Alabama, M, 1884-1993, Undated

Online content

65 SOUTHERN 330 (According to zeport, his real name was Perry Mackey; he was convicted of a
capital offense in Macon County on October 10, 1905 and sentenced to life
imptksonment. His murder weapon on Will Anderson, victim for whose death
he was sentenced to gallows, was an axee)

MACKEY, Perry (alias MACK, Will), black, hanged Centerville, Alabama, on June 26, 191).

"The Supreme Court yesterday affirmed a death sentgnce imposed by the Bibb County Circuit
Court on Perry Makkey, a negro, who was convicted on a charge of murder, Mackey will be
hanged June 26, according to the decision of the court, The negro was serving a life sen-
tence in Lucille Mines and was convicted of killing a fellow convic$, Under the law the
only punishment that can be bestowed on a 'life termer' is to execute him, Mackey killed
Will Anderson by striking him in the head with a shovel," ADVERTISER, Montgomery, Alaecy
May 13, 191) (7:21)

MARTIN, Rhonda, white, elec., Ala. (Montgomery) 10-11-1957

ff : ™
MARTIN, Rhonda welle Garrett Gibson

| |
Mrs. Martin, a white nemecom woman born in 1908 in lucedale, Miss.,
was a waitress by occupation. Divorced from her first husband, she
next married Ceorge Garrett and they moved to Montgomery, Ala., and
became the parents of five daughters, all of whom died while children.
In 1937, her three-year-old daughter, sinozene, had worried her by re-
‘peatedly asking for water, so she gave the child a glass into which.
she had placed arsenic and the thttle girl died. From that time. on,
all who came into contact with Mrs, Martin seemed to mysteriously die.
She was never suspectedy because she always used different doctors
each time a family member became ill. After her.-mother, her other
four children, and George Garrett had all died, she married a widower
named Claude Martin in 191)9. Me died following a lingering 111ness
in 1951. Mrs. Martin, a ssisted by his step~son, Roland Martin, had
nursed him through his sickness and, after his death, she and the young
Navy veteran who was 23-vears her junior married and moved to Mabile.
When Roland Martin became ill and local physicians were unable to dia-~
gnose his ailment, he was sent to the Yeterans' Nospttal in Biloxi
Misse, where it was discovered that he was suffering from arsenical
poisoning. A check on his wifeXdxXsentcea revealed that all who had
bee n close to her had mysteriously died and Caaude Martin's body,

v ~~ J

.
bei .

i 3 , + ” ‘ s
| when exhumed, revealed traces of arsenic. Mrs. Martin Was ce
snto custody and charged with incest for having married her stepson

and questioned about the mysterious deaths. She finally. confessed

to having killed her husbands, Garrett and Martin, her mother, and

a1} ef-her ehitdrens—the notive was insurance and she Was orawing
Lo on ee ou v8 ae Ss eb belsete’ © ; ‘
Claude Martin's Social Security. even though she was married to his

"stepson. Convicted of, mrdering Claude Martin in Montgomery County:
and -senteneed—to-death;-she -was-electrocuted at-Khiiby srisoir or
| Oct. 11, 1957- oe ote

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Z a a to Toate + by hasitoe Gomeze
S39-s—Sanes 69% euch a Hove ly, SAY OY “8
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3 LAs BIO CG Sho = 2 FTF

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ef MACK, Harry, black, hanged at Fayette, Alabama, on August 2l, 1925.

C) ©)

FAYETTE BANNER, Vol 73 July 16, 1925
NEGRO SENTENCED TO BE HANGED,

On last Wednesday, July 15, according to schedule, Harry Mack, charged with rape, went

to trial. The jury consisting of B. E. Jones, James M. Sanders, Henry C. Randolph,

om J. Black, Felix M. Trim, Wm. M. Mobley, W. Arthur Vernon, W. Melton Maddox,
Belton Collins, W. Luther Jones, L. Dow Watkins and Willie Gilpin was soon organized,
empaneled and sworn. The state introduced its evidence and the defense had it's turn.
the Court charged the jury and they retired to make their verdict. Within less than a
half hour they were back into Court, finding the defendant guilty as charged and fixing
his punishment at death by hanging. The state law enforcement officers who were here,
accompanied by Deputy Sheriff A. A. Gtntry, left with the prisoner for the Birmingham Jail,
where he will be confined until the date of execution on August 21.

HENRY MACK GOES TO GALLOWS. (Fayette Bannef - Thursday Aug. 20, 1925 )

First Hanging here in Years.
Must Give his Life for Crime Committed on White Girl Near Stough, Alabama in Early July

Sheriff Chambless has completed all preparations for the hanging of Henry Mack, a negro,
sentenced at the Special Term of Court to be hanged. The Gallows or Scaffold, has been
erected between the Court House and the rear end of Smith-Dodson and Co. Store. It has

been enclosed by a high wall. It is scheduled that the hanging will take place sometime
betten sunup and sundown tomorrow. The law does not permit a public hanging, but it

does provide that the Judge of Probate, the Clerk of Circuit Court, at least three Justices
of the Peace, and not more than three phycisians in the neighborhood, who may be present and
witness the execution, and who must make out and sign a certificate in writing, declaring
that they witnessed the execution purusuant to sentence. The Sheriff must also permit the
Counsel of the convicted, and such ministers of the gospel as he may desire, and his relations
to be present; and also such officers of the prison, six deputies, constables, military
guard, as he may think proper.

Alabama’s

Burying Hellcat

continued from page 25

woman of about 175 pounds, shapeless as such

women are, the type sometimes described: as

“horsey” by men uncharitable with their words.

The expression on her round, flat face could
be described as funereal.

’ The other waitresses would have explained

it by saying that Rhonda seemed to move in a

strange aura of gloom.

A few really close friends of Rhonda’ 's could
tell you why—or at leat their explanations
were logical. First, her husband, Ronald Martin,
age 30, was in the Veterans’ Hospital at Biloxi,
Miss., paralyzed from the waist down with a
mysterious ailment that had started as a simple
bellyache a month or so ago. The doctors
seemed to think that it was some strange
malady he’d picked up as a soldier during the
war because it hadn’t yet responded to treat-
ment. And Rhonda’s friends knew how much
she* thought of the sick man.

It was almost adoration, they said. Ronald
Martin had been something almost too good
to be true to Rhonda. Ronald was Claude Mar-
tin’s son, and Rhonda had been married to
the 51-year-old Claude at the time of his
death, back in. Montgomery in 1951. Stepson
and stepmother grew very close during Claude’s
last illness, probably turning to each other for
etrength to bear the old man’s awful moans

1 groans before he died. They must both

ve loved him, and it would have been hor-
rible to sit by his bed and watch him clutch
his stomach in agony: while his fading eyes
turned to them for the help they were unable
to provide.

NYWAY, it wasn’t long after Claude’s

death and burial that Rhonda married her.

stepson, a man 19 years her junior. There was
some mild scandal about it, but not because
anyone thought that it was. anything other
than a normal, respectable union. It’s just that
the Alabama law terms “incestuous” a mar-
riage in which the partners are stepmother and
stepson. But they were wed out of the state
(returning to live in Mobile) and the tech-
nical illegality hadn’t bothered them any.

And now Ronald was clutching at his stom-
ach in the Biloxi hospital and moaning in his
pain‘and Rhonda lived under a day-by-day
cloak of fear, waiting to hear that the son had
followed the father to the grave.

Actually, the story went a great deal farther
than most of her present associates knew.
Rhonda’s life was a true saga of grief.

Rhonda Martin went to Biloxi to see Ronald
Martin as often as she could. Her devotion
was noticed by hospital attendants there. She’d
come down the hall bearing flowers or fruit
and turn into her husband’s room and while
no one had ever seen her cry, she seemed con-
stantly on the verge of tears. The slim, good-
*->king, pallid invalid would turn to her as his

e solace in a pain-racked world. They’d

and hold hands, talking a little, pretending
not to notice the pathetic immobility on his
wasting legs. All their conversation was pre-
ceded by such words as “. . . when you get
well,” and, “ . .. when the doctors let you
come home.”

Ronald looked forward eagerly to his
wife’s visits. While she was physically un-

qualified to suit the term, “angel of mercy,”
she had acquired a gentle manner with sick
husbands—the cool hand on the brow, the ex-
pert fluffing and patting of the pillow, the in-

stinctive straightening and smoothing of
rumpled sheets. Ronald always seemed better,
or at least more cheerful, after Rhonda had
visited him, and the nurses were careful to
leave them alone. But Rhonda herself seemed
to derive neither encouragement nor cheer from
these sessions, and invariably returned to the
Mobile eating place surrounded by her strange
aura of gloom.

Doctors aré still mystified by certain mal-
adies, and when a man’s illness stems from a

simple bellyache, and causes a creeping par- _

alysis from the hips down, they begin to won-

der if yet another incurable disease has been E

introduced. Ronald Martin’s eyes grew deeper
and larger, his cheeks paler and more sunken
as days slipped into weeks. It soon appeared
that drastic action would have’ to be taken in
order to save his life. The doctors at the Bil-
oxi Veterans’ Hospital are among the best in
the country, and they were determined that
the patient should not die.

It was Ronald himself who provided the

clue. One day he admitted he had forgotten’

to mention that he had been treated a month
earlier, back in January, 1956, for stomach
distress very similar to his present pains, al-
though they had cleared up in a short time.
Both he and the physician had concluded that
the condition was transitory, probably due to
something he’d eaten. But the fact that the
same symptoms had returned to develop into
something of an extremely serious nature pro-
vided the medics with food for thought. They
contacted the Mobile physician, compared
notes, then returned to Biloxi and proceeded

to put Ronald Martin through a series of .

tests.

The results amazed and shocked them. Mr.
Martin was suffering from no mysterious tropi-
cal malady—he had a simple case of arsenic
poisoning !

Before turning ‘the matter over to law en-
forcement authorities, doctors questioned the
patient more thoroughly in an attempt to dis-

‘cover the source of the poison. He was sur-

prised and horrified to learn what his trouble
actually was, but was unable to provide them
with a clue. Mobile, Ala., police (specifically
Circuit Solicitor William F. Thetford) were
informed of the case. They came down.

When a man is poisoned, the most iepical
suspect is the pefson who prepares and serves
him his food. Rhonda Martin was picked up
by city detectives and driven to the solicitor
for a talk. As soon as she entered their car,

‘the detectives became aware that there were

rain clouds on the horizon, that February was
a grim month, that the world held little joy.
When she walked slowly into the solicitor’s
office, those present sensed a strange chill in
the room. Rhonda’s plain, heavy features were
mournful; her thick shoulders sagged in habit-

ual despair. She looked not: as if she were —

about to weep, but as if she were all wept out.
They discussed Mr. Martin’s illness. Mrs.

Martin told them that she considered it mighty -

strange that the doctors hadn’t been able to find
out exactly what was wrong with her husband.
How could they treat him if they didn’t know
what to treat him for?

Solicitor Thetford decided to be blunt. “They
have found that your husband is suffering from
arsenic poisoning. The next step is not up to

the doctors, but to us. We are going to find the .

source.”

“Now where would Ronald get any arsenic?”
the middle-aged waitress asked. “I prepared
most of his meals myself. I even packed the
lunches he carried to work.” —

They drove her back to the restaurant,
thanked her, and then detectives began a subtle
undercover job of learning all they could about

. the doleful waitress.

Rhonda Martin’s neighbors liked her. While
she wasn’t usually included in local gatherings,
it had nothing to do with her character—any
parties she attended seemed less gay and the
talk veered from light, nonsensical things to
more somber matters of. wars, floods, hurri-
canes, diseases and death. Not that she started
trends in the conversation; they just seemed

to come about when she was around.
™ Her co-workers at the restaurant

were
amazed that detectives would be interested in ~
Rhonda. She was fundamentally a nice person,
in spite of her dedication to pessimism and
gloom. She had told them the amazing discov-
ery about her husband, and was anxious to

learn who might have been poisoning him. She -
. had expressed the belief that it was some giddy

girl who had fallen in love with him, a girl
who had decided that since Ronald was madly ~
in love with his wife that she would pursue an ~
if-I-can’t-have-him-then-nobody-will course.
Perhaps Ronald had even taken this girl out
for dinner a few times while Rhonda was at

work. The girl might have slipped the arsenic ~~ [HI

in his restaurant meal, or she might even have
had access to his Junch basket.

Mr. Martin, however, now thoroughly
alarmed, stated to officers that he knew of no
such girl, and the possibility of a thwarted-ro-
mance poisoning was ridiculous.

__ It came to light, of course, that Mr. Martin’s
father, then Rhonda Martin’s husband, had
died back in 1951. The death certificate, signed
by a reputable doctor, made no mention of
poison. However, without a specific examina-

‘tion for arsenic, a death brought about by it

can very easily be attributed to other causes.

“I think we’ll find ourselves stumped,” So-
licitor Thetford told the Mobile detectives,
“unless we can get an order exhuming Claude
Martin’s body. If it confains traces of arsenic,
then we can proceed on a basis stronger than
theory.”

HE order was obtained from the court on
the strength of Ronald Martin’s condition.
Claude Martin had died in Montgomery. The
exhumation was kept from the newspapers,
and from Rhonda Martin. Claude’s ‘remains
were examined by an expert state toxicologist.
They definitely contained traces of arsenic. —
“Do we arrest Mrs. Martin?” a detective

* asked.

_“Not yet, ” Thetford said.
little more.’

First, in order to pin the guilt on her beyond
a shadow of doubt, they attempted to. find the
source of the poison. One husband sick and
paralyzed from the result of arsenic doses, and

“Let’s check a

~ another dead and buried, makes fine circum-

stantial evidence. However, the solicitor was
aware of an existing reasonable doubt by
which a jury might fail to find against a de-
fendant. Such circumstantial evidence, while
conclusive to an investigator, does not prove

_ anything in a strictly legal sense. Without a

confession, which Thetford felt was out of the

question, the charges would have to be sub- ~ ee
‘stantiated by a solid array of facts. AER

A team of experts was assigned to dig into
Rhonda Martin’s past, although she was kept
unaware of it. It was found, during an inves-

MOBILE REGISTER
Mobile, Alabama
DAILY

APR -28-93

Rhonda Belle Martin left
2-decade legacy of death

EDITOR’S NOTE — Anarticle in The Mobile Regis-
terlast week included the historical note that only
three women have died in Alabama’s electric chair
— and that Rhonda Belle Martin, in 1957, wasthe -
last of the three. Her path tojustice began witha

low-key message deliveredtoher outside adown-_

town Mobile restaurant. Thisisherstory. |

By TOM TAYLOR
Executive Editor ; | lo UG

The official record on Rhonda Belle Martin shows ~

simple and swift justice: Arrested in Mobile March 9,

1956, charged with fatally poisoning her husband,
Claude C. Martin, in Montgomery in 1951. Tried and.

convicted in Montgomery in June 1956. Executed in
October 1957.
. Whatit doesn’t showis that Mrs. Martin leftalegacy
of death that spanned two decades and spawned an
investigation that led from Biloxi, Miss., to Mobile to
Montgornery. ;
She eventually admitted poisoning seven people,
including three of her children. Six of those people
died, in a period stretching from 1937 to 1951. The
seventh lived, and that led to her arrest.
- The agent of choice: Arsenic. The apparent motive:
Small insurance policies on each of the victims.

ONE TRY TOO MANY

Ronald C. “Bud” Martin came into the picture in
December 1951, eight months after the death of
his father, Claude Martin. That was when Bud mar-
ried his stepmother, Rhonda Belle Martin. At that

time Bud was 24, she was 45. |
- Bud worked at a Mobile paper mill, while Mrs.
Martin was employed as a part-time waitress at a

: .. Mobile restaurant.
+... Then late in 1955 Bud got sick. He was treated

‘at a Mobile: hospital, went home and got sick

again: This time the Mobile hospital transferred

: him to the Biloxi Veterans Administration Center.
“He couldn’t move his arms or legs,” recalled |
cone: doctor. at the time. Symptoms included acute

diarrhea and vomiting.
_.VA doctors ran an assortment of tests and elicit-

_ed: Bud’s personal history, as well as his wife’s

history. A pattern of death emerged, and poison
was suspected. Doctors extracted some strands of

- Bud’s hair and sent them to Washington for tests.
: The result: Positive for arsenic.

The findings were turned over to Alabama au-
thorities, and the probe into Rhonda Belle Mar-

‘ tin’s past began.

. State Department of Toxicology officials ex-
humed Claude Martin's body and found arsenic.

A QUIET ARREST

On the afternoon of March 9, 1956, Rhonda
Belle Martin, then 49, left the cafe at Water and
Conti streets (an intersection that no longer ex-
ists) where she worked as a waitress. State Investi-
gator Oscar F. Coley met the auburn-haired,
heavy-set woman outside the cafe and told her
that Mobile Police Chief Dudley McFadyen had a

Please see RHONDA BELLE MARTIN on 5C >

Rhonda Belle Martin

LS6L ‘iL °390 (Azome3QuQN) Ty °oeTe ‘uM ‘eT Teg epmeuy ‘NILYVW

Rhonda B. Martin

> Continued from 1C
message for her. The two went to McFadyen’s office, a

block away, and he told her that officers were on their , :

way from Montgomery with a warrant for her arrest.

He didn’t name the specific charge. Two hours later
Deputy Attorney General MacDonald Gallion (later
attorney general) served the murder warrant on Mrs.
Martin and returned to Montgomery with her in
custody. “ . ee sae one + te * :

The next morning The Mobile Register carried the
details: Mrs. Martin was formally charged with
murdering her husband Claude, but she was also
suspected in the deaths of another husband, her five
children, her mother and the attempted murder of her
current husband.

Even as bodies were being exhumed and tested,
officers continued to question Mrs. Martin. Within a
week, she admitted to the attempt to kill Bud Martin
and to six of the deaths.

By her own admission, the trail of poison began on
July 9, 1937, when her daughter, Emogene Garrett,
died in Mobile at the age of 2.

The second victim, she said, was George W. Garrett,

who died in 1939 in Montgomery. He was Rhonda’s
second’ husband and the father of her children.

Anna Carolyn Garrett, 6, died in Montgomery in
1940.

Ellyn Elizabeth Garrett, 11, died in Mobile in 1943.

Mrs. Martin’s mother, Mary Frances Gibbon, died :

_in Mobile; in. 1944.
‘ Finally came husband Claude’s death in 1951, and

‘the attempt on his son, Bud, in 1955. ©:

. Authorities said Mrs. Martin was vague about the
-reason for those poisonings, but admitted she re- |
.ceived insurance money after all six deaths — «.

including $2,000 after Claude’s death. |
She denied poisoning two other children, Mary
Adelaide Garrett, 3, who died in 1934, and Judith

Garrett, who was less thana year old when she diedin-

1939.
Until the investigation, all the deaths had been
written off as natural causes, except for Emogene,
’ whose death was attributed to accidental poisoning.

MARRIED FIVE TIMES

Rhonda Belle Martin was a native of Lucedale,
Miss., the daughter of a sawmill operator. When
she was a small child, the family moved to Mobile.

She quit school when she was 15; at the time
her mother operated a Mobile boarding house.

That year she married one of her mother’s

boarders and four years later she divorced him.

When she was 21 she met a next-door neighbor,

‘George Garrett, a railroad employee, and later

married him. The children were theirs.
After his death in Montgomery in 1939, she mar-
ried a VA hospital attendant, a marriage that last-

‘ed only five months.

As.soon as divorce papers were final, she mar-
ried Claude Martin, a packer whom she met at a
glass plant where she worked.

In April 1951, Martin died. Eight months later,
Rhonda married her stepson, Bud.

Bud survived his bout with arsenic poisoning,
though it was a close call. In late 1956, he left the
Biloxi VA hospital to live with a sister in Louisi-
ana. He could walk only with the aid of crutches.

THE TRIAL

The trial of Rhonda Belle Martin took only one
day — June 4, 1956. She wept as her statement
admitting the poisoning of Claude Martin was read
to a Montgomery County jury.

Witnesses told of noticing ant poison in the
Martin home, and of insurance received by Mrs.
Martin after her husband’s death.

Mrs. Martin did not testify. The defense offered

two witnesses in presenting a plea of innocent by
reason of insanity.

The jury deliberated only three hours and 10
minutes before convicting Mrs. Martin and fixing
her penalty at death in the electric chair.

Two days later she was formally sentenced —
an event shunted aside in the news by a landmark
court ruling in the Montgomery bus boycott case.

The state Supreme Court upheld Mrs. Martin's
conviction, and in October 1957 Gov. Jim Folsom
denied her clemency appeal.

Early on Oct. 11, she died at age 50 in the
state’s electric chair, which then was located at
Kilby Prison in Montgomery.

She left behind a handwritten note which said:
“At my death, whether it be a natural death or
otherwise, | want my body to be given to some
scientific institution to be used as they see fit, but
especially to see if someone can find out why |
committed the crimes I have committed.

“I can’t understand it, for | had no reason what-
soever. There is definitely something wrong. Can't
someone find it and save someone else the agony
I have been through?”

The body was turned over to a funeral home
and disposition was left to members of the family.
She was buried in a Montgomery cemetery the
same day she died.

The list of kinfolk poi d by the mel.

ALABAMA’

BU RYING
\ ELLCAT

He’d been her stepson, was now her husband, and if
she had her way would soon be her “dear departed.”

Pent

Bs PT plas gee

MONTGOMERY, ALA., MARCH 14, 1956

™ Customers in the Mobile, Ala., restaurant where Rhonda
Martin worked wondered why it was that they could come
into the place feeling pretty good, kidding each other as
they waited for a table, and then, while they were ordering,
or by the time they got to their soup, a little shadow of
gloom would seem to settle over their table and talk would
turn from pleasant, good-natured banter to serious topics
of far more grim content, frowns replaced smiles and a
feeling of gloom seemed to hover over each of them. They
weren't aware of any reason for this. They certainly didn’t
blame the restaurant because at other tables diners would
be laughing and acting as cheerful as lunch-hour folks
should act.

Even if they did wonder about it, they wouldn’t think
that their particular waitress had anything to do with their
change of mood. Mrs. Rhonda Martin, 49, rarely elicited a
second look. She was a big, plain (Continued on page 71)

She attended funerals around the

clock. Before long her restaurant
customers greeted her arrival the

way they would that of a hearse

by W. W. WARD

Mi
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1 oh AY ASR EAE IONE ITE PON 89 ety
Pen

Was fate alone unkind to suspect? It took her husbands, her children, her mother, left her holding the insurance policies.

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.ed on April 27th,
with the neighbors.
artin was Claude

» said slowly. “In
aw doesn’t allow a.

it a thought since

rent. “As you say,
se, but we certainly

‘er’s office,” Coley
handle this end of.

fom Carlisle. While
vile to continue his
a parallel probe in
ckling tough cases,
ny occasions. Most
ant assistance given
.nup operation per-
ar had been a high-
te investigator and
onal Academy.
iinter called on the
‘ard, a plainclothes-
e state investigator.
ials concentrated on
is and talking. with
iends of the Martins
ity. It was a matter
of information here,
es together into an
ic life.

aard working, home °

ath as a foreman at
t was at the glass
1onda Bell, a fellow
‘ship and their mar-
it the vivacious red-
However, this prior.
endant at a veterans
irt and was officially
xr 28th, Claude Mar-

cumpka and took his’

ylston. Undoubtedly
a tragic void in his,
n killed in an auto-

iree teen-age daugh-

a happy, contented
ivished on him was
je fell sick and no
ar as the neighbors

with Rhonda, her
id of “nervous dis-
constantly. She fed
‘'s medicines. :
that young Ronald
ntracted his illness
a February of 1951,
at the Red Cross ar-
.elp nurse his father.
s waited on the ail-
27th, Claude Carroll
n.
n’s bedside had ap-
fection between the
attachment deepened
ch followed Claude
into love. Marriage
linary circumstances

were critical of the
> when Ronald and

Rhonda were wed in December of 1951. Since the breakup
of the household, Romaine, the oldest of Claude’s daughters,
had moved on to New Iberia, Louisiana, where she was
living with her husband. Lorraine, 22, was presently clerk-
ing in a dime store and maintained an apartment in
Montgomery for herself and Manalee, 17, who was still
attending high school.

Such was the story pieced together by the two investiga-
tors. Obtaining the name of Claude Martin’s physician from
the death certificate on file, Painter and Ward visited the
doctor and questioned him closely about Martin’s symp-
toms. Their eyes grew hard as they listened. Claude’s fatal
illness had been accompanied by diarrhea, vomiting, and
excruciating stomach pains.

“Just like young Martin,” Painter commented grimly as
they left the doctor’s office. '

“Well, what do we do now?” Ward asked.

Painter frowned. “We could recommend exhumation of
the body, but it’s too early. We ought to have a lot more
to go on before we go that far. Right now, all we have is
suspicion. Let’s suppose that an autopsy shows that Martin
died of arsenic poisoning. The trouble with arsenic is that
it’s so hard to trace. Anybody who wants to kill a rat or
spray a fruit tree can buy the stuff over the counter and
no questions asked. The family moved from Boylston long
ago, SO we can’t even search there and hope to find any-
thing. Then there’s the matter of motive. We'll have to do
a lot more checking before we can make out a case for
exhumation.”

The next logical step was to investigate Claude Martin’s
estate, if any. Who had gained by his death?

A search of the county court records disclosed that
Claude Martin had been insured for at least $2,500. Such an
amount had been paid by the life insurance company to
Rhonda Martin as general guardian for Manalee, Martin’s
youngest daughter and the designated beneficiary. Ap-
parently all this money had been drawn by Rhonda to pay
for living expenses. As a general rule, life policies with
a named beneficiary do not have to clear the probate courts.
On the chance that Claude Martin had other policies, Painter
and Ward communicated with the life insurance office. The
information came back that the proceeds of a second
policy on Martin’s life in the amount of $2,000 had been
paid directly to Rhonda Martin, the beneficiary. Thus, as
a result of Claude Martin’s death, $4,500 had come into
Rhonda’s possession.

“Not a fortune, but nice to have,” Painter observed.

“That could have been the motive for Claude’s murder—
if he was murdered,” Ward pointed out. “But what about
the son Ronald?”

“We'll have to find out,” Painter promised somberly.
“This case is beginning to make sense.”

The case made even more sense when the investigators
checked Ronald Martin’s insurance status and ascertained
that his life was insured for $3,000.

While motive in'a poison case is often comparatively
easy to establish, establishing the elements of means and
opportunity presents a more difficult obstacle. The officials
decided not to try to trace a rare poison, but one easily
obtainable by almost anyone. They were convinced that the
arsenic fed young Martin had been purchased in the form
of some common household commodity. Painter and Ward
made the rounds of grocers and druggists in Boylston, hop-
ing to find some merchant who could recall selling an
arsenic compound to someone close to young Martin and
his stepfather. The officers had no success and widened their
search to Montgomery. In Mobile, Coley was performing
the same unrewarding chore. Law enforcement officers
in nearby towns were asked to help in the search.

By now, all the officials concerned realized that such
leads as they had uncovered all pointed in one direction.
Every person closely connected with the Martins had been
thoroughly screened.. The probe had revealed no secret
enemies outside the family circle, no clandestine love
affairs. It was agreed by all (Continued on page 88)

en 3 ai bale

Carolyn drank single glass of milk, died. Ellyn Elizabeth

(below) suffered whole year and lost the use of her limbs

Her junior by 20 years, last husband is paralyzed for life

beautiful nor glamorous. Yes, in an unobtrusive way, she
was attractive and pleasant looking. She had auburn hair,
neatly. coiffed, and blue eyes that smiled agreeably behind
the panes of her heavy rimmed glasses. :

She drove along Conception Street’ with Coley cruising
behind her, until she came to the Seabreeze Restaurant. She
parked the sedan and went inside. A few minutes later,
when Coley followed her, she was already busy, bustling
from table to table and taking orders. ,

Coley sat down at a table and caught her eye. It was only
11 o’clock and still too early for lunch, so Coley ordered
coffee and doughnuts. He chatted sociably with his waitress

and she answered in the usual bantering style of restau- |

rants. She was pleasant and cheerful and Coley, in sizing
her up, could see how a young man might find the feminine
companionship he needed in marriage with a woman of
such bright disposition, in spite of the difference in their
ages.

Leaving the restaurant, Coley decided to drive to Pratt-
ville, seat of Autauga County, to check on the Martins’
marriage license. He had no reason to regret the 150-mile
ride. On the way back he detoured to nearby Montgomery
and stopped off at the town of Boylston to make some
inquiries. Then he went on to the Montgomery office of
William B. Painter, the state investigator assigned to that
city.

Coley telephoned Tom Carlisle and told him of his visit
to Prattville. “This may mean nothing at all,” he said to
his chief, “but there sure is a funny setup in the Martin
family. In the marriage license application young Martin’s
address is listed as Fifth Street, Boylston. Now get this. The
woman gave the same address and, what’s more, gave her
name as Rhonda Bell Martin—same last name as the
boy’s. The application said she’d been married before to

‘

a Claude Carroll Martin and that he died on April 27th,
1951. I stopped off at Boylston and spoke with the neighbors.
According to them, young Ronald Martin was Claude
Martin’s stepson!”

“Then he’s her stepson, too,” Carlisle said slowly. “In

Alabama such a marriage is illegal. The law doesn’t allow a.

woman to marry her stepson.”

“Yeah, but they. probably never gave it a thought since
there was no blood relationship.”
. Carlisle considered the new development. “As you say,
the setup may have no bearing on the case, but we certainly
ought to look into the father’s death.”

“That’s why: I stopped off at Painter’s office,” Coley

agreed. “I thought you’d want him to handle this end of.

the investigation.” : :

And that was the course ordered by Tom Carlisle. While
Coley returned to his home base in Mobile to continue his
inquiry there, William Painter began a parallel probe in
the Montgomery area. No novice in tackling tough cases,
Painter had hit the headlines on many occasions. Most
recently he had been credited with brilliant assistance given
to McDonald Gallion in the famed cleanup operation per-
formed on notorious Phenix City. Painter had been a high-
way patrolman before becoming a state investigator and
had been a star pupil at the FBI National Academy.

