-wide celeb- rity. The eldest, David Dudley Field, was a lawyer of great eminence, of whom an English chancellor said that “he had done more for the reform of laws than any other man living.” His works on international law ve been translated into the variou ropean languages and into Chinese. 21 West Fileld, the third son, con ved and carried out the project of the Atlantic cable, and. John Bright pronounced him *the Columbus of modern times. who, by his le, had moored the New World alongside the Old.” Henry Martyn Field, the fourth son, was eminent as a clergyman and historian. Stephen J. Field was the sec- will live as that ne of the leading jurists of the cen- B When Justice Field was oniy 13 he went to Smyrna to visit his sister, the mother of Justice Brewer. He visited Athens and studied there the modern Greek and learned to speak it fluently. He had a lot of experiences during cholera times in Asia Minor and came back to New York. He was graduated at Williams College in anding first in his class; and he the; nt to New York, studied law in the office of his brother, David Dudley, and after came a member of the firm. Next he went to Paris, and while there read the news that gold had been discoy- ered in California. He struck a bee lne for America and took a ship for the Golden Gate. He landed in San Francisco with $10 in his pockets and had to pay out seven of these to have his trunks taken up from the wharf. He slept on the floor that night in a room for which he was to pay $35 a week rent, and his breakfast the next mosning, the cheapest he could find, cost him $2. The result was that his first day in California was begun with $1 in his pocket. He was then 33 years old and be says that, notwithstand- ing his lack of funds, he felt happy and hopeful. He had, however, only $1 left, and he needed money at once. His first earnings came from a lot of old newspa- pers which he had Brought along to read on the voyage. He had sixty-four of these and gave them to a man to sell, with the understanding that he was to divide the profits. New York pa- pers were then worth $1 apiece in San Francisco, and the man ped- dled them out, getting $64 for the lot. He gave the future Supreme Court Jus- tice half and when young Field found that jurymen got $8 a day and that the average workman was often paid as much as §16 a day, the prospects seemed brighter. His next step was to collect a note of $400 which belonged to David Dud- ley Field. He saw the sign of the maker of the note and learned that the man had grown rich in California. He called upon him and began to talk about the country, without saying anything about the note. “‘Ah,” said the mag, “you will like it out here; this is a gloMous country. I have already made $200,000.” “Is that so?” sald Mr. Fleld. “I am Continued on Second Page his admission to the bar be-| ‘g f&: broncos, Tappan’s battalion of | | Tactics Will Be Those of the 0ld- LAWTON'S EXPEDITION UNDER WAY Picked Regulars Wil Fight Filipinos in True American Sl FIRST TO TAKE SANTA CRUZ Time Frontler Battles and the En- - emy Wil Be Glven a Severe Drubbing, Specfal Dispatch to The Call. ANILA, April 10, 9:50 a. m.—The expedition of 1500 men under Major-General Henry W. Law- ton, which started last night with the intention of crossing Laguna de Bai, capturing the town of Santa Cruz, on the east- ern shore of the lake and then sweeping the country to the south, consists of 200 picked sharpshooters chosen from the various regiments, Hawthorne's mountain battery, Gates’ head- quarters, three troops of the ourth Cavalry unmounted with the Fourteenth Infantry, Linck’s battalion of the First Idaho In- fantry and Fraino’s battalion of the First North Dakota Infantry under General King. The flotilla of twenty canoes, | towed by tugs and convoyed by | the gunboats Laguna de Bai,| Oesta and Rapidan and preceded | by the launch containing General | Lawton and General King, start- ed from San Pedro Macate, on the Pasig River, moving toward the lake just as evening was set- ting in. It was a truly pictur-| esque scene. The men were all in high spir- its and. carried rations for ten | days, with the lightest marching | equipment. - | General Lawton’s plan was to | [ e O SO e e B e e e B e R e e S = ‘4—0»»@—0—@~0—@+«u—<~\»« O reach Santa Cruz this morning at dayt eak, to capture or destroy any rebel gunboats or shipping or to take the town and then to scour the country to the south of the lake, a distance not yet ex- plored by the Americans. The tactics will be those of the old-time frontier fighting, and it is probable that the command will be divided intp squads of twelve under non-commissioned officers. In General Lawton’s absence, the Second Division is temporar- ily commandedby General Oven- Contlnued on Second Page | other. | were dead. PRICE - FIVE CENTS. DYED HIS KNIFE IN WOMAN’S BLOOD, THEN IN HIS OWN Awful Dual Crime of E. A. von Schmidt. Stabbed His Former Wife to Death, Then Killed Himself. Alameda Office San Francisco Call. 1428 Park Street, April 9. HE unhappy matrimonial rela- tions of Captain E. A. von Schmidt and his wife, Isabelle. terminated to-day in a horrible double tragedy. The - captain stabbed his wife to death with a dirk-knife, and then made five vicious Jjabs at himself until the blade .pene- trated his heart and he fell dead be- slde the woman he had murdered. There were no eye witnesses to the affair. It