The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, July 28, 1901, Page 5

THE SUNDAY CALL ERTAINLY fate wae dieposed to be fickle and, in a measure, un- Kiné Senor Antoge Vitale r A weeks 2-— had met everywhere with unvarying suc- ess, his large troupe of trained dogs had ted overflowing houses and he had feel that he might snap his is why he was forestalled. a Barbara his three big mastiffs had shown their teeth for the first time s, as if they weren't at all dis- ceed . further than a mere had come abowt in this wise: The three dogs were of one family They were were so very trick dogs, ry one said it was worth to see them son. but t eve ssion just walk s On this g Nero, the son., prove tory i Antone, who e L too g over his din- forgetting e animals’ ng whip senoritas correct raised his shc Y w t i me Before he had time to ad- minister a blow both the older dogs flew at him e was thrown to the floor so v as render him well-nigh o he audience gasped with fright over < but when the saw held the trainer down and did not they took it to be a the programme and ded vociferously. was brave, but this him not a little. He 1 frightened a good piece of ed, however, what ting it must appear to the audience and resolved tc add it to his repertoire. released himself and rose He gradually to his feet. bowing his acknowledgments, thve three dogs following him with becom- ing dignity as he walked off the stage.” ext tow which he stopped he repeat the performance, hav- at the fi but the of the canine troupe ugly squeeze with his eemed it advisable not , and abandoned the act reached within a few was approaching the ad Carmelo, when Nero bounded out the wagon and ran to- ward & young girt seated on a rude bench near the entrance. When the dog reached her he lay down at her feet with every appesrance of contented devotion, and all the ings or threatenings of his mas- ter failed to affect him. Antone sighed despairingly and to the girl to go away out of sight. She looked up and laughed—one of those enticing, mirthful laughs which caused him te desire its repetition. Antone had had numerous “affairs,” but thus far had evaded those bonds wherein man is said to give hostages to fortune. js girl, however, struck his fancy by ingular type of beauty. It lay in the grace of her posture, the nonchalant air of her personality, the impenetrable depth of her eyes. Her features were reg- ular, but without the lustrous glow of these very inviting eyes she would have fallen short of being more than erdinarily active yne eaid to himself that ghe was beautiful, 2and then he asked her to Nero as @ gift. < time he did not ask her to go away 1t, so out of pure contrariness, ght, she laughed again and thank- and turned and walked into the Nero following with a disdainful jance at the perturbed countenance of former master. naturally was very disappointing e, but he could not wait just yursue the bent of his fancy. It was necessary for him to go on to Monte- rey to arrange for his exhibition that ht and the next, s0 he climbed on the seat of his wagon, whipped up his 1 drove awayy Of course, he in- comé back between whiley and seek her out. Ji mever struck him that out of he thc him miss! ed horse dog shows were not considered high class entert ments and that possibly his call- ing might be-a bar to progress in affairs of the heart with her. Granddames in his own country had showered on Lim un- mistakable favors. Why might not this bit of California femininity be proud to pay him homage? His generosity had him a pretty penny, for it had often remarked that Nero's pedigree equaled that of the oldest haughty hjdalgo of Spain, but somehow the troublous depths of thosze lustrous eyes and the recollection of that special feature of his programmefwhich failed of reproduction caused him to view the matter with a feeling of gratification and relief. cost been So, being rid of a refractory and unap- preciative dog, Antone whistled cheerily as he took a look back at the half ruined structure, which hid from view a maid who was to have a dis influence on his future. P had the girl quite understood Antone’s peculiar disposition she might not have laughed when he asked her to g0 away and might have refused the gift of even magnificent a specimen of caninity as Nero, but she wgs burdened with other thoughts of graver import this day and the advent of Nero was a relief to her while that of Antone was not. That was why she entered the old mis- slon and disappeared, glad to escape the further attention whose approach she saw heralded in Vitale's eyes. tinet ssibly Yesterday s ad been fhe recipient of an off age and to-day was to give her answer in this yery spot sa- cred to her from earliest childhood. She knew every nook and corner of the old structure as familiarly as the walls of her own home, and before the old altar rail she stood a little while pondering over her own inclinations in the matter of marriage. The man in the case was certainly a desirable partner, all things considered, but she disliked to relinquish her own in- dependence, and as she stood in the mis- sion she stroked Nero's massive head and told him all her perplexing doubts. She was as much at home in the saddle as a trained rider could be and every inch of the famous Seventeen Mile Drive, through the