Deciding he could use some help, Painter called on the
city police and Patrolman Thomas J. Ward, a plainclothes-
man, was assigned to team up with the state investigator.

For the next few days the two officials concentrated on

Boylston, patiently making the rounds and talking. with
people who had been neighbors and friends of the Martins
when they had lived in that community. It was a matter
of dogged legwork, picking up a bit of .information here,
and a bit there, and fitting the pieces together into an
emerging picture of the Martin domestic life.

Claude Carroll Martin had been a hard working, home °

loving family man, earning $450 a month as a foreman at
a large glass manufacturing plant. It was at the glass
company, in fact, that he had met Rhonda Bell, a fellow
worker, It had been a whirlwind courtship and their mar-
riage was delayed only by the fact that the vivacious red-
head was already a married woman. However, this prior
marriage with Talmadge Gibson, an attendant at a veterans
hospital, was already in the divorce court and was officially
dissolved in October of 1949. On October 28th, Claude Mar-

tin married Rhonda Bell in nearby Wetumpka and took his’

mature bride back to his home in Boylston. Undoubtedly
Claude hoped that Rhonda would fill a tragic void in his
household. His first wife Edith had been killed in an auto-

mobile accident and had left him with three teen-age daugh- .

ters,

For 16 months Claude Martin was a happy, contented
man. The affection which his bride lavished on him was
comforting and warming. Then Claude fell sick and no
treatment seemed to help him. As far as the neighbors
knew, from their fragmentary chats with Rhonda, her
husband was suffering from some kind of “nervous dis-
order.” Rhonda was at his bedside constantly. She fed

- him, and tended him, and gave him his medicines.

Claude grew worse. It was then that young Ronald
entered the picture. Claude had contracted his illness
while his stepson was in the navy. In February of 1951,
Claude’s condition became so grave that the Red Cross ar-
ranged for Ronald to come home and help nurse his father.
Together, he and Rhonda and the girls waited on the ail-
ing man, but nothing helped. On April 27th, Claude Carroll
Martin passed away in an agony of pain.

Their common vigil at the sick man’s bedside had ap-
parently wrought a bond of deep affection between the
young man and his stepmother. This attachment deepened
in the dark days ,of mourning which followed Claude
Martin’s death, Finally, it ripened into love. Marriage

‘between the two under such extraordinary circumstances

did not go unopposed. The three girls were critical of the
romance and moved from the house when Ronald and

Rhonda
of the ho
had moy
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Montgon.
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made the
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By no\
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like poison
t poisoners
e contrary,
cruel and
a period of
1 when the
rtainty the
in court is
» often the
ave been in
vs chief as-
‘p that first
nuary, 1956.
reeted Tom
tigator, and
cicology.
n either side

hn a sheaf of
nanded it to

‘iskly. “It’s a
an analysis

a, “a young
vas admitted
ering from a
cerrible stom-
1 ulcers. Also
ning. It’s not
3, and Martin
uldn’t make a
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» Washington.

and nodded.
ir and finger-

vuldn’t Martin

is report the
i at the roots
ir growth. In
vested over a
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fed poison in
time, though,

Gallion went
ve doing what
and he’s safe
’ sure way to
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discreet one,
is family, his
re chance, of
ally in a cold-
.d, sane motive
t be a person

REDHEAD
HELLCAT

Two of her five husbands were lucky enough to obtain a divorce.

Two of her five young children somehow died of natural causes

BY JONAS BAYER

close enough to the boy to have been in a position to slip him
the arsenic.”

“Does Martin know that he’s suffering from arsenic
poisoning?” Carlisle asked.

“No,” Gallion answered. “When the doctors took samples
of his hair, they told him they were going to test it for
a nervous disorder. It’s just as well he doesn’t know until
we have more facts.

Ronald Martin had been living in Mobile and it was there
he had taken sick. So it was in Mobile that the first phase
of the investigation got under way. To Oscar F. Coley, the

* state investigator stationed in Mobile, went the assignment

and his chief, Tom Carlisle, briefed him on the few known
circumstances.

To make inquiries in a criminal probe without arousing
suspicion requires the tact of a diplomat and Oscar Coley
was made to order for the job. First he drove across the
Alabama state line into Mississippi and visited the Veterans
Administration Hospital in Biloxi. Although he didn’t ques-
tion Ronald Martin he took a look at the young patient.

The navy veteran was a good-looking young man, with
blond hair, a thin face and slim but sturdily built. But he
was a very sick guy. From the doctors Coley learned that
Martin’s illness had caused complete paralysis from the
waist down.

Coley spoke to the ward nurse. “Does young Martin have
visitors?” he wanted to know.

“Yes, indeed,” the nurse answered. “His wife comes
to see him almost every night. Drives all the way from
Mobile. She never forgets to bring him some little gift,
and she fusses over him. His sisters come to see him, too.”

“With his wife?” ; ,

“No,” the nurse said thoughtfully. ‘They never seem to
come with Mrs. Martin.”

This might mean something, or nothing at all. Coley drew
no conclusions but filed the tiny nugget of information

away in his mind. The hospital records supplied other
general data—the name of the paper mill in Mobile where
the young man had worked before his seizure, the address
where he lived with his wife Rhonda Bell Martin and
the history of his illness.

Apparently he had suffered his first attack in June of
1955 and the symptoms were typical of a severe gastric
disturbance. A Mobile physician had made a tentative
diagnosis of stomach ulcers, but the ailment had not re-
sponded to treatment. There had been X-ray pictures
made on October 2nd, and in November young Martin
made a brief stay in a Mobile hospital where he was kept
under observation and his case studied. He grew worse and
in December his doctor advised him to enter the veterans
hospital. Unquestionably, this decision had saved his life.

In the young man’s file were other facts which Coley
made a note of. While in the navy Martin had listed his
home as Boylston, a suburb of Montgomery. The record
also showed that Ronald and Rhonda had been married in
Prattville on December 7, 1951. In a case where it was so
difficult to find the proper loose end that might unsnarl the
tangle of mystery, the investigator could afford to overlook
nothing, no matter how trivial it seemed.

The next morning Coley parked his car a short way up
the block from 304 North Conception Street in Mobile
where Rhonda Bell Martin lived in a two-room furnished
flat. A few discreet questions in the neighborhood had
elicited that information as well as identifying details of
the woman’s appearance. So, on that Wednesday morning
of January 18th, Coley was not surprised to see a stockily
built woman of middle age, wearing the white uniform
of a waitress, step out of the house and walk to a battered
1950 sedan parked at the curb. :

Coley would have been surprised, had he not known what
to expect, for Rhonda Bell Martin was at least 20 years
older than her young husband. Moreover, she was neither

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Redhead Hellcat

(Continued from page 31)

that they should focus their attention on
pleasant and motherly Rhonda Bell Martin.

Rhonda’s history had now been traced
back through three husbands. What about
her life before then? Scanning the red-
head’s marriage with Talmadge Gibson, the
investigators discovered that this union had
taken place on October 11th, 1947. Again
the marriage records yielded additional in-
formation. They disclosed that at the time
of the marriage, Rhonda had described her-
self as the widow of one George Wertlaw
Garrett.

The many marriages of the stocky mid-
dle aged redhead were beginning to as-
tound the officers. They were much im-
pressed by her ability to woo and win
men. More important, they were anxious
to find out how Garrett had died.

It took time to assemble the dossier on
this marital venture, but the results more
than justified the effort. Apparently,
Rhonda’s alliance with Garrett had been
more enduring than any of her subsequent
ones.

Rhonda was a girl of 21 when she mar-
ried Garrett on May 2nd, 1928, in Prattville,
a town which she appeared to favor as a
wedding place, since it was there, many
years and four husbands later, that she had
taken Ronald Martin for a husband.

Garrett had died in Montgomery in De-
cember of 1939. Rhonda had told friends
that George had succumbed to pneumonia.
He was not the only unfortunate member
of the family. Children had been born to
the couple, and the youngsters, too, seemed
to have had a tragic penchant for contract-
ing fatal illnesses.

As the officials delved into the birth
and death records of the Garrett family,
they were appalled by what they found. It
seemed that being a Garrett was in itself a
mortal disease. Death had beckoned to
them, one by one, with an insistent spectral
finger.

Rhonda had buried her dead at Memorial
Cemetery in Montgomery. There, seven
footstones gruesomely dramatized the cold
statistics of doom which marked the
stumpy redhead’s journey from husband to
husband. Five of the Garrett children, all
girls, were buried there. Adelaide, 4, had
died in 1934; Emogene, 3, in 1937; Judith
Charlene, 1, in 1939; Ann Carolyn, 6, in
1940;; Ellyn Elizabeth, 11, in 1943. George
Wertlaw Garrett lay there, too, as well as
his successor in Rhonda’s marital life,
Claude Carroll Martin.

Methodically the officials located the
physicians who had attended the ill-fated
members of the Garrett family. It devel-
oped that each of them had been treated
by a different doctor, one who was un-
aware of the other tragedies which had
afflicted the family: Though the death
certificates mentioned various illnesses as
the causes of death, questioning of the
doctors revealed that acute diarrhea,
vomiting, and stomach pains had been
present in each case!

There was no doubt now, in the minds
of the investigators, that they had to deal
with a mass poisoner, a modern Borgia
who had, undetected, committed a series of
fiendish crimes over a period of 20 years.

Memorial Cemetery was 24 years old and
held the bodies of 1800 persons. The
records revealed that Rhonda Martin had
the largest number of family members
buried there.

The undercover inquiry which had begun
with a suspicion of an attempted poisoning
of a young ex-navy man, was reaching a
shocking and completely unexpected cli-
max. A monstrous mass slayer was being

exposed, but the investigators withheld the
story until the evidence was assembled.
McDonald Gallion decided that the time
had come for exhuming one of the bodies.

He arranged for the disinterment of the’ 7%

remains of Claude Martin, the most recent-
ly deceased. The exhumation was set for
March 2nd. The body was dug up under
the direction of Vann Pruitt Jr., and he was
assigned the task of supervising the toxi-
cological tests.

While he was making his study of the
dead man’s vital organs, there were other
developments in the case. First, it was
established that each of the Garrett chil-
dren had been covered by a small life
insurance policy. It was learned, too, that
Mrs. Mary Frances Gibbons,
mother, had died in 1944 and was buried in
Belforest Cemetery, in Baldwin County,
and that she, too, had suffered the same
symptoms and agony in her last illness.
Thus there was another possible poison
murder to explore.

Meanwhile, in Mobile, State Investigator
Coley had been keeping Rhonda Martin
under constant surveillance. Often he
dropped into the Seabreeze in the guise of
a casual customer to chat with her. The
tedious chore of tailing the redhead finally
paid off on Wednesday, March 7th. He
followed her to a general delivery box and
saw her pick up a letter.

When she had gone, he asked questions
and discovered that Rhonda was renting
the mailing address under the name of Mrs.
Claude Martin. Coley could think of only
one reason why the redhead was sstill
posing as a widow—she was collecting
social security as the wife of Claude even
though she had remarried. This conjecture
became a certainty when Coley communi-
cated with the authorities in Washington.
The circumstance made Coley wonder. If
Rhonda Martin had established a secret
mailing address as the widow of Claude,
perhaps she was preparing to do the same
as her latest husband’s widow. The in-
vestigator started canvassing the various
mail drops in the city and on Thursday

discovered a second mailing address—this.

time one she had rented under the name
Mrs. Ronald Martin. Evidently, Rhonda had
been anticipating another tragedy in the
family.

On Friday morning, Toxicologist Pruitt
made his report. His examination of Claude
Martin’s organs, his hair and fingernails,
had uncovered an appreciable amount: of
arsenic—enough to kill several men. Gal-
lion decided to wait no longer and Coley
was ordered to bring Rhonda Martin in.

At 3 o’clock in the afternoon, when
Rhonda was finishing her work for the
day at the restaurant, Coley entered and
told the redhead hellcat that she was
wanted at police headquarters, Chief Dud-
ley McFadyen had a message for her.

Rhonda raised no objection. Slipping a
coat over her white uniform, she went
quietly with Coley. She was taken to the
city jail and docketed on a holding charge.
At 5:30, Gallion, Public Safety Director Bill
Lyerly, and State Investigator William
Painter arrived at the jail to take the
woman back to Montgomery. They had
with them a murder warrant and Gallion
personally served it on the redhead. Rhon-
da showed no signs of surprise or fear. She
remained perfectly calm as the charge was
explained to her.

“I don’t know why you're doing this,”
she remarked as the officials escorted her
to. the waiting automobile. “There’s nothing
to it at all.It’s just a lot of nonsense.”

In Montgomery, the redhead was again
locked in the county jail, still maintaining
that she was completely innocent.

“Ronald will be heartbroken when he
finds out what happened to me,” she de-
clared. “I love him so much. He’s a good-
looking man. He’s young, 5 feet 7, 135

Rhonda's }*4

Prey eS eae

pounds, and has bl]:
happy together.”
On Saturday mo:
E. Grubbs, of the st:
ment, went to the
address and made
Rhonda’s rooms. 7
raft of boxes and :
could find no trac:
only one book in t!
and Rhonda had n
it a record of t
marriages and dew
There were plenty
In Montgomer};
nounced that they
bodies of George G
Mrs. Gibbons, anc
dren. Meanwhile,
deny that she was
talked a great dea
She disclosed that
husband in her |

- when she was 15.

the boarding hous
ated in Mobile. Th
divorce four years
She had this to
fully and with a th
body always said
and everybody al\
children. That’s t!
spoil anybody I lc
Regardless of thi
self, the authoritic
exhumation plans.
terred the remains
Ellyn Elizabeth. Fi
abandoned when,
12th, 1956, Rhond
slayings. In a writt
long, she admitted
to Claude Martin
Mary Frances Gil
Garrett children, E
6, and Ellyn Elizab
police, the redhea:
used ant poison p
drugstores “from :
The poisoning of
as the man’s thre

The Girl
who Thr
to Kill

some nearby tow)
Tessie only went «
That was while sh
each other back i:
“Are you sure s.
since?” Engerson
“I don’t believe
he’s called her on
Tessie doesn’t tel!
fairs though—no'
keeps a lot to hex
Engerson thoug
ous under his aq
whether she was
“What were sh
each other about
“She wouldn’t
broken up about
she gave in and °
that they started
“You told you
out to mail a le
“Did you actuall
“Yes, she had
her room.”
“Who was it ac
“I don’t know.
wrote to regular:

os
wm Maes es

Rhonda Belle arrives at head-
quarters with Detective T. J.
Ward, right. The much-married
waitress told an amazing tale.
Below, house in Mobile where
her last husband was stricken.

TM ic Wr ail

ail

Rhonda Belle returned his kiss, but her thoughts were on
the girls and their deceased father. No, it had not been easy
when she had assumed the responsibilities of stepmother to
Claude’s four children. Ronald had been away in the Navy
then, but she had done the best she could for the girls.

It was only 18 months after she had married Claude Martin
that he had fallen ill. To a Red Cross worker who had come
to visit, Rhonda Belle had explained: “I watch over him day
and night, but he’s just not getting any better.”

In February, 1951, the Red Cross had arranged for Ronald
to come home from the Navy to be with his ailing father.

Rhonda Belle had been pleased when she saw the strong,
straight blond youth enter her home. “Together we’ll make
your daddy well again,” she whispered as she handed

Ronald a cup of coffee on the first night he was back.
And together they did nurse Claude, gave him hypodermic
injections and his medicine. But nothing had seemed to help.
As the end drew near, the pale man on his deathbed asked
his wife and son to come closer.

“Take care of Rhonda Belle,” the father whispered. They
were his last words.

The funeral was a small, family-only service.

Rhonda Belle took the death hard and, indeed, she needed
someone to care for her. The previous year she had suffered
a heart attack and had had pneumonia. Since then she hadn’t
been strong.

But, as always, her thoughts were for others.

She had arranged for Claude to be buried in Montgomery
Memorial Cemetery.

“He should be sleeping beside your dear departed mother,”
she told her stepson a few months after the funeral. “I’ve
got a little money left from your father’s insurance. I’m going
to have her moved to a plot there beside Claude.”

Ronald—his stepmother soon came to'call him by his nick-
name, Bud—was quick to see that this woman was indeed
thoughtful of others. His desire to take care of her, as his
father had requested of him, grew until he realized that
he was in love with her.

It hadn’t surprised Rhonda Belle when Bud had asked her
to be his wife. Every man she had ever known really well
had fallen in love with her.

Ronald and Rhonda Belle Martin both felt a fondness for
Montgomery, but it was a place full of memories for both of
them, while, Mobile, 200 miles to the south, seemed more
like home to the redheaded bride.

“Bud, you'll love it down there. The azalias are more beau-
tiful than anything elsé you’ve ever seen. And the Mardi Gras
is about the most fun you'll ever have,” she told her young
husband.

Her handsome young Navy veteran husband was easily
convinced and thus the couple moved to the Gulf Coast city.

Bud promptly found a job in rapidly expanding Mobile.
He went to work as a helper at the huge Hollingsworth and
Whitney paper mill.

Rhonda Belle strutted around the city like a proud mother

hen. She knew that she was a plain-looking woman. Her

mirror revealed three large moles on her cheek and the

large one above her eye. And she realized that the pock-
marks showed at her mouth line.

But Bud loved her and that was all that mattered.

“I get bored sta
Bud one night. “
nothing. I’m goin

“Whatever you
sent a thrill of h:

“T’ve worked a
know I can find
Belle went on. “)
thing to keep me

Working at th«
Rhonda Belle frc
for her husband,
satisfaction to hi:

She told custo:

“Everybody al:
body always says
I always spoil an

Those who ha:
years agreed that
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No. 2, George G
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Below, Veteran
It was here that
ailing mate afte
Here, too, police

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END OF THE TRAVELER'S
MILLION-DOLLAR ROAD

(TD December, 1957)

It was a long trail, paved with phony
checks. And “The Traveler,” using over
400 aliases and pursued by police and
the FBI in almost every state of the
Union, managed to evade arrest for 12
years. It was September Ist, 1957, when
he was finally identified as Charles
Robert Speedie, 51, of San Fernando
Valley, California. Records showed that
Speedie had been arrested in Los An-
geles in 1942 on a bad check charge, but
had been acquitted.

At his address detectives found a
vast cache of loot, including merchan-
dise of every description. His method
had been to purchase goods at a store,
pay for them with a check for more
than the sum required and depart with
goods and cash to the amount of $70 or
$80. The loot was estimated to be worth
at least $500,000, and he was believed
to have obtained as much again in cash.

Traced by an address on a post card
sent to a friend, Speedie was arrested
on September 5th, 1957, asleep in a
motel near Cleveland, Ohio. He waived
extradition and was returned to Cali-
fornia. However 43 states also filed de-
tainers against him.

In Van Nuys municipal court on Octo-
ber 8th, Speedie pleaded guilty to five
counts of forging and issuing fictitious
checks. On November 13th Superior
Judge Lewis Drucker sentenced Speedie
to 1-to-14 years in state prison.

Speedie told reporters, “It’s not that
I did anything brilliant, but that mer-

Sritiees

chants made it easy for’ me to cash
checks,” .

He said he had twice tried to go
straight, once running a hamburger
stand which failed when the highway
was rerouted, and once in a uranium
mining venture which also failed. For
the past two years, he asserted, he had
been planning to start a business of
supplying tape-recorded readings of
classics and bedtime stories.

REDHEAD HELLCAT

(TD June, 1956)

In Montgomery, Alabama, on October
11th, 1957, Rhonda Bell Martin, 51, died
in the electric chair. The red-haired
former waitress, who admitted that she
had fed lethal doses of rat poison to
two- husbands, her mother and three
daughters, was tried, convicted and ex-
ecuted for the murder of her fourth
husband, Claude Martin, in April, 1951.
Governor James E. Folsom denied her
appeal for clemency. |

Prison officials found in Mrs. Martin’s
Bible a note which read: “I want my
body to be given to some scientific in-
stitution to be used as they see fit, but
especially to see if someone can find out
why I committed the crimes I com-
mitted.” She was the second white wom-
an to be put -to death in the state’s
electric chair. — ;

CONNECTICUT SEX SLAYER

(TD September, 1957)

In Waterbury, Connecticut, on: No-
vember 7th, 1957, George James Davies,
38, was found guilty of the murder of

8-year-old Brenda Jane Doucette, slain
on May 13th, 1957, near her Bristol
home. Superior Judge John R. Thim
then sentenced Davies to die in the
electric chair on February 17th, 1958.
Another murder indictment for the
slaying of Gaetane Boivin in Waterbury
on May 10th, 1957, is still pending.

In his confession to the murder of
Gaetane Boivin, Davies said he saw her
advertisement in a local paper, “French
girl seeks work as mother’s helper.” He
called at the Boivin home, said he
needed someone to look after his four
children. Trustingly she got into’ his
car. He drove her into the country,
choked her until she was unconscious,
then killed her with a screw driver.

Confessing the murder of Brenda
Doucette, he said he passed the child
on her way to school. He stopped his
car, got out with a jack, as if to change
a tire. When the little girl came along
he asked her to get him a screwdriver
from the glove compartment. When she

got into the car to get it for him, he.

slammed the door shut, leaped in on the
other side and drove off with the child.
She began to scream. He choked her
until she was still, then carried her to
a deserted spot, where he stabbed her
to death with the same screwdriver.
Brenda’s body was found by search-
ers that evening in woods 3 miles from
her home. The body of Gaetane, for
whom police had been searching since
she disappeared, was found when Da-
vies led police to the spot where he
slew her. The screwdriver with which
he murdered was found in his car.

MARJORIE AND THE
MALLET SLAYER

(TD November, 1957)

While her parents went out to lunch
on July 12th, 1957, young Mrs. Marjorie

_ Meyer was in charge of their Milwau-

kee, Wisconsin, paint store. Shortly
after noon a clerk in an adjoining store
heard an outcry. Looking through the
door of the paint shop she saw a man
beating Mrs. Meyer. As she ran to
summon help, the man fled, leaving be-
hind a wooden mallet.

The mallet was traced to the Milwau-
kee Boys’ Club. Officers questioned the
youth in charge of the game room. He
was Jerome Slominski, 17, and had a

record of five arrests for minor crimes.

He offered an alibi, but was identified
by the clerk who saw him run from the
store, and bloodstained clothes.

Slominski then confessed that he
went to the paint store, carrying the
mallet, and asked Mrs. Meyer for a can
of paint. As she moved to the shelf, he
followed her with the mallet. She
screamed and he hit her. “When a
woman screams I go berserk,” he said.

Since he had stolen $34 from the cash
register, Slominski was charged with
first-degree murder and armed robbery.
But on November 4th he pleaded guilty
to second-degree murder and District
Attorney William J. McCauley moved
that the other charges be dismissed.

Municipal. Judge Herbert J. Steffes
accepted the plea on the reduced charge
and sentenced Jerome Slominski to
serve 5 to 25 years in the Wisconsin
state prison at Waupun.

YOL
OF

Where
are e
Masor
on-th:
many

As the minister intoned the words of the simple wedding ceremony,
Rhonda Belle Martin could not. resist stealing another glance at the
blond youth at her side. His handsome features brought a smile to her
face, but inside she could not quite still the little fear that clutched at
her heart. Rhonda Belle knew that her marriage—her fifth since she
was 15—would start tongues wagging.

“The idea of that woman marrying a boy! Why, she’s old enough {} °

to be his mother!” the gossips were bound to say.

The 43-year-old bride tried to put the thought out of her mind. “I
do,” she said firmly, as she looked again at the 21-year-old youth at
her side.

Rhonda Belle had been through many ceremonies in the past 28

years, but none of them had marked her life with happiness. Now, in *

marrying young Ronald “Bud” Martin, she felt sure that at last she
would find the contentment she had been seeking so long.

“Do you want a corsage?” the groom had asked thoughtfully ‘ ey
when they were driving from Montgomery, Alabama, to the

BY ED NEWTON

Rhonda Betle boasted she
always spoiled the ones
she loved; there was more

truth to that than poetry!

Eight persons had felt the cold finger
of death upon them in their life with
the redheaded woman, above. The
young sailor boy, right, who had been
her stepson and later became her hus-
band No. 5, only suffered; but lived.

14 raN

TRUE POLICE CASES, July, 1956

MARTIN, Rhonda Belle, wh, elec. AL (Montgomery) October 11, 1957

nearby tow
Rhonda E
giggled. “G
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married Ro:
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fifth husbar
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What—in
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father, Clau
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1951, Claude
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the boy Ron
Now, in LC
Rhonda Bel]
turned and f
encircle her
“IT love yor
just as did t}

Ellyn Elizab
playing the sa

nearby town of Prattville for the short wedding ceremony.

Rhonda Belle had tossed her newly set auburn hair, and
giggled. “Goodness, no} honey,” she’d replied. “There’s no
sense spending money like that. And anyway, I always think
about flowers being part of funerals, not weddings.”

The double-ring ceremony which had united Rhonda Belle
with youthful Ronald Bud Martin was to be the beginning of
the end of a hectic drama in her life. The only thing that
hadn’t changed with the wedding was her name. Before she
married Ronald the redhead’s name was Rhonda Belle Gib-
bons Alderman Garrett Gipson Martin—by taking on her
fifth husband, she had merely added another Martin to the
string of monickers!

What—in, addition to the fact that Ronald Martin was 22
years her junior—had shocked many townsfolk was that the
boy had been her stepson when she had been married to his
father, Claude Carroll Martin! Her union with Claude had
lasted two years. During that period she had been a kind and
loving stepmother to Claude’s four children: Ronald and his
sisters, Lorraine, Manalee and Romaine. Then, in April,
1951, Claude Martin had been taken ill and had died. With
his passing, love had blossomed between Rhonda Belle and
the boy Ronald.

Now, in December, 1951, utter happiness surged through
Rhonda Belle at the close of the wedding ceremony as she
turned and felt the strong arms of her handsome bridegroom
encircle her and his warm lips seek hers.

“I love you,” her eyes said, and Rhonda Belle felt proud
just as did the heroines in the romance magazines she loved

to read. In those stories the girl eventually found happiness
no matter how much woe had gone before. At this moment,
she was certain it was her time to find bliss.

That Christmas season of 1951 was one of real joy for the
auburn-haired woman, as it marked her marriage to the
man who was young in years but mature in his desire to
take care of her for the rest of their lives.

But there was a problem that had to be faced when the
hewlyweds went back to their home in Montgomery.

“We're married,” the teen-aged groom said simply that
hight, as his sisters sat down for dinner in the home where
they had known Rhonda Belle as their stepmother!

Lorraine, Manalee and Romaine Martin made no pretense
as to how they felt when they learned that their brother
had married their dead father’s wife.

“We won't live in the house with her!” Lorraine screamed.

And true to her words, she and her two sisters promptly.

moved into an apartment of their own in the capital city of
sAlabama.

“They'll get over that,” Rhonda Belle comforted her new
husband. Yet in her heart she feared that the girls would
turn their brother against her in their disapproval of her
double role as their stepmother and sister-in-law!

“T’ve tried to be a good stepmother to them,” she softly
told Ronald. “I’ve tried ever since I married your father in
1949.” .

“I know, and it hasn’t been easy for you, honey,” the
bridegroom answered, as he drew his plump bride closer to
him. He kissed her gently.

Ellyn Elizabeth, 11, and Anna Carolyn, 6, were two of Rhonda Belle’s five children who succumbed after dis-
playing the same symptoms as other members of the ill-fated household who had suffered untimely deaths.

r\ DIM C : ‘ 1 AT MI -oaQmery October 114 957
MARTIN, Rhonda Belle, wh, elec. AL (Montgomery) October 11, 1957
"
{i
}
i
h J

~ BLACK WIDOW!

Particularly shocking to detectives was the discovery of
the untimely demise of five young ‘daughters, including
Ellyn, 11 (left); Carolyn, 6 (right), and Emogene, 3 (below). "

BY HUGH LAYNE

At first she maintained that she loved her husbands and took the
best of care of them. But when the investigation revealed a total of
eight deaths in her family over a span of twenty years, the officers
began to wonder exactly what she meant by taking “care of them.”

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kept Assistant Attorney General Gallion
informed about the progress they made.

After about a week in Mobile, Willie
Painter was advised to return to Mont-
gomery, leaving Investigator Coley in
Biloxi to continue working on that angle.

A conference in Gallion’s office included
Bill Lyerly, Tom Carlisle and Painter, who
went into great detail on exactly what he
had been able to uncover in Mobile.

The assistant district attorney listened,
then said, “The only irregular thing about
the Martin setup appears to be Mrs. Mar-
tin’s marriage to her own step-son, 20

years younger than herself. She certainly .

has shown great concern about his wel-
fare, but in the absence of anything else
to work on I think we should dig into her
background more thoroughly.

“Most of the woman’s time has been
spent here in Montgomery and in Mobile,”
Gallion said. “Coley can continue his in-
vestigation in Mobile. Painter can see what
he can find out here.”

Since city, state and county authorities
were all co-operating in trying to get to
the bottom of the Roland Martin poison
mystery, T. J. Ward, a comparative new-
comer to the Montgomery detective squad,
was assigned to help Willie Painter. It
wasn’t long before these officers came up
with information to show the woman in
question had led a rather unusual life.

Rhonda Bell Martin had been born in
the small town of Lucedale, Miss., a log-
ging and farming community in the south-
eastern corner of the state. Her father had
been a saw mill operator who deserted
the family when she was quite young. She
had two brothers and one sister and the
family moved to Mobile when the children
were small. One brother had since died of
a heart attack. She had led a normal life
and attended school until she was 15, when
she quit. Her mother operated a boarding
house at that time and Rhonda waited on
the table. Both parents were now dead.

One of the boarders was a man named
W. R. Alderman. He was unusually hand-
some and the girl was attracted to him.
They. were married shortly after she left
school. He was an upholsterer. That first
marriage lasted four years. Divorced at 19,
Rhonda remained single for two years
until she fell in love with George Garrett,
a next door neighbor. They dated a while
and then married. This man died a few
years later.

The widow took a job as waitress in a
Montgomery restaurant where she met a
customer, Talmadge Gibson, and married
him. This man was an attendant ata VA
hospital. Five months after that marriage
the woman divorced Gibson and married
Claude Martin, who was a $450 a month
foreman in a glass plant.

