While Asleep In Their Home, Mr. & Mrs. Rollin Hudson, A Young Paola Couple, Were Slain In A Most Brutal Manner

THEIR SKULLS CRUSHED WITH A PICK

Western Spirit

June 14, 1912

Bodies Lying in a Pool of Blood, Discovered by Neighbors Fifteen Hours after the Tragedy Happened. The Couple had Quarreled and Separated and a Former Sweetheart of Mrs. Hudson is Being Sought by the Authorities.

Two mildly excited women walked around the little yellow house that stands on the embankment of No. 710 West Wea street last Thursday afternoon. The Hudsons lived there, but the house had been silent all day and these two women were neighbors and the strange quiet worried them. So they walked around the little cottage, peering through the half shaded windows, their voices falling to a half subdued hush as they stood before the drawn curtains of the bedroom; and presently, courage and curiosity rising above an over-powering sense of dread, the two women began to call the Hudsons again and again, but their shrill, excited voices fell "upon ears that heard not."

The women seemed to understand all at once and were afraid to go in. Another woman, attracted by the sounds, entered the yard. More bold than the others, she walked upon the porch and pushed open the door. The sight of what she saw caused her to pull the door shut quickly, and she swooned in the yard when she started to her home.

Herman Hintz, of this city, was passing in a buggy. He was hailed by the women and asked to go into the house. He entered slowly, for the faces of the women were pale and their hands clenched as they waited his return.

A moment and he came out quickly, his arms raised above his head, gasping, his face ashen.

And he suddenly cried out to the three women who were unable to speak, "My God, they have been murdered." And he ran away up the street. "They have been killed in their bed!" he flung over his shoulder. And then one of the women went to the front door and peering through the half-drawn blind, saw two forms huddled on the bed. It was an awful sight—gruesome, sickening.

Presently, like a flood, half of Paola came to the scene and paled at the work of a fiend. And it is said many of the spectators who viewed the horrible sight, went to bed that night with their lights in their home burning.

The Hudsons had been killed sometime Wednesday night, June 5^th, with a coal pick, stolen probably from the Frisco railway yards, a short two blocks distant. Their skulls were crushed and their features hardly recognizable. No evidence of a struggle was shown. They lay upon the same pillow of the small iron bed, their arms clasped partly about each other.

Rollin Hudson and his young wife came here April 10, 1912 from Massillon, Ohio, but about them Paola knew little, or nothing. They boarded with G. W. Cole and a family a short time and then went to housekeeping in the Akers cottage, directly across the street north. Mr. Cole knew Hudson a year ago, when the two worked together on a railway section at Centerville, Kansas. Hudson was there two months, when he returned to Ohio.

Developments in the case the first few days following the tragedy, only tended to deepen the mystery of the double crime. A stranger—a young man wearing a blue serge coat and a straw hat—appeared at the Hudson home about 8:30 o'clock Wednesday night and about him and the announcement that Mrs. Hudson had a lover other than her husband, clings the only apparent thread of the mystery.

Although Hudson and his wife had been married two years, it is generally known that their wedded life was not a happy one. Three times did they separate. Only one theory is suggested by facts and circumstances connected with the murder and that is suspicion of another man in the case. The officers are now seeking to run down this possible clew.

Investigation has brought out the fact that the last separation of the Hudsons, on Memorial Day, was brought about by Hudson's unexpected return home, when he found a photographer there taking a picture of the house. He remonstrated with Mrs. Hudson, declaring that they could not afford the pictures and the photographer left. Later in the day, Hudson went away and did not return home until Sunday evening.

It was late Thursday afternoon, June 6^th, when Mrs. Sherman Stump, who lives across the street west of the Hudsons, not having seen Hudson or his wife about the house all day, spoke of their absence to neighbors. A visit of some unknown man to the home of Jos. Longmeyer, a few doors away, the night previous, caused Mrs. Stump to become suspicious. With Mrs. S. J. Musick she went to the house about 3:30 o'clock and made and investigation, in which they were joined by Mrs. William Pryor, who lives directly east of the Hudson home, and later by Mr. Hintz, who first discovered the real nature of the crime.

