The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, January 15, 1904, Page 1

cisco for midnizht, Jannary Cicudy Priday: r3in by night; casterly. a. G District 1 E XCV—NO.---48. A Saa Fraxcisco and vicinity— vossibly light light easterly | windz, changizg to fresh south- THE WEATXEER. — Forecast madpiat San Fran- thirty hours endiag 15: | | McADIE, ‘ Forecaster. | Joknay verce.” Home.’ Columbia—"Mrs. Deering’s Di- Comes Marching RUSSIA MUST COM IS THE DEFIANCE HURLED BY GOVERNMENT HOU R OF MURDER OF JOSEPH BLAISE DEFINITELY FIXED BY EXAMINATION OF CO E3 @l =i R it NTENTS OF DEAD MAN'S STOMACH Dr. L. Bacigalupi Says Food Was Undigested. Hydrocyanic = Acid Hid in Trunk of Soeder. o + supper with Sbedér at the Mexican res- taurant at 721 Broadway, and left in the company of the man who is now in custody of the police. police. It was also learned yesterday that Soeder was in possession of the most deadly poison known to science, a few days before Blaise was murdered. The police now have in their possess- jon two bottles of hydrocyanic acid, a solution of cyanide of potassium, which they found: in Seeder's trunk, which they located at the Five Mile House, 4280 Mission street. Chloroform and carbolic ' acid were also found -in Soeder’s room by Detec- tive Gibson when he searched the apartment of the suspected man last Monday. FIXES TIME OF MURDER. In the face of the fact that Soeder’s wife died under suspicious. circum- | stances a year ago in Petaluma, and that he collected $2000 insurance on her . life, coupled with his admission that he had a previous wife who he claims s € v i’ - g ’ Ll -y G e ) S, ; R o8 — % LANDLADY AND AN ACQUAINTANCE OF L. S. SOEDER, THE SUSPECTED MURDERER OF JOSEPH BLAISE. e e — SUMMARY OF THE EVIDENCE. landlady of Soeder; positively state | Soeder, under pressure of questioning Leon Soeder induces - his “brother-in- law, Joseph Blaise, to leave his home in Germany and come to San ¥Francisco to secure work. Arriving in New York, Soeder at- tempts to insure life of Blaise for the sum of $10.000. On reaching San Francisco, Soeder again tries to insure the life of Blaise for $10,000, but is given a policy of only $3000. This policy Is in favor of the wife and children of Blaise. Soeder secures an accident policy on the lifc of Blaise for $3000, this amount to be paid to Soeder in the event of the applies for a $7000 policy on Blaise in his (Soeder’s) favor. On Sunday, Jan Blaise dine at a 721 Broadway, and leave there at 7:30 p. m. The body of Blaise is found the next rning at the foot of Russian Hill, death having been caused by a stab in the throat. The pockets of the trousers of Blaise were turned in- out, “indicating that robbery was the motive of the murder. stde Soeder cluims that Blaise Lad consid- rabl ney on his person when he for a waik alone the night before he was found dead. J. Niblaus, landlord of the house at ackson street, Blaise roomed, declares that < never displayed any money that Soeder always paid the and bills. At the Mexican restaurant, 721 Broad- way, the proprietor and attaches say that Soeder always paid for the meals and that Blalse was never Lnown to do 6. Socder claims that on Sunday evening last he retwrned from dinner with Bizise at 5:30; that shortly after Blaise went for a walk and never returned. Soeder claims that he re- mained in his room from 3:30 Sun- day evening until the next morn- ing. Mr. and Mrs. J. Niblaus, landlord and | *ath of Blaise, and | where Soeder | that they neither saw a light in | “Soeder’s room last Sunday evening nor heard any one in that room up to 10:30 p. m. Soeder’s assertion that he remained in the room all Sunday evening is dis- proved by Mrs. Niblaus, who sa that the lamp-for Soeder’s room was still filled with oil on the following day, showing that the lamp had not been used. On Monday morning last Soeder in- formed his landlord that he feared that Blaise had met with foul play, as Iie had remained away from his room all night. | Mr. and Mrs. Niblaus say that they | never knew. Blaise to_go out alone at night. Blaise could not speak English and was but little acquaint- ed with the city. Soeder was seen wearing a dark gray sack suit last Sunday evening. When questioned by the police last Monday, Soeder asserted that he did not possess such a suit. | Police find that Soeder took a dark gray sack suit to a cleaning shop early last Monday morning and asked that it be cleaned at once. | After the body of Blaise was found and detectives = visited Soeder’s room, he returned to his room and | | secured the policics which had been { issued on the¢ life of Blaise. Soeder also pawned a revolver and cartridges last Monday morning. | Police Department discovers that Soe- der is an ex-convict, having served three years for burglary in San Quentin. Soeder’s wife, formerly a Miss Miran- da, died last February in Petaluma and Soeder collected $2000 fnsur- ance on her life. Many rumors were heard that the woman had died from poison, her death having been sudden. i Soeder’s house at Petaluma was burn- ed down shortly after his wife died. It was insured in a number of com- panies, but payment of insurance was not made by the companies, the case being a suspicious one of incendfarism. after arrest, admits that he had two wives; that