Claude Martin became ill of a nervous
disorder after eighteen months and the
Red Cross sent for his son, Roland, to come
home and help his step-mother take care
of the father. The illness had started in
February, 1951, and Claude Martin died
in April. The widow married her step-son
the following December.

Mrs. Martin had collected $2,000 on her
husband Claude’s life insurance when he
died. This information, gathered by
Painter, Coley and Ward, was of vital im-
portance to the investigation. But the
record of Mrs. Martin’s children by the
various marriages was even more so.

Adelaide, a 4-year-old daughter, had
died in. Montgomery in 1934. The death
certificate read “pneumonia” and i
child was said to have been “afflicted” and
never walked or talked.

Emogene, a 3-year-old daughter, died
in Mobile in July, 1937. The cause of death
was listed as “accidental poisoning.”

60 od

A dogo daughter, Judith, had died
of what the doctors called “jaundice” in
Montgomery in 1939.

A six-year-old daughter, Carolyn, died
in Montgomery in 1940 from what was
described as a throat disorder.

Eleven-year-old Ellyn, died in Mobile
in August, 1943, from a stomach disorder.

Mrs. Martin’s mother died in Mobile in
1944 from what was said to be infirmities.

Added to this death list was the woman’s
second husband, George Garrett, father of
five of her children, in Montgomery in
1939. The cause of his death was listed as
pneymonia.

Adsistant District Attorney Gallion
studied the information turned in by the
investigators and discussed the findings
with Carlisle and Lyerly. “Eight dgaths
and one nearly fatal illness in Mrs. Mar-
tin’s family over a period of twenty years,”
he said. “That wouldn’t look so bad ex-
cept for the’fact that five of the deceased
were children under eleven years old.”

Carlisle and Lyerly thought that most
unusual, too. Painter and Ward had
checked into the insurance angle and
found no large amount had been carried
on the children.

“Just enough to cover burial expenses,”
Willie Painter told his superiors. “There
was the $2,000 on Claude Martin’s life and
an additional $2,500 policy with the young-
est step-daughter, Manalee as _ benefici-
ary.’

Gallion decided that the investigators
should have a talk with the two unmarried
step-daughters, Lorraine and Manalee, in
Montgomery. :

Painter and Ward went to see the girls
at their apartment. It had been agreed that
the purpose of their visit would be stated
as an investigation into Roland’s mar-
riage to his stepmother. Such a union is
regarded as incest in Alabama and is a
criminal offense. The sisters promised to
say nothing about the detective’s visit
and both talked freely.

“We opposed the marriage when it took
place and still do,” Lorraine said. “Our
step-mother could do anything she wanted
to with Roland. It’s not his fault. We
moved out when the wedding took place.”

The girls were both unusually pretty,
quiet spoken, and obviously well educated.
Manalee said she had never received a
penny of the $2,000 insurance money her
father left. The step-mother had been her
guardian, and since Manalee was under-
age, had taken charge of the money.

When the two investigators told Gallion
and Carlisle about that it added weight to
the mounting evidence against the step-
mother.

“That’s a lot of money to a person like
Mrs. Martin who hasn’t been accustomed
to very much,” the assistant district at-
torney stated. “But we’ve still got to find
out a great deal more about her. I’m going
to call Oscar Coley in Mobile and be sure
he checks all drug stores in the neighbor-
hood where Mrs. Martin lived to see
whether or not she bought any poison.
They’ll have a record if she did. Though,
of course, the arsenic. could have been
obtained in the form of rat or ant
poison.”

The operator in Mobile followed
through on this and came up with the
expected negative answer. He was then
instructed to start eating a few meals at
the restaurant where Mrs. Martin worked
and try to become friendly with her. This
was not an altogether palatable assign-
ment for a man who was aware that the
waitress bringing him his food was under
suspicion as a poisoner.

The doctors at the VA hospital in
Biloxi had kept Roland Martin under con-
stant observation. Mrs. Martin had con-

tinued to make her three to four visits a
week to his bedside.

When the investigation started to lag,
Gallion decided it was time to produce
more tangible evidence. “There’s $4,500
insurance connected with the death of
Claude Martin,” he said. “If what we
suspect about his widow is true then he
is certainly one of the most probable vic-
tims.”

“You suggest that we exhume his
body?” Chief Carlisle asked.

“Exactly,” the assistant district attor-
ney stated. “He has been in the ground
since April, 1951, but we all know that
traces of arsenic will still be there if he
was poisoned. The exhumation will either
clinglt this case or show us we’re on the
wrong track”

The other officers agreed. Toxicologist
Vann Pruitt was placed in charge of re-
moving Claude Martin’s remains from the
grave. This was done under cover of dark-
ness in Memorial Cemetery on, the night
of March 2, 1956.

While Gallion, Carlisle and Lyerly
waited anxiously for the results of the
scientific analysis, Mrs. Rhonda Bell Mar-
tin continued to work at the restaurant
and made the usual trips to Biloxi to see
her stricken husband. She was completely
unaware that any suspicion had been cast
upon her.

Toxicologist Pruitt’s findings confirmed
the investigators’ suspicion. Undeniable
traces of arsenic were found in the re-
mains of Claude Martin.

“We’ve got something more than sus-
picion to go on now,” Gallion told the men
who had worked on the case for more than
six weeks. “Rhonda Bell Martin poisoned
her husband Claude and attempted to kill
Roland Martin in the same manner. The
odds are she did the same thing to one or
more of her children.”

Gallion went on to say that he was
convinced they had enough evidence to
make an arrest. “I’m going to notify Oscar
Coley in Mobile to bring her in,” he said.
“Tf we’re lucky we’ll get a confession.”

State Investigator Coley, who had been
eating at the restaurant where Mrs. Mar-
tin was employed and had become known
to her only as a friendly customer, made
the arrest. He met her outside the restau-
rant shortly after 3 o’clock, Friday after-
noon, March 9, when she came off duty.

“Police Chief Dudley McFadyen has
a message for you,” Coley told her. “I'll
take you down to see him.”

Mrs. Martin suspected nothing. She got
in Coley’s car and went to headquarters
with him. Once inside Chief McFadyen’s
office, the Mobile officer told her, “Mrs.
Martin, we’re going to have to hold you
here. Police from Montgomery are on
their way with a warrant. They have
placed a holding charge against you.”

The suspected poisoner was not told
what the specific charge was until the
delegation from Montgomery arrived. It
included Assistant District Attorney Gal-
lion, Assistant Circuit Solicitor Maury
Smith, and Investigators Painter and
Ward. The woman listed 304 North Con-
ception Street as her address. She wore
gold wedding bands on both hands and
explained that one of them belonged to
her husband, Roland, and that he wanted
her to wear it so something that belonged
to him could be close to her.

Apprised of the charges against her, the
five times married woman vehemently de-
nied any connection with the death of
Claude Martin or any knowledge of ar-
senic poisoning where young Roland was
concerned. She was brought to Montgom-
wild City Jail shortly after midnight Satur-

ay.

—

Mrs. Martin
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AHR

In his laboratory, State Toxicologist Vann
Pruitt (above) found traces of arsenic in hair
taken from the head of the mysteriously ail-
ing present husband, Roland Martin, at right.

Tine case history of Roland Martin, 26-year-old Navy
veteran, had puzzled doctors at the Mobile, Ala., hospital
for months. He became ill in June, 1955. The family physician
diagnosed his trouble as ulcers. Martin had worked on and
off until October when four X-rays were taken at the hos-
pital. He went home three days later and suffered a nervous
breakdown.

Mrs. Rhonda Bell Martin took care of her husband, but
finally had to send him back to the hospital. When the sick
man’s condition became worse the doctors advised that since
Martin was entitled to government care his wife should take
him to the Veteran’s Administration Hospital in Biloxi, Miss.

“They have the best doctors and the latest equipment
obtainable,” the resident physician told her. “If anybody
can find the source of your husband’s trouble, they can.”

The Navy veteran was reluctant to leave Mobile, but his
wife finally persuaded him. “Biloxi is only a little more than
fifty miles away,” she said. “I’ve got the car and can drive
over several times a week to see you.”

Roland Martin entered the VA hospital late in January,
1956. By that time he was paralyzed from the waist down
and in the right hand.

His wife kept her promise to visit him regularly. In spite
of the fact that she worked as a part time waitress in a
Mobile restaurant five days out of seven, Mrs. Martin drove
the fifty miles to Biloxi as many as four times a week to see
her husband. She always brought along a gift to cheer him.

The government doctors gave the Roland Martin case
special attention. It was something of a challenge to them
because others had been unable to pin-point his trouble. Late
in February one of the attendants took a few strands of hair
from the patient’s head. “We're testing for a nervous dis-
order,” he explained. a

What Mr. and Mrs. Martin weren’t told was that the
government doctors had screened the symptoms of the man’s
trouble carefully and finally arrived at a theory. There were
yellow, unnatural callouses on his hands. His eyelids were

swollen and his breath smelled of garlic when none had
been used to season his food. The ankles were swollen and
the heartbeat was irregular. Paralysis made his legs and
right hand useless. This condition was spreading slowly to
other parts of the body.

“Those are definite symptoms of arsenic po soning,” the
hospital chief of staff told the other doctors interested in the
Martin case.

Arsenic poisoning, as the doctors knew, could be either
slow or fast. If the poison was administered slowly, in small
doses over a long period, the victim usually suffered a pro-
longed illness before succumbing. Whereas a large, sudden
dose either caused immediate death or the victim became
violently ill and regurgitated the poison.

The doctor said the hairs taken from Roland Martin’s head
had been forwarded to Montgomery, Ala., for chemical
analysis at the state scientific laboratory.

“If arsenic is found,” he continued, “it will mean the
poison has been administered in steady doses. And if that is
the case it means there’s a homicidal maniac loose. We
haven't received the chemical analysis report yet, but Roland
Martin’s symptoms all point to arsenic poisoning. I believe
someone tried to kill him and very nearly succeeded.”

It was not long after this conference had taken place
that a long distance call came into the hospital from Mont-
gomery. Vann V. Pruitt, state toxicologist, wanted to talk
with the chief-of-staff.

“You’ve put your finger on the source of Martin’s trouble
at last,” the Montgomery scientist said. “We found arsenic
in the strands of hair you forwarded.”

The VA hospital chief-of-staff told Pruitt essentially the
same things he had told his colleagues about the possibility
of a systematic murderer being at large.

Pruitt was in full agreement with everything the doctor
said. “I’m going to the attorney general’s office at once,” he
assured the chief-of-staff. “We all know that poisonings are
among the most difficult cases to [Continued on page 59]

The husband's strange illness baffled doctors for months—

but their final diagnosis led police to a whole generation of graves

Married to her five months,
third husband, Talmadge Gib-
son, figures he was “lucky” and
“got shed of her too quick.”

ete, he added,
laid a second
nside the shed.
.-inch by four-
following Sat-

i that Leonora
t a week be-
to have driven
turned to his
prosecutor in
st for a court
»! John Young
‘oored shed on
wife west of

policeman to
to make the
action. “If he’s
| welcome it,”
‘lf he refuses,
nee that we’re
ing this thing.”

rch 11 Chavez,
nsen, returned
west of town
oung. Without
e missing wo-
ssion to “look
ps to do a little

ing. “Where do
do you expect

de that shed,”
unittally. “Got
nswer to a lot
n bothering us
the new con-

indication
he elderly
nted when
ied, “Go right
g to insist that
s good as new.
ider there.”
sweating with
>z and Hansen
Young. Upon
ib of concrete
ey had helped
th before, they
th for four feet
ick something
red by an old

lanket, Sheriff
joor in which

few minutes
‘ne man there,
motor came to
and he spoke
or. “Better ask
while longer,”

avez answered
two state men
dway to town.
ind if he makes
» walking right

Hansen pulled
eveal a blood-
ripped pair of
carments along
shirt. Beneath
h in which was
eonora Young.
badly swollen
igh laced shoes
a doubled back
> fitted into the
recognized as
ig. She was the
unity who still

otgear.
men of Police
man Jesse

ila aatanana

inane ES alt a te ale

Campbell were waiting outside their head-
quarters in Alamogordo when John Young
pulled up before the law office of Shipley
and Seller, two doors down the street.
Advised in advance of Young’s probable
arrival at the county seat, the two officers
took him into custody on a charge of sus-
picion of murder.

Before being taken to the Otero
County Jail to await the filing of a formal
charge against him, Young was given per-
mission to “complete his business with the
lawyer” he had driven over to visit. That
business, it was later revealed, consisted
in signing quit claims to the 488-acre
ranch and other property left by his wife.
Young wanted the property to go to Leo-
nora’s daughter in California.

The body, along with the bloodstained
clothing and scrapings from the walls of
the shed, was sent by ambulance to the
El Paso General Hospital where Dr. Fred
Bornstein, a well known pathologist, per-
formed an autopsy the following day.

On March 13, Dr. Bornstein reported
that death had occurred more than a
month before and was caused by a .38
caliber bullet fired into the head just un-
der the right ear. A part of the bullet was
recovered and Dr. Bornstein believed bal-
listics experts would have no difficulty in
matching it with the weapon from which
it was fired, if that weapon was ever
found.

A search of the Young’s town house
meanwhile turned up four weapons, in-
cluding three 38 caliber pistols and a .22
rifle. These, along with the bullet recov-
ered by Dr. Bornstein, were forwarded to

the FBI laboratories in Washington, D.C.,
for comparison tests.

The next day Chief Sanchez announced
he had recovered a fifth gun where it had
been hidden “somewhere in Tularosa,”
but declined to reveal further informa-
tion about the discovery.

That same day Young was questioned
at length by the district attorney and
Chase later made public a statement in
which Young allegedly admitted having
killed his wife during an altercation over

a gun in their home on the last day she

was seen alive by her young grandson,
during the first week of February. .

The next morning Young was arraigned
on a formal charge of first degree murder
before Justice of Peace Howard Beacham.
Later he was taken by Chief Deputy Ter-
rel Herndon to the Dona Ana County jail
at Las Cruces after Jose Perea, the Otero
County jailer at Alamogorde, expressed
fear for the prisoner’s safety if he was
kept in his home county. As he left, young
bared his head and waved his hat in a
farewell gesture.

Prosecutor Chase, who has announced
he will ask the death penalty, is confident
that Young’s failure to observe all three
primary requisites in the commission of
a fool-proof murder, will result in his
being the first man to die in New Mexico’s
gas chamber that was constructed after
the state legislature outlawed the elec-
tric chair late in 1955.

(The name Senora Juana de Avalo is ficti-
tious to protect the identity of the woman
whose suspicions first brought the case to the
officers’ attention.—The Editor)

Black Widow Poisoner

[Continued from page 39]

prove in court. Our investigation must be
conducted in absolute secrecy.”

The VA hospital doctor promised to
keep Roland Martin under close observa-
tion. “You can be sure nothing will leak
out at this end,” he said before hanging
up.
Toxicologist Pruitt outlined the facts
of the Roland Martin case to Assistant At-
torney General McDonald Gallion within
minutes after he had finished talking with
the Biloxi doctor. He explained the man’s
lengthy illness, his treatments by Mobile
physicians, experience at the hospital and
finally the finding of arsenic in specimens
of his hair.

The assistant attorney general was in
full agreement on the need for action. He
summoned Bill Lyerly, public safety di-
rector, and Tom Carlisle, chief state in-
vestigator, and went over the facts with
them. “We need several good men to check
into Roland Martin’s background,” Gal-
lion said. Then, turning to Carlisle, he
asked, “Who would you suggest?”

The chief investigator named Willie
Painter. “He did excellent undercover
work on the Phenix City vice cleanup,”
Carlisle reminded the others. “Oscar
Coley is another good man.”

These two ace detectives were sum-
moned to Gallion’s office and apprised of
all the known facts. The assistant attorney
general suggested they leave for Mobile
at once and find out everything possible
about Roland Martin’s background,
friends and relatives. “Remember,” he
warned, “that absolute secrecy is impera-
tive.”

Painter and Coley left for Mobile that
same day. The first thing of importance

they learned was that Roland Martin was
married to a woman who had, at one time,
been his step-mother. The sick man’s
father, Claude Carroll Martin, had died in
April, 1951, and the step-son had married
the widow in December of that same year.
Roland Martin was 20 years younger than
his bride. He had three sisters who were
living with them at the time of the father’s
death and the subsequent marriage.

The girls did not approve of their step-
mother’s marriage to their brother. Lor-
raine, 22, and Manalee, 17, left and took
an apartment in Montgomery. The eldest,
Romaine, married and went to live in New
Iberia, La. Claude Carroll Martin had been
a glass company foreman in Montgomery
at the time of his death.

Mrs. Rhonda Bell Martin was a rather
plain looking woman in spite of her red
hair and youthful manner of dressing. She
weighed 170 pounds—35 more than her
sick husband—and was well molded for
a woman of her age.

A part time waitress at the Seabreeze
Restaurant in Mobile, she earned $9 a
week in salary and as much again from
tips. She drove a 1950 Buick car. Hospital
authorities in Biloxi said Mrs. Martin ap-
peared to be devoted to her young hus-
band and visited him regularly, always
bringing a gift.

There was not much information avail-
able on Roland Martin. He appeared to
have been an average young man, native
of Alabama, who, like so many others in
his age group had served a hitch in the
Navy. After being honorably discharged
he worked in and around Montgomery un-
til his father died and he married his step-
mother. They had moved to Mobile after
that and he had continued to work until
hospitalized. As far as Painter and Coley
could learn, young Martin had no enemies.

The two investigators made daily re-
ports to their chief, Tom Carlisle, and he

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immediately pitched in to help his step-
mother nurse his step-father.

But the senior Martin slunk closer and
closer to the doorway of death until on
April 27th he painfully went to his death.

When they found out about the agoniz-
ing end of the unfortunate mill foreman,
Painter and Ward paid a call on the
doctor who had attended Claude Martin
in his final days. Martin’s physician re-

lated his patient’s case history and told ©

how the fatal illness had been. marked
by stomach pains, diarrhea and vomiting,
how the eyelids and ankles had been swol-
len, and yellowish, queer-looking callouses
had apepared on his hands. Partial
paralysis also had set in before Martin
died in convulsions.

The symptoms were the same as those
now displayed by the dead man’s step-
son!

When the two sleuths left the doctor’s
office, they debated whether they should
seek an order for exhumation of the elder
Mattin’s body.

“If arsenic was present it will still be
there,” Painter mused. “But it’s too early.
If we did find traces of arsenic, then we'd
have to run down its source to make it
acceptable evidence, and arsenic is too
easy to get. No one would remember a
purchase made so many years ago. We’d
better get some more facts—a motive, for
instance—before we start trying to make
a case stand up in the courts.”

So the painstaking officers again set out
on their pursuit of big and little incidents
in the life of Rhonda Belle Martin.

In short order they learned that Mrs.
Martin had been born in Lucedale, Mis-
sissippi, a small logging and farming
town in the southeastern corner of the
state. Her father, a saw, mill operator,
had run out on the family when she was
quite young, and her mother had taken
Rhonda Belle and her sister and two
brothers to Mobile. Mrs. Martin had led
a routine life until she quit school at the
age of 15. At that time, her mother was
operating a boarding house and Rhonda
had pitched in to help, mostly working
as a waitress.

One of her mother’s boarders cut quite
a figure and the young girl was attracted
to him. Rhonda and the boarder were
married before Rhonda was 16. Four
years later she divorced him.’

For the next two years Rhonda tre-
mained. single. However, during this time
George Wertlaw Garrett, a bachelor
living next door to the boarding house,
had his eye on the buxom redhead, and
began courting her. They were married
at Prattville, the town where Rhonda was
years later to take young Roland Martin
as her husband.

AINTER and Ward doggedly dug
into the facts of her life with Garrett.
Rhonda had told friends that George died
of pneumonia, and the records bore her
out. Husband number two had passed
away in December, 1939, in Montgomery.
Further checking of the death and birth
records revealed that the Garrett union

He arrived in -February, and.

had resulted in the birth of five daughters.
And all five were now dead! The obvi-
ously doomed children were: -Adelaide,
who had died in 1934 at the age of four;
Emogene, who died in 1937, when only
three years old; Judith Charlene, who
only lived a year and died the same year
her father did; Ann Carolyn, who. died at
six in 1940, and Elly Elizabeth, who lived
to the amazing—in that family—age of
eleven, only to die in 1943.

Painter gasped as he read the records,
“that woman’s name is death. And look,
she buried the whole family of six in
Memorial Cemetery here in Montgomery.
She virtually populated the place. Re-
member, she also buried Claude Martin
there. She’s a builder of graveyards.”

Armed with their new leads, the two
detectives painstakingly ran down the
physicians who had attended the tragic
Garrett children. They soon learned that
each had been treated by a different doc-
tor! Although the death certificates gave
a different cause for each child’s death,
the physcians agreed’ that in every in-
stance the illnesses had been accompanied
by vomiting, stomach pains and diarrhea!

Chief Assistant Attorney General Gal-
lion, when confronted with the evidence,
decided that now was the time for digging
up the bodies of the Martin woman’s vic-
tims. But he realized that such a major
project would be seen and voiced about,
so he decided to remove only the remains
of the latest victim, Claude Martin. Under
cover of darkness, Martin’s body was ex- .
humed. Vann Pruitt was to conduct the

- toxicological tests.

Meanwhile, in their search for a motive
for the crimes, it was found that Claude
Martin had two life insurance policies.
One was for $2,500. Its beneficiary was
his youngest daughter, Manalee, 17. The
sum had been paid to Rhonda Martin as
Manalee’s guardian, and she had since
reported spending the money maintaining
the girl. The other policy was for $2,000
payable to Rhonda herself. Sum total,
-4,500. It was also discovered that Roland
Martin’s life was insured for -3,000. Each \
of the five dead Garrett girls had also
been insured, but for little more than the
cost of their funerals.

Becoming curious about the mother of
Rhonda Martin—her father had long since
died far out of the touch of her deadly

hand—the investigators found that the’

mother, too, had died after symptoms of °
stomach pains, vomiting and diahrrea.
Exhumation later revealed that she, also,
had been a victim of ‘her monstrous
daughter.

While all this was being discovered,
Rhonda was kept under constant sur-~
veillance in Mobile. Coley, probably not
liking his job of being waited on by a
mass poisoner, made a habit of eating his
meals at the Seabreeze. Often, he would:
shadow Rhonda, and one afternoon this
precaution paid off. After she had finished _
her job, Coley tailed the waitress to the |
post office general delivery window and _
saw her pick up a letter. After Rhonda
left, he. questioned the mail clerk and

learned that she was renting a mail box ¥ ere |

under the name of Mrs. Claude Martin.

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Coley could figure but one answer:
Rhonda was collecting Social Security as
the widow of the elder Martin.

This was confirmed by correspondence
with Washington authorities.. The state
investigator cannily deducted that if she
were collecting insurance as Martin’s
widow, even though she had remarried,
Rhonda probably-had set herself in a posi-
tion to do the same as far as Roland Mar-
tin was concerned. Coley made the rounds
of the other mail drops in the city. On
March 8th he found that she had also
tented a mail box under the name of
Mrs. Roland Martin. The far-seeing
murderess had prepared herself for all
eventuallities, namely the death of ‘her
fourth husband.

Motive had been established—insurance
and social security payments—and now all
that was needed was the report from the
state toxicologist, Pruitt. That-came the
next-day. Examination of Claude Martin’s
organs, hair, and nails had revealed
enough poison to kill five men.

Coley was ordered to bring Rhonda
Belle Martin in. At three o'clock on
March 9th he accosted her as she was
leaving work and told her the chief of
police wanted to ask her some questions.
Without a tremor, she followed him.

HE authorities had learned from
Claude Martin’s neighbors that Mar-
tin’s three daughters had left home in a
huff when Rhonda Belle married their
step-brother in December. It seemed
that in nursing his father along with his

tween the two and eventually the nice

love with a woman old enough to be his
mother.

All three girls were extremely pretty,
and respected by all who knew them.
Their hunch in leaving Rhonda when they
did might well have saved their lives!

Coley brought Mrs. Martin into Police
Chief Dudley McFadyen’s office that Fri-
day afternoon, and the chief told her,
“Mrs. Martin, we are going to have to
hold you here. Police from Montgomery
are on their way with a warrant. They
have placed a holding charge against

ou.”

Rhonda Belle Martin was not told the
specific charge until Assistant District
Attorney Gallion, Assist Circuit Solicitor
Maury Smith and Investigators Painter
and Ward arrived.

When advised of the murder charges

ally denied any connection with the death
of Claude Martin, whose body had yielded

doses of arsenic. She was removed to the
Montgomery jail on Saturday, and her
questioning continued.

“Bud (Roland Martin) will be broken-
hearted when he finds out I’m being held
in jail,” Rhonda said, lisping somewhat
because of a loose upper denture. “I went
to see him on Thursday and took him a
gift. He held me in his arms and told me
how glad he was to see me and how he
hated to have me leave his bedside. He
kissed me. I love him so much.”

. “You have a remakable way of showing

father’s wife, ties had grown strong be- -

looking young man had fallen madly in’

against her, the plump woman emphatic-

your love,” Investigator Painter said.

‘The accused murderess then kissed one
of her wedding bands. She wore two,
explaining the other was for Roland’s
father, Claude.

“It’s d to have him sg close to me,”
she said. “If anybody says I .poisoned
people, they’re wrong. I have never
touched poison in my life. There has never
been anything like that in my home. I
loved Claude and took good care of him
when he was sick. Roland and I took
turns caring for him because we both
loved him very much.”

When told she had violated the law
by marrying Roland, she said she hadn’t
known anything about such a statute
until she had read about a similar case
in a movie magazine. Thé wife had ob-
tained an annulment after finding out
such a marriage was against the law.

“I guess I did wrong but I do love Bud.
One of the reasons we got married was
that Claude asked Bud to take good care
of me before he died. Bud kept his
promise. He will be heart-broken,” she
said. “He knows I am innocent. Bud is
not going to like this at all. He’s so sick.
The doctor said he had ulcers. I regret
that Bud and I couldn’t have children.
We both wanted children, but we couldn’t
have any. [ regret that so much.”

During the questioning by Gallion and
other officers, the woman maintained her
innocence. She broke into sobs, now and
again, but otherwise she was composed.
Not until three days after her arrest did
she break down and confess. The mention
of Claude Martin’s young daughter,
Manalee, apparently did the trick.. The
murderess obviously had a soft spot in
her heart for the pretty young woman.
Her confession covered eleven legal-size
sheets of paper.

In her confession she admitted poison- —

ing Claude Martin, George Garrett, her
own mother, and three of the Garrett
children. The potent dose had been rat
poison, as the authorities already sus-
pected. Rhonda had purchased the poison
in various grocery and drugstores.
Garrett had been administered the stuff
in his whiskey over a period of several
days. When he had returned from work

sick one afternoon, Rhonda had watched.

him wobble around the room for a while,
then finished him off with a rat-poison
cocktail,

Claude Martin had been poisoned
through his coffee as he sat eating with
Rhonda and his three daughters. She had
proceeded more slowly with Martin,
giving him a spoonful with his coffee
every day for three months. His son,

Roland, had been treated in the same _

manner, going to the hospital within two

months.
The first of Rhonda’s victims had been

her three-year-old daughter, Emogene. —

The little girl had been playing in the
yard and grew thirsty. Rhonda said she
had been irritated by the child’s request
for a drink, and had poured a lethal dose
into Emogene’s milk. p
As for her mother, Rhonda had put
arsenic in the older lady’s coffee for over

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following, drove to the Seabreeze Restau-
rant. From the sidewalk; he saw her
emerge from the kitchen and begin serv-
ing customers.

Coley decided to watch Rhonda. at first
hand and entered the cafe, taking a table
he had seen her serve. She came up after
a moment and in the breezy style of pro-
fessional waitresses in most hash houses
asked for his order. Over his coffee the
detective was forced to admit to himself
that Rhonda Martin could hardly be
regarded as the menacing type of female.
He watched her closely and listened as
she joked with other customers. Before
he left the restaurant he had learned
from her exchange with the diners that
she only worked part-time.

He heard her tell one man, “This job
ain’t so hot. Only a few hours a day, five
days a week. I got about ten bucks in pay,
and another eight or so from big-hearted
millionaires like you.”

Coley made a mental note. Not a lot
of money—not enough to drive a
Buick on, he thought. Or to bring presents
for a bed-ridden husband.

Having learned all he wanted for the
time being, the state sleuth drove off to
Prattsville, county seat of Autauga
County, 150. miles from Mobile. What
he found in the marriage license records
caused him to whistle softly. to himsetf.

In his application for a license, Roland
Martin gave an address on Fifth Street,
Boylston, as his residence. Surprisingly,
the woman gave the same.adress. Further-
more, the bride listed her pre-marriage
name as Rhonda Belle Martin—the same
name she would assume following the
wedding! She also stated that she had
been previously married to a Claude
Carroll Martin, who had died on April
27th.

Coley concluded that this juicy bit of
information needed further checking, so
he detoured on his way to Montgomery
and stopped off in the suburb of Boyls-
ton. Once again he began “visiting” with
neighbors in the vicinity of the address
given on the Martin’s marriage applica-
tion. Within a few minutes he learned
that Roland Martin was the step-son of
the late Claude Carroll Martin, which now
made him his wife’s step-son as well. In
Alabama, even though there is no blood
relationship, it is against the law for a
step-son to marry his step-mother. Such
an act is regarded as incest. Probably
the Martins were totally unaware of the
law, Coley concluded.

Leaving Boylston, the state detective
drove the short distance into Montgomery
and paid a call on William B. Painter,
the state investigator handling that city.
He told Painter what he had found and
then telephoned Tom. Carlisle and re-
peated his report.

“You know the next step, don’t you?”
the chief detective said, “it’s to investigate
the cause of the father’s death.”

“Right,” Coley said, “that’s why I
stopped to talk to Bill Painter. It’s in his
bailiwick.”

“Pll put Painter on the Montgomery
end,” Carlisle said, “and you can be sure

of a good job. Painter, you know, gave
McDonald Gallion brilliant help in clean-
ing up the Phenix City mess.”