grounds at Del Monte and Pacific Grove, and the long avenue of pines and ypress Point and Pebble Beach was so familiar that she felt ‘were she an artist she could sketch a perfect and enchanting panorama of its inviting length from memory. It was here that she had met her lover. It could hardly be called a “meeting.” It was an overtaking. Her horse was gal- ng at his best down near the Chinese Camp, where the ocean surge is loudest after one emerges from the forest, when she heard a clatter of hoofs behind her and a voice calling out, “Be brave,” then a strong arm thrown around her waist and herself lifted from the saddle before she realized what was happening, while her horse, released so suddenly from the burden of his rider, slowed down and came to a ready halt as any well trained thoroughbred might. Then, recovering from her astonish- ment, she asked what it all meant, as she looked up at the handsome elderly indi- vidual who had dismounted and placed her on her feet. He exclaimed that he thought her horse was beyond her control and running away and of course here was nothing for him to do but just what had been done. Then she burst into a gale of irresistible laughter over the absurdity of it ail, and walking to where her horse waited pa- tiently for her, she mounted, touched her whip to her tall hat and laughed as she rode away. Many times since then she had won- dered if he really had thought she was in danger or if it had been merely a ruse of his to form her acquaintance.. Of course, later on as their acquaintance ripened he had always protested,against that interpretation of his actions and finally he had told her that she had be- come indispensable to his happiness. Suddenly as she stood slro‘(ing the dog and communicating her worries to him, Nero growled and the girl drew back, not understanding his threatening attitude. She glanced over her shoulder and suw her lover entering the mission portal. Turning she looked past him through ihe doorway and on the rise of the hill toward Del Monte she saw that Antone had stopped his horse and appeared to be regarding this fresh arrival curiously. Even as she looked the dog trainer moved on and disappeared around a curve in the road. She shivered slightiy as she thought of him. It may have buen that -there swent across her a fore- ghadowing of what the future held in store. The gift of a dog. even of one so very valuable as Nero, ought not tq result in crime; yet this simple transaction, willful on the part of the dog, purely whimsical with the girl, and to a large extent cheer- ful on the part of Antone, led up to a murder which startled the community and developed one of the most remarkable trials in the history of crime in California. Not more than three months after the incident at the Mission e! Carmelo, Dolo- res Aguirre and Robert Blair were made husband and wife. Thereafter for nedrly six months in the year Blair's duties as mining _engineer took him away from home, and as his trips were generally in the roughest por- tions of the mining districts the wife was left much to herself. i The pair were settled comfortably in one of the less fashionable sections of Ouk- land and after three years two childrcn had come to occupy the time and add to the cares of the young mother. J Nero was her constant companion and the children were his especial care. Hup- piness, as happiness goes, ccrtainly found a niche here and. undisturbed, remaincd. After a time, however, strange stories reached the ears of Mrs. Blair, and one day a lady, elegantly dressed, alighted from a carriage at her door -and brought misery in her train. b Her visit was at once an accusation, a condemnation and a curse. Riefly, Blair was not Blair; he was ¥t a mining engi- neer; he did not spend six months of the year in the mining districts. He was Robert Thorpe; had been_ for years a residert of Oakland, married for years, and his absences from Mrs. Blair were the periods he passed with his legitimate spouse in a costly residence on East Oakland_ Heights. This is the skeleton of what Mrs. Thorpe brought, but when she had clothed it in words it was a horrible vul- ture of blackest cruelty destined forever to flap its uncanny wings before this broken-hearted woman and cry her shame. Mrs. Thorpe classed her among the abandoned of her sex, who had lured an honorable man to his undoirg—flaunted her” own virtue and her ‘sister’s outcast condition in words of hatred and fire be- fore the blunted, blasted imagination of * this poor sufferer until at last the woman within her finding its powers of seif-as- sertion, she roseé, majestic as a queen, and through her proud eyes gleamed and blazed the fire of a long life of unsullied purity as she cried, “Go, flend, for you are not human, or I will kill you.” Through the doorway, as Mrs. Thorpe hastened her, exit, there floated back to the woman without a name, as she heard the prattle of her children in the yard, one word that broke her heart—‘bas- tard”—that was all. But ofttimes the condition that breaks the heart of a woman will temper it like steel. It was so with Dolores Blair. A man, when his mad folly and passion have caused him to spread havoc in a happy life, breaks into tears and protes- tations of future penance, but all the tears and all the penance of a life as