his first wife was Eliz- abeth Nifs; that she went to Europe and is presumed by him to have died there. Statement by Miss Catherine Flatley that Soeder desired to marry her and that he recently informed her that he would shortly be in posses- sion of $7000, which he expected from Germany. On January 8 Soeder removed an empty trunk from the home of Miss Flatley and . conveyed it to the Five-Mile House, 4280 Mission street, saying he might call for it in three or four days, and if he did not that it might be destroyed. The police locate the trunk at the Five-Mile House ang find in it a pair of old shoes. In the shoes were two bottdes of hydrocyanic acid, the most deadly poison known to scl- ence. The police also find in Soeder’s room on Jackson street a bottle of chilo- roform and one of carbolic acid. Examination of the stomach of Blalse by Dr. Bacigalupi, autopsy surgeon to Coroner Leland, proves the mur- dered man died within one hour and not more than two hours after he had eaten dinner with Soeder last Sunday evening. Mexican restaurant w_vhere Soeder and Blaise dined is only two blocks from the room in which they lived. Spot where Blaise was murdered is three and a half blocks from the room where Soeder and Blaise re- sided. Overcoat belonging to Soeder is specked with red soil, similar in character to that at the base of Russian Hill, where Blaise was murdered. The most important link in the chain of evidence that is being wound around Leon Soeder, who is suspected of hav- ing murdered his brother-in-law, Jo- seph Blaige, last Sunday evening, at the foot of Russian Hill, ecame to light yesterday. ~ Blaise was foully slaughterkd less than two hours after he had eaten his went to Germany and died there, the possession by Soeder of deadly poisons is looked upon as gravely significant. That Joseph Blaise was murdered shortly after he left the Mexican res- taurant in company of Leon Soeder is beyond dispute. Dr. Bacigalupi, autopsy surgeon to Coroner Leland, was asked yesterday if he could tell from the'contents of the stomach of Blaise how, soon after eating his dinner Blaise met with his death. “It was possibly within one hour and certainly not more than two hours,” was the positive reply of the autopsy surgeon. “I examined the stomach of. Blaise and found that the organ was nearly filled with undigested food. From the inclined to believe that the unfortu- nate man was murdered within two hours after he had eaten his supper. The food was in such a condition that substances that the man had partaken of at his last meal. The chili peppers, so much used in Mexican dishes, were plainly visible. If I were to tell you my opinion of the time that elapsed bhetween the eating of the meal and the murder of Blaise, I should say that it i¢ very probable that !l::e man met his death one hour after he had left the restaurant, in company with Soe- der. STOMACH TO BE ANALYZED. ‘“The reason that the contents of the stomach have not been analvzea belore now is that I was loth to deliver wh..t I consid - the most important piece of evidence into any one'. han.: but the newly appointed City ~hemist, A. C. Bother, Botheér was not swo..1ir to his new duties until this afternoon, As soon as I knew that he had been sworn I delivered into his hands : srsonally the:stomach and conte:.:. It will be about three days before the ‘chemist will .omplete his analysis. He will be able to determine by the presence of the various pepjones and - teids just what length of time digestion had been going on prior to death. Whether there was any drug present Ia the stomach will also be detérmined when the | analysis is complei’qd‘. 2 USE OF CHLOROFORM ABSURD. “This talk about t¥e “man been chloroformed is all bosh. 7 do c«nlq-alon?-.a!. umn 2 cursory examination 1 gave it I am| I could readily recognize the different ! COLOMBIAN TROOPS ARE ADVANCIY Panama Prepares to Resist Army of . Inglgs. :Little Republic Can Place { Twelve Thousand Men in the Field. Believes It Can Hold the Mountain Passes Without Aid From the United States Special Dispatch to The Call. PANAMA, Jan. 14.—Authentic infor- mation from the frontier is anxiously | awaited here, as it is reported that the Colombians have already started to march upon the isthmus. The Pana- | maijan troops are ready to leave on a moment’s notice. The co: _cription has | been completed and 12,000 fighting men can be placed in the fleld. | There was great bustle in the armory | to-day in preparation for the shipment “ of rifles and ammunition to the Indians | of the interior, who have agreed to join ‘ against the Colombian forces. Colonel | Barette of the Panamaian army said | to-day: ! ““We, who were Colombians until yes- terday, cannot be deceived by any tac- | ties the Colombians may employ. We | are deeply grateful for the aid the Americans have given us, especially as we are now prepared to fight our own ‘on lan@ with the utmost confi- dence of victory. “Four hundred to 500 men, stationed in either of the only three nasses avail- able, can defeat any army. We have all'the men we actually need, for the fighting will be done in the mountains. ‘We expect to repel the invasion with- out calling out all of the avadlable | troops.. Many of the Indiars will cer- tainly fight on our side. The San Blas Indians, who are Colombia’s allies, will | not fight at all.” American marines along the railroad will scon be supplied with new bat- | teries. ‘A colller has heen sent to the | | island of Culebra; near Poii Orice, to obtain guns placed th-re in the naval | maneuvers of 1902. ot | NEWLANDS VERSUS DEPEW. One Attacks and the Other Defends | President’s Panama Policy. WASHINGTON, Jan. 14.