The bodies of Hudson and wife were covered with a comforter. It was evident that deed had been committed with a coal pick—or, there is a vague possibility, the sharp point of an ax or hatchet was used. Hudson was barely recognizable, the left side of his skull being torn away and a dozen other blows having rendered his head nothing more than a bloody mass.

What is believed to have been the first blow struck was received by Mrs. Hudson and one which would have caused instant death, was over the left temple, leaving a gash three inches long and tapering in width. A gash across the forehead, and another over the left eye, ranging downward, gouging out the left eye. After the bodies had been covered, other blows were struck, the comforter spread over t hem having been cut in several places.

The Hudsons were last seen alive about 8:30 o'clock Wednesday night by Mr. and Mrs. William Pryor. They were sitting on their front porch when a stranger, of medium height, and wearing a dark colored suit, went upon the porch of the Hudson home. Hudson opened the door, Mr. Pryor says, and the stranger was admitted instantly. Mrs. Pryor says she did not see the man leave the house and when she retired about 10 o'clock, she noticed that the house was dark.

From the only traces which the murderer left, revealing the plan of the murder, the authorities declare he entered the home by an east window, the screen of which was removed and left leaning against the house. This window leads to an unused bedroom, through which he must have passed to the scantily furnished dining room, through the front room and from there into the bedroom occupied by the Hudsons.

The motive of robbery, at first adopted by the officers, was discarded when they found several articles of jewelry belonging to Mrs. Hudson. Her locket and rings were still on her body.

A glance at the interior of the house leads one to the conclusion that the household routine had been suddenly interrupted the night before, as if the appearance of an unlooked for visitor and friend had been the excuse to leave everything untouched until the next morning.

There are five small rooms in the dwelling. In the dining room the remains of an evening meal were upon the oil cloth covered table. On the cold stove reposed a coffee pot and there were some half shaved kindlings on the hearth. The snow white apron of the house wife lay across the back of a chair. In the room, which had been used as a laundry and store room, was a large wash tub filled with soapy water and clothes. A pan of half picked strawberries was resting upon a pantry shelf. Over the parlor table lay a profusion of embroideries and dollies—all unfinished and suddenly set down.

It was very apparent that they had entertained a person well known to both Wednesday night, for even the photographs and post card album was open—a bundle of old letters, also—all for the purpose, no doubt, of calling to mind old scenes of the past. The slayer worked quickly and quietly. No one heard a cry, unless it was Mrs. Cole and she was not sure.

F. H. Scheer, of the firm of Peiker & Scheer, and James Nolen, who is employed in the meat market, say that a few days prior to the murder, a young man, wearing a straw hat and answering in a general way the description of the man who entered the Hudson home last Wednesday night, called at the store and made close inquiries regarding Rollin Hudson. Later, he inquired at other business houses about the Hudsons, asking particularly in regard to motor car repair shops and flour mills. When in Ohio, Hudson worked as a mechanic in a motor car factory. So strong is the belief of the police that this stranger was connected with the murders, that his description has been sent out over the country with orders for his arrest.

When at Centerville, during July 1911, Hudson, in a conversation with G.W. Cole, said he and his wife had recently separated and that he came West to try and forget her. He mentioned another man and said that his wife was untrue to him. "He cried while telling the story and I did not press him for details," said Mr. Cole, last Friday. "He seemed to be deeply in love with the woman."

Cole and Hudson were neighbors and frequently exchanged confidences. Sunday evening of last week, they were together at the M. K. & T. coal chutes. "Why don't you return to your wife, Rollin," Cole says he asked. The young man did not relish the suggestion, apparently, for he replied hotly: "You wouldn't want to live with a woman who proved herself to be false on three different occasions, would you?"