long as that of Methusaleh can never dispel the shadow that hovers about a blasted faith. ’ That night Blair visited the home which he had wrecked. What passed within those walls which had known so much of happiness it were better not to record. He had come prepared to make such amends ag lay within his power. He had executed In her name deeds of valuable property and policies of life insurance, fully paid. As he quitted her presence he replaced these papers in\his inner pocket, saying that he would take them to pe placed on record and put in safe keeping. Then he went out into the night. His custom had always been to cross a vacant lot in going to the business por- tion of the city and to this place Nero had always accompanied him and thence returned home. To-night, however, the dog did not join him. Even the brute avoided his com- panionship. This night, as usual, he tra- versed the vacant square. He never . emerged from it alive. Some hours later a patrolman found him lying, his spine broken and his jaws wide open, his eyes staring with horror. As Blair entered the square the officer had seen a woman crossing the street toward him. Aside from this there was little clew, save that in the dead man’s ! mouth there were some shreds of cloth, torn from a garment in the effort of the murderer to stifle his victim’s cries. The doctors attributed the death to suf- focation, claiming that the spine must have been broken as the man fell. When the Coroner’s jury was called At- torney George Daer, sitting in his office, received a note from Mrs. Blair request- ing him to call. He was accustomed to criminal cases and doubtless his reputa- tlon had been the reason of her selection of him. He found Mrs. Blair with her children at home. She stated that she had heard it said she would be held for the murder of her husband. This was news to Daer; he had not known that a breath of sus- picion pointed toward her. She recounted what had transpired the day and the night of the murder. Daer questioned her carefully. As she proceed- ed in the narration of events Daer began to wish she had not called him into the case, but now and again as he looked into the depths of her wonderful eyes he told himself that she had had nothing to do with the crime, and he would defend her. She told him about the papers. Curi- ously enough, when the body was found there were no papers in the pockets ex- cept a few business cards, some bearing the name of Blair and some that of Thorpe. This reference to the papers aroused in Daer a fresh train of thought. If Mrs. Blair was interested in securing the pa- pers Mrs. Thorpe was equally interested in obtaining possession of them. This opened up a field of speculation im- plicating other parties and might lead to important results. She was positive of the fact that Blair had placed the papers in his inner coat pocket and had buttoned the garment closely. 4 Daer thought it remarkable that a woman suffering under the severe blow which had fallen upon her should note these details, but made no audible com- ment thereon. At this juncture, how- ever, something transpired which shook the attorney’s faith to its foundations. Nero, nosing around a rug on the flogr 'ROBERT THORPE! //n/eur where "MV GODITHAT DB MURDERER OF Mrs. Blair was seated, un- covered a bundle of papérs and getting them in his mouth brought them to his mistress. - The parcel contained the deeds and poli- cies. The papers were slightly torn at the ‘end and on the outet portion of one of them blood stains were distinctly notice- able. The attorney rammed his hands down into his pockets nervous! and, rising, paced back and forth in the small apart- menss. He was greatly disturbed this time, and if Mrs. Blair felt that any suspicions re- garding herself were finding their way into his ponderings over the case shé gave no outward sign, He thought best to take the parcel with him. When he had concluded his visit he realized that he had beéen retained in & case which was not entirely to his lik- ng. Uptown he met an officer on his way to Mrs. Blair's residence. On the findings of the Corcner's jury a warrant had been issued for his client's detention. The facts that came out at the trial afterward were few in addition to what have already been recorded. The watch- man, passing the house that evening, had heard high words and muffled protesta- tions—the former from a woman, the latter in a man's voice. He distinctly heard threats to kill uttered by Mrs. Blair, whom he judged io be in an overwrought condition. When Blair left the house the officer saw him enter the vacant lot, and at almest the same time saw a woman who, from her height and general appearance, he feit certain was Mrs. Blair, enter the lot about midway of the block. As Blair had been walking slowly and dejectedly with his face bent toward the ground, it would have been possible for Mrs. Blair to reach the lot by g through a narrow alleyway which tru ersed the block opposite her home. Again, the shreds of cloth found in the mouth of the murdered man were of the same material a® that in a cast-off dress of Mrs. Blair's from which a fragment had been cut or torn. Opposed to this Attornéy Daer had noth- ing to offer except the téstimony of his client as to her whereabouts that even- ing, and as he appreciated