Painter had broken.a number of tough
cases in Alabama, and had been a star
pupil at the FBI Academy in Washington.

“Call him to the phone,” Carlisle said.
Thus Bill Painter drew the Montgomery
end of the Martin poison mystery, an af-
fair which was becoming more and more
sinister as each new string was unraveled.
Coley, with several home runs to his
credit in the opening innings, returned to
handle Mobile developments.

“May I get a partner to work with me,
someone from the local force, I mean?”
Painter queried Carlisle. “You know how
the department here always plays ball
with us, and I think I can get just the man
I want, Patrolman Thomas J. Ward. He’s
on the plainclothes squad.”

“A good cop,” Carlisle said, ‘go ahead,
get him if his chief can let him go.”

Painter called on headquarters and the
Montgomery officer was immediately
given permission to work with him on
the poisoning case.

T TOOK a lot of digging, cajoling,

patience and leg work, but within
three days. the two detectives had come
up with some interesting information.
Claude Carroll Martin and Rhonda Belle
Gibson were married on October 28th,
1949 at Wetumpka, Alabama. Claude was
a widower who had lost his wife, Edith,
in an auto crash and had been left with
three teen-age daughters. Rhonda - Belle
Gibson was married, but had received~a
divorce early in the same month that she
wed Martin.

Martin was a $450 a month foreman
at a large glass factory and had met the
strapping, red-headed woman there. The
courtship had been short and sweet for
Martin, who wanted to restore the home
wrecked in the automobile crash, and
provide a mother for his daughters.
Martin had a stepson, Roland, by a pre-
vious marriage, but the young man was
not at home. He was serving in the U.S.

Navy. Claude and Rhonda had married

the moment her divorce was effective.

The neighbors said that Rhonda had :

been a near-perfect wife and mother, and
had surrounded her husband and her step-
daughters with affection and care. For

Seren giets Has

PRE SS aie

sixteen months the house on Fifth Street /_

in Bolyston had been a sunny, warm and

happy place, and Claude Martin wore un

the look of a man well pleased with his
lot in the world. ‘

Then Claude came staggering home ie

from the factory sick. He took to his bed
and all the doctors and loving treatment

seemed to do him no good. The word got :

around that neighbor Martin was ill with
“nervous disorders.”

The neighbors reported that Rhonda : ae
was constantly at the ailing man’s bedside, ~
helped in her nursing by the three girls.

The loving wife fed Claude his food and

‘ cats
medicine, and tended to all his other —

needs. , Finally Rhonda Martin appealed
to the Red Cross and the navy seat

Roland home to assist with the nursirg —

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Captain Hamilton called in Deputy
Police Superintendent Theriot, and thc
two men questioned Williams about the
three crimes. They could see him grow-
ing increasingly uneasy. Finally he burst
out:

“All right, I did it. I pulled a razor
on Sally Franklin like she said. That’s
why I ran away from those two cops. I
knew if they found out about Sally I’d
go back to jail for a long time because
I was already on parole.” °:

Williams went on to give the officers
the details of his alleged razor assault
on the young woman. Then they sum-
moned Superintendent Giarusso, Detec-
tive Chief Cassanova and District At-
torney Garrison, and the questioning
was continued.

For several hours the suspect with-
stood the rapid-fire questions of these
veteran investigators. Then slowly his
resistance melted. Late that night,
Thursday, November 20, 1964, he ad-
mitted the rape-slayings of both women.
He was then booked on two counts of
first degree murder, as well as for the
assault on Sally Franklin, and confined
to jail.

f ies FOLLOWING morning, Super-
intendent Giarusso released a sum-
mary of the statement allegedly made
by Williams regarding. the murder of
Mrs. Harris. He said that’ Williams had
been walking along Louisiana Avenue
Parkway when he noticed that the front
door of the Harris home was standing
open. He entered, went up the stairs and
saw Mrs. Harris in her kitchen.

“Williams then pointed a gun at Mrs.
Harris and demanded money,” Super-
intendent Giarusso stated. “She led him
to the bedroom, where she had left her
purse. She was then attacked, and was
later shot when she grabbed Williams
as he was about to flee the premises.
While unconscious, she was sexually
assaulted.” ‘

The superintendent went on to say
that Williams had named a friend to
whom he said he had given the .22-
caliber pistol used in the slaying. This
friend had passed it on to another man,
Giarusso said. But prompt action on the
part of detectives had resulted in the re-
covery of the weapon Friday afternoon.

The superintendent declined to reveal
details of Williams’ alleged admission
to the gruesome murder of Donna
Trussell, except to say that he admit-
ted raping the girl.

Some insight into the tortured mind
of a man capable of such horrible crimes
was gained when police talked with
Williams’ mother. She said that her son
had never been a normal boy and that
he had spent three years in Jackson
State Hospital as an adolescent.

‘When he was 15, a hospital doctor
told me that he had the mind of a 3-
year-old,” she said. “He told me that
he must be watched carefully for ‘the
rest of his life.”

She went on to say that during the
early months of 1961—after the murder
of Donna Trussell—he had tried repeat-
edly to kill himself.

“Once he laid out flat on Airline

Highway, hoping a car would run over

him,” she said. “Another time my little ©
daughter caught him. as he was about
to drink cleaning fluid. He also tried to.~

blind himself once with acid.”
She said that when he had been

moved from the parish prison back to

Jackson State Hospital after his burgla-
ry conviction, he wrote home and told
her: “Mama, I don’t understand any-

thing any more. Nobody helps me. They

just work me here.”

“When he finally came home on pro-
bation, he used to cry all the time,” she
continued, ‘and he couldn’t think

straight. I knew he was still sick in his <

mind.

“After that he didn’t live with me any
more. But I knew he was still sick and
crazy and nobody could ever do any-
thing about it.”

Frank Williams was granted prompt |

legal aid by the court, and his attorneys
immediately filed a petition for a writ
‘of habeas corpus. In this they asked
not for his release from custody but that
he be held in a mental institution.

His lawyers contended that his ar-

rest on the murder charges was “illegal =

and invalid” because his mental condi-
tion prevented. him from understanding
his. present situation.

Formal chages of murder were filed ©

against Williams before the petition
could be acted upon, however, and on

Wednesday, November 26, 1964, the :

case was brought before the Orleans
Parish Grand Jury. In spite of the

efforts of Williams’ attorneys to post- -
pone action on the case, the grand jury ~

returned indictments against Williams
in the slayings of both Donna Trussell
and Mrs, Lillian Harris.

As this account is written, Frank
Charles Williams remains in jail, under
indictment for the two murders which
horrified New Orleans. In view of his

history of mental illness, it seems un- ~

likely that he will ever go to trial for
these savage crimes—for which he
would undoubtedly be sent to the elec:

tric chair if found guilty. But, in any ©

case, he faces indefinite confinement in
a mental institution—from which he

probablv should never have been re- ~~

leased. *

Editor’s Note: The names Bonnie Jean

Norton and Sally Franklin are fictitious. ©

LOVELY LADY
(Continued from page 10)

than her husband. This set him back on
his heels somewhat, and Coley filed the
information in the back of his head for
future reference. It might be an angle. In

his quiet way, he also obtained a descrip- ~

tion of Rhonda Martin.

pue following morning he was parked —

out in front of her flat when she @
emerged, stocky in the white waitress uni-

form she wore. Coley recognized her at
once from her neighbors’ description. She
entered a Buick and, with Coley

‘ FIENDS ©

WHO WENT
TO THE
| CHAIR |

(Editor’s note: Throughout the 200 odd
years of sometimes turbulent American his-'
tory, many convicted criminals have been
called upon to pay the supreme penalty for
their sins. Hundreds have met their death in
state and federal institutions, including a
number of notorious females. Perhaps the
most notorious lady villain of them all, how-
ever, was Rhonda Belle Martin, the last
woman to be executed in the United States.
The following is her story.)

The State of Alabama’s maximum security institution, Kilby Prison, ce
ceals its death house behind ugly, grey stone walls and towers that rear
in open defiance of those who transgress man’s social laws and disregaré

Bis Bk « Os A : ae He
An overdose of arsenic-laden rat
poison killed Carolyn.

by JACK SEARS

the sanctity of human life.

The official car that drove through the outer entrance and into t
27-acre compound contained a woman prisoner — Rhonda Belle Martin,
poisoner of two husbands, three daughters and her own mother! Due pre
cess of law had decreed that she be executed in accordance with the state’

accepted procedure — the electric chair.

Rhonda Martin, a short, plump woman
in her early fifties, wearing her habitual
placid expression, had been sentenced to
death on Friday 13, 1956, but she buried
her first victim in 1937, 19 years before.

Born in 1906, in the turbulent opening
of the century, and married at 15, she
eventually acquired four more husbands
and committed bigamy, incest and pros-
titution. During her first marriages she
bore eight children, five dying of child-

hood illnesses and three by poisoning!
During her eventual confession one of-
ficer went on record as saying. ‘‘All this
and she spoke of the events as if she was
quoting from a grocery store list!’’ Sub-
sequent mental examinations found the
woman competent to stand trial and a last
minute appeal on the grounds of insanity
failed to reprieve the heartless woman.
No other woman since has been sen-
tenced to death by electrocution, a just

RHONDA BELLE MARTIN:

DETECTIVE CASES MAGAZINE, OCTOBER, 1977._

Rhonda Martin (center) listens to
testimony during her trial in
Montgomery.

Ellyn was poisoned slowly over
the course of a year before she
finally died In agony.

Things must have moved more
smoothly after that for little is known
about the Thomley family until Rhonda
Belle,;eloped with 22-year-old William
Alderman, who lived in the boarding
house Mama Thomley had acquired. The
stormy marriage lasted less than six
hours... the time it took to drive back 15C
miles from the Justice of the Peace in
McCombs, Mississippi to Mobile!

Although they remained man and wife
legally for seven years, they had hardly
crossed the threshold, when his bride an-
nounced that she had a date that evening
with a former boyfriend! ‘If you think
you are going to coop me up within these
four walls, you'd better forget it!’’ She

cotton during his sober moments, but
_ would abandon his family for days on end
while ona drunken rampage. When he did
return home, he would be violent and
abuse his wife and growing daughter. The
two sons made themselves scarce during
their father’s tirades. It was a miserable
life but Mary Thomley managed to keep
abject poverty from the door by doing
odd jobs herself, but there were many
nights when the children cried them-
selves to sleep with empty bellies.
When Rhonda Belle was 12 years old,
Mrs. Thomley, with the help of her oldest
son; moved to Mobile, Alabama, 25 miles
away, and somehow managed to acquire
sufficient money to obtain a divorce.-
Other sources hinted that the woman just
up and left the brute of a husband.

t of her crimes is indicative of the
edge that she knew they were

retribution for her atrocious crimes.”

Dr. Lamar Ager, the psychiatrist
examined Rhonda Martin prior to
trial, pointed out: ‘Her appearance # ©
plain unassuming housewife belies
inner strangeness. She is a product of i
early environment. Childhood confuw® ~
neglect and one emotional upheaval #
another are responsible for her hommos™® &
behavior. She rationalizes all of her #® ©
in the name of love. But the clever 6

Ypoduct of her environment? Yet it
sted by Captain William Painter,
fective who listened to her confes-
Pi *at millions suffered the same envi-
mt of those ‘‘good old days”’ with-
®mmitting such crimes! However
ords show some extenuating cir-
ces which could be construed as
hat different to the norm.”’

“da Belle Martin, the only daugh-
@ James and Mary Thomley, was
P®a small clapboard shack near the
Lucedale¢ Mississippi, not 10
from the Alabama state line. Her
Wer brothers died during the 1918
ta epidemic. Her father picked

(continued on next page)

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iia es

And that was the course ordered by
Tom Carlisle. While Coley returned to
his home base in Mobile to continue his
inquiry there, William Painter began a
parallel probe in the Montgomery area.
No novice in tackling tough cases,
Painter had hit the headlines on many
occasions. Most recently he had been
credited with brilliant assistance given
to Prosecutor MacDonald Gallion in the
famed cleanup operation performed on
notorious Phenix City. Painter had
been a highway patrolman before be-
coming a state investigator and had
been a star pupil at the FBI National
Academy.

Deciding he could use some help.
Painter called on the city police and
Patrolman Thomas J. Ward, a plain-
clothesman, was assigned to team up
with the state investigator.

For the next few days the two offi-
cials concentrated on Boylston, pa-
tiently making the rounds and talking
with people who had been neighbors
and friends of the Martins when they
had lived in that community. It was a
matter of dogged legwork, picking up a
bit ot information here, and a bit there,
and fitting the pieces together into an
emerging picture of the Martin domes-
tic life.

Claude Carroll Martin had been a
hard-working, home-loving family
man, earning $450 a month as a fore-
man at a large glass manufacturing
plant. It was at the glass company
that he met Rhonda Bell, a_ fellow
worker, It was a whirlwind courtship
and their marriage was delayed only
by the fact that the vivacious redhead
was already a married woman. How-
ever, this prior marriage with Tal-
madge Gibson, an attendant at a veter-
ans hospital, was already in the divorce
court and was Officially dissolved in
October. On October 28th, Claude
Martin married Rhonda Bell in near-
by Wetumpka and took his mature
bride back to his home in Boylston.
Undoubtedly Claude hoped that Rhon-
da would fill a tragic void in his
household. His first wife Edith had
been killed in an automobile accident
and had left him with three teenage
daughters.

For 16 months Claude Martin was a
happy, contented man. The affection his
bride lavished on him was comforting
and warming. Then Claude fell ill and
no treatment seemed to help him. As
far as the neighbors knew, from their
fragmentary chats with Rhonda, her
husband was suffering from some kind
of “nervous disorder.’”’ Rhonda was at
his bedside constantly. She fed him,
and tended him, and gave him his
medicines.

When Claude first became ill his
stepson, Ronald, was in the Navy. In
February, 1951, Claude’s condition be-
came so grave that the Red Cross ar-
ranged for Ronald to come home and
help nurse his father. Together, he and
Rhonda and the girls waited on the ail-

ing man, but on April 27th, Claude
Carroll Martin died.

Their vigil at the sick man’s bedside
had apparently wrought a bond of deep
affection between the young man and
his stepmother. This attachment pres-
ently ripened into love.

Marriage between the two did not go
unopposed. Claude’s daughters, critical
of the romance, moved from the house
when Ronald and Rhonda married, in
December, 1951. Since the breakup of
the household, the oldest daughter had
moved on to New Iberia, Louisiana,
where she was living with her hus-
band. The second, 22, was clerking in a
dime store and maintained an apart-
ment in Montgomery for herself and
the youngest daughter, 17, who was
still attending high school.

Such was the story pieced together
by the two investigators. Obtaining the
name of Claude Martin’s physician
from the death certificate on file, Paint-
er and Ward visited the doctor and
questioned him closely about Martin’s
symptoms. Their eyes grew hard as
they heard that Claude’s fatal illness
had been accompanied by diarrhea,
vomiting, and excruciating stomach
pains.

“Just like young Martin,” Painter
commented grimly as they left the doc-
tor’s office.

“Well, what do we do now?” Ward
asked.

Painter frowned. “We could recom-
mend exhumation of the body, but it’s
too early. We ought to have a lot more
to go on before we go that far. Right
now, all we have is suspicion.

“Let’s suppose that an autopsy shows
that Martin died of arsenic poisoning.
The trouble with arsenic is that it’s so
hard to trace. Anybody who wants to
kill a rat or spray a fruit tree can buy
the stuff over the counter and no ques-
tions asked. The family moved from
Boylston long ago, so we can’t even
search there and hope to find anything.
Then there’s the matter of motive.
We'll have to do a lot more checking
before we can make out a case for ex-
humation.”

The next logical step was to investi-
gate Claude Martin’s estate, if any.
Who had gained by his death?

SEARCH of the county court rec-

ords disclosed that Claude Martin
had been insured for at least $2,500.
Such an amount had been paid by the
life insurance company to Rhonda
Martin as general guardian for the
youngest daughter who was Martin’s
designated beneficiary. Apparently all
this money had been &*awn by Rhonda
to pay for living expenses.

As a general rule, life policies with a
named beneficiary do not have to clear
the probate courts. On the chance that
Claude Martin had other policies,
Painter and Ward communicated with
the life insurance office. The informa-
tion came back that the proceeds of a

second policy on Martin’s life, in the
amount of $2,000, had been paid di-
rectly to Rhonda Martin, the bene-
ficiary. Thus, as a result of Claude

-Martin’s death, $4,500 had come into

Rhonda’s possession.

“Not a fortune, but nice to have,”
Painter observed.

“That could have been the motive
for Claude’s murder—if he was mur-
dered,” Ward pointed out. “But what
about the stepson, Ronald?”

“We'll have to find out,” Painter
promised. “This case is beginning to
make sense.”

The case made even more sense
when the investigators checked Ronald
Martin’s insurance status and ascer-
tained that his life was insured for
$3,000.

While motive in a poison case is
often comparatively easy to establish,
establishing the elements of means and
opportunity is more difficult. The offi-
cials decided not to try to trace a rare
poison, but one easily obtainable by
almost anyone. They were convinced
that the arsenic fed young Martin had
been purchased in the form of some
common household commodity.

AINTER and Ward made the rounds

of grocers and druggists in Boylston,
hoping to find some merchant who
could recall selling an arsenic com-
pound to someone close to young Mar-
tin and his stepfather. The officers had
no success and widened their search to
Montgomery. In Mobile, Coley was
performing the same unrewarding
chore. Law enforcement officers in
nearby towns were asked to help in the
search.

By now, all the officials concerned
realized that such leads as they had
uncovered all pointed in one direction.
Every person closely connected with
the Martins had been thoroughly
screened. The probe had revealed no
secret enemies outside the family
circle, no clandestine love affairs. It
was agreed by all that they should
focus their attention on pleasant and
motherly Rhonda Bell Martin.

Rhonda’s history had now _ been
traced back through three husbands.
What about her life before then? Scan-
ning the redhead’s marriage with
Talmadge Gibson, the investigators dis-
covered that this union had taken place
on October 11th, 1947. Again the mar-
riage records yielded additional in-
formation. They disclosed that at the
time of the marriage, Rhonda had de-
scribed herself as the widow of one
George Wertlaw Garrett.

The many marriages of the stocky
middle-aged redhead were beginning to
astound the officers. They were im-
pressed by her ability to woo and win
men. More important, they were anx-
ious to find out how husband George
Garrett had died.

It took time to assemble the dossier
on this (Continued on page 68)

—_

Van Pelt’s reputation as a police offi-
cer is one of his greatest assets in try-
ing to get through to insolent young
delinquents. They know he’s tough, and
that there’s nothing phony about him.
Thus, when they can be convinced he’s
on their side, they listen. Youngsters are
tough to fool.

More and more in recent years Van
Pelt’s interest in boys and girls has taken
the form of preventive measures. He is
a strong supporter of the county’s Little
League baseball program. At least once a
vear he joins other adults to drive Little
Leaguers over the Rockies into Denver
to watch a professional baseball game.
As an active Kiwanian—a few years ago
he was elected lieutenant governor of a
two-state division—he is a_ perennial
member of the committee responsible for
youth activities. Virtually every young-
ster in the county old enough to talk
knows Van Pelt.

“Hi. Sheriff,” they greet him. ‘Hi,
Chancy.” And he grins back in happy
response.

“Kids who are friends with the sheriff
aren't likely to become a police prob-
lem when they grow up,” he observes.

Loosing to the day of inevitable retire-
ment, Van Pelt and his wife sold the
store in Kremmling two years ago and
put a down payment on a small ranch
on the Colorado River near Parshall. The
ranch is large enough to support some 35
head of cattle, but his biggest interest is
the cabins for fishermen and hunters.
Giant trout lurk in the waters of the
Colorado River and deer and elk abound
in the forests nearby. Next to police
work, he thinks, he’d like to guide paying
guests to the best hunting and fishing
spots.

The ranch is a great place. too, for
family get-togethers. The Van Pelts’
oldest daughter, Gloria, is married to
Verlyn Clark, now a highway patrolman
stationed at Idaho Springs, Colorado.
The second daughter, Patricia Scholl,
married a rancher and schoolteacher and
lives near Parshall. Bonita Barnes, the
third daughter, married an electrician
and lives in Kremmling. Van Pelt’s only
son, Darrell, turned down a career in
law enforcement to become cirector of
student activities at the School of Mines
in Golden, Colorado. Chancy and Goldie’s
six grandchildren make the ranch a
lively spot When they gather for family
reunions.

The whole family—the whole county
for that matter—has the greatest confi-
dence in Chancy’s ability to meet any
situation, but everyone hopes he’ll never
have to go through an experience like
the one that put him in the hospital.
Actually, he was a sort of innocent by-
stander.

The trouble started late the afternoon
of last July 12th when Colorado Game
Warden Hoover stopped to assist a mo-
torist who seemed to be having engine
trouble. Hoover noticed a rifle and three
boxes of ammunition in the back seat. He
asked some questions and found the mo-
torist, a blond youth from lowa, had
neither a driver’s license nor a regis-
tration certificate for the car.

Since Hoover is not a regular law offi-
cer, he turned on his short-wave radio
and tried to summon the sheriff. The call
was intercepted by Highway Patrol Lieu-
tenant Hiram Short. He arrived quickly,
frisked the youth and searched the car.

Sheriff Van Pelt, who had finished his
day’s work and was en route home,

drove up at that moment. His pistol belt
was unbuckled and lay on the scat beside
him. “an Pelt got out of his car and
was tu:king with the other two officers

when the youth pulled out a pistol from
the pocket formed by the torn lining of
the front door of his vehicle.

“This is it!” the youth cried. “Get
down in the ditch, all of you. Nobody's
going to put me in jail.”

Then, without further warning, he
pulled the trigger again and again. Van
Pelt was the first to be hit. He went
down, bleeding profusely. Lieutenant
Short was hit a split second later. A slug
ripped into his belly. He died on the
operating table. Hoover was cut down
by four shots, but he survived.

The south, Delmar Spooner, an ex-Gl.
fled into the mountains. He killed an-
other deputy sheriff before he was
finally captured.

“Tve often wondered what would have
happened if I had been armed when
Spooner cut loose,’ Van Pelt told me.
“He had the drop on all of us. He would
have shot me before I could use my
pistol. Chances are that, if I were armed.
he would have made sure he killed me
instead of just shooting me once. Maybe
it was a lucky thing I had left my
weapon in the car.

“One thing I know for sure, though. I'll
never take anything for granted again.
It’s a lesson I learned a long time ago and
one that I’m never going to forget again.”

The people of Grand County would
rather he did not forget either. Sheriffs
like Chancy Van Pelt don’t come down
the pike every day. They want to keep
him in office as long as he wants to

stay. o¢4¢

How Many
Did She Kill?

(Continued from page 57)

marriage, but the result» more than jus-
tified the effort. Apparently, Rhonda’s
alliance with Garrett ha! been more en-
during than any of her -ubsequent ones.

Rhonda was a girl of 21 when she
married Garrett in Prattville, the town
where, many years and four husbands
later, she married Ronald Martin.

Garrett died in Montgomery some
years later. Rhonda told triends that
George had succumbed to pneumonia.
He was not the only unfortunate mem-
ber of the family. Children had been
born to the couple, and all the young-
sters, too, seemed to have contracted
fatal illnesses.

Rhonda had buried her dead at Me-
morial Cemetery in Montgomery. There,
seven headstones gruesomely dramatized
the cold statistics which marked the red-
head’s career from husband to husband.
Five of the Garrett children, all girls,
were buried there—Adelaide, 4, Emo-
gene, 3, Judith Charlene, 1, Ann Carolyn,
6, and Ellyn Elizabeth, 11. George Wert-
law Garrett lay there, too, as well as his
successor, Claude Carroll Martin.

Methodically the officials located the
physicians who had attended the ill-
fated members of the Garrett family. It
developed that each of them had been
treated by a different doctor, one who
was unaware of the other tragedies
which had afflicted the family. Though
the death certificates mentioned various
illnesses as the cause of death, question-

ing of the doctors revealed that acute
diarrhea, vomiting, and stomach pains
had been present in each case.

There was no doubt now, in the minds
of the investigators, that they had to deal
with a rnass poisoner—a modern Borgia
who had, undetected, committed a series
of fiendish crimes over a period of years.

The undercover inquiry which had be-
gun with a suspicion of an attempted
poisoning of a young ex-Navy man, was
reaching a shocking climax, but the in-
vestigators withheld the story until the
evidence was assembled. Assistant At-
torney General McDonald Gallion de-
cided that the time had come for exhum-
ing one of the bodies. He arranged for
the disinterment of the remains of
Claude Martin, the most recently de-
ceased. The exhumation was set for
March 2nd, under the direction of Van
Pruitt Jr., and he was assigned the task
of supervising the toxicological tests.

While he was making his study of the
dead man’s vital organs, there were
other developments in the case. First,
it was established that each of the Gar-
rett children had been covered by a
small life insurance policy. It was
learned, too, that Mrs. Mary Frances
Gibbons, Rhonda’s mother, had died and
was buried in Belforest Cemetery, in
Baldwin County, and that she, too, had
suffered the same symptoms and agony
in her last illness.

Meanwhile, in Mobile, State Investi-
gator Coley had been keeping Rhonda
Martin under constant surveillance.
Often he dropped into the restaurant in
the guise of a casual customer to chat
with her. On Wednesday, March 7th, he
followed her to a general delivery box
and saw her pick up a letter.

When she had gone, he asked ques-
tions and discovered that Rhonda was
renting the mailing address under the

name of Mrs. Claude Martin. Coley
could think of only one reason why the
redhead was still posing as a widow—
she was collecting social security as the
wife of Claude Martin, even though she
had remarried. This conjecture became
a certainty when Coley communicated
with the authorities in Washington.

The circumstances made Coley won-
der. If Rhonda Martin had established
a secret mailing address as the widow
of Claude, perhaps she was preparing to
do the same when she became Ronald's
widow. The investigator started can-
vassing the various mail drops in the
city and discovered a second mailing ad-
dress—this one she had rented under the
name Mrs. Ronald Martin.

On Friday morning, Toxicologist Pruitt
made his report. His examination of
Claude Martin’s organs, his hair and
fingernails, had uncovered an apprecia-
ble amount of arsenic—enough to kil!
several men. Gallion decided to wait no
longer and Coley was ordered to bring
Rhonda Martin in.

At 3 o’clock in the afternoon, when
Rhonda was finishing her work for the
day at the restaurant, Coley entered and
told the redhead she was wanted at
police headquarters, where Chief Dudley
McFadven had a message for her.

Slipping a coat over her white uni-
form, Rhonda went quietly with Coley.
She was taken to the city jail and dock-
eted on a holding charge. At 5:30 As-
sistant Attorney General Gallion, Public
Safety Director Bill Lyerly, and State
Investigator William Painter arrived at
the jail to take the woman back to
Montgomery. They had with them a
murder warrant and Gallion personally
served it on the redhead. Rhonda showed
neither surprise nor fear. She remained
perfect!’ calm as the charge was ex-
plained to her.

Vi
zain.

and
ain.”
ould
riffs
iown
keep
cs to

»o¢

‘oley
Vv the
ow—
s the
1 she
came
cated

won-
ished
ridow
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iald’s

can-
n the
ig ad-
er the

Pruitt
on of
r and
recia-
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ait no
bring

when
or the
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Judley

e uni-
Coley.
dock-
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Public

State
ved at
ack to
hem a
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showed
mained
as ex-

“I don’t know why youre doing this,”
she cominented as the officials escorted
her to the waiting automobile. “There's
nothing to it at all. It’s just a lot of
nonsense."

In Montgomery, the redhead was
again locked in the county jail. still
maintaining her innocence.

“Ronald will be heartbroken when he
finds out what has happened to me,” she
declared. “I love him so much. We've
been so happy together.”

On Saturday morning, Investigator
Coley and Nelson E. Grubbs, of the state
toxicological department went to the
North Conception Street address and
made a thorough search of Rhonda's
home. They looked through a raft ol
boxes and medicine containers but could
find no trace of arsenic. There was only
one book in the apartment—a Bible—
and Rhonda had methodically inscribed
in it a record of the births, marriages
and deaths in her family circle. There
were plenty of deaths noted.

In Montgomery, the authorities an-
nounced that they intended to exhume
the bodies of Rhonda's mother, Mrs.
Gibbons. George Garrett, and the five
Garrett children. Meanwhile, Rhonda
continued to deny that she had poisoned
anyone. She talked treely about her
background. She disclosed that there
was still another husband in her life, a
man she married when she was 15. He
had been a lodger at the boarding house
her mother had operated in Mobile. This
marriage had ended in divorce.

She added wistfully, with a throb in
her voice, “Everybody always said I
spoiled my husbands and everybody al-
ways said I spoiled my children. That's
the way I am. I spoil anybody I love.”

Regardless of this glowing tribute to
herself, the authorities went ahead with
their exhumation plans. On Monday they
disinterred the remains of George Gar-
rett and Ellyn Elizabeth. Further ex-
humations were abandoned when, on
Monday night, March 12. 1956, Rhonda
Martin confessed six slayings. In a writ-
ten statement many pages long, she ad-
mitted that she had fed arsenic to Claude
Martin, George Garrett and Mrs. Mary
Frances Gibbons and three of the Gar-
rett children, Emogene, 3, Ann Carolyn,
6, and Ellyn Elizabeth, 11. According to
the police, the redhead declared that she
had used ant poison purchased at gro-
cery id drugstores.

She confessed poisoning Claude Mar-
tin by putting two tablespoons of the ant
poiso:. in his coffee at each meal, over
a per: cd of three months. George Gar-
rett’s .eath was accomplished in a much
shorter time when she poisoned his
whiskey for several days, and finally dis-
patched him with one last ant poison
and whiskey cocktail.

Emogene, according to the statement,
was disposed of on a spur-of-the-mo-
ment decision. When the child asked for
a drink, Rhonda dosed a glass of milk
with the deadly powder and gave it to
her little daughter.