He again referred to a man in Ohio, but mentioned no names. He drew a letter from his pocket, Mr. Cole says, with the remark that it contained facts relating to former meetings with the man. It was addressed to Mrs. Anna Hudson, general delivery, Paola, Kansas. The husband intercepted the letter, he said.

While the two men were talking, Mrs. Hudson approached. She was attired in a house dress and had just come down from the home, a short distance away. She had been weeping, Mr. Cole says, and asked her husband to come back and live with her. Hudson, is said to have again accused her of infidelity. When Cole left them, a reconciliation was being talked of. Later, Mr. and Mrs. Hudson were seen going into their home. Mr. Cole says he did not talk to Hudson again. Apparently they had made up their quarrel, because he saw them sitting on the porch next evening, with their arms about each other.

The quarrel and separation of the Hudson last Decoration Day had to do with a letter received by Mrs. Hudson. On that morning, Mrs. Hudson met James A. Jones, a substitute mail carrier, two blocks east of her home. Jones noticed that the woman was breathlessly expectant when she asked if he had a letter for her. He recollects handing her a letter and remembered that she was greatly excited as she tore open the envelope. Mrs. Hudson continued on her way up town.

Hudson did not work on Thursday and neighbors declare he was on the front porch most of the day. In the evening they went to the cemetery and there were seen quarrelling; the husband's voice rising at times to a high angry pitch, the wife conciliatory at every turn. When they returned, Hudson, still angry, scribbled the following note on an old paper bag: "Anna—Well, I am going to K.C. Leave my clothes and those too pictures with Charley. I will be back next faul and get them. You will not be bothered with me eny more. Good-bye. ROLLIN"

According to the story of neighbors, told at the inquest held by Coroner J. V. Ferrel, of Louisburg, last Friday, Hudson left home, starting in the direction of the coal chutes, saying he was going after some coal. He did not return until Sunday night. It was on that evening she saw him talking with Cole at the coal chutes.

J.S. Hudson, father of the murdered man, arrived in Paola last Saturday night to take charge of the bodies. He is past 60 years of age. For many years he has been a justice of the peace at North Industry, Ohio. He was astonished when he first heard that Mrs. Hudson was at Paola. "I did not hear from Rollin and supposed that his wife was still at her home in Massillon," he said. Mr. Hudson spoke of the times his son and wife separated, and connected with each circumstance that name of a former lover of Mrs. Hudson. This man's home was in Akron, Ohio, he said, and he had caused Mr. and Mrs. Hudson to move from town to town. Two weeks ago, he learned, while talking with Jacob Axxe, father of Mrs. Hudson, at Massillon, this man had left Akron. It is believed he came West. Mr. Hudson, accompanied by the bodies, left last Tuesday afternoon for Massillon, where the burial will take place.

Rollin Hudson was 21 years of age, according to his father, and Mrs. Hudson was one year his senior. They were married October 24, 1910, at Massillon. Shortly after their marriage, the husband's health failed, and worried by domestic troubles, he came to Kansas. He improved his health and after the second reconciliation with his wife, he again came to this section, intending to make his permanent home here.

On the night of the double murder, Mrs. Joseph Longmeyer was awakened about 12 o'clock by the falling of a lamp chimney in the dining room of her home. She jumped out of bed in time to see a man disappear through the back door. The screen of the rear window had been torn off by this midnight visitor and through this window gained entrance to the home. Sadie Longmeyer, 8 years old, says she saw the stranger leaning over her mother's bed. A kimono, thought by the police to belong to Mrs. Hudson, was found on the dining room floor. Mrs. Longmeyer turned the dress over to the authorities about 10 o'clock next morning, several hours before the discovery of the murders.

A heavy tamping pick, believed at first to be covered with human hair and blood, was found early last Monday morning beneath the Frisco lunch room by Charles S. Gibson. This building is within 200 yards of the scene of the murder. The handle of the pick was missing. Many believed this to have been the weapon used by the murderer. Sid Rawson disposed of this theory, when he told that the pick had been used by him to dig fish worms for a year or more.