the evident hopelessness of his case he prepared his argument to appeal to the sympathies of the jury in an effort to secure a verlict of justifiable homicide. At the last momeat, however, a messen- ger came in and laid a note upon his uble which drew from him & muffled exclama- tion. It was from his law partner and read: “Secure an adjournmént until te- morrow, I am on-the track.of the mur- derer of Thorpe.” The spectators in the courtroom viere overwhelmed with curiosity to léarn what had changed Attorney Daer from a condi- #lon of apparent despair to one of extreme elation. Daer asked for an adjournment until the following day and secured it. Then he hurried from the courtroom. That night he and sleép weré strangers. When court convened thé next day the-e was a crowd of spectators. In and about the place where the witnéss-box had been there had in the night been erected a sub- stantial platform. = 7 This aroused the curiesity of every one to the utmost. When thé case of the Peo- ple vs. Blair was called Attorney Daer addressed the court and jury. He said: “The establishment of Innocénce oft- times hangs on the meérest thread of chance. To-day, more than at any period E?"HQVARB R HURLBERT of my life, this has appealed to me with the greatest force. Yesterday I felt that 1 was defending a wronged but not an in- nocent wom: To-day, thank God. I know that my plea establishes the intez- rity of a woman both wronged and inno- cent. I have the murderer in custedy and am here to-day to produce him, for it was not a woman who committed that abhor- rent crime. I shall produce him upon this platform. He has not confessed, but be- fore you I shall force from him a con- f on which shall earry with it to you the absolute conviction of its truth. Let, the Senor Antone Vitale be called. “Antone Vitale.” When Mrs. Blalr heard the name her thoughts flew back over the years to that day at the old Car- mel Mission, and as there came back to her a flood of memories of her girlhood days—days which the recent shame and sorrow and degradation had driven out of her thought—she burst into tears. In- stinctively she placed her hand on Nero's head, where he crcuched at her feet. Of a sudden she forgot the wrongs her husband had inflicted upon her, and wait- ed with a feeling of intense horror for the apoearance of his murderer. There was a commotion and a tense movement about the door of the court- rgom, when Antone Vitale walked through the throng in the company of the Sheriff and stepped on the platform before the Judge and jury. His face was calm and self-satisfied until. as he looked about the room, his glance alighted upon Mrs. Blair, her eyes seeming to burn into his very soul. His face flushed suddenly and then grew deathly pale. He realized that that look told him the woman was looking upon the slayer of her husband. Vitale was dressed in a short corduroy coat and knee breeches, having very much the appearance of a bicycle sult. From a parcel he carried he took a slen- der bar of iron, and with the straps at- tached at either end he fastened it about his shoulders and waist. It was thus placed extended along his spine. He had not spoken a word. Attorney Daer had not asked a questfon. The audi- ence whispered, “He Is deaf and dumb. He proceeded with his plans methodical- ly. He placed a mask over his face. It was made of wire closely woven and strong as a baseball mask. The spectators and jury whispered, “The man is crazy.” These preparations completed, Vitale stepped backward to the center of the platform =nd emitted a peculiar, pene- trating, low whistle. From the prisoner’s hox there rang forth a horrible cry and on the ipstant the spectators saw the great mastiff leap from his mistress’ side and rush toward Vitale. L As he neared the man the latter stepped aside, else the momentum had thrown him to the floor. Then Nero turned flercely, reared on his hind legs and threw his right foreleg clear around Vi- tale’s body, the left foreleg being bent and pressed against-the mask. About this lez there was tied a plece of cloth. Then was presented one of the most_thrilling dramas ever witnessed by an éxpectant throng. Back and forth, here and there, across the stage this man and brute struggled in desperate en- counter. The dog, muzzled at all times by order of the court, could not infliet any injury with his teeth, so the struggle presented merely a test of strength and endurance. After a few minutes Vitale's left arm was thrown upward in a frantic, appeal- ing gesture for help. and at that moment the Judge, forgetting the digri - of his office, rising frem his chair, cried exeit- edly, “My God! That dog is the murderer of Robert Thorpe!” When Vitale was rescued from the steel-like grip of the big brute he fell’ to the floor in a faint, from which he shortly recovered. . The people then saw why he had made use of the iron bar. It had been bent by the force of the dog’s powerful foreleg so that it pressed against Vitale's spine and in an instant more would have resulted in his death. The mask, too. presented a crushed appearange, and on some of the broken wires were suspended shreds of the cloth which had been fastened to the animal's leg. The jury had no need to be polled for a verdict. The Judge had told the story of the crime. HOWARD R. HURLBUT.