Ann Carolyn, too, died trom a single
glass of milk which Rhonda had doc-
tored. Mrs. Gibbons died as a result of
doctored coffee for over a year, becoming
a helpless invalid before she died. Ellyn
Elizabeth. 11, after drinking poisoned
milk for a year, lost the use of her limbs.
Rhonda, after watching the child’s crip-
pled condition “for a spell,’ gave her a
lethal dose and ended her torment.

Rhonda also confessed to a murder at-
tempt on the life of young Ronald Mar-
tin. She admitted adding ant poison to
his coffee over a period of two months.

The woman insisted that Judith Char-
lene, 1, and Adelaide, 4, had died of
natural causes. Pneumonia was respon-

sible for Adelaide's death, she claimed,
and Judith was a victim of jaundice.

Whether this was true or not, may
never be known. The authorities, how-
ever, were satisfied with the evidence
they already had. On Wednesday, March
14. 1956, the confessed poisoner of seven
persons, was arraigned in Montgomery
Recorder’s Court before Judge John M
Scott. She waived examination and was
ordered held without bond for action by
the Montgomery County grand jury. In-
dictments followed when the case was
brought before the jury.

In Montgomery, Alabama, on June 4,
1956, Rhonda Bell Martin went on trial
on six first-degree murder charges for
the deaths of her fourth husband, Claude
Martin, her second husband, George
Garrett, and three of their daughters,
Carolyn, Ellyn Elizabeth and Emogene,
and her mother, Mrs. Gibbons.

The trial lasted one day. Then, after
deliberating for three hours, the jury
found her guilty as charged and sen-
tenced her to die in the state’s electric
chair.

An appeal to the state supreme court
delayed her execution, but on March 14,
1957. the court denied the appeal and a
new execution date was set for May 31st.
This date was postponed following a re-
quest for a rehearing by the attorneys
for the doomed woman. The court de-
nied a rehearing and upheld the death
sentence. Her date with death was now
set for September 27, 1957. Her attorneys
next appealed to Governor James Fol-
som for clemency for the convicted
poisoner, but the appeal was denied.

And on October 11, 1957, Rhonda Bell
Martin, then 51, was executed. She was
the second white woman to die in Kilby
Prison’s electric chair. The first was Mrs.
Earl Denison, executed September 4,
1953, for the poison-murder of a two-
year-old niece. (Alabama’s Borgia, TRUE
Derective January, 1953)

In Rhonda Bell Martin’s Bible prison
officials found a note reading: ‘I want
my body to be given to some scientific
institution to be used as they see fit, but
especially to see if someone can find out
why I committed the crimes I com-
mitted.” o¢4¢

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reason of insanity, the defendant was brought into the court-
room and stood before the judge. When asked if he had a state-
ment to make, Tolly said that he was sorry for what he had done
and asked the judge to grant him life in prison, He asserted that
he had no malice in his heart toward his victim.

Since the jury had deliberated about one hour the night be-
fore and had recommended death, Judge Miller saw no recourse
but to do their bidding. He sentenced Tolly to be hung at the
county jail in Centreville on April 30th.

A deputy escorted Tolly back to Montgomery to await execu-
tion. While there, he asked for a preacher to pray for him. A
Baptist minister by the name of Stokes was brought in. Accord-
ing to the minister, Tolly seemed genuinely sorry for his crime.

Officers at the Montgomery jail all agreed that Tolly had the
most painful, sorrowful look they had ever witnessed on a con-
demned man. They of course had seen their share of condemned
men at the jail because this was where many murderers and
rapists were brought to protect them from angry mobs of citi-
zens in their home towns.

Since the Supreme Court automatically reviewed capital
punishment cases, Tolly was given a brief reprieve. The delay,
however, was only until August 12, 1909. He was brought back
to Centreville on that date to be hanged for his crime. The Rev-
erend Stokes and several other negro ministers from Montgom-
ery accompanied Tolly back to the town to continue praying
with him. Just before the execution was carried out, Tolly re-
quested that a photograph be made of himself and sent to his
family. This was performed by a local photographer.

A Deputy Courson, of Birmingham, who was supposed to be
an expert at making a hangmans noose came to Centreville to
assist Sheriff Charlie Oakley in the hanging.

Tolly was escorted from his cell at 10 minutes to 12 by the
Reverend Stokes and Sheriff Oakley. On reaching the platform,
Tolly gave a statement explaining his reasons for the murder.
Handcuffs were then placed on his wrists, and Sheriff Oakley
bound his legs. The noose was adjusted around his neck, the
black cap placed over his head, and the signal given to Sheriff
Oakley. The sheriff pulled the trigger, and Tolly’s body shot
through the trap door. In ten minutes, a doctor pronounced him
dead. The condemned man was cut down andturned over to his
relatives for burial.

On the day of the hanging, several hundred people came to
town to witness the execution; but, Sheriff Oakley requested
that all vacate the premises. He stated that the hanging would
take place according to the law and was not, in his opinion, sup-
posed to be a “gala affair.” The crowd, not to miss the event after
their journey, lined up at a fence near the jail despite Sheriff
Oakley’s request. Human curiosity is hard to subdue after all.

If Tolly Mason got his revenge, it must have been bitter tast-
ing for he showed nothing but unhappiness thereafter. He
should have remembered the Bible phrase, “‘Vengeance is
mine; thus saith the Lord.”

Yeager’s house. Dick was admiring the beauty of nature when
he met his son-in-law on the road a very short distance from
his house. Billy told him to wait there while he returned to his
house to fetch the shovel. Dick sat down beside the road within
one hundred yards of where the U.S. Weather Station that
monitors the weather for the surrounding area now stands.
Dick sat daydreaming as he waited for Billy’s return. “What a
pretty day this is going to be,” he thought aloud.

Tolly Mason was a negro of medium stature, about five feet
eight inches tall. He had carried a grudge on his shoulders for
several years and was considered by many to be a dangerous
man. A few years earlier, Tolly had lost his money to another
negro in acrap game. Not only was he a begrudging man, but
he was also a sore loser. Tolly cut the other man to death, took
his money back, and waited for the sheriff to come and arrest
him for murder.

Tolly was arrested and sent to prison. Upon his release, he
went to work. He saved his money, bought some land, and be-
gan farming for himself. Tolly had borrowed money from the
bank to help him begin his endeavors. He had foreseen no dif-
ficulties because he anticipated a good crop of cotton to come
in during his first harvest. Due to a lack of rain, however, his
crop failed. The bank took possession of his farm. “The ole
white folks took my land!” he declared to anyone who would
listen. Tolly Mason became a very bitter man.

On March 8th, Tolly rose from his bed feeling the usual an-
ger that confronted him. He saddled his horse and rode toward
the small hamlet of Harrisburg to purchase coffee and flour at
the country store there. The owner of the store, Mr. Laird, was
kind enough to extend credit to him until his fall cotton crop
came in. Cotton was, of course, “king” in the South during
these times. It either made its owner a king or a pauper. As hard
times go, most people who ventured into the business found
themselves a pauper, especially sharecroppers.

As Tolly rode toward Harrisburg, he came abreast of the
place that he had lost to the bank three years earlier. His blood
boiled as he thought of all the hard work he had put into the
land, all in vain. “If I could just get enough salt to pour on the
land one night when them ole white folks is asleep!” he thought.
That would make the land barren, and Tolly would have his
revenge. “But where will I get the money for salt?” Tolly won-

dered. He was pondering this question in his mind when he
spotted Dick Meigs sitting across the road from where he had
plowed so hard.

“Dis is my enemy,’ Tolly said aloud as he rode closer to Dick.
Dick now owned the land that had once been Tolly’s. He had
bought it from a man who had purchased it from the bank. In
Tolly’s ignorant, uneducated mind, though, Dick had cheated
him personally.

Dick Meigs was “awakened” from his daydream as he heard
the clip-clop of Tolly’s horse as it approached. Dick had heard
from other people that the negro was bitter about losing his
land, but he never thought that Tolly blamed him for his misfor-
tune!

Dick spoke to Tolly in his usual hospitable manner, “Good
morning, Tolly. A nice day, isn’t it?” Tolly did not respond and
kept a mean scowl on his face. Dick asked him what the matter
was. Tolly replied, “You know what is the matter! You stole my
land!” With that retort, Tolly jumped off his horse with an open
knife in his hand.

If Dick had any misgivings about Tolly’s attitude before, he
quickly cast them aside as the negro, looking like a demon, ad-
vanced toward him. Looking around for something to defend
himself with, Dick could only get his hands on a pine limb. The
limb was rotten, thought. It broke in half, and Tolly began stab-
bing the defenseless white man.

Tolly’s grandfather told him as a young boy of slavery days
that he had been forced to endure. The elder negro told Tolly
how the “Yankee white men” captured the negroes in the jun-
gles of Africa and brought them to America. According to his
horror stories, these poor blacks were fed only peanuts thrown
to them through cracks in the ships’ floors. When they arrived
in America, they were put on auction blocks in chains and sold
to Southerners to work in their cotton fields. All of these

_ thoughts went through Tolly’s mind as he stabbed Dick Meigs.

He imagined that he could taste the raw peanuts his ancestors
had eaten on board the ships that held their fate. A blind fury
drove Tolly as he continued cutting and stabbing his victim. He
could only think to kill! kill! kill!

Suddenly Billy Yeager yelled at the negro as he approached

_ the grisly scene. Tolly swore that he would kill him too if he

interfered. Billy hurried away in search of help. After a few
59

Sea ee ee eee

minutes passed, Tolly’s senses returned to him. It was as if all

the hate and bitterness had drained from his body. He then pan-
icked! He jumped on his horse and returned to his home. The
whole way home, he kept thinking about how he had killed
Dick Meigs,

Poor Dick had thrown the rotten piece of pine down, probably
as a gesture of surrender in hopes that the infuriated negro
would not hurt him. He had no such luck, for Tolly’s lust for
blood was beyond bounds of reason. The sickening sound of the
knife blade cutting into his body time after time weakened
Dick, and he fainted from shock.

Billy returned to the scene with his shotgun to find his
father-in-law lying beside the road bleeding profusely from the
many wounds in his body. Tolly was no where to be seen, much
to Billy’s rage and consternation. After tearing off his shirt to
try and stop the flow of blood from Dick’s neck and head, Billy
ran back to his house. Upon arriving, he sent his wife to fetch
the doctor; and, he and a hired hand hitched the wagon and hur-
ried back to rescue Dick. The injured man was loaded onto the
wagon on a quilt and carried to his house.

Tolly made no attempt to run farther than his house. He went
home and waited for the authorities to arrive. Within the hour,
deputies arrived and took him to jail.

The citizens of “Bloody Bibb” were outraged over this unpro-
voked killing. They did, however, let the law take its course in
an orderly manner and made no attempt to lynch the negro.
The sheriff took extra precautions nonetheless and transferred
Tolly to Montgomery for safety.

County solicitor Fritz Johnson sent a letter to the presiding
judge, B. M. Miller, asking him to hold a special session of the
Circuit Court of Bibb County to hear the case. In those days,
justice was swift in a case that was serious enough to incur the
wrath of the local citizens. On the following Monday, Circuit
Judge Miller reached Centreville and immediately began pro-
ceedings. On Wednesday morning, the grand jury was assem-
bled; and, the judge asked them to return an indictment in the
murder of Dick Meigs. The jury was out only a few minutes be-
fore they returned a true bill against Tolly Mason charging him
with first degree murder. He was arraigned that same day, and
his trial was set to begin the following Friday, March 19th.

The defendant was unable to hire counsel so Judge Miller or-

dered the Circuit Clerk to put all the names of the lawyers in
town into a hat. He then drew two names as defense attorneys
for Tolly. L. M. Clements and D. L. Crawford were the two attor-
neys picked for the task.

The sadistic brutality of the murder was brought to light
when the trial began. Tolly confessed to everything. Also, the
physician who attended Dick testified that at least five of the
twenty-six knife wounds inflicted by the murderer would have
been fatal. |

To further add to the horror of the slaying, the dying declara-
tions of the victim were introduced as evidence to show that the
killing was without provocation. Also introduced as evidence
were the clothes that Dick had worn on the fatal day. Mrs.
Meigs identified the clothing, which was caked with blood and
literally cut to ribbons. This attested to the sharpness of the
weapon and to the utter callous brutality of the attack.

After a recess for lunch, court reconvened at 1:15 p.m. Testi-
mony was then taken from two or three negroes that knew the
Mason family. They testified that the defendant’s mother, who
had died some 30 years earlier, was insane. They did not, how-
ever, state that the defendant himself had ever shown any signs
of insanity.

Tolly was placed on the stand to testify about the crime in
detail. He stated that he dismounted his horse and advanced to
Dick and cut him a number of times with his knife. It would
seem that he was being modest in his version of the crime since
it was a known fact that the victim was literally cut to pieces
from evidence already introduced. The defendant also stated
that Dick had no knife or gun at the time. Tolly testified on
cross-examination that he knew perfectly well what he was do-
ing at the time of the crime.

The prosecution’s case was concluded about three o’clock,
and the defense began presenting its case. After one hour of tes-
timony, county solicitor J. F. Thompson closed the arguments
for the state. At ten o’clock, the jury returned their verdict.

If this sounds like speedy justice, it probably was. However,
in 1909, with race relations in the South being what they were,
Tolly Mason was fortunate that a mob of white people did not
hang him from a tree.

Saturday morning, after the formality of reading the state-
ments about the plea that Tolly had made of being not guilty by

MAULL, sam, black, hanged Lowndes Co., Ala., July 8, 1892

‘
se ciaieiedeeiietinee al

Lixeceuted In the Presence of Those Au-
thorized by Lawto be Present,

Vayneville, July 8.—(Speeial.)--Sam
Maull the murderer of the Jate KE, ‘I
Mull paid the penaliy of the law to-
day. Fle was banged at 11 avoim.,, in the
presence of those authorized by law. to
De present.

The guilt of the defendant outside his
own confession had been go closely estab-
lished that there was no excitement of
any kind and within two miles of Tlayne-
Ville hardly anybody knew there was a
certain bewging fn TIayneville to-day,

Sim Met * was baptised Inst week and
to the muwster who pald him daily visits
he frankly confessed that he committed
the crime, adding:

“ft odd it and nobody helped me, T
waited,” srtd he, “for Mr. Manll to re
turn frown Benton, slipped im the house,
got the gun and killed him, and rode
the horse he wnaaeridiug when he fell
after a doctor to Benton.”

Sato, after being baptized, talked very |
} freely and was ready to go before the.
é time, On the seaffold he reiterated his
confession previously made, and, looking
down on those present, he smilingly suid:

“You all think [To am seared or afraid
to wo. Not nt all, To have made peace
; | with God. Hfe has forgiven me. Loom

: sorry I kiuded Mr. Muaull, but this is too
late. IT am ready and willing to go; I
am going where there is uo sorrow and
trouble.”

The radiint smiles that animated the
prisoner's face and his general manner
impressed those present with the idea
that he had become fully reeonciled to
his fate, and that in viewing bis upproach-
ing denth through his talk and prayers

Xea} ; TOTS vers Ww wyeh pes vy +liart
with the ininisters Whe vishted iii, that:

he GUL gone through mental procasses |

whe Wid Jon dhe Jigve ty
plies: dtl LAN to, believe fle fhe

rol a real being, and God had pardoned
him, and was going to that place called
heaven, and that the seaffold bad uo ter-
rors Whitever for hin.

: NAULL THE MURDERER "7

—“~Le

nie

HOeTQ *4e9Tem ‘SAVGVON

MO42

FEB 11, 19897.
FROM THE SENTINAL, SHELBY CO. ALA.

Shelby County will have 294 legal

tomorrow in the jail Yard at Columbiana. The first in a
long number Of years » unless the Governor should reprive

the condemned man, the negro, McAdams Convicted of
Rape—Murder , is the subject.

execution by hanging

Juey tHe !

BLY ‘euBTQUNTo) pes

— Slashed another negro named Tobe fruime. 25

Note on case of John Mayfield.
Alabama 1880.
See New York Herald 3/13/80 5:6

Drunken brasil 01 Nu 78 1 which he fatally

years tor Co-dete Mexander Jones.

nounce that they would BOL Obey The Uee
cision of the Supreme Court.

Mr. MeMahon replied that the debt had
been incurred in udvauee of the appropria-
tion, contrary to law.

Mr. Hiscock said be thought the Domo-
crats would eventually pay it.

After aspeech by Mr. Finley, of Ohio, at-
tacking the administration of the Govern-
ment printing office, tae committee rose.

Mr. Seales, of North Carolina, introduced
a bi approprisxting $380.000 to ratify and
carry out the agreement with the Ute In-
dians for the sale of their land. Referred.

The House then adjourned till Monday.

oor
CRIMES AND CASUALTIES.

The Gally-Marder Trial—No Hope of
Getting a Jury.

De Kas, Miss., March 12.—The cose
against Virgil and Hairston Gully, for the
murder of Gilmer, is still occupying the
time of the court bere. Nota juryman has
been obtained within the past thirty-six
hours. Six are now in the box, but liltle
hope remains of getting a Jury at all,

Later.—The proceedings in the trial of
Virgil and Hairston Gully for the murder of
Gilmer wete abandoned to-day, and the
case stands continued on account of u fail-
ure to obtain a jury. .

Negro Murderer Hanged in Alabama,

FLorence, ALA., March 12.—Johoa May-
field (colored) was banged to-day for the
wurder of ‘obe Irvine (colored), in ‘this
place, November 11, 1878.

Another Negro Hanged.

SavANNaH, GaA., March 12.—Dan. B.
Rigerby (a negro) was hanged privately in
Thomasville, Ga., to-day, for the rape of a
respectable white woman in October last.

Charged with Murdering Her Son.
FREDERICKSBURG, Va.. March 12.—Amy
Spencer (colored), of Stafford county, bas
been committed on the charge of killing
her son, twelve years of age, by cruet and
inbuman treatment.
Probable Loss of an Oyster Schooner,
Tomw’s River, N. J., Mareh 12.—The
schooner Martin J. Granger, ovyster-Inden
from Norfolk, Va., for New York, went
asbore near here last night, and the ves-el
end cargo will probably be a total Joss. Her
captain and crew are being cared for by
Life-Saving Station No. 12, at Barnegat.
= iP
an Sugar.
ACTION OF THE REFINERS, PLANTERS, AND
MERCHANTS IN NEW ORLEANS.
New Orveans, March 12.—-The sugar-
refiners, planters, and merchants held a
meeting last night and adopted a preamble
and resolutions protesting against the con-
/demnation of the Ways and Means Com-
| mittee by the New York importers and re-
‘finers. They state that many of thore com-
posing the New York mecting were before
that committee and fuiled to convince them
that the publicinterest required the changes
jo the tariff desired by the importers and
refiners. We appeal, say the. resolutions,
to Congress, through the Ways and Means
Committee, not to jeopardize by adverse
legislation the existence of the Loutstang
sugar industry, affurding, as it does, the
principal source of support to over 3,000,000
people, and thus to advance the prosperity
of the Cuban planter by securing the mar-
ket ty the slave-grown sugars of that island ;
and further, that while existing legislation
on this subject is not adequate to our wants,
because Louisiana {s at present in a de-
_ pressed condition, the sugar todusiry needs
ali the protection that the revenue tariff,
strictly enforced, incidentally affords, still
we acquiesce in it rather than continue the
agitation which tbreatens the changes which
would seriously affect ihe credit and energy
of the producer and tend to ruin an Indus-
try in Louisiane.

The Agitation ia Ban Francisto.

Ban Francisco, March 12.—Everything
was very quiet last nigbt. There were
several ordinary meetings of working men’s
ward clubs, at which the Citizens’ Protective
Uaien and the arreat of Kearney were de-
nounced, It is not learned that Kearney
attended any of them,

Denis Kearney was brought before ibe
Poles Conrt this morning, He stated he
vraag ready and desired neither fury

ee: thot he fot ¢ -

bet

aid a + he

re t
BOYS?

TU BiB So gre eta rab Ras Pe ee ei ee | .
fate Ambassador to Russian, who pmerotioted
the Kuldja ent Was been beheaded, and
that a revolt has broken oat at Pekin.
Ruasin’s Inientions Towards Ger-

dered the collection of diplomatic doetu-
Mentaattestone the hostile datentions of Par.

sin towards Germany. The voltme wiailhan

chakoths propositions to) Fravee for
eonelusion of an an antlGerman allies.
Meclihofts Life Paved by a Chain Mnil.

i:spitting bloed, owing to overwork and
suppressed excitement. Et ts said that tis
life. was undoubtedly saved by ao sbirt of
chain mail worn under bis uniform at the
time of the attempt to assassinate tim. Phe
bullet struck bis body between the rite aod
the hip, wbere the wound would bave been
mortal bad not the bullet been stopped,

CUTICURA.

CURICURA SKIN REMEDIES
J
CURE SKIN DISEASKS AND SCALP AFFEC-

PITH LOSS OF FPATR.

wih ns en or ashen

IRA REMEDIES are marvels of cura-
vally, he CUTIOURA RESOLV ENT
cleanser the and Kidneve, regulates the Sro-
mach and BowelWfenriches and purities the B ood of
Scrofula, Scrofulous, Cuncerous and CBnker Hiivor,
Externally, CUTICURA, a Medicinal Jelly. rev oves
all Seaty Crusts, heals Humor:, Uleers. sores, Itch

jog Piles andall Itching Affections of the Skin and
Scalp. with Loss of Hatro and ts admirably anststed
in every case by that most softening, bealloy. and
exquisitely perfuined totle , bath, and nursery Sana-
tive, the CUTICURA MEDICINAL TOILE SOAP.
Gentlemen say the COTICURA BIR DICINAL PILAY-
ING SOAP Is worth its wetgbt in wold,

The (te
tive power.

PSORIASIS.
NINETEEN YEARS OF SUFFERING AND HUN-
DREDS OF DOLLARS FOR MEDICINE,

Mesers. Weeks & Potter:

Gentlemen,—I have been affileted for nineteen
years with Psorlaris, and have spent bume recs of
dollars for doctors and stuff ihe y call bluod-purtflers.
Doctors did not kuow what to call my di-exce.
would ecratch nights until I scratcbed wyscif raw;
then it would dry und form into sc len, which would

t be scratched off next night and so on. | have
ea completely cured by the CUTICUBA REMK-

TES.

Moat respectfully. THOMAS DELANY.

CONCORD AIREKT, CUSTOM MILL, MEMPHIA,
TENN., Juve 16, 1879.

RINGWORM HUMOR
OF SIX YEARS' DURATION CURED BY THE
CUTICURA REMEDIES,

Measra. Weeks & Potter:

Sirs.—I have hada Ringworm Humor, got at the
rber’s. for six years, which spread ail over my
face, and nesk, and which ttched and irritate
mea @rest deal. have used many remedies by ad-
vice of presician withoat benevt
REMEDIES have entirely cured me. iuktoe every
of humor. my fuce and jeaving if as sunooth wa &
dotiar. I thitgk you again for tbe help it has been to
me GEORGE W. BROWN, Maxon.
'48 MABSHALL 8TRRET, PROVIDENCE, K.
November 29, 1879.

1.,

een

SALT RHEUM
FOR NINE YEARS SPEEDILY CURED WITH
THE CUTICURA REMEDIES.

Meesre. Weekes & Potter:

Gentlemen.—lI have been troubkd for nine years
with Galt Rheum, and have tried every patent medi-
cine (I think) kaown togbe (rade; have also been at-
tauded by phyatcians, bul w.tb no more than a tem-
porary relief, As I bad tried everything, it was no
more them fair that | should try yours, which were
astenishingty effective. Cousnaataly curipg me. Ft ts
two months since 1 quit using the icipe, and 1
am satisied Tam permanentiy cured. Graitude
alone hopes me to tender you my testimonial,

| Most truly yours, GORGE ¥F. OWKN,
: Dealer in Planes and Organs.
GRAND RAPIDS, MIcH., Uclober, 1879.

semen ern

CUTICURA REMEDIES

miamy.
Beruix, March 22.—Phe Governments t!
Post states that Prinec Bistaarehk tis or.

elude the papers bearing Upon Prince Geot tae | ,
| lhiay
Hhe jyataeds

Loxpox, Mareb 12.— Russian advices aiaie |
that General Melikot) ig in bad tendth, and | pons cou tebe at Gan

Your CXericuneé |

Ets. |

ane

00.605 gOCd, 67 OESO, Due, Ove gli.

q gs re NG.
“Tag Fillers.--Common, @9.004
84 Ug BD: OOd, $5.50 84 BOs.

Leaf Fillera fou OB OB SO medtore
86048 BO. BOOd, 7 OBS Ane. @OGEGID eaten win
run cured, $1TOGM@IR.

Wrappers. (owinon, 7. S0nm ek 40
th. 50a ep wood SIAM, fhe,
extra, @1 20013) extra eun-cureidl, none,

RHIGUT GOODK~ MANUPACTU MIG,

Nivokera.— Common, SCA 7810, medium, O10
BIZ pood. lua PIOs Moe, Btu seo

Piitera, Common, 64064. tmediam, @7..28$0
good. BLOGGEI2. Une, nominal.

Wrappera.- Commgpn Ong 3. mediam, ¢1 546
B20 vod, FLOW 4IUY BAGO, fancy, Obi
(OEO5.

MWreropera, Maho - Coramen,
medium, @1LSM G20 5 wood, See B45,
240, cxltra, O4b ooh

WRATERN TORAH

The demand for this claw of gooda is confined
principall? to good old heavy. bodied luge and Ken.
tuckhy Hiver leat, We quote: :

Old tums, #495: Kentucky River tage, 1 0ug
$12; Kentucky Kiver lear, 91 5:a@ln.

mrdlien,

me min,

lowell:

O12 eG.
Bae, #4 0uG8

RICHMOND MARKETS.

PRipay. Maret 12, 1680
Cenhtry rreaae. '

Apples : 804 @ barrel,

Beaswag: 20c. BD

Butter: Prime to chotes yellow, 2506407.; falr
to good, 200 25c.

Vorn Meal: 68c. @ bushel for coantry; 70c. for
city mills,

ried Fruit: Apolee. Bé6c.: peaches. pred,

Sm lSe.; unpeeled, 4: 6c.: cherries, 12 (c. WB;
Dincknerrties, G@Te

Fowls.—Turaeys 0+ lgc, QB: chicacns, 6@ Be.
Bw.; ducks, 10 ile wh. bg =

Agus: In varreis, 9... 10 crates, 10c.

Kevthers Prime tween 4508a To commen
26620. turkey tall, 1L6c, BB. ; turkey wing, L0c.

R
riacaced > 1.256681 36 ®B bushel,

Nays Virals tinothy, S0@etc., chewer, 75
wm Ae

Vuta. Baha. Sc @Bl.

Poteloes: Irwh BW tahel 60@G6Ir.

Pork. —Dreasel, B40. @ bw.

Lard> Covetry. 76074.

Roe: Tbherkic. @ vupnel

Bie beck bévete $S(KEE OU

Luliort SUA ke. We Ww

Weol- anwashed. 50d 38¢.

Washed, 45 /g4B 3

He y bone 4 to Oc. BM ewe tien

abuve rales.
Cemeut, Lime. Fiaster. &c.

Oement: Rosendale, $1.60 B darrei.

Lime: Agricultural, luc. ® oi; Rock aad,
9191.46. according lo Quaotily; Joluter (fnieh-
{az), $21; Glenn's Falls. R5@vvVe.

Plaster: Vunn. $4 76; 08; calcined
plaster, 41 80@61.75

Tar: 1ge aise, 63.25003.50.
ry Geeda.

Prints: Merrimacs. 79°): Merrismact Sbiriag
The. Richmond. 7ige.; Soult Bridge. Tipe, Pacita,
Be. 5 Bt ue. Te. . 8 rages Soirtiug, Te.;
dunnel’s, 'Bc.; Allel's. The Maucnemtes? Bj
Fashonvie: 8 oi Mallery nk, Bo. ; Mal Par-
nie, Bc.; Fliayeon Mourning, Bo.; diapoe Grey,

= Simpson Kinch, Bv.; Harmouy, 36.; Asa-
law

Bot a, 7 |
Brown Cubona fi Manche: ter NS Ae be : Mow
” euire t” Nocabeh a O4 i.

; operon > K.B, 2?

ia” aurmee Ri helt § yc. ; dames Hives
het dames Rive: 4-4 HBL. Fae i one
dard 4-41). 1, Be: treaties tise

wie ville ¢-4 00 W., @ «5

toma BR, Tie: (onesies oo

34
heetiuga: Peppereil 10 6, B¥e,, Androw

4 be.