After the discovery, a gang of men resumed work in the grass and underbrush in the vacant property west of the scene of the crime, searching for additional clews. Three men, with scythes, cut the long weeds and grass under the direction of the sheriff, covering a territory of three acres, which surrounds the Hudson, Stump and Longmeyer homes. The implement with which the crime was committed is still missing, however, J.L. Ghent, of the Kansas City police department joined Sheriff Chandler in his hunt for the murderer, last Sunday night.

About 11:30 o'clock on the night of the murder, A.L. Johnston, traveling salesman for the Ridenour-Baker Grocery Company, of Kansas City, says he saw a wildly excited man at the Frisco depot. Mr. Johnston came to Paola on this train from the south. "The man attempted to board the train before the passengers had gotten off and the conductor had to use him roughly to keep him away from the steps while we alighted," said Johnston. He was a young man, according to Johnston, and wore a straw sailor hat and rather dark suit of clothes. He says he would remember the stranger if he again saw him.

The crime was committed some time during the night of October 15^th and was not discovered until 5 o'clock the following afternoon. Mrs. O. W. Snook, a neighbor, failing to get any answer to her repeated calls to the Showman family over the telephone, went over to their house, a distance of about two blocks, and finding the door open. Walked in and was horrified at the terrible sight which confronted her. In one bed lay Mr. and Mrs. Showman and their little baby, and in the other the son and older daughter, all with their heads terribly crushed and mangled beyond recognition. Mrs. Snook rushed terror stricken from the house and telephoned to a brother of the murdered man, John Showman, who in turn notified the sheriff.

Tells of Finding Bodies

When interviewed Monday evening Mrs. Snook said: "Sunday evening Mr. and Mrs. Showman and their children were visiting with us and left for their home about two blocks away, at 9 o'clock. We have been in the habit of visiting back and forth with each other and Monday I called them up over the telephone several times, but could get no answer. I then called up Mr. Showman's place of work and his employer informed me that Mr. Showman had not reported for work that day. Thinking that some of the family might be ill, I took my child and walked over to their house and entered through the back door and passed through the kitchen into the front room. I gave just one look at the battered and bloody bodies lying on the beds and ran from the house and called up Mr. Showman's brother John, who came to the house then notified the sheriff."

"I know of no reason why this terrible crime should have been committed. So far as I know the Showman's were without enemies. They were good-natured, likeable people and I cannot understand why anyone should harbor such ill-will against them."

"The Showman's owned a bird dog and several times on Monday the dog came to our house and I drove him away, telling him to go back home, which he did, only to return again. When I walked into their house, the dog was inside lying down. I do not know how he got inside, unless he opened the screen door, which he might have done. The outside doors were unlocked and open, the murderer apparently having left them that way. The dog was accounted a good watch dog and how the assassin perpetrated his foul deed without arousing the dog and giving an alarm, I cannot understand."

Sheriff Bradshaw and Marshal Merritt went immediately to the house, and after a brief investigation, the bodies were removed to the Hutchinson Undertaking establishment.

Sends For Blood Hounds

Sheriff Bradshaw wired to Abilene for blood hounds, which were brought here on the 11:57 train Monday night by Sheriff Young of Dickinson county. The dogs were taken to the scene of the crime, and, taking the scent from a cloth upon which the murderer had wiped his hands, took a trail and followed it to where the Union Pacific and Frisco tracks intersect, about a half mile west of town. This crossing is only a short distance south of the Showman home. The dogs stopped and refused to go further. They were taken back to the house and one of the dogs unleashed. After circling around the house several times he darted off through some bushes in the rear of the house and returned in a few moments; then took up the same trail previously followed, which ended, as before, at the intersection of the railroad tracks.

From this it is thought that the murderer may have walked to the crossing and there boarded either a Frisco or Union Pacific train.

Sheriff Young then declared that further effort to track the criminal with the dogs would be useless, as they would only go over the same trail. He gave it as his opinion, moreover that the scent was too old for the dogs to follow intelligently. Sheriff Young returned to Abliene with his blood hounds Tuesday morning.