—The Senate | to-day listened to speeches by New- | lands and Latimer in advocacy of the adoption of a plan for the improve- | ment of public wagon roads of the | country. Newlands declared that the | course of the President in Panama | was an act of war and in contraven- tion of the treaty of 1846, of interna- | tional law and of the constitution of the United States. Depew praised the President’s policy as patriotic and | | justified by precedent and law. | Newlands said he was willing to ad- | mit that the spirit of the treaty of 1846 called for the building of the canal. | But, even with that construction, Co- lombia’s refusal to allow the building | of the canal would not have been authority sufficient for the landing of Unmited States troops in Panama as the result of the recent insurrection. New- | lands also complained that the Presi- dent had prematureiy recognized Pan- | ama. The established methods Otf diplomacy were ignored, and immedi-| ate and prompt ormed intervention | and a display of force were made With- out complyfng with the formal proced- ure required - by international law. Newlands said it was doubtful whether | the status which existed before the | war could be restored. A new goveérn- ment had been created by the violent ! actions of the United States Govern- | ment. He said: “The honor of the United States de- mands prompt disavowal by the Con- | gress of the United States, whose con- | stitutional prerogative had been in- | vaded by the lawless and unconstitu- | tional acts of the chief executive.” Such disavowal would mean compen- sation in some form. Newlands added: | “Had these outrages been committed by the executive #bon a great power | Congress would ™ promptly disavow | them, and shall the impotence of Co- | lombia disqualify her from receiving satisfaction for injury inflicted on her | by the unconstitutional action of this; country’s chief executive?” Depew spoke in support of the ad- ministration in its conduct on the istn- mus and said that the opponents of the treaty were aiding the enemies of the canal. i “If,” he continued, “there ever was a concert of action among any great railway corporations to defeat this most beneficent work of commerce and civilization I am not aware of it, but if such a combination does exist then its allies and its most efficient assist- ants are to be found among those who, Cantinned on Paxe 3. Column 2. LABORERS ] ‘ n rASHINGTON. Jan. 14—Japan is deter- mined to fight for her contentions in regard to affairs in the Far East, and Russia will not yield an inch from the stand she took in her last note. This was the information conveyed to the State De- | partment to-day through of- ficial channels, and no hope | is held in administration cir- cles that war can be averted. The State Department is fully advised as to what Japan insists upowr and what she intends to do if her op- ponent is obdurate. That the efforts which || England, France and Ger- || many are making—or pre- || paring to make—to induce Japan not to engage in hos- | tilities will come to nothing | | | the department knows to be a fact. Modification of Rus- sian attitude the only | thing that will insure a con- tinuance of peace. Takahira, the Japanese Minister, had a long talk to- day with Secretary Hay, to whom he explained fully the attitude of his Government and what it intended to do if | is | the Japanese response there- to, which, Hay was in- formed, was transmitted to the Russian Government this morning. Japan in this communica- tion declines to make any further concessions, and sug- gests modification in the Russian proposals, which she | regards as absolutely neces- sary to the safeguarding of her interests in both Man- | churia and Korea. ) - FIVD BONES 0F A GLANT Remarkable Discov- ery Is Made in a Nerada Town. Special Dispatch to The Call. WINNEMUCCA, Nev, Jan. 14— Workmen engaged in digging gravel here to-day uncovered at a depth of | about twelve feet a lot of bones that once were part of the skeleton of a gi- gantic human being. Joseph Rougon, who was in charge of the work, examined the bones and at once decided that they were those of a man or a woman. They were taken to Dr. Samuels, who examined them thor- | oughly and pronounced them to be the bones of a man who must have been nearly eleven feet in height. The metacarpal bones measure four and a half inches in length and zre large in proportion. A part of the ulna was found which in complete form would have been between seventeen and eighteen inches in length. The re- | maining part of the skeleton is being searched for. | ——— Captain Lister's Body Found. LONDON, Jan. 14.