‘Bairiiacr oud Bhegttage: Mew Yeors

‘Te. mand 1 Se. j vol, ee}
2 BAe. ¢
we H

wy matte, Re
Bakes «i

1%»

hen Lhwee. . Preis of the
€ bere € @. 108.4

t fhe. *
Sous 5

LMNa [fo (f) . sy Fetes
CORN AND FLOUR PMOCEIAN Ca i NEW VO
Wore wares Vareh bu pean Ney Your Mareh -
OP EP PENG. PEP code be Aav. VOR Inateds wgbareds,
: . Dede pes Sb OME GE AEEY quad hort. four more wethyve:
Word ; | ed oe Oa) hye Meet ce goodro eho
an as fale AbD Ta dt Migo td @1& teh Wheat lig ec he ter clo tt
ot 4 ' jostye ongemaded red 1.4)
\ a nd stioh 4 Ler heda were lakeetled ebange , option aR ©
are hee rately metive nop rad Al. ht
eal pte a bide ts wacker mid deatd at @70. for
7 a ’ rermaiienis changed, i
! ! " Meier i by Pe BOSE TE fae eg ail more ac ty
Word on ey ee TWD Davee verter at Taal av] vga a guider ame
; = hes Oe Se rd Pe er eo) 1 bere py OR Hive oteagy and i
an : i Hu liebe doris Blt a Qa ak SE gc 7 itestn quiet ab OF
: a oat - “ah de outs st el SA Sh tachese tyne Hemmer ato able, We
aa ; a: aie 1 4@7 14 Fuanebs good batie ne fair nnsines domeatie Ge
it ~~ i hi ” GH ie taneQer vowa hed. 1B
onNn fife GH Veriebe le wen y geet at Abs P00 spk wer an ver) dali
brup tebe poe Pat er VY hela ow putvate terms Oli ndg. nee ines, 1288
Gir ty des facet whan, H@0 taste Mareel. | fiw wer ane sel: aqek,
Yo ‘ oy ihe ADM tiehebe very pines han : 1
G2 tuehemeoat Boe. total ag iisahrte pone hey nominal al @llo. Bre
OAK. BA buble very wood Cpiing at Be 20 BALTIM
buebe ts He wbepring ata Be | @R ta ede wood apriog Hal risaome, Marcel 32.
wt doe. SO tusbels woot mt 4 4 wwlal POH buctole. | street and wear re ape Ane
06 family, $6. 284867 |
Piour. 04 GO qpOh.. care, 05 2004
: ' fo Patarmes,
eu) Oh Fad0: superfine OF Gages TS. ears omega pl abe are pial
iat woo: Fans O71067 23. faucy erusthegn ree, @) IRG04!
eekie a: ~ —— Oi 4ah, Nel Marvhand, §
winter ped, epet and Mageb
‘ . ae ; gw, '
MARCI 12. -Che following are the quotations wake fig ete a
DAR QO00K Ton RxromT Bie > yellow 66 487e *
Luga.-Cotmot. O40 BO, tinedign 4 ‘enarcyplvards @744&e. .
$4 G0) wood BA. 5OG ED. we brads 60. Kak wm
feaf.-Common, $5660%5 50; igediam, 66.4497 rr ewe ttyeides, Oar.;
good vomlnal: foe, vominal: eatra flue neintnog) | eor= Shoubters. Oe. : ig ane
Afooaming.—Common, @i4q@ Oe — ose ette oleae 1 and -Aiyr. («fee
‘it tere,

aimary to prime, ) SB &api Bs
sof! Vise Vhinbes call at §
Qrm and wore active,
CINCIN?:
Cracpeaswari, March 12
famdy, @°.456n9n, fener
Wheat coerce and Grom at §:
andtigbrs at @¢iyec. Cats
shade MNigher at “Be. Pen
$1165. Lardduilat 67 1.
stead, anatn febr demand ;
9H.40 adres, 0675. Barn
ride. 7P4e.. sbdee, The. WI
Sager Bem: r and uneha
romineg, 09% @4.25 . He
ing, 04.25 4904.64), Dulemer
S40 is
PovuinvitLe, Mareh 98
ehane: dd Wheel Oru at 62:
at 46uga7e ttete Qubet as
@12 80. Lard steady at 7
Sheruliters 64.03: ehker,
eon sivary, ah tl tere, @ hye,
sugar-cused bama, pas ide.

wr. L4>
ev Lov, March 18.)
and: heed lower: Mo». 2 re
No. SB ret Mall, OL. 210d OB). D4
Corn steady ot 36% 7°38
Whiskey brwer at or o8.B
9123. lard quiet at . &
change. Pacoa lowre ; o>

ribs, $7.40, clear sides,
cnica:.
mte4G0, Mareh 13,~—

ehanged, Miners ora, 8B BY
tled, generaily Ligber, aaa
ne $1.43; Wo. 8 Ob

0 Uure felrty setive
. inte delland a

eed \n fair demand at @31
Pega arueyeng at 67.10.
- Witeboy st
a Close, W Brat
stro gund bt
Oates o end

higher,

at 611.00 bad April.
“NEW YORK cor
New Youa, Maren
1160 henpoed tress alg
en-eed barely eivady; soles
gies h se jaa
: 7 ; we,
oli pase on “5

3682961
pleat, Nereus gia
2 aes Obe.od.

_. _ MARIEE anuTr
MINIATUKK ALWANA

ener eee eee, nn seep

PURT OF KICE MOND
ABRBIYV

Steamer Lucille. Priighas
tat LA, Sere at.

die. iL. T. :
ro ~ Mt :
thane, R. wadenburg.?™

@ cLeanno vom

Ame. Roswsa ‘Cobb

Moa ro.a Mak ae a:
gamibs mgrine, and rah
Br Tek

Moet Fema Mapes

“Maurer, Mla. YM I -~Aan Aygaull teelarsderer
iy PACE soa re M4 ae mr i

| : +ks Law bbe lrecsenY, i Gec Lhe

dh vo. | Zz

Lotw0 Ge A Beal TRA Ke toao ; > aL
pt ee YSU EPZ - Z a

.
x

SY be Beene 7
at ye ‘ ayy

Rees,

at)

eR le it ia i a i a a
| McClintock, H.G.; arrested for the shooting death of Gen. Thomas

Holland, in Mobile AL, on 1 Dec. 1849.
Augusta (GA) Constitutionalist, Sun., 2 Dec. 1849

"Ceneral Thomas Holland was shot dead, in Mobile, yesterday,
by H.@. McClintock. The cause of the killing is sand to be

jealousy. McClintock has surrendered himself to the author-
ities."

eRe <

HA li

Deen tw yay

petptnny Mochi, Jo-lE bE &

ae +
. aan
reciept gases

THE DADLY ADV Ib LishilZ, MON LG UME LEO U ARAMA.

PAULINE ICO SHINES

THE MURDER OF ANNIE JORDAN

~. EXPIATED ON THE GALLOWS.

“" mhe Murderess Goes to Death With

*. Glory. in Her Soul—She Creates a

“Scone on tho Gallows—Her Neck

S Was Broken and She Died Pain-
o“lessly — fhe Third Woman Ever

z Hung in Alabama,

‘.: USIGN SPRINGS, Ala., Cct. 12,—Alabama
- has hung a woman.

The outraged majesty of the law has been

+ avenged us far is it ia in the power of the law
> to do so.

It might be remarked ifn this connection

: * that Pauline McCoy met her death like a wo-
.inan, a. shrinking, timorous, nervous wo-
“man. : ;

“The day for the execution dawned fair and

~ '#Old Sol? never shone 60 brightly or sv chesr-

ily. ItJooked more likea wedding thana

uanging moun,

‘Trom yesterday morning at breakfast, at

which she partook of some bread aud meat,

up to the’ hour of her death’ to-day Pauline
‘. McCoy, the condemned woman, ate not a mor-

‘Belot solid food, Last night she called for
some candy and sugarcane, and both were

’. given her and sae ate sparingly of them. She
«refused breakfast this morning saying she was
. being fed on epiritual bread. id

Tho crowd began gathering early in the
morning, ead by the time preparations were
being made forthe dropping of the curtain

‘on Pauline’s lifo there must have been 2,000
people, negroes and whites, in front of the

.- jail. .The condemned remained in her cell aul

morning wearily and slowly pacing up and

< down and nervously clasping her bands aad

-° Or making a sound.

° not care,

2 jor

oo have

comprossing her iips, but not saying a word

About halt past eleven, after the

-the rope had been iried and found satisfacto—
ory, Lwentup to her cell and found her still
* pacing to and fro. Q
~ and her. breath came in ehort, quick gasps,
.. and she talked ia a whimper, amida slowly

* falling rain of tears. She said she had slept

Her hands were quivering

. tolerably well during the night, but waked up

~. peyeral times and said she thought

SOME ONE WAS CALLING HEP,

3 "She was awake long before day-dawa, but did

noterise until about 6 o'clock, She said she bad
othing to say, but that she was ready to go.
She hated to leave the world but it was better

her and . ehe was resigned.
She said ehe would _like to
her picture taken, which request

“could not be granted. Hor mother had not
Deen to see her since Saturday, but she did
Sbe had been well treated by the

— Sheriff and his deputies, and no request of

her’s had been denied.
The religious consolers Were Rev. E. W.
Solomon, of the Methodist Episcopal Church

snk South, and Drake aud Rogers, two negro

*. preachers of the African Methodist Episcoual

* tenced

Church. She believed that her soul was go-
» {ng straight to glory, and that a troop of
ANUELS WOULD BEAB IT FROM": -: -

: the ecaffold. ° Sald sho had been converted in

the right way and deserved her. fate.,).Sie
did not think bard of the Judge who .son-
her or of the jury who
convicted her. She strenously denied having

-. taken anything from tho ee her victim,

. Annie Jordan, and says she bought the jer-

“sey which she had on when arrested, and

which was identitied as tho property of’ tae

. dead girl, and sticks to it that Annie swapped

shoes with her, and that is why she had An-~

nie’s shoes, Says the swap was made because
Apnie’s shoes hurt her alter the continuous

walk from Montgowory to this place, and she |'

wanted something larger, 60 as to get along

more comfortably. :
Pauline denied that hor motive for commit-

ting the crime was rubbery, and stated that

3 the victim did not baveanickel. sho gays

that Anule came to her house here and asked
her to go to Hutauia, and that she consented
to go as far as Three Notch. Just below there

“Pauline wanted to tura back, but Annie would
~ mot hear-to it, and:: ” ore” Ea

* by her any more,

ae THEY HAD AN OPEN BOW,
and when Aunie finally raised her arm to

gtrike Pauline, the latter grabbed her by the

throat and choked her severely, and left her

-, unconscious. ‘ She denied that there was any
. struggle,
- Annie was dead, aud ouly left to get away ba-

and said she did not think that

foro she recovered, 80 as not to be botuered
She also said that she ac~
cused Jake McCoy, her father, of the crime

* through fear.

During the whole of the above conversation

_ the condemned woman kept up her whimper-

ing, and the nervous twitchiag of her hands
had paesod into a sbakiag. She said: “I

» pint a bit skeard, but 1’s got de trembles aw-

ful bad.” i ,
She was dressed in a cheap white Wuslin

gvaist and skirt and had a knot of 4 finer qual-

thee

af thacama matarini tad ina neat bow

{he sunlight on the crest of the hill, she could
not sce soma well rememrered foce, ut her
efforts wee futile, and with a look at the
Sheriff of the utmost despair ever expressed
00 @ human countenance, sde ould
SHE WAS READY,

And the white cap was placed over her
head, end her knees were pinioned
and; the nocss edjust d. J. H. Hae,
a colored Klder of the} Zion (Church was
called on from the crowd ofspectators outalue
to come in and pray with the deceasad and he
did so. During bis prayer, which lasted
about four minutes, Pauline frequently inter-
rupted from under the cap with such excla-
mations as ‘Yes Lord’? and ‘That is the
truib.” The preacher had hardly gotten the
last words of his prayer out of his mouth
when a scene ensued. She commenced 10
sing and talk alternately from under the cap,
but very few of her words or sentences being
intelligibie, Her body

WAS SWAYING TOO AND FRO
aod she would not etand on her feet, boing
held up entirely by the deputioz. After about
ten full minutes of this ,sort of periormacce
she was finally silenced and took herstand on
the trap, still partially supported by two faith-
ful deputies. The noose was then readjusted.
At 1:24 and two seconds a sharp switt t!ash of
light cleaved the air cutting the rope holding
up the trap, aud the latter fel! and the body of
Pauline McUoy, the murderess, was
DANGLING IN THE AIR.

Thereweorea few short ferks of the body
up and dowa, a few short quivers
and thea the node was still | For three inin-
utes Urs, W. K. Jones, H. M. Hunter and 8.
©. Cowan, who were requested ‘to examine
the body, could fiud no pulse beat, although
the heart throbs were very distinct. At the
end of the fourth minute the pulse beat was
gixty-three; atthe end. of the fifth minute it
waa fifty-aevon: was thirty at the end of the
sixth, and theo both the heart and pulse
stopped beatiug and the woman was pro-
nounced dead by the physicians, F
An examination showed that
HER NECK HAD BEEN BROKEN
by the fall. As the body hung in theair a
blood spot crept into tae right hand corner of
the while cap, just over the corner of her
mouth, aod gradually grow larger sad larger
until it covered haltiof the cap. At the end of
the fifteenth minute the bedy was cut down,
placed in the pine coin prepared for it and
the bagging was torn from the wall of the en-
closure, The body was then turned over to
relatives of the deceased, aad will be Luriod
by them to-morrow about five miles from
this place.

THE LAST WORDS,

Thore is considerable doubt about the last
word uttered by Pauline McC y in this life.
This, doubt, was creo.t-d by her
confused jabbering after the cap was put on.
She was heard, however, to utter one’ long,
shrill, piercing scream as the drop fell, and
that. was tho Jast..

A.CHOKEB FROM CHOKERSVILLE.

If there was one thing for which the dead
woman, tauline sicCoy, will have cause to be
remembered, It is that she was a choker from
Chokersville, It13 said that from her infancy
up she haa been a belifgeront negro, and her
favorite method of downing an aiversary was
to grab them around the throat and choke
them until they were blue in the face. She
has been known when only fourteen years of
age to choke a great big woman weighing 200
pounds, and has soveral times narrowly es-
caped murdering her adversary in these en-
counters in several instancos. It is therefore
but natural that this is the firet method sho
should have lit upon to removo poor Annie
Jordan from this vale of tears. But she thas
gene where she can choke nd more, and tho
good people of Bullock one and all say that
ber fute was deserved. . ;

*[ think I bave faithfully and fully por-
trayed the story of the hanging. It wasa
terrible crime and was terribiy exoistes,
A. F. RB.
THE CRIME,
The awfel crime for which Pauline McCoy,
the woman murderer, wont to the gallows and
paid the severest penalry of the law, was com-
roitted on Thursday, the 1th day of last Feb-
ruary, between Three Notch anu Midway, on
the Montgomery & Kufaula railroad.
' Her victim was Miss Anole Jordan, a youn
lady sixteen yoars of age, and the daughter o
Mr. and Mrs. M. V. B. Jordan, of Montyoui-
eery. About ten days before she came to ber
untimely death Miss\Jordan wandered away
from the home of her parents on Martha
streot and disappeared. When last seen in
this vicinily she was walking along the
Montgomery & Kufaula railroad track near
the city limits {n company with anegro girl
about her own age, The distressed
and almost heart-broxen parents spared
no effort to discover her whereabouts, aad
had all the highways leading out of tne city
watched for her, but all this was of no avail,
and nothing more was seen or heard of her
until the dead body was found.

The sudden disappearance of the unfortu-
nate young lady was readily accounted’for
when it was known that she was subject to
fits of mental abervation. She had previously
wandered from home sometiuies, but always
returood untill the last mystorious disappear-
ance, from which death alone lifted the veil of

mystery.

Tho familly had about yielded ail hope of
finding the lost giri when they received a telo-
gram stating tnat she had been found—dead.
That telegram was received on tho 25th of
Feruary, on tho same day the ADVERTISER Te-
evived tha following anecial from Midway.

were identified. Thia state of fects aroused
suspicion and tnally Jed to her conviction.

Tho murdor of Miss Annie Jordan was one

. of the most shocking crimes in all the crimi-

-, nal history{of the State;‘and Pauline McCoy,

Worthan though she wa3, deserved the fate she
met on yesterday at the hands of the hang-
man, . .

Another Instance,

Mr. C. E. Owen, of tho Auvitor’s office, says
that he remembors being present at the haug-
ing of a negro woman in Monroeville, Monroa
couaty, just before the war, for the murder of
an oldman. Her husband v is hung just one
month before for the same crime. Sir, Owen
saw the black cap adjusted, but dil not wit-
ness the exeruliona—hia heart failed him. This
is evidence of a second wowan: having been
hung in Alabama,

f©O THE BOAKDING HOUSES

And Others Who Wish to Entertain
Northern Visitors. ©

The recent epidemic of yellow fever in
Florida will, itis thought, prevent a great
many Northern peeple from wintering in that
Sinte,

The Real Estate Agents’ Journal, which has
a circulation of 5,000 copies in the North and
Northwest, proposes to advertise Montgomery
as a winter resort, and would bo pleased to
have your card stating accommodations, capa-
city and terms,
oneinch space, will cost one dollar.

Callat this office and secure space, or ad-
dress through tho mail, ‘ om |

REAL KsTATE AGENTS’ JOURNAL,
14 Dexter Ave., Montgomery, Ala,

Marriazgesin Alabama,

In Mobile—C. T. Hammond and Miss Nellie
Moroland.

In Gresnville—R. B.
Ella Siniley.

in Talladega—J. M. Scott and Miss Anna
Bauerlin.

In Bibb County—Walter Wallace and Miss
Rutha Chism; Wardy Laagsion and Miss Sal-
lie Chism.

In Cleburne COunty—S. A. Higginbotham
and Miss Mary E. Moore; 4. W. Currie and
Mies Eliza L, Higginbotham; C.,B, Cook and
Miss Naomi Albright. .

In Elmore County—N. B. Sewell and Miss
Axnie S. Hoffinan.

ln Tuecaloosa—Dr. A. L. V. Brokaw and
Miss Julia P. Crawford. ;

In Blountsvile—Ek, M. Cowden and Miss
Vic Young.

Pe Yufala—W. I’. Locke and Miss Lily B.
ogers,
n Conecah County—David Morgan and Miss
Mattie dicLillan; HL. Miller and Mire. Leon-
ora Jd. Williams,

Deaths in Alabama:

In Eufaula, Niss Sailio Malone.

In Mobile, Mrs, Isabella Stewart, Henry

Quesward,

In Selma, Mrs. P. 0. Grimes. '

TnzAttala, Mrs. Melissa Brown.

ja Blount county, lr. McCay, James Heaton ;
John Livingston.

At Evorgreeno, R. B. Long.

In Henry county,'‘Mrs. Betsy Kirtland. '

Near Montgomery, Mra. i, L, Ashley, Sr.,

At Dadoviile, C. Corprew.

‘In Bibd county, Mra. Myra Fancher. -

In Limestone county, John LL. Nelson,
George Lane.

At lorence, Mre, Lucy P. Lehman,

Near Attalia, Miss Willio Rhea.

‘ A New Koad.

Tho Tuskegee News is discussing 2 now road
by way of that town from Americus, Ga., to
Montgomery, and insists upona public meet-
ing. It says: “The citizens of Tuskegee
should at an early date as practicable meet en
masse ot the court houee or some other place
to discuss the practicability of the Americus,
Preston and Lumpkin railroad taking in Tus-
kegee on its way to Montgomery, and otfer-
ing the road some iuducemient to come by

ere,

Woe are willing to boar personal testimony
to the oflicacy and value of Hood’s Sarsapsril-
la, which we have been advertising some

impurities with great succose, It is a prep-
aration of standard merit, made of perfoctly
pure ingredients, acd thoroughly effective in
cleansing and purifying tho eystom. for
eruptions, boils, ote, it cna 49 rolisd upon
every time. Our o%so exporig7e with it bas

it this indorsement.—athbol (ilasa) Tran-
script.

Work Resumod.

Tho work on the sewers has been resumed
andanuuter of hands ere piling upthe dirt
on Dexter Avenue. The work will be pushed
toa rapid conclusion, and it is thought can be
finished fn several weeks. The cause for the
cessation of the work has passed and all is
calm and sereneangain. The contract for the
olber sewers, itis thought will be let out at
an early day.

The Grand Jury.
The Grand Jury was busy yesterday loox-
ing after evil doers, and many anxious faces

The insertion of this card, |

Brantley and Miss |

years in our paper, having used it for hlood |

been inost gratifying, and we 4.9 glad to give |

AMUSE:
MONTGOMERY

WEDNESDAY, (

ny . WA 4!
W. H Powel
In the New ae

— j
THE IVY,

A GREAT SPECTACU:
The Wamous Ivy
- A CAR LOAD OF SP
SEE THE EAG*

An Eagie Carries a Lis
SEE THE KEV.

Ga Zeate on Salv Mondas

AT &

TO MA!

| Change in

ENTIRE.
hey At

* CONSis¢

80,000 ©.
100.- Boxes

“AND A-FULL LINE

(8. 6.

po NO. 126 N. CO?
MONTGOM:

Also. 50,000 £

"Marl3-dly

ALLO,

. Yes, we have for sale 40
and will s¢llinear load !
prices. We can fill an orc
of framing, Sree. foun
fencing aud 12 inch board
in the city.

Also, we havef our gins,
iron safe and & wagon Ss
order, aud a full stock of |
and fresh meal, and will ;
ber quicker than anybody

Our Yard and Millsar.
« Avenue and La:
“< Montgomer)
tar WE GUARANTEL

mugizaem HORT

B. FB. NOB:
- BUY, SELL

Real Estate, and Insure |
dent. Prompt Attenti:
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New Building Corner Con
auv-am = Srd Oftice on 1.

BLK. C@.
Attorney +

MORTGAG

—u

Real - Hatate
aprso-tl 164% DEX!
STCPLEVY Aa TTMES

V.. DRINIT™
ingks ’
Boarding Sch
Néar Louisville, Ky. ~
19 Address BE, L. Meck
‘mevRev iy U.- Duplex, |
villo, Ky. .

‘ER" THE C
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Are Diamond Dyes
in Strength, Purity an

McCORD, Bob, black, hanged Scottsboro, Alas, 3-19-1892.

©) 3

Bes! L ") Ale. 30/9 WEG 2- Kak SD £locd Crlteed lUd2L
Staged PY, pte ae LAe utara

a Chicos, é
Ae

+ t :.

Pr aan aR ance Mt Bets

Wqlliam, black, hanged Mobile, Alabama,

’

May 18, 189.

S=/F-MIY

» VOL. 74: NO. 91.

\ jail before a.
‘ there was a large crowd of people massed

ani KEG IS TER.

ALABAMA, SATURDAY MORN

Wh NEILL BANGED

ror THE MURDER OF HIS WIFE
LIGHT, ©. MONTHS AGO,

“THT MURDERER CONFESSED HIS
CRIME ON THE GALLOWS AND -
DIED GAME.

“Promptly at 10:45 o'clock yesterday

“morning, William MeNeill, colored, was

-hanged in the yard of the Mobile county
jail. Ele thus expiated upon the gallows
the brutal murder of his wife, which oc-

* curred on the morning of Sunday, Sep-

tember 3, 1893. :
The crowd began gathering about the
7 o'clock and by that hour

“arainst the massive black gates of the
jail, anxious to gain an entrance through
the wicket gate, which was zealously
guarded by deputy sheriffs, into the jail
yard.

At §:30 o'clock the representative of
Tho Hegister arrived and found the
street on which the jail fronts, Congress,
literally packed with a mass of black and

white people, so that it seemed almost:
‘impossible for nny one to get within half

“a square of the only entrance to the jail
yard. It looked as though an_ effort to
get in would only result in failure, but

“the reporter worked his way patiently

around to the eastern edge of the crowd,
and announcing that he was a newspaper
man and must get inside the jail en-
closuro at all hazards, he politely re-
‘quested the crowd to open up and make
way for him to get to the gate. The re-
sponse was most gratifying and those
near the gate did the best they conld to
open ranks for the newspaper man, ‘but
- the pressure from the outer edge of the
crowd wag so enormous that it was an
impossibility to open a way near the
ate, and main force had to be used.
Sone unknown friends of the reporter
formed o wedge behind him, and using
lim as the apex of the wedge, forced
him by main strength to the wieket

_ gate, where stood a deputy ready to ad-

mit him. ‘Che great pressure of this
crowd ean be realized when it is stated
‘that one wan had bis arm broken in sey-
eral places during the struggle for ad-
ission. But, with all this, so far as the
writer's knowledge extends, it was a
good-natured crowd.

Once inside it was discovered that,

though it was yet an hour anda half before
the time of execution, there was a goodly
erowd already inside the jail walls. In-
eluded in this crowd was Chief of Police
Burke. Lieutenant Rondeau, Sergeant
{hompson and a detail of twenty men
fo preserve order and render whatever

eg: assistance Shoriff Dorlan might desire.

‘Khe scaffold was erected on the east
side of the jail yard about midway be-

aie ts! Ne tween the jail building and the entrance.

Tt is seventeen feet high from the ground
co the cross beam, and eight feet from
the beam to the platform, which is nine
feet from the ground. The platform is

six by nine feet and the trap four by }-

five feet. Thirteen steps. that supersti-
tieus and alleged unlucky number, Jead
up from the edge. of the brick walk to
the platform. he rope, with the heng-
tun's noose ticd on.one end, hung from

“=“the eentre of: the cross beam and was

fooped over one of the side braces, The
trap door teil toward the south and was
enught by two spring catches, which held

~ it securely and prevented it from bound-

ing back ugpinst the body of the doomed
nimnas he shot through the opening. On
the north side of the seatiold was drawn
taut the rope that held the trap, and
in the support alongside was stuck
tho keen-edyed hatehet that was
to sever rhati rope and launch William
MeNeill. into eternity. The seaffold was
constructed by S.C. Ackridge, and he
did bis work well. It was painted black.

The crowd inside the walls kept in-
creasing as citizens in twos and. threes
who bad made their way throuch the
crowd on the outside were admitted by
order of the sheriff. By 9 o'clock the

‘and Deputy Rube

HLS
Ashamed To Be Seen

Because of disfiguring facial blemishes

is the condition. of thousands upon.

thousands who-live in ignorance of
the fact that in Cuticura Soap is to
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effective skin purifier and beautifier in
the world. It is so because it strikes
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For pimples, blackheads, red and oil skin, red,
rou 4 a with shapeless nails, dry, thin and fall-
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Sold throughout the world. Potter Drag and
Chem. Corp., Sole Props., Boston.

If tired, aching, nervons mothers
%»J knew the comfort, strength, aad vital-
2 ity in Outicura Anti-Pain Plasters,
they would never be without them. In
every way the purést, sweetest and
“<><=_= best plaster for women and children,

several reporters had been to see him
about that; that he had given one of
them a full statement, and he did not
eare to make any further statement. I

remained here all night and left at 5°

o'clock this morning, returning at 8
o'clock. Just when the sheriff called
for him to get ready to go to the gallows,
about 10 o’clock, he asked to be alone
with me and Rev. Mr. Todd. He then
stated that his wife was asleep when be
killed ber and that it was very early Sun-
day morning, about day, or a little he-
fore, when he killed her. He said that
his statement that Marvray was in bed
with her is'untrue and that he was not
there. He said he felt that Marvray was
between him and his wife, and that he
had rather see her dead than to’ see
Marvray or any other man take his place
with’ ber. He said that he would make
this statement to everybody when he as-
cended the gallows, as he had done to

“MARGH TO THE GALLOWS.

At. 10:05 o'clock the line of march
was formed inside MeNeill’s eell and the
party came out in the following order
and ascended the scaffold: The two col-
ored preachers, -Revs.. J. S. Todd and

F Neleon, with Sheriff. Dorlan_be-
tween them, the .murderer, William Me-
sNeill, escorted by Jailer Ind. Laurendine
Dorlan. MeNeill
walked with a firm step and ascended
the stairs without assistance. When he
reached tho sealfold he turned to the
west and faced the crowd, Clearing his
throat he addressed his hearers as fol-
lows in a calm, clear, dispassionate
tons of voice:

“Tirst. T want to thank the jail offi-
cials. Sheriff Dorlan and his deputies,
fer manv kindnesses shown, and, next,
Messrs. Browne and Tonsmeire, who cid
all in their power to rescue me from this
fate. :

“This is the death God iutended me
to die—this is the death God wanted me

tes ot weant ta caw threat oye ave

his visits to MeNeill and the faith that
the prisoner had in God and in his salva-
tion. Fle said his wonderful nerve fully
demonstrated the truth of these facts,

* Rev. J. S. Todd. presiding elder of the
Montgomery district, central Alabama
conference. then told of MeNeill’s con-
fession of guilt. Ho stated that he was’
a life-long friend of the prisoner, and that
MeNeill had held the secret until he ar-
rived, yesterday morning.

Rev. W. H. Nelson then said the
Lord's prayer.. This was at 10:40 o'clock. .
MeNeill turned to those on the seatfold,
shook hands all around and requestedt
every one to meet him in Heaven.

At 10:48 o'clock the rope was adjusted:.
the scaffold was cleared and the black
‘cap was placed over McNeill’s head and.
neck. Sheriff Dorlan then quickly ran
down the steps, picked up a_ sharp
hatchet and by a well placed blow severed
the rope that held the trap door in place.
The trap flew from beneath the con-
demned man and in a twinkling he shot:
through the opening. There was a loud:
report and those who heard it were made
acquainted with the fact that the
prisoner’s neck was broken. MeNeill
hung suspended fifteen minutes, and. then
the body was cut down and carried into
the jail building. *

Here the remains were viewed by the
relatives of the deceased, who had a few
“minutes before taken leave of him in his
cell, and who had witnessed the execu-
tion from the hallway of the jail building.

The sister of McNeill loudly proclaimed
that her brother had been murdered,
saying that they could not find anybody
else to hang and had nicked him out.

THE CRIME

for which William MeNeill paid the
penalty was comuitted between 4 and 5
o'clock on. Sunday morning. September
3, 1893, in an upstairs servant's room at
the then residence.of Captain Starke H.
Oliver, on Conception street, two doors
north of Church street. The crime was
discovered by Alice Milligan, a sister-in-
law of the murdered woman, who went
up stairs to eall her to assist in getting
breakfast. The dead woman was found
lying across the bed, while the surround-
ings gave no evidence of a struggle. Uer
hand lay under her head in a restful
attitude, and but for the blood and the
bloody axe lying alongside it would have
been supposed that she was asleen. The
murderer had crushed a large hole in his
sleeping wife's head on the right pide
back of the ear.

On Tuesday following the commission
of the crime, McNeill surrendered at the
jail, and told substantially the story,
printed above, which he yesterday deniéd
in part upon the gallows. ‘

The indictment was found at the No-
.vember term of the city court, 1803, and

was filed in court on December 2, 1893.

on the following day, after being ont
several hours, be jury returned a ver-
dict fixing the penalty at death. An
appeal to the supreme court was taken
the day McNeill was sentenced, January
27, 1894, when he was sentenced to be
hanged March 9, 1894. The supreme
court affirmed the finding of the lower
court on April 11, last, and re-sentenced
MeNeill to be hanged on May 18. The
governor refused to interfere and the
penalty was paid. Messrs. Samnel B.
Browne and Henry Tonsmeire were the
attorneys for McNeill, and they worked
unremittingly and without hope of re-
ward to save their client’s neck, but to
no purpose.

The jury that tried the case was com-
posed as follows: Clayton B. Clark, elee-
trician, foreman; James Doody, dairy-
man; Charles We-Barnett. clerk hard-
ware store; Robert T. Buckley, dry
goods clerk; Daniel Neinreither, carpen-
ter; Charles P. Horta, shoe clerk: James
I. Brown, canvasser; John P. Sweeney,
grocer; William M. Johnston, coal and
wood dealer; Ben Newbold, carpenter.