Used An Ax

The murderer committed his atrocious deed with an ax, which was found behind the door connecting the two rooms. It had recently been washed off with water, but there was sufficient blood on it to show that it was the instrument used, and there was also some hair on it which corresponded with that of the head of Mrs. Showman.

Evidently the murderer had gone about his work in a deliberate manner. A cloak belonging to Mrs. Showman was thrown over the telephone to muffle it, and a lamp placed at the foot of the bed. The chimney of the lamp was found in the kitchen under a chair and it is believed that the deed was committed in the dim light thrown from the lamp wick, the murderer evidently fearing the family might waken in stronger light.

From the positions of the bodies it would see that they had no warning of their terrible fate, as there was no evidence of any struggle, and the bodies, with the exception of that of Mrs. Showman, however had been subjected to treatment that clearly indicates that the fiend was possessed of an abnormal hatred towards her.

The Only Clues

Up to the time for going to press the city officers were still without any definite information as to the whereabouts of the murderer. They have several clues. On the might of the murder a strange man asked for a room at the Baker Hotel between the hours of 1 and 2. He registered as John Smith, Junction City, and said he was going to work in one of the Kanopolis salt mines. This was the last seen of him in Ellsworth. He left a hat and a bundle containing a blanket and other bed clothing in the office of the hotel, which he did not call for. In the morning when he did not appear, his room was searched and some of his clothing was found on the floor, one of the articles being a shirt, which was smeared with blood. Whether this man brought the bloody clothing with him to the hotel when he first came in, or whether he first went out, committed the foul deed and then returned to his room to change his clothing, is not known. However, this man did go to Kanopolis and ate breakfast early Monday morning at a restaurant in that town. He then went to the salt plant and applied for work, but was told there was nothing for him to do. He then stated he would walk to Salina and that was the last heard of him. He gave the name as John Smitherton, and address as Junction City, to the salt mine people. Sheriff Bradshaw got late communication with the authorities at Junction City, who reported that no such person as John Smitherton was known at Junction City, and that all John Smith's known there were accounted for. This man is described as being about 5 feet, 11 inches tall, weighing about 170 pounds, light hair and light blue eyes.

Another Suspect

Another person suspected is Charles Marzyck, a brother-in-law of Mrs. Showman. Marzyck was sent to the penitentiary from Ellsworth in January, 1906, for having stolen some wheat. At the time there was some trouble between Marzyck and his wife, a sister to Mrs. Showman. She obtained a divorce while Marzyck was serving his sentence, and then married James Vopat.

Marzyck was released from the penitentiary in April, 1910, and has not been seen in these parts since. He is supposed to be now living in San Francisco. The chief of police of San Francisco has been asked to learn the whereabouts of Marzyck on the night of the murder.

Another thing that tends to throw suspicion on Marzyck is the fact that Marshal Merritt, who was a witness against him in the trial of 1906, when Marzyck was sent to the penitentiary, states that some one tried to enter his home Sunday evening. He was sitting in his home reading a paper when he heard some one try the back door. He thought nothing of it, but as the noise continued, he arose and went to the door, but could see nothing. The next morning and investigation showed that a screen had been removed from one of the windows on the Merritt home.

Whether or not this was Marzyck is, of course, not known, but Marshal Merritt believes that it was and that he tried to enter his home and "fix" him before going to the Showman home.

Mayor's Proclamation

Because of the sad circumstances surrounding the taking off of this entire family, Mayor M. L. Meek issued a proclamation requesting that all places of business be closed during the funeral hour of the Will Showman family. The proclamation follows:

"It is my desire that all places of business be closed during the funeral hour of the Will Showman family who were victims of the most atrocious crime ever committed within our city. I therefore request that all business houses close between the hours of 2 and 3 o'clock p.m., October 18, 1911. M. L. Meek "Mayor"

Thought They Had Him

Considerable excitement was caused on our streets yesterday when a rumor flew the rounds that Charles Marzyck, suspected slayer of the Showman family, had been caught in the cellar of James Vopat's residence several miles south of town. Sheriff Bradshaw and Marshal Merritt, together with a number of deputies, made a flying trip in automobiles to the scene and searched the house thoroughly, but no trace of the man was found. It seems that when Mr. Vopat left the house a few hours before, he fixed the latch so that could enter from the outside without a key. When he returned he found that the latch had been thrown and he was unable to get into his house.