happened at the bottom of the back stairs leading from the resi- dence, 2232 San Jose avenue, which had been the home-of Mrs. von Schmidt and her five children since she was divorced from her husband a few months ago. For some weeks Von Schmidt has been pleading with friends\in this city to affect a reconciliation between him- self and his wife, and the latter’s flat refusal to forget and forgive the wrongs of the past is looked upon as the immediate cause of the tragedy. Mary Thompson, a domestic in the employ of Mrs. von Schmidt, gives the most connected story of the affair. She was making the bed in the room occupied by Rose, the eldest child. in the front part of the house, when she looked out the window and saw Cap- tain von Schmidt coming along San Jose avenue from the direction of Wal- nut street. Not desiring to alarm M von Schmidt, whom she knew feared her husband would do her bodily in- jur: Miss Thomnson called the child Rose and told her that her father was coming. The little girl in turn in- formed her mother, who went to the parlor window 1nd seeing Captain von Schmidt coming up the front steps, went to the door to admit him. ‘What happened immediately after is not clear. Miss Thompson and the children had retired to the rear rooms when they were startled by piercing shrieks from M-« von Schmidt, who come running toward the kitchen. vell- ing, “Murder! Murder! Help me. For God’s sake, help me!” She was. close- ly followed by Von Schmidt with a dirk knife in one hand and a pistol in the Miss Thompson ran out of the house onto the back porch, and as she passed through the kitchen door Von Schmidt hurled his revolver at her head. His aim was poor and the weapon landed far out in the back vard. The servant hurried steps and out to the street, where she gave the alarm. When neighbors arrived on the scene both the participants in the tragedy Von Schmidt had stabbed his wife five times in the back as she fled down the stairway, literally slash- ing her to pieces. One of her ribs was cut in twain and her right shoulder was all but severed from the body. The woman struggled desperately at | the landing below in an endeavor to es- | cape the murderous grasp of her ex- | terial to send her a letter. Sm mom SCn S U SO SUe i e R SCR S CE SRCEY SO SO S A a0 oo e o 4o of ) TP TAIN L] B e e e e o e e e e e e g i down the | | husband, but she was but a frail crea- ture compared with the gigantic stature [of Von Schmidt and weak from her | fearful wounds, and it was but the work of a moment for him to over- power her, and as she lay prostrate on her back he tore her clothing from her breast’ and plunged his dirk knife | through her heart. ‘ Then, standing at the feet of the imurdnrv‘d woman, he turned the blade | on himself, and after inflicting five gap- | ing wounds over the region of the heart | finally penetrated that vital organ and | with outstretched arms fell back dead. | Colonel A. W. von Schmidt, father of | the dead man, arrived on the scene a few minutes after the tragedy. It had | been his habit since his son and daugh- | ter-in-law were divorced to visit the | children every Sunday. He sympa- thized with the mother in the matri- | monial troubles, and for this reason he and his son had not been on the most friendly terms. The children were his | pets, and on his regular visits he never failed to come with an armful of toys |and sweetmeats for the little ones. When he heard of what had happened | he was prostrated for a few seconds, | but his thoughts reverted from the | tragedy to the five little children so| suddenly left parentless, and, remark- | ing to those who surrounded him that | | they must be cared for, he pulled him- | self together and went in quest of the | little ones. In the meantime they had | {been taken to the home of Dennis Welch, the next-door neighbor. where the grandfather joined them. McCurrie, a plano tuner, who lives 5 Clinton avenue, was first on the DONOQP @VLIONASLSTODIVOL ne. heard some screeching,” said Mr. Mec- Currie, “and being acquainted with the | Von Schmidts I knew what was up. I | rushed into the back yard just as Von | Schmidt staggered and fell. His wife was | still alive, but unconscious. Four of her |litde children were about her crying, | ‘Oh, mamma, oh, mamma, don’t die— | | don’t dfe!” Tt was the most pitiful scene I ever witnessed. Hurrying the little ones | into the house I ran for assistance, but | when I returned both man and wife were dead.” | | Mrs. L. C.' Johnson of 2128 Clement ave- | | nue is probably the last person with whom | Von Schmidt conversed before he started | on his mission of murder. Mrs. Johnson | | has been a friend of the family for years, | and taking advantage of this Von Schmidt | has been importuning her for weeks to go | | to his wife and make overtures for a | reconciliation. ““April 19 would have been the fifteenth | anniversary of their marriage,” sald Mrs. Johnson, “and the captain was making Gesperate efforts to persuade his ‘wife to | forgive him for the past and return to | him before then. He wanted a grand | family reunion on that day and proposed to commence then to lead a new life. He | loved the woman to distraction, and I | think he has brooded over the divorce un- til his mind gave away. He imagined at | times that she had not been true to him, | and then he would tell me in the next breath that she was a good woman. | “He visited