Sherif€ Dorlan attended to all the de-
tails of the exeeution himself. He ad-
justed the noose, put on the black
cap, handeuffed MeNeill’s hands
behind him, tied his feet together
with a_ broad band of black cloth, anda
then hastily descended to the ground
and cut the. rope that launched the mur-
derer into eternity. The execution went
off without a hiteh and the sheriff is to
be complimented upon the perfect man-
ner in which he performed | his duty.:

‘

HANGING IN EUTAW. <3. %«3

Eutaw, Ala., ‘ “May 1S—(Special ms

andar’ Eber

\
Paine’s

“O, I'm only a

“T tlidn’t use to

“What can I 4

Just what a we
little nervous she -
tells you she is 1%
longer sew or 1
longer interests, «
noises startle her 5)
cause,

Such are the fi:
nervous weaknes
loving, patient w
have been called
emotional strain;
nurse those dear
tracted illness, ©
their physical pow

During the ma:
wonderful work,
Thelps, Dartmou
these weak, “run
The study of sucl
tration, neuralgi:,
and debility Jed !
velous discovery «
eolery compound.
came eonvineed

TARIFF AL

SATISFACTO
Resa,

By Nathaniel Frazier
Progress Staff Writer

ABBEVILLE-After a four day
trial, the first capital murder trial
in Henry County ended in a con-
viction last Thursday afternoon.
It took the jury about an hour
and a half to convict 26-year old
Willie McNair of capital murder.

McNair was one of two men
who had been charged in the
death of 68-year old Ella Foy Riley
of Abbeville. Mrs. Riley wasfound
stabbed to death in her rural
Henry County home on May 22,
1990. The prosecution, led by
District Attorney Doug Valeska,
contended Riley had been killed
over $20.

According to the prosecution,
MeNair, who was said to be the
victim's yard man, asked to bor-
row $20 and when she refused,
she was attacked. McNair was
charged along with a co-defen-
dant, Olin Grimsley. Grimsley is
scheduled for trial this fall.

Evidence introduced at the trial

indicated that McNair had con-
fessed to the murder four times.

Bach time he has also indicated
he wanted money.

Shortly after the guilty verdict
was announced, thejury returned
to the deliberating room to rec-
ommend a sentence. They only
had two options in a capital
murder case—life without parole,
or death by the electric chair.

Nearly twohours later, the jury
returned and recommended that
McNair be put to death for his
crime. The vote was 10-2.

The final decision on the sen-

Guilty verdict

tence is up to Judge Ed Jackson,
the trial judge in this case.
Jackson can either accept the
jury's recommendation, or hecan
reject it and sentence McNair to

life without parole. Formal sen-

tencing has been tentatively set
for May 17.

"I feel fairly comfortable that
the judge will uphold the jury's
recommenéation,” Valeska. "But
we'll just have to wait and see."

Valeska was one of many in the
courtroom who was pleased with
the jury's verdict and sentence
recommendation.

"I think we've sent a message to
all criminals in Houston and
Henry Counties," Valeska. "That
message is if you commit murder
here, you're going to jail. I'm
pleased with the death sentence
because I think it is a deterrent."

The victim's family members,
who crowded into the courtroom
all week, were also pleased. The
victims daughter spoke to re-
porters afterwards.

"I think justice has been done,”

said Patricia Riley Jones. “I'm
finally glad this is over."

"This (the trial) was hard on all
of our family," said Lynn Riley
Jones, the victim's granddaugh-
ter. "It was difficult to sit here

and see photographs, and blood

stained clothes. It was hard on
our whole family, but I think
justice has been done."

The trial lasted a total of four
days. In that time, the prosecu-
tion called numerous witnesses
to the stand. They included the
first two deputies on the scene,
as well as employees of the state
crime lab.

+ PSS bce th

NG Se Sa i

GERAIS mot me oe,

LE.

“MOBILE, ALABAMA, SATURDAY. MORNING, A

as es 2 ae ag 98

POWDER!

BAKIN

vn on’a hot stove until heated, then remove the
ver'and’s PRP RT a oe

mell-AMMONIA.;. TIP ee Oe We dives

Ff
2 ¢
KET h wed

cao © ae aed ao toe bot

' BAKING POWDER does not’ contain and does not con-
h it is used with the poisonous *Ammonia which enters into the
a **Pearil,’’—Prof. R. W. WITTHAUS, A. M., M. D., University
of Olty ‘of New York, and University of Vermont, June 11, 1884.°
"tains “Ammonia, ‘The use of this drug is wrong. ? Z :
RAKING POWDER does not contain *Ammonia.—CURTIS

of-Ohemistry Starling Medical: Cellege, Columbus, Ohio,’ June

MRE I” SOT ee TRE AGG oR ds inane cea a ei

BAKING is pure und’ wholesome and superior to the Royal
vhen heated yields sufficient*Ammonia to be plainly discovered
R. OGDEN DOREMUS, M. D., LL.D., Prof. of Chemistry Toxt-
‘vue Hospital Medical College,’’ and: Prof. of Chemistry and
ity of New York, May 2%, 1884. ; Z

OM GREAT MEN, ~

eee tae)

M BAKING: POWDER is’a pure, clean, and wholesome | j

“A it:for years in my family.’ ‘It 1s the best.’’” PROF. R. 0.
4e,;Lansing, June 3, 1884. <: : Ke Sebel t , .
\M\ BAKING POWDER is scientifically compounded from
by soa ‘amount of carbonic acid.’’ ‘I'he addition of *Ammonia
‘er PRQE. H. W. SOHEFFER, St. Louis, May 22, 1884.
('BAKING POWDER does not contain *Ammonia. ‘‘'The
umonia,??*"*The addition of *Ammonta to baking powders is
0U8s?=PROF. JOHN M. ORDWAY, Mass, Inst. of Technology,
if va 5 Care | .

BAKING POWDER does not contain °Ammonia.’?’ ‘It ig
‘olesome materials, ‘The Sew edge, Mag mapa Pearl’ Baking
* *Itisa drug.’’ ‘Bread baked wi

‘nedicated bread we have the better for public health.’’—CHAS,
ulst,'Brandon, Vt.; June 3, 1384. ss

iar Seburel dst
a dis rpg, Recerca ina Baking Powder.—JAMES F
rofessor of

TLEY,B.3.,M.D., Chemistot
May 20/1884 0 f erent 10 paged _the Department

BAKING‘POWDER leads the entire list of Baking Powders

wn Qaice B8,Gove nment Chemist.’’—PETEB COLLIER, Ph. D.,
N we 4e Citas ‘ Te, mye yt ® 2 vs a «
ie ee wo CORAL f ga doa ee
oF. AMMONIA > ‘(It was probably originally prepared
ed Stat Fea Oe get oe :,, 8U2lthsad&elt
ees MEDICAL,

“| WHERE

MAGIO.NO MORE _A MYSTERY—SEEN FROM

Be ha J eyo y wx ACROSS-THE' WORLD,
ING BU: LNESS _| ¢, ‘Haroun of Aleppo,’’ sata Sir Phillip Derval,
meta fe a _ | ‘had mastered every secret in nature which
t to Check. Te the nobler: magic seeks to fathom,’ He dis-
time Deposits. covered that the true art of healing is to. as-,

sist Nature to throw off the disease—to sum-
mon, as it-were the whole system to eject the
enemy that has fastened ona part. His pro-
cesses allincluded the reinvigoration of the
‘principle of life.’’

In this the Eastern sage merely anticipated
the practice of the best physicians of to-day.
What life itself 1s, nobody knew then—nobody
knows now. But we have learned something
of the reasons why the mysterious tide rises
and falls. ‘Provided the great organs of the
body are not irreparbly destroyed, medical
science can always relieve, and often save.
Yot no reputable physician now adheres to
the barbarous and stupid processes of deple-
tion, such as bleeding, by which it was. at-
tempted’to cure disease by reducing the
pationt’s ability to resist it. Now a-days we
do not tear down the'fort to help the garri-
son—we strongthen it. os

‘In this intelligent and beneficent work, it 1s
conceded that PARKER'S TONIC leads all
other medicines. As an tnvijorant it acts Im-
‘| mediately and powerfully upon the circulation:
and the organs of dizestion, thus giving
Nature tie assistance shecalls for. Itfollows
that all ailments of the stomach, Kidneys and

vfament Bonds,
eUrLese.) oe
ng Satistactory
iin and France,
‘0 Principal Pa

ooh

3| liver are at once relieved or cured. No other
preparation embodies the sanie qualities or
‘| produces similar results. [t 1s delicious to use,
' and the best known antl-intoxicant. Price
YERTAKERS, | 50c.and$l. Il1tscock & Co., New York.
. - aul6géeocim ' Gs
> .
woche, This BELT or Regenore

Ee tor Ils made expressly for
AER the cure of derange

THE FIRE IS OUT.|

NEWS {FROM 'NEIGHBORNG

Meeting of the Alabama Agri-
-«eultural Association at Mont-
“ gomery—Pensacola’ Military
“+ Sold—A First Bale Contest at
“Aberdeen, Missi...

: [SPECIAL TO THE REGISTER. ]

- Monreomrry, Ala., August 29.—The
most important: proceedings of the Agri-
cultural Convention ‘to-day were a report
onthe Agricultural. and. Mechanical Col-
lege in which , the committee: requested
trustees to: make. it a’ purely technical
school and avail the introduction of-any
course’ that'may’ make it°a rival: of the
University.~ The committee urges farmers
of the.State to support the college.

‘* The Coinmittce on Truck Farming made
a practical report, and advises truck
farmers in the State to join local clubs and
attend meetings of the association, where
they: may consult as to the best methods
for: success. The inexperienced - are
cautioned to begin. on. a small scale at
rst.°’ Half the . failures-..in’-the ‘business
are attributed to carelessness in gathering
and packing for market...‘ The Committee
believes truck: farming may.be“made* very
profitable... 10000 293s Sika yy oe

The next report,: on improved imple-
ments , recommends thorough preparation
of land for using them and advises farmers
in the State to purchase them. °- Saas

Quite an interesting report was made by
the Committee on the New Orleans Expo-
sition. Farmers are requested to aid
Commissioner Pratt’s agents in the coun-
ties by collecting products for the Exposi-
tion and raising funds to aid them. . No
appropriation being made by the Legisla-
ture, the committee advises "the appoint-
ment of acommittee to negotiate a loan
not over $10,000 to meet the expense of the
arranging an agricultural, geological and
mineralogical display at New Orleans.
After the Exposition the colicction
canbe’ removed to the Agricultural: and
Mechanical College as permanent property
of the State. This special committee is
instructed to memorialize the. Legislature
to make an appropriation to pay said loan
to said committee. Local clubs are urged
to use every effort to accomplish this pur-
pose.

The discussion which followed showed
the general interest in this matter. Com-
missioner Pratt addressed the Convention
on the Exposition, as did Judge Betts.
Governor O'Neal being present-was:‘intro-
duced and gracefully: ‘responded. ~ ‘The
Committee on “Fruit:Culturey reported’ its
regreti:on: account of the little attention
given to’ this ‘branch and: advise ‘the
more-gencral raising of fruits. The com-
mittee warns farmers against fruit-tree
peddlers. . A resolution was almost unan-
imously adopted denouncing the crop lien
law as hardship on the farmers of the State,
and urging the representatives in the
Legislature to use their influence and vote
for the repeal of said law, to gointo im-
mediate’ effect. The Convention is an in-
telligent and tine body of men. The at-
tendance is large, and great interest pre-
vails.

The afternoon proceedings of the Agri-
cultural Convention consisted mostly of
resolutions of thanks. The convention
adjourned this evening to meet again in
Montgomery in February next.

"PAR GREYS RETURN HOME.

Nothing definite here to-night, so far,
from the Louisville drill, and deep interest
is felt as to the result. The friends of the
Greys are coutident they jill get a prize.

Later—News received here to-night leaves
no doubt that the Greys won the second
prize of $1,500 at Louisville. Sky rogk-
ets are being sent up and there are gencral
manifestations of rejoicing. The train on
which the company is expected to arrive,
is an hour: and a half late.
be received at the depot and escorted to
the armory by local companies.

The boys will.

several occasions previous to the murder
he had given evidence of being a violent
man.° .During his’ confinement in jail he
made several desperate attempts to effect
his escape. On one occasion ‘he attempted
to burn down the jail, in the hope of
making good his’ escape in the’ confusion
caused by the ire, but his purpose was
thwarted by the watchfulness of the jailer.
The execution took place in‘ the jail yard
and was witnessed only by the required
officers and press representatives.. Soon
after'.10- o’clock the doomed? man was
brought out and placed on the scaffold.
He declined to make any statement as to
his“ crime: and:said that .he ‘did not
care’ to'.-have his -mind-~drawn:'off
from his. thoughts’ of the. furture.
As he ~ ‘stood: on» the:?4+ scaffold
his’ body swayed to:and fro in‘cadenced.
motion,.and he kept humming ‘something
which was cutirely unintelligible to>the
auditors. The drop fell at.twenty-five
minutes. after ten and his neck was broken..
A slight-contraction of the muscles was seen
and the body hung motionless; _ In twenty
minutes his body was cut down and turned
over to his relatives. is a3

“CAMDEN, ALA. /

JOUN KELLEY, THE NEGRO FIEND, LEGALLY
EXECUTED. ...: ie
~T“TSPECTAL TO VUTIS KECTETER.]

CaMpDEN, August 29.—The?crime for
which John. Kelley died to-day was’ com-
mitted on the 15th of June,:1882. He
raped a ‘little white girl at that time be-
tween six and seven years of age. He left
the country for awhile, but returned
shortly “afterwards and openly defied the
authorities. Several attempts were made
to arrest him without avail; on one occa-
sion he was wounded: in the foot with
squirrel shot, but succeeded in mak-
ing his escape. He returned again to
his old haunts, and sent word to: the
sheriff not to come after him any more,
that he intended to die before he was
taken, and was prepared. Deputy Sheriff
Benson immediately summoned a posse
consisting of’ Walter RK. Boyd, : Harris
Adams and Robert McCracken and went
after him determined to bring him back.

dead or. alive. .They surprised him
in -his house ‘at’ ‘. night and
took him after’ -a. desper-

ate resistance, during, which he received
two loads of buckshot into his body;° he
came very near killing Mr, Benson, firing
at him through the door at about -ten feet
distance.» Mr. Benson was saved by a
post, the whole load going into it.. Kelley
was desperately wounded, but'was placcd
in a wagon and bronght to jail. He re-
covered completely, though he kept. the
five buckshot in him... ie

The negro had two trials and the benefit
of an appeal,-.all of- which legal - proceed-
ings consumed two years of time. He as-
serted his innocence at the trial and on
many occasions thereafter,

His execution was a quiet one and was
promptly carried out at the hour ap-
pointed, His neck was broken by the drop.

SELMA, ALA.

JIM M’KELROY EXPIATES HIS CRIME ON THE
: SCAFEOLD.
(SPECIAL TO THE REGISTER. J

Seioma, August 20.—Jim McKclroy, the
negro wife murderer, was hung to-day.
He murdered his wife near Orrville last
fall. He was soon’ captured and tried.
Qlis only personal plea of defence was
made when the judge was about to pass
sentence upon bim, at which time he said:

‘*T do not think ‘you ought to sentence
me to die. I was forced and driven to
commit the crime. I did it because Isim-
ply could not help it. Seeing and know-
ing what I did of my wife had made me so
mad .that [ was crazy _and ¢id not know
what Iwas doing.” That’s all I have to
gay."

On the scaffold to-day he refused to talk,
and met death tirmly. The execution was
void of uny exciting incident. eke a

ACCIDENT AND CASUALTY. -

CYCLONE IN DAKOTA,

Mepsox. Dakota, August 29—Noon.—A |

Haffa
ly kill
A STE

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trans!
the hi
landi:
and f)
The \
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here,

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been .
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scribe

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graph
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GR
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sentin
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trict,
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comm

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point:
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terday

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ALABAMA — Par

cloudy to unsettled tv
and Thursday,

Y, ALA, WEDNESDAY

MORNING, SEP TEMBER 18, 1933

8 PAGES

Pri

AMP esident To Be
Asked To Raise
rice Of Cotton

OLUMBIA, S. C., Sept. 12.—(P)—A
“juthwide drive’ “immediately” to lift
# price of cotton to a “minimum of
q cents a pound” was launched here
slay by Gov, Blackwood, farmer, and
; ap ‘icultural leaders.

wiThe plan was to mobilize delegations
members of Congress, farmers, and
hers in all the cotton States to move
" Washington and “appeal directly to
* President to save the Southern cot-
farmer.” The appeal to the Presi-
it is to be made next Monday.
smergency gsppenrinc és including cur-

pce “by the Government were aged in
Mresolution adopted at a farmers’ mass

Meting here.

f\pproximately 2,000 South Carolina
‘a mers, official representatives from Ala-

y ana, Georgia, and North Carolina, U.

MSenator E. D. Smith,. chairman of the

ts “pee agricultural committee, State
i ‘mslators, and others participated in the
Ba Hbting.
, Pramfterwards, Gov. Blackwood _ tele-

ach) Hphed governors of the 10 other prin-
Bae at fal cotton-producing States request-
# them to call mass mectings Saturday
J adopt similar resolutions. He also
i a ked them to name delegations com-
fdsing thelr United States senators, at
‘ast 10 farmers, and others to meet in
i@ashington Monday and make the vie
ay the President.

pliunstall r oised

' Repeal General, Hebiever:

Isn’t Ready To Say He
Will Run For Governor

By ATTICUS MULLIN
H Col. Alfred M. Tunstall, of Hale,
i ig speaker of the Alabama house of repre-
pp airvenating and veteran legislator, is still

| seriously eonsidering: making the race
for governor of Alabama next year and
discussing the matter Tuesday with the
di writer made it plain that it would be
sometime before his mind was definitely
made up either way.

“It is too early to make an announce-
ment for governor,”.said Col, Tunsta’l.
“The people of Alabama are not yet
di ready to give consideration to this im-
4| portant office. I have been gratified at
the insistence of many of my friends
i that I make the race. I still have the
au matter under consideration and at the
@ proper time will announce my decisions.
I cannot say I will run and I cannot
say I will not run,’

It has been known for somctime that
triends of Col.) Tunstall,.over Alabama
\naye urged him to make the race for
4adigovernor. In fact, they have been in-
‘Msistent, about it ever since the voting in
masa in which Alabama entered the re-
peal column. Col. . Tunstall managed
that campaign and did it without a bit-
No scare were mace in that
both sides were satisfied
way it was conducted. There
were no personalities, only the issue of
‘epeal against repeal. Col. Tunstall
ook the position early in the campaign
hat the issue was not one of the re-
Mrn of the saloon, He announced his
malternable oppositicn to the return of
(he saloon and the campaign was con-

4 oes

= oe 8S!
a

he return of the saloon. He appcinted

fshe 18th amendment but did not afovr
ch Vice-chairmen of the campaign edi-

». .
AR haiucted along those lines, Col. Tunstall
‘Tyo rought to his aid in the campaign a
wag number of men who’ favored repeal of
$

Seibels To Ask
Death For ‘Two
Negro Ruffans

Perpetrators Of Attack On
‘Court Street Extension

Trapped By City Police
One Confesses All

- Jury Called For Friday;
Tnal To 9 Start Monday

ably assault to murder will be
against George Meadows and Frank
Jackson, negroes, Friday in a called ses-
sion of the Grand Jury, in connection
with the robbery and assault of Robert
Webb, Montgomery salesman, and a girl

companion on the Court Street exten-
sion a week ago, . ‘ :
The call for assembly of the Grand

Jury was issued by Judge Leon McCord,
of the Montgomery Circuit Court, yes-
terday upon request of Solicitor W. T.
Scibels, following Meadows’s confession
in which he named Jackson as his ac-
complice,

Meadows's confession was obtained at
7 a.m, yesterday by Officers A. J. Coker
and Thomas H. Goins, of the Montgom-
ery Police Department, They arrested
Jackson within an hour after Meadows
had confessed,

Motorscouts Coker’ and Goins last
night revealed they obtained the “tip”
that led to the negroes’ arrest from, a
negro whom they had given . some
change to participate in a card game.
The negro, they said, overheard one of
the players remark that he intended to
assault a white woman.

The work of the officers, two of the
younger men of the department who laid

eside thelr motorscout uniforms and

donned plain clothes for the job, won

strong commendation from Col. W. P.

Screws, police? commissioner, who de-

clared it was an “excellent piece of

work,” .
Later in Jackson’s presence, Meadows

(Turn To Page 2, Col. 2)

Open Revolt Of
Senators Looms

Several Party Leaders In

Congress Resent Choice
Of Republicans For. Jobs

WASHINGTON, Sept. 12—/P) —

Smouldering resentment over patronage,
directed especially toward Secretaries
Ickes, Perkins, and Wallace, has brought
a group of Democratic senators to the

the Roosevelt administration in the com-
ing congress.

A round ‘robin, addressed to President
Roosevelt, was said privately by several
senators who had signed it to be either
somewhere on Capitol Hill or en route to
the Chief Executive, if not already in his
hands.

In addition to this protesting missive,
it was understood a personal Ietter had
been .sent to the White House by one
of the party’s stalwart. supporters, as-
sailing the cabinet trio for “sppolnting |:

Special Session Of Grand :

tndlotmentt alleging rob robbery and prob-| °
sought | '

point of planning open rebellion against |.

In Congress Runoff

A. H. _CARMICHAEL

Carmichael And
Malone In Race

Downs And RobinsonWin
In Birmingham Election;

Congress Runoff Oct. 3

Voters in two Alabama cities and in
one congressional district turned to the

}polls yesterday to decide off-year con-

tests for city commissioner, congressman,
and municipal utility ownership.

In the Eighth Congressional District
special Democratic primary to nominate
a successor to the late Representative
Edward B. Almon, A. H. Carmichael,
Tuscumbia attorney, and Judge B. L. Ma-
lone, of Decatur, were forced into a run-
off to be held Oct. 3 when neither ob-
tained a majority of the votes cast. State
Senator R. H. Walker, of Athens, was
third in the field of four, and Clarence
Wells, Huntsville attorney, trailed the
ticket.

At Birmingham, W. O. Downs, former
sheriff of Jefferson County, was nomi-
nated as associate city commissioner, and
State Representative Lewey Robinson ap-
peared to have won the second seat over
the two incumbents in a runoff primary,
according to complete but unofficial tab-
ulations.

_ Tarrant City voted nearly 3 to 1 in
favor of municipal ownership of an elec-
tric lie)t plant and distributing system,
empow Sing the city council to acquire
and operate electric power plants.

Returns from 161 of the 227 boxes in
the Egihth District gave:

Carmichael 5,261,

Malone, 4,667.

Walker, 2,339.

Walls, 1,921.

The remaining 65 boxes. which prob-
ably will not be tabulated before this
afternoon, do not contain — sufficient
votes to give either Mr. Carmichacl or
Judge Malone a majority, so the runoff
primary is mandatory.

The Eighth District eonsiniaes Colbert,
Lauderdale, Limestone, Lawrence, Mad-
ison, Jackson, .and Marshall Counties.
A total vote of nearly 20,000 had been
anticipated, and the 161.boxes, tabu
ed above. include Lope thang 4a
lots. My ahs

| Republicans Instead of Democrats”.*-in

iP rOnmnes,

Two laile

In Break-l
Big Crime

Rudolph Tucrnit
Tom Sandwic’
For Burglary.

Bail Set A

Officers Claim-1
Broken Theft
Operating In!

An alleged theft rin,
portions, the ramificat'
reached into Montgomei
las, Bullock and Geney:
which has been in op:
extended period, was beli:
county officers here lasi
been definitely broken }
Tom Sandwich, 48, local
Rudolph Turnipseed, also
charges of burglary and

The final arrest in th
uncovered to the present
pected by officers to be
Elmore County. One o:
merchants of that count
involved through the
stolen merchandise,

Sandwich and Tutnh
charged with burglary ai:
on four warrants, signed
ley, Moses Rushton and
Ramer, and Sellers Davi
Whatley operates a gene
store, Rushton the Ranic
Trotter a drugstore, D:
cral store and also is {i
Pike Road _postoffice.

New Arrest Es

Sheriff Sam Stearns +
expected arrest of the
merchant today, and’ in
cent seizure at Malvern,
of Newt Newsome and .
by Sheriff J. A. Driver,
those involved in the
would have been bre
Both Newsome and MchN
in this county in conne
burglary of two Ramer
Boswell, and one at Pii
Grant, who was also arre
as well as McNealy, we:
to be fugitives from Fle

The trio were scized b:
deputies after an auto
which several shots we
flecing men. Their car «
been loaded with weari:
tols, a high powered rif!
and stamps, and. a set
tools.

Sheriff's Deputies Sell
of Montgomery County,
Newsome and McNealy
charges of robbing four
neva County authorities
up their prisoners,

Sandwich and Turnip
arrested here yesterday
tives Dennison and
turned over to the’ sheri
The detectives, together
Deputies Sellers and Mo
of Police Norman Stan!
have been cooperating «
several months in an ef
robberies and apprehenc
tors.

Loot Recove

A large quantity, ott!
chandise has beerag 4
{ff's deputies.» «
It 4s undanny i
Ors: Reese Bis if

©" gon,

iS “merely to gather
ry gol: Parties.

acne INtYodUctar ol an amend-
inent by G. 5S, Meloy, of the A. A, A,,
father of the Government's — standard
ew PTading plan, and was taken up by Bob
“Snowden, Arkansas planter and ginner,
who presented another amendment inu-

serting the grading plan in buying con-
wrect forms, ‘
‘The proposal for a marketing agree-

ment was first made by Harry D. Wil-
commissioner of agriculture of
Louisiana.

D. S. Murph, of the A, A. A., who con-
ducted the hearing, said no decision was
«expected from the meeting—that it was
views of interested

44, 4

OPENING EXERCISES HELD
ENTERPRISE, ALA., Sept. 12,— (Spe-

Moe cial)—Opening exercises of the Coffee
, , County High School and the Enterprise

- &chool were held jointly in the city
$chool auditorium Monday morning,

-- FEW men achieve their goal with-
. out vitality and drive, And so many
are held back from their best by
# common ailment: constipation,
it dulls energy, often*causes heads
ches, sleeplessness. It takes tho

*. vim out of your day’s work.

Correct constipation by eating a
delicious cereal. Laboratory tests
show Kelloge’s ALL-BRAN supplics
“bulk” to exercise the intestines,
and vitamin B to tone the intestinal
tract.

. The “bulk” in ALu-Braw ig
similar to that of Icttuce., Within «
the body, it becomes a soft mass,
which gently clears the intestines
of wastes. How. much better than
using pills and drugs—so often,
harmful.

Two tablespoonfuls daily will cor
rect most types of constipation. If

: not relieved this
way, see your
doctor.

ALt- BRAN also
has iron for tho
blood. At all gro-
cers. In the red-
and-green package,
Made by Kellogg in
Battle Creek,

SIALLBRAN
|) >

HELPS KEEP YOU FIT
"(RSTO SR AIC STN RRA,
$5.00
had

Round Trip to |
JACKSONVILLE

SAVANNAH

} Some money from Webb's pocket,

The public hearing ¢ { tov’ the af-
ternoon after the operator: had had time
to file exceptions to the «ode as pro-
posed last week by Geu. Hugh S.
Johnson, administrator of the NRA—
which objections were Mberal In number
and lauguage—brought « speech by
Generri Counsel Donald Richberg and
& call for two committees of nine each
from the operators,

For the Alabama district, Forney

‘Johnston was appointed on the
committee on general provisions of
the code and D. A, Thomas was ap-

‘ pointed on ‘the committee on ad-
ministrative provisions, Both are.
frora Birmingham,
The committees met tonight. Wage

scales and differentials among districts

are to be discussed after the romainder
of the code has been drafted.

SEIBELS TO ASK
DEATH FOR TWO.
NEGRO RUFFIANS

(Continued From Page 1)
made a full confession. Solicitor Scibels,
Officers Goins and Coker, Capt. Ralph
iting, Sheriff Sam Stearns and Com-
missioner Screws, also were present,
- - Jackson, however, denied all knowledge
of the crime,

Upon the return of indictments it is
probable that the trial of the case will be
set for Monday. Yo

Solicitor 'Scibels indicated he “would
ask for the death penalty in both cases
if both are indicted for robbery. The
penalty for conviction of assault with in-

tent to murder, or assault with intent to |.

ravish is from two to 20 years,

Meadows, who is 27 years old, told how
he had gone to Jackson’s home on Oak
Street near Fairview Avenue and not far
from the spot where the robbery and as-
sault was attempted, and called Jackson
from his home. ¢

He said he told Jackson to get his.

pistol and “let’s go out and
can’t find something,”

From Jackson’s house, he said, they
walked to the spot near the Court Street
extension where they awaited their vic-
tims. Presently, he said, a ‘car with a
couple in it came along and stopped a
short distance from. them, and they made
ready to rob the occupants, As they
drew close to the ear, however, it moved
on off and they withdrew to wait
another car,

In a short while, he sald, the car in
which Webb and the young girl were rid-
ing, drew along and stopped. He and
Jackson, he said, came up from behind
the car anc ordered them out. They took
and
his watch, he said. Webb made no effort
to resist, Meadows said, until one of
them ordered the girl to go some dis-
lance away into the weeds. Webb fought,
he sald, and they both fell to the ground,
Meadows said he fired his revolver one
time while Webb held him on the ground,
He said both were prevented from as-

see If. we

‘| saulling the girl.

An interesting feature of the confes-
sion revealed tnat the dogs from Kilby
Prison which were put on the trall evi-
dently ran. the trail of some other person
as the trail pursued by the dogs led in a
direction opposite from that which the
negroes took. Meadows said they went
through the field to Goode Street and
then to their homes on Oak Street. They
did not walk in the road, they said, be-
cause they were afraid the police might

for:

Pa OPC CTOR, a a hh sdrs
ihe decisive battle

and that many of their comrades made
the supreme sacrifice, the Montgomery
Rainbow men after paying tribute to the
memory of the sacred dead, declare’ in
their resolution, that those who were
wounded and disabled in the service
have their next immediate considera-~
tion,

In accordance with the provisions of
the resolution, the chapter elected the
following to compose the special com-
mittee which will have charge in the city
and county of Montgomery, of finding
work for Rainbow men who are out of
employment: Col. Leo Strassburger, Maj,
Joe Dickerson, Soll Monsky.