As Mrs. Vopat's former wife, Marzyck had threatened her at the time of his trial, it was feared that he would try to wreak his vengeance upon her also, if he is the guilty man. With these circumstances in his mind, Mr. Vopat jumped to the conclusion that Marzyck or someone not belonging there was inside the house, so he immediately telephoned to Ellsworth with the result noted above.

Sheriff Bradshaw and his deputies were much chagrined at the outcome, but they realized the strain under which the Vopats have been laboring ever since the crime was discovered and did not blame Mr. Vopat in the least for sounding a false alarm.

Showman Murder Like Other Crimes

The murder of the Showman family in this city Sunday night as they slept was almost identical to the slaying of six in Colorado Springs, Colo., on September 21^st and more lately in the killing of William E. Dawson, his wife and daughter in Monmouth, Ill., October 1^st. In each case an ax was the instrument of death. In every case each person in the house was killed apparently while asleep.

In the Colorado Springs tragedy two families were wiped out. The bodies of Alice May Burnham, her 6-year old daughter Alice and her 3-year old son John, and Henry Wayne, his wife, Blanche, and their 2-year old twin babies were found in their adjoining cottages. The head of each had been crushed by a heavy blow from an ax. The bodies were not discovered for at least two days after the murders. Arthur J. Burnham, husband of Alice Burnham, was arrested as a suspect, but stoutly maintained his innocence.

Dawson was the caretaker of a church in Monmouth, Ill. The tragedy was discovered by a committee of deacons, who visited Dawson's home to reprimand him for failing to make the church ready for the Sunday services. After breaking in the door, they found the three bodies each with its head crushed, the wounds showing unmistakable signs of having been caused by one instrument, an ax.

The Showman family was slain in like manner, the murderer going further, however and battering the features of his victims beyond recognition. In no case has the slightest motive been discovered by the police. All were working people, in comfortable circumstances with no known enemies. From none of the homes was heard any sign of a struggle or any intimation that there had been trouble until the bodies were discovered.

Inquest by Coroner's Jury

A coroner's inquest was held at the court house yesterday afternoon. The coroner's jury was made up as follows: James Nemechek, Joseph Kalina, Jr., Roscoe Holt, Norris Babson, Hugh Leith and Tom Weightman, Sr. The witnesses examined were Mrs. O. W. Snook, John Showman, Joe Kolachny, Harry Baker, George Showman, James Vopat, Dr. H. C. Mayer, James Cowie, Jr,. William McGuire, Lou Bunzel, H. E. Cole and K. L. Griffith. The inquest was adjourned until October 30.

That the man was registered at the Baker hotel here last Sunday night under the name of John Smith, Junction City, is the murderer of the five members of the William Showman family, was the finding of the coroner's jury, which adjourned yesterday afternoon until October 30^th. A further indentification of the guilty party was not undertaken.

Evidence produced at the inquest under the questioning of Dr. J. M. Reitzel, coroner, of Kanopolis, accounted for the man from the time he is supposed to have come to Ellsworth Sunday night until he was last seen going out of Kanopolis Monday morning.

The testimony of Marshal Merritt revealed an attempt upon the part of some person to enter his home shortly before midnight Sunday. The screen of one the windows was cut out and the window casing showed that an effort had been made to pry up the window. Marshal Merritt was instrumental in bringing Marzyck to justice and sending him to the penitentiary in 1906. It is said that Marzyck swore vengeance against Merritt at that time.