me shortly after noon to- and again asked me to go to his | wife. 1 told him I would not carry mes- | sages, and he asked me for writing ma- 1 had visited + . * © * & + ® 2 & * Mrs. von Schmidt the day before and talked the matter over witk her in a friendly way, but not with any idea of inducing her to return to the captain. She told me then that a reconcilfation was impossible, and that she hated him ag much as he loved her. I repeated this to the captain to-day. There was a wild look about him when I told him. THis face turned ashy pale, and he said he would see her himself. Feafing_ that he would do something desperate, I begged im not to harm her. His only reply was, ‘I love her! I love her! Rather than let another man get her we will die to- gether.” He broke down and cried like v, and, after regai an X This_was at 12:20 o’clock. Ten minutes later Von .Schmidt had taken the life of his wife and ended his o The letters written at house were found on the captain’s per- Mrs. Johnson’s son. They are rambling affairs, and give | evidence “that the man was ot in_his right mind. Both are addressed to Rob- ert Eagleson of San Francisco and dated at the Russ House, although iden- tified by Mrs. Johnson as the letters written to-day at her house. They read as follows: o RUSS HOT ril 9, 189, @ Mr. Robert Eagle o street, S. F.—Sir: -3 & Dut not in substance and sent) My B & original surmises of the cause of the i | % breaking up of m: re entrely % £ confirmed, to my my three ¥ months’ investigation—to my judgment 3 & and eonclusion—as well in the opinion ¥ Gf others who know something. My ¥ £ intention was to ‘‘call out’” any even ' half gentleman, even in deflance of the @ Jaw against the ‘‘code duello.” But & men do not duel with characteriess and & infamous wretches. Other measures . must suffice, and I am not a breaker ¥ o the highést law—a home wrecker— & a flendish libertine—nor cowardly liar. Could your intellect grasp the drift of the few gentlemanly remarks I permitted to pass my lips in Captain Jordan's pres- ence last night? Or will only a weightler way reach home? I await the next call—it will be the 13th er- ror. Each lie you make to me I count a call. In vase of any cowardly crime against myself—for one who heeds not five poor _children’s life ruin—to say nothing of mother and father—nature's holiest_ties—stops at no fiendish deed of darkness—though—of course, & COW- ard by God's daylight—I have pre- pared and placed ~duplicate histories covering over elghteen years, and showing where and who to look to. Be- fore God and man, EDWARD A. VON SCHMIDT. R HOUSE, April 9. (The Man sends to the Skunk a last “call’” of warning). Mr. Robert Eagle- son: In my judgment, now, my kngwl- edge of what “I am up agalnst’ is complete. He who keeps the grand- mother in sin is trying—oh, so hard— * to more completely ruin the mother, daughter, four little sons, not to count X the father. Could he hear well? And think deep? And remember the Ban- shee? Walling so quietly? A man cannot duel with a skunk—but he may say avaunt, foul beast, or die. And it is sald, and a witness heard, hark ye! GetpeXl B IZeXlelzellsellelzalralsetR eyt A liar 18 always a coward and I have been lied to by the skunk, for two ; months and more. And deceived and humbugged by the skunk, lo, these & many years. ¥ A decent man may be where chil- dren—girls—are, but not a skunk. Nor may & skunk wed an homest woman. Let him live with a harlot and be be- neath her—not making harlots, or try ing to, of wives and mothers. Why should the skunk turn to roll the dead? Or force others to, like a hyena? Great God! What stays my hand an hour? Love to live for her—my wife before God, my children’s mother. And that, nothing more. And if, per- chance, the skunk schemes to kill the man by cowardly trickery, the man forewarned and forearmed other with sealed histc of the inside facts for eighteen years, that the skunk may be known to all men and slaught- ered by Law_and Public Opinion, to HLED LX SOOLKOLAS Cad2al TEOLK & please God. Finis of letter and word. % > Next? D t World! The Man, E [ ] EDWARD A. VON SCHMIDT. @ In addition to these letters the following screed was found on the dead man. It is given verbatim: [] (7 Enough ‘‘prospect work’ having [ ] & been done to “stir up’ talk, now @& & ['sinking” may go on. The matier be- & % low must be, if and when ascertained, S - d down,” and to all outward in- forgotten.” & < _ First—How close was, or is, Mrs.H.to & & Mrs. (so-called) V. S.7 Closer before or & 1€ a e? Before or after change? & o & $s | & Third—What was the A What to? Why? 9 “Fourth—What idea lay beneath Mrs., & ® L. asking Mrs. E. to buy tickets for @ | & Mrs. V. S. to the opera? o & Fifth—Why go to lunch after theater g it not caring to be seen In theater with ¥ a person? s - Sixth—If this is a bad g hy cul- & tivate by the L. famlily any visiting, ® driving, theater or lunch relations with & ¢ Mre. E? b & has oftered to do anything he can ack <& him, and when answered by honor it & ¢ | @ shait be “stowed.” v e & | “The Mrs. E. referred upposed to 4 | be Mrs. Eagleson. The “L. meant for | Lancaster, a family who were neighbors © | and friends of the Von Sct befora + | their divorce, when they lived at 2221 Cen- “Jack'” is the son of Mr. and @ | Mrs. Lancaster. 4 ¢ | On last Friday Von Schmidt took A. V. [ A ae e e e o e s n st oo o e acal + * INSANE JEALOUSY’S VICTIM.