—A dispatch re- ceived to-day at the War Office from | Major General Egerton, commanding | the Somaliland expeditionary forces, announces that the body of Captain | the Honorable Thomas Lister. Lord | Ribbledale’s son and heir, who was re- i ported by General Egerton to be miss- ing after the engagement recently be- tween the' British and the forces of the Mad Mullah, has- been found, | pierced by a spear. i ————— | Senate Confirms Army, Promotions. | WASHINGTON, Jan. 14—Tha Sen- | ate to-day in executive session econ. firmed the following nominations: Ma- | jor General Adna R. Chaffee to be | licutenant general: Brigadier General | George L. Gillesple to be major gen- | eral, Colonel Alexander McKensze to | | down | fro | Secretary Hay | Russian Em | Boxer uprising of 1900 | province be annexed CENTS L. FIVE AT TORIO War Certain Un- less the Czar Yields. Washington Sees No Chance for Peace. i Special Dispatch to The Call | WASHINGTON, Jan. 14.—Japan's re- | ply to Russia is couched in terms that | make practically certain its rejection. | The reply is so worded as to indicate | | i | | | that it is the last step Japan will take | toward a peaceful solution of her dis- pute with Russia. Unless Russia back ignominiously, diplomatic rela- tions will be severed on the receipt of Russia’s answer. This is the informa- tion that has been conveyed to the State Department. The position assumed by Japan is that she must refuse to accept the Rus- | sian proposal that a neutral zone em- bracing nearly one-third of Korea be established, and must insist on the maintenance of territorial integrity of both China and Korea. although will- ing to recognize Russia’s special inter- ests in Manchuria in return for the recognition by Russia of Japan's spe- 1 inferests in Korea. No other dedugtion is to be drawn m the terms of the Japanese re- | sponse communicated to Ru: to-day than that, unless the modifications sug- gested be made, Japan will go to war. While not an ultimatum, the Japanese note makes it clear that the negotia- i 2 . . | |tions cannot be prdlonged uniess Rus- Russia rf‘mamcd impervious | |sta ofter concessicns. | to Japan's suggestions. Tak- This Government has been advised | ahira left with Hay a | |that Japan feels that she can lose no | - | | more, or little more, as a r of an statement <of - the terms ' 0f | | yneuccesatul war with the Canr's forees the last Russian note and than she would lose mow by giving way to the Russian proposals. She believes therefore that war will do her no great harm except in a financial way, and may do her immense g She holds that the integrity of Chi- | na_ and Korea are worth fighting for, particularly as, acording to her view, one of them will pass into Russia’s possession and the annexation of the other by Russia be merely postponed by the acceptance of the pressnt plan | of the Czar’s Government for the ar- | rangement of the present difficulties. well to T administration is not pleaSed with the assurance given by Count Cassini, the sador, on Monday, that the “Russian authorities would place no obstacle in the way full en- joyment by the powers having treaties with China of all rights and privie leges guaranteed by such treaties in Manchuria.” This is taken to mean the assump- tion on the part of Russia hereafter that she is to be sovereign in Manchu- ria, and that idea is resented here on of a | the ground that all powers which par- the suporession of are pledged to integrity of ticipated in respect the territorial China. The United States claims that it has political as well as commercial i est in Manchuria, and should by the Czar a protest from Washington, from what was said to-day, is likely to go to St Petersburg. Sir Mortimer Durand, the Embassador, had a confe Secretary Hay on the Far uation to-day. Advices on British e that British rn sit the sub- nbassy . WHAT JAPAN DEMANDS. Insists Upon Jurisdiction Over AN Korean Territory. BERLIN, Jan. l4—Japan’s main points in her last note are undeérstood here officially to be that Japan con- sents to eliminate Manchuria from ths controversy, owing to the signature of the commercial treaty between China and Japan and Russia's assurances that China’'s commercial conventions will be respected. Japan, therefore, re- stricting her claims to Korea, asks for a definite, written guarantee that Bus- sia will abstain from interference in the politics of that country, thus leav- ing Korea exclusively to Japanese in- fluence.. Japan, rejecting the propesed neutral zone, as_delimited by Rus proposes a neutral zone, if Russia s deems one desirable, which shall con- sist of equal territories, of Korea and Manchuria, including the Yalu River, with all Russia’s fortifications thereon. Finally, Japan fixes no limit of time, but earnestly expresses the hope that Russia will not delay a definite and favorabie reply to Japan’s reasonable requests. Japan alludes to her privi- lege of discontinuing the negotiations should it appear that Russia is unwill- ing to accept these minimum propo- sals. The note, though not altogether pre- cluding further negotiations, has a cer- tain finality in its tone implying that the correspondence is closed un the sids of Japan. It is not believed that Rus- sia will consider the proposed neutral zone suggested by Japan. No authori- tative opinion is obtainable as to Rus- 's psobable reply and the situation is likely to be prolonged for a good many days and possibly for weeks. g CZAE. DECLARES FOR PEACE. Will Do All in His Power to Prevens