Testimony was then given showing that the murderer probably had gone from Marshal Merritt's home to that occupied by the Showman family, where the slayer crushed the skulls of William Showman and wife and their three children. There he paused long enough to wash his hands and the blood stained ax in a bucket of water before making his escape. According to the testimony given, it is believed that the murderer walked from the Showman home to where the Union Pacific and Frisco railroads intersect, and there boarded an eastbound Union Pacific train, riding as far as the depot, where her dropped off and went to the Baker Hotel and changed his clothes.

The trend of evidence then shifted to Kanopolis, where the man went after leaving the Baker Hotel. It is supposed he walked to that town, where he ate a hasty breakfast and then applied for work at the salt mine. They could not give him any work, so he left, stating that he would walk to Salina.

$1,000 Reward Offered

Governor Stubbs, who has been keeping in close touch with the developments of the Showman murder case here, yesterday offered a reward of $500 for the apprehension of the murderer. To this was added an additional $500, which was appropriated by the county commissioners of this county, making the total reward $1,000. No effort will be spared to catch the guilty party.

Is Marzyck in Alaska?

Denver, Colo., October 18---Charles Marzyck sought by the police in Ellsworth, Kansas, was a suspect in the Showman murder case, is not a stranger to the Denver police. Soon after his marriage here to Minnie Kratky in 1898, while employed in the local cigar factory, he is alleged to have carried on a system of forgeries that are said to have netted him several hundreds of dollars from saloonkeepers and grocers. He fled from the city before he could be arrested. Five years later he was arrested here at the request of St. Joseph, Mo., authorities on charges of forgery. He fought extradition and secured his release through a technicality.

A brother, Joseph Marzyck, is a musician at a local moving picture theatre. Joseph Marzyck says he last saw his brother several months ago when the latter stopped in Denver for a few days on his way to Alaska. Several letters, Joseph said, have been received from him, and the postmarks would indicate that it would have been impossible for him to commit the Showman murders.

Attempts to connect Marzyck with the sextuple murders of the Wayne and Burnham families at Colorado Springs have had no results so far.

Murderer Still At Large

Up to the hour of going to press (3:30 p.m.) the murderer of the William Showman family had not been apprehended. Sheriff Bradshaw went to Geneseo this morning in response to information from that place that the suspected man might be at work among the laborers on the railroad gradings there. So far his quest has not been successful.

Obituary

Showman---At their home in the northwest part of the city Sunday night, William Showman, aged 31 years, Mrs. William Showman, aged 27 years, and their three children, Lester, aged 7, Fern, aged 4, and Fenton, aged 2 years.

Funeral services were held at the M. E. church Wednesday afternoon at 2 o'clock conducted by the Rev. C. R. Wade. The church was filled with friends of the deceased ones and outside was an equally large number of persons unable to gain admittance to the church. The Redman lodge conducted a service at the cemetery, the service being read by J. M. Darby and T. E. Hamilton. The pallbearers were J. A. Schmitt, C. J. Scott, F. A, Kesler, W. F. Tibbetts, J. F. Rogers and James Holt, all Sons of Veterans. The bodies were all buried in one grave.

William H. Showman was born January 23, 1880 and was 31 years, 9 months and 22 days of age. The exact date of Mrs. Showman's birth could not be learned, but she was about 27 years of age. Her maiden name was Pauline Kratky.

William Showman is survived by his mother, Mrs. David Showman, and three brothers, John, George, and Samuel. Mrs. Showman is survived by her parents, Mr. and Mrs. John Kratky, residing at Black Wolf, four sisters, Mrs. Minnie Vopat of Black Wolf, Mrs. Mary Soucek of Lamount, Okla., Mrs. Frank Jilka of Tescott, Kansas, and Miss Clare Kratky of Holyrood, and two brothers, John and Emil, residing at Holyrood.

Interment was made in the Ellsworth cemetery and the remains were followed to their last resting place by a large concourse of people, there being over 150 carriages in line. The bodies were carried to the cemetery in three hearses and an ambulance.