Dallas Will Seek
| Loan Of $600,000

Officials of Dallas County yesterday
announced to the Alabama Advisory
Board they would fle a focmal appli-
cation for a loan of $600,000 for re-
surfacing roads in the county, The
board discussed with the delegation tech-
nicalities incident to such an applica-
tion,

Appearing from

Dallas County were
William Vaughan, Probate judge; Ss, C.
Blanton, R. M. Rountree and F, W.
Moseley, commissioners and RE. W. Pet-
tus, chairman of the State Democratic
Executive Committee.

L. A. Moseley, mayor of Uniontown,
Stanley White, councilman and L. §.
Harwood, city engineer, discussed a pro-
posal for a loan of $6,000 for improve-
ment of waterworks.

A delegation from York appeared to
discuss informally with the board a plan
for a municipal light plant at York,
and announced that they would spon-
Sor an election to authorize a municipal
system. Those who appeared were J.
H. Altman, H: Hoot, J. G. Demps-
ter, G. C. Nichols and ©, B, High-
-tower, Jr,

‘catch them with their revolvers. Meadows
said he didn’t hear the dogs that night,

Meadows denied that he and Jackson
had perpetrated other outrages in that
section,

Police learned, however, that Meadows
and Jackson had held up and assaulted
members of their own race, a 15-year-
old negro girl being among their recent

victims, and the negroes in that section
were eager to give the police their coop-
eration.

Officers Coker and Goins, following
the arrest of Meadows Monday, found
hidden under Meadows’s house the watch
that was taken from Webb, Meadows had
also hidden the girl's underwear in the
chimney with his revolver and several
women’s pockethooks—souvenirs of other
outrages,

Jackson’s revolyer also was found hid-

den in the chimney of his home.
Until these articles were found
Meadows maintained his innocence.

When shown Webb's watch, however, the
negro wilted,
“T’m guilty,” he said.

WEATHER FORECAST
O. 8. Dopurtment ot Agriculture,
Bureau

Weather

Observations taken at 7 p.m. 90th me-

ridjan time, Sept. 12, 1933.
5 :

n | E n 5

vA = Z a

ie) « oO

A |Rjz oS 8 dfs 3

<A 4 g a 2 ii

’ . “a “4s a - ~

a aly sg a a Aw 1s @
- i, i * 8 + gee I* §
Apeoln 82 99 .,.] Merfdan 44.92

ib GeV,

of the World War, ~&

-oavietsain the woo
Simmesport and Tc

PIKE GINK

TROY, ALA., Sept
E. Mclendon,. counts
nounced today that 5.
were ginned in Pike «
1. This compares wit:
in the county up t:
in 1932, |

“This :

aid to

HERE’S

tories, ex)
Certain el:
Toilet So.
ments—ci

vals, bub «4 message} a $40,000 short term Joan Wea ant ee
pe : ah

a TAN ea hei oe he Bie and Company to pay interest ¢ bonds 7
SPUR SN EY Lee 12 was not coming which falls due !n a short tine, ‘The : R d
Soni EN : Last Inites [ oday

: city will pay 6 per cent interes! on the

Bt on SA supposedly sent by | joan, which will probably be repaid be- |.
Bigyurers and expected ) fore Christmas. -F . M S d
~ |For Mis. Samror

yea el -indberghs expected A °
Poors exr*s| Meadows. Dies (lees oe
arewene es Were not disclosed. noe 4) ..'The funeral for Mrs. Kate Park Sam-
ae Bee edd ry ay Kalb P . Ch « | ford, wite of Judge William HL Samford,
4 of Lindbergh js on of the Court of Appeals who died yes-
maith 8 ] Y yison alr -day morning at her. home on College

Street, will be held at 10 a.m. today

Hat Journal said the | . _—__—
Accen cmerging from | Less than two months after he robbed from the First Baptist Church. Dr.»
Fepeg hy cst end of Paris,| Robert Webb and his young woman John W. Inzer, pastor of. that church,
& fe.) Acouple declined to| companion at the point of a pistol, and | and Dr. Edward G. Mackay, of the
ary aia . 2. \ attempted to assault the latter on South First Methodist Church, will officiate.
jet ily : aie Court Street extensicn, George Meadows The body will be carried through the
‘rrench town where | 27-year-old negro, expiated his crime. country to Troy for burial.
: gndbergh were; re-| yye died in the electric chal at Kiley Mrs. Samford, widely known and be-
: -yesterday, is AD- | prison early today. 4 “4 loved throughout the State, had been
west ‘of: Paris, The negro was led into the death: in. declining health for many months.
Aine. ON ARG chamber at 12:05 and “strapped in the ‘She was born in Troy, Oct, 29, 1869,
are neg° midst of a pic- | chair. The first shock ‘was turned ou a daughter of Robert H. and* Aun”
Ma yict divectly across | ot 12:10 and lasted 30 seconds. | The Park. She ‘and Judge Samford were. ~
ie ACRE ioe : : married in the First Baptist Church at.
rt. which sustains 9. av : “" | Troy, Dec. 18, 1890: and moved to Mons~-
and 12:14 th hysicis ro~ ’ ,
a traffic. Numerous ne the aaah hg ead yiclan gomery in October, 1909.
7 to be seen. there. Just before being strapped _ to ‘the |. She was an active member of ths,
, wa deathchair Meadows was asked if ‘he First ' Baptist Church and for five years
pe Who wish ‘to make 2 statement, He replied ‘was president of the Alabama Baptist —
egro | that “Frank was With “nie when I did riage se a ae . capewed
it.” Thos ’ is oa a ;
Those were } last words, and he -by three sons, Frank P. Samford, Bir-

al. a line referT Fre kson; all Acs
. Gasol “ited referred to rank Jackson, Se ae a mingham; Yetta G. Samford, Opelika,

ye 2 PMA gare ARI ay Saige gy Lee et eens Se - id

Fas 4 complice in the crime. ii ree Ae
ed to steal some The small execution’ room’ was filled evi: pron Lap tt ’ ager ngs
peor Abgtranc’s 2 ta capacity with newspapermen, prison’| O02 Sa ater, Katherine, the Wee i
fits rane’s automobile Ajbert J. Smith, who is connected with
SV Aeetkephenson Street officials, and policemen.” Robert Webb | Alberk wee nk pot art :
tte Rh NeTISO02 ras - those wh it h _, | the State banking department; three
eeeeaalive this morning was among those who W nessed the ne :
B mee eis nanenedl bys gro’s execution. by eke ek oor eae ee grandsons and four granddaughters. One
ee Pie. cae at the |. 22° Wwctrocution of Meadows supplied reat Ne Conner Samford, died
i at the would-be a climax to an example: of swift justice | Out of res eae .
11 se tier her he beginning with the Megro’s arrest on Out of respect for Judge Samford, the
Sa A prcien May) : nat "| Supreme Court and the Court of Ap-
Oe eg WS § Sept. 12 by Police Officers T.. H. Goins | Asis W djourned yesterday Member
— . she and A, J. Coker, and his confession 0 Pr nthe | ‘will tester ary pal
4 Bee cet the crime that was perpetrated. shortly | Rep aee ; ages 5 nt
fs a Ban dits | etter midnight on the morning of Sept. bearers this morning. They are Supreme
a are . |¢. Frank Jackson, the alleged accom- Court Chief Justice John ©. Anderson,
h 190 000 plice of Meadows, sntaped = % similar Lucien D: Gardner, William-H. Thomas,
ain 5 ; | Virgil Bouldin, Joel B. Brown, Arthur»

’

death in the chair when his attorneys “aie : Rg
filed an appeal to the’ Suprénie° Court patio easels rete

6b, ‘26—()—Four only four days ago.”
pegne “Security” State Last Tuesday Gov. ‘Miller arid’ the and James 8. nee
aS eaing ‘time’ today, | pardon poard refused to interfere and & ii : —— i oe ed Aba
i a Stes $10,000 and cz- | preparations ‘for ‘the’ electrocution | of es a Bue rab ing pine
io vrs Meadows were made. : ret n the family lot at the Troy ceme~
tery. The Leak Company will be .
charge.: : ,

na } > labama Pledges Loyalty . Many Honduras Towns
BS In Huge Parade At Dothan : Threatened By Floods

Ay Rue TEGUCIGALPA, HONDURAS, Oct. 26
6 ye egrs UP)—Destructive floods which started

a2:
ee MULLIN
bog Oct.” 26,—Father

Wednesday in Northern and Northwesteri
Honduras continued today to menace

} ; jad 2 . » help out. many towns and plantations and flis-
a, , hg : . Saati idode
inst ‘old’ depres- Dothan - es “Montgomery - in. the Tut: CoO ad nd 4 Stee
reat tO go forward to number of flyats\ in the parade. There ; , “s
aig yen were 29 fldats and: they -were peautiful ‘patches Yc! A CAosseson farms
t parade in & and beautifully expressive. Cold north- The Blapc a reatered 10 1100 4
froiytidco village, near Jojea in

errCca
d to dampen the argor
rthern zone, bridges were washed

WM jie, Dothan had a east winds faile
yom

4 city of 25,000 peo- the people or to temper the blas¥s/
i440 people swarmed | the various bands taking part (1
#) the bands, floats, | parade.
Yaa truly inspiring| Of course
ueild have gladdened that the Shrine band and bugle ‘corps
4 Roosevelt and the | fon. Montgomery had_ a le ing part.
who are backing | Dothan numbers many men in Alcazar
ma bigger country. Temple and the Shrine boys. were at
Wana was here today | home in their own territory. ‘
To cap ‘the climax of the dey John FH.

borers on plantations near La Curve
ang San Juan {led from the danger ZOMC
before the quickly-advancing flood war
ters of the Ghamelecon River. All for-
eigners «were reported safe.

Widespread damage was reported in.
Lalima, and inhabitants were greauly

the writer must)

gets

ans a suc- Bankhead, junior United States senacoy alarmed * because ‘ef the rise of the

ne as by of Ajlabuma, and Jienry Steagall, a,lcad- Chamelecon. Banana plantations in
from Alabama, were | nearby arenas were flooded by the rivet.

avagre sat Dothan | er jin Congress
with less than fA main events at a speaking at the Ciby The government building was in immi-

(Turn to Page 2, Col. 4) nent danger.

Wrest ise metropolis /) }
a et Bi 1p -94-/93 D-

i i aah BULLY bo Car eCs OF CONSpWacy wo woe” a. ae .

Weare federal officers. The prisoners Qeft huey eas He wie, far

fu@ national treasurer of the bund; Carl | + pee Bie

@ehn August Grill, All were held under
ws have been indicted and 11 are under

ephasizing |:
mine decis-

*ommittee
SS Clarified
“eh resist-

poe) European
aeete is the
wm. General
comman-

panning

tional us-
wed to, sign
gust allot-
uly 11, it
ay the Tus-
rice- and
4 users who
# may have
med in. pro-

going sugar
wameard office,
sgonal Bank
Mpours of 9
shroughout
esons Wwish-
" sugar are

Mpsidents. of

‘aevarned not
ere egulations

@the time

ugar, may
es ‘by us-"

Mealer Denied
Clemency Plea
Holt Man, Convicted

Of Killing His Wife,
Must Pay Penalty:

MONTGOMERY, Ala., July 9—
(P)——Paul mealer, convicted Tusca-
.{loosa County wife-killer, must die

ute intervention, Governor Dixon
today denying the 39-year-old for-~
mer WPA worker’s clemency plea.
Mealer’s. clemency petition was
based primarily upon a plea of
insanity, neither he nor his at-
torney J. R. Bealle denying ‘today
the state’s contention the man
fatally beat and kicked his wife,
although the husband blamed her
injuries to a fall in his trial..

Bealle. described Mealer as
“mentally unbalanced,” and said
it was his belief that had the
“case been properly presented no
Ajury in Tuscaloosa County ever
would have convicted this man.”

Mealer, who presenied affidavits
of neighbors to substantiate the
insanity plea, told Governor Dix-
on that “to me the case is more
like a dream,” adding:

“It was not a premeditated
case. I know in my heart I didn't
have it in my heart to take her
life.”

Solicitor Gordon: Davis, who
disagreed with the contention of
insanity, said he once prosecuted
Mealer for slaying a man who, the
official: declared, was attempting

“Tt was the most heinous crime
ever committed in the confines of
our. county, snd I think I can say
anywhere,” Davis told the govern-
or. ‘

» “If any man ever deserved the
extreme penalty, I think Paul
Mealer deserves it.’

Mealer was acquitted of the pre-
vious murder charge, Davis said,
“principally: upon the testimony
of his wife and upon a_ perfect
plea of self defense ,since the oth-
er man was shot to death in his
(Mealer’s) home.” —

Dr. Davis Departs

Davis left Wednesdpy for Albany.
Ga., where-the“physician will be
stationed as fa mmeber of the U.

in the Kilby prison electric chair |.
tonight unless there is last-min- |.

to stop him from beating his wife.

For Ari prrvieg | L. :
"Dr: Luther anekdhir and Mrs.

r Lattle-
the
fortifi-

ule with-
the Jap-

feravork and

whe shriv-
has lost
‘in the

@ however,
yan xiety,
Gandhi's

Ani

tram, five

WAS
Interiofas
day thay
ty of*e
unless
describe

mall room

oped i
Pacific®

scribed me first six
“We
in whigt
and m
able fo
fuel co
confer

th Said tein algciady Uber

’ ae ae Pee ee ee
;4ONIMeLS jad Wilhndrawai

not specify the size of the forces

involved, but apparently the en-
(Continued On Page 2, Column 4)

Mealer Pays
Death Penalty

Holt Man Executed
For Killing Wife;

3D Children Survive

MONTGOMERY, Ala., July 10—
(®)—Paul Mealer, 39, paid with his
life in the Kilby prison electric
chair today for the death of his
wife, Laura, whom he was con-
Victed of beating and kicking to
death in their Tuscaloosa County

hibit use
be allocat
the salari
employe
or attemp

increase.
Mealer was pronounced dead at

1:15 a.m. a few minutes after he
was led into the brightly lighted
death cell and had told Warden
Earl Wilson, “If I must die, make
it quick and sudden as yOu can,”
Governor Dixon denied Mealer’s
Plea for executive clemency yes-
terday, after Solicitor Gordon Da-
vis had described the killing as
“the most heinous
committed in the confines of our
county” and had ridiculed the
former WPA laborer’s contention
i conferees | Of insanity. He also said Mealer
eq one-room | had been acquitted once of mur-
} Gandhi's | der.
Mealer, himself said “it was not
a premeditated case, because I.
HM potential| Know 7 did not hav
+ situation | heart to kill her,”
1 less pre- | His counsel denied the beating

ardha is | Yesterday, although he pleaded at
little city | His trial that Mrs. Mealer was fa-
d the con- | tally injured in a fall.

necessary
portation

; a :
e it in my nd Hend
Neither he nor

leaders sit} M~ALER WAS FATHER
quilt. on * bag CHILDREN
aul Mealer, who died i
ferenc | electric chair at Kilby Fr thon re
fae Ala night for the Slayin
ue ° Was the father of f
New fae oniths the oldest being 18 a
14 gest eight yec~
July 10] his parents, ¢
Englan traffic | brother survive him.
Mealer formerly resided at How-
ate Safety | ton, a community in the eastern
oday, but} section of Tuscaloosa County. He
3, compar- | Moved to Holt about three years
mperiod. ago following his acquittal in the
s of July, | Circuit court of a murder charge
(p<, accidents, | 1n the fatal shooting of Carl Ab-
“osa Coun-| ston at Howton, Abston was shot
ery. June | and killed at Meale
latter

tioned at
bama for
dents werj” 4
cording t¢
made tode
as follows

g§ of his wife,
ive chiidren,
nd the youn-
~ old. The children,

. USA, to
Wo sisters and

r’s home, the
claiming self defense.

Relatives claimed the body after
in urban | the execution. Burial was in the
wide toll to | Memoria] Cemetery at Montgom-

Missoum
where
pect
plies

Army Medical Corps. He will
foe Reiecr Field, a combined

war peg a0)

tration
change.

Made in
agencies,

OPA ded

(Continu

Major

"MEANS, Alex, and STARKS, Will, blacks, hanged at Montgomery, Alabama, July 31, 1903.

SF uu |
ee

VSSCCCHav™ FCEoeVeuuT
pes
|
ps
oS
ee

i | (
| | ‘
| i {
t ¢
i ’ H
' \

Spepe@g@aecedeeoseeooade
& . ct a ?

foes. Les we ao te he

Sls a ia ages Pee te Se |
ec \ ook ,G_. Ve 2)

Poe as mate Dod of tee Dr tpe! ie
ae “hye. awl Bs 62. -\lao4 o'clock. Gud. Age One
a cod Spa Teraee Dwee, WMS:
bb Sete. Was” hanged Quoeuty ~Sevey
motes Nother, a Dee” Wap, Ovor fabling
tte ee. body - ot. jQ226 0 ‘clock, ite

thed in Sv cana ea he Dodies

- eit Sik fet

Dee

Exact | eo, joatted
a ae om “‘Cloulple. execute

aes ost. nae i SJodge — GO. ase Thoms,

is Mia i i sites

| MEALER, Paul, white, 39, electrocuted Alabama (Tuscaloosa) guy! 10, 192.

eo aon

¥ ’

Pos mente - ee Ce L&D

Sr Ae Cad SSN Be, (oaah 4p Pest Uracekes} nad
AST Bveen soo huensen passa ~ Qssk rem Lash samedi -
Car aNanesy -
Ge Cummpegend Acpatan Covanng, “Ra, TAsal Daa
“tee GREK Re erownd Wana Carts ar Ganautl ang
RSE NSStken Thom trendan - Meas dQ wet Tole,
“eRe Rema Send wad Camrascaloe} eyo dRa Hea owd
Sie SR mo ckQ Lrovnand , usus SB yearns ota.
SR asides Bw sx Baby, waar whe Cevod
aX Be, Aspomdod oro de Tah a> IResng aD De Eas » Kan
hoe a eonusmaliany Gna Pasa ; Be gns ques
AQ Uplassndl vrands.

Ngee eA, Aste cecal Fe@uows 2 Sh
Gn) ASS oak mee
Dewes er: qTRal” GO Suke mec Geses , @
Bowes Than whe Yrsds seh Qe Sd. aod . bows CNR ~
: —~F

Sug) Adlag Gaur trey Ae Aan - ies, teacher,

Cannany.

Miceee eo Oe

Information provided by Marguerite T. Callahan of Tuscaloosa, Alae

MEANS, Alex, and STARKS, Will, blacks, hanged Montgomery, AL, 7-31-1903....,

"For the murder of Flem Foster, a negro, on the night of May 31, 1902, near Le- |
Grand, Will Starks, and Alex Means, negrges, were hanged in the Montgomery County |
Jail yesterday by Sheriff W. R, Waller, and their bodies were buried by Elijah
Cook, a negro undertaker, at the expense of the county, The hody of Means
dropped .from the gallows at 11:59 o'clock and he was pronounced dead within 3
minutes, Will Starks was hanged 27 minutes later, the trap door falling with
his body a5 .12:26 o'clock, He died in 6 minutes, The bodies fell six feet

and the necks of both men were .broken, Exactly 0 men were admitted to the
jail to witness the double execution, Judge W, Hs Thomas, of the Montgomery
City Court, who sentenced Starks and Means to be hanged, requested Sheriff
Waller to conduct the hanging as privately as possible, Several hundred men
and boys ‘applied to Sheriff Waller and to Judge Thomas to witness the execu-
tion but .their requests were uniformly denied, Magistrates present yesterday
to witness the execution of Starks and Means (included) Justice Charles Stan- .
ford.eeIt is an interesting fact that the negroes: Starks and Means were robbing
the store of Justice Stanford when Flem Foster, a negro, surprised them and.

was shot and killed, The negroes shot Foster in the darkness and afterwards
confessed that they thought they had killed Justice Stanford,..Fully 300 per=
sons, mostly negroes, many of them from the country, stood in front of the
County Jail from about 10 o'clock until they were assured that the negroes had
been hanged, Notwithstanding the negroes were hanged inside the jail, many
persons borbidly curious sat on the roofs of houses adjacent to the prison
throughout the morning hours, Means, the younger of the negroes, was the first
to address the crawd in the street below the windows (of his cell.) He admon-
ished those of his race not to carry pistols, saying that they invariably
caused trouble, He spoke of contracts made between negroes and white men and
advised negroes not to violate these contracts as such violations frequently
brought about unfriendliness and led to crime, He said he had made peace with
God and man and was sorry for the crime he had committed, He had been forgiven,
he said, for the crime and was ready to meet his fate, Starks told the c rowd
that he was happy and his face was wreathed with smiles. He admitted that he
had committed a terrible crime, but his sins had been forgiven, he said, and

he believed he would go to heaven, 'I want to get to heaven today in time for
breakfast,'said Starks,'but I'll certainly get breakfast there tomorrowe'eee
eeeA substantial breakfast was provided for Starks and Means, but each of them
complained of being ill and ate little, After breakfast the negroes bathed

and donned new suits of black clothing,.,For two weeks Starks and Means had
occupied the death cell at the north end of the main cage room on the ground
floor of the jail, This cell is adjacent to the iron platform or gallows

built in the rear corridor of the cage room, Early yesterday morning the
negroes were removed to a larger cell on the second floor of the jaile.e

After haranguing the crowd in the street for about thirty minutes, the negroes
were notified that the time was near that they must die,..Niether of the ne-
gzores showed emotion, Religious fervor sustained them, A smile was constantly
on the face of Starks and Means appeared calm and resigned, When the 2 deputies
appeared at the cell door for Means, he arose, took off his collar and necktie
and bade Starks farewell and accompanied by Parson Stokes joined the deputies,
Parson Jones remained behind to extend spiritual comfort to Starks, Means, who
was a powerful negro, walked down the stairway and through the corridor firmly
and at 11:55 o clock ascended the gallows without support, Sheriff Waller and
his deputies wére on the gallows and Parson Stokes addressing the sheriff and
his group on men in the corridor said Means confessed his guilt and put his
trust in God, Means, he said, was deeply grateful to the sheriff, his deputies
and the lawyers who defended him for their kind treatment,,.Parson Stokes offered
a fervent prayer while the little cr@wd stood with heads uncovered, At the con-
clusion of the prayer, Means in a low voice asked Sheriff Waller to send his
body to his wife, Deputy Sheriff Belser tied the legs of the negro together.
Deputy Sheriff Young bourig the hands of the negro, slipped the black cap over
his head, and all was in readiness. The Sheriff entered a door almost directly
underneath the trape.eand sent Alex Means into eternity, The body quivered for
a moment and was still, Preparations immedaately began for the execution of

Will Starks,..With a smile on his face, and walking erect'and firmly, Starks ascen-
fed the gallows...White Starks stood on the trap, Parson Stokes spoke: 'I am asked

by Brother Starks,' he:«said 'to’ say here and now that he alone committed this

murder, and that he led Brother Means into it.e..' Starks was bound, the black c
cap was adjusted and at 12:26 o clock Sheriff Waller again pulled the trap,

In 6 minutes he was dead, The 6xecutions cost the county about $200...The crime .
for which Starks and Means were hanged was committed near LeGrand in May, 1902.
The negroes were robbing the store of Charles Stanford at night, Starks, who

was watching, saw a figure approaching, and, believing it was Mr, Stanford, fired,
a pistol at the form, Flem Foster, a respectable negro, was killed, Starks cons
fessed that he had begged Means to go with him to .the store to steal meat.

“tarks said he fired the shot which killed Foster, The negroes were tried in

the Montgomery City Court in August, 1902,.Thée case was appealed to the Supreme
Court and they were affirmed, The last execution in the Montgomery County Jail
prior to that of Starks and Means was the hanging of John Hall and Henry Mall,
negroes, about five years-ago, The negroes killed J, A, Belser, a ppominent young
man, and son of Deputy Sheriff Belser, at Pike Road, MBRRRBRARXARREARgS SEY
ADVERTISER, Montgomery, Alabama,’ August:.1, 1903 (2:h.)

es Vc Ov rok LUN>_ LA abe ee Te og
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ke -e Yewwtions cost tne Co combed |

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fwed Zl “Piste | a4 He fv. of | ou ou feolerj

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Dp of Deputy Staviff Baloo jar Pk

NA Large card,
MILLER, Walter, black, 38, electrocuted Alabama (Madison) on 6-19-1936.

"(AP) Huntsville, Alae, May 12, 1936-Déomed for the fiendish attack and mutilation
slaying of a pretty white girl, giant Walter Miller, negro, was taken today to Kilby
prison at Montgomery, to await there the day set for his execution, June 19, A jury
convicted him late yesterday after deliberating but 7 minutes, Judge Paul Speake im-
mediately passéd sentence. Four companies of national guardsmen, with fixed bayonets,
machine guns and tear gas, preserved rigid order through the one-day trial, as precaution
against recurrence of mob spirit against the girl's assafdant. 4A convoy of guardsmen
in army trucks set out for the state prison with the negro soon after the doom was
pronounced, A principal witness, Ben Ingram, warden of the Birmingham jail, where
Miller was held for his safety, identified a manuscript presented in court as a state-
ment signed by Miller confessing that he sprang upon Vivian Woodward, 19 years old, as
she returned home alone from a movke the night of March 28, dragged her behind a garage,
attacked her, crushed her head and left her dying. The manuscript said the negro,
drinking, peeped in windows watching white women undress, and then determined tor avish
a white girl, Miller, pleading innocence, told the jury he signed a confession after
being beaten and threatened with mob violence, Ingram and several other witnesses from
Birmingham said the confessionzwas given without threat or promise of reward, The jury
verdict was received without demonstration. Defense counsel, appointed by Judge Speake
had yet given no notice of appeal. In the rigid determination to forestall any danger
of a revisitation of the mob fervor which flared shortly after the girl was attacked
and killed, the guardsmen arrested two white men during the trial, securing them as
instigators of a move to drive negroes from Huntsville streets, A Birmingham deputy
sheriff witnass in the case, had a fist and gun butt encounter with the militia,
Officers said he 'wisecracked' at the guardsmen. The deputy, however, dénied this,"
AMERICAN, Hattiesburg, MS, May 12, 1936(li/1&2.)

"(AP) Huntsville, Ala., April 29. = In a court room protected by national guardsmen

armed with machine guns, rifles and tear gas, Walter Miller, negro, pleaded not guilty
today to the assault and murder of pretty Vivian Woodward, Authorities previously had
announced the negro gave a full signed confession in Birmingham, where he had been held
for safekeeping. Judge Paul Speake set trial for May 11. During the arraignment the

112 national guardsmen who brought Miller here from Birmingham prevented any congregation
of persons near the court house, One man was arrested when the guardsmen reported he
sought to raise a disturbance. Vivian ‘Yoodward, 19-year-old blond, was waylaid Satur-
day night, March 28, as she walked home from a movie, She was found dying at dawn
Sunday morning behind a private garage, assaulted and her head crushed, Mob spirit
flared as a search was begun for the assailant. Bloodhounds followed a trail from

the crime scene to a house occupied by four negroes who were seized by the mob. it

By quick action national gHAX#AXHA guardsmen, called by Governor Bibb H Graves, rushed
them to Birmingham, for safekeeping. Later Miller, 38, was arrested in Terre Haute,
Ind., brought to Birmingham and was reported by authorities to have given a full con-
fession, The Huntsville grand jury indicted him and the four other negroes held in
Birmingham were released, Guardsmen planned to return Miller to Birmingham for safe-
keeping, pending trial. When arraigned, the negro said he was unable to employ coun-

sel and Judge Speake appointed two aN members of the local bar to take his case."
AMERICAN, Hattiesburg, M S, April 29, 1936 (10/he)

LARGE CARD PREPARED, 30 80. 379.
Miller, Frank, white, ll, hanged at Birmingham, Alabama, on June 28, 1901.

"(Special Dispatch to the Journal.) Birmingham, Alas, May 31, 1901, = The flood of
letters pouring in on Governor Samford petitioning for clemency for Frank Miller, whe
is condemned to hang June 28, is one of the most remarkable evidences of sentimen-
tality in favor of a condemned felon ever shown in this state, The governor is con-
sidering the case, but no one beli@ves he will act on the petitions, The authorities
who feel interested in the execution of the law have become imatient at these mani-
festations of what they term isdirected sympathy, and have secured and given to the
public the following descrition of Frank Miller, whos aliases are many, contained in
Grannan's Pocket Gallery of Noted Criminals, published in Cincinnati in 1892:

'John Hendricks, alias 'Dutch Henry, professional safe-blower; age 35 years; height
five feet, eight and three-quarters inches; weight, 165 pounds; complexion, medium;
eyes light blues hair, medium dark; was born in New York City; in india on forearm,
tombstone, weeping willow and woman; the words 'My brother George’ on tombstone;
arrested in Cicinnati in 1892,' It is pretty certain that if the flood of letters
petitioning the governor for clemency do not cease the authorities will have letters
of the opposition nature forwarded as numerously to the governor," JOURNAL, Atlanta,
Gaey May 31, 1901 (2 : 2.4)

ae ee ee ee oS ea ee

(hhetgw Mey, al, Iter, (~ 20-4 Ff 7

WM AAV OL EMS ee Xe EeIED
bn Lact Pridirg the death. ber Drer Vtrn Spills;
lireuit Gy Theo (sierty Whig wpbeut ed tr te pot
Uf (2:50 oleh p.m. the dlorr B pio wll wad thrown
open and Yorn pp tle, tk Olémrmradanar_ “te

fe bts Qaing to te bberatid, tut was 4

Aardag 2 urto then placed wer ho syed And

MAR ae hori Belle

gears) ea in; ‘born in 1 1908, was

‘ “a Mobile waitress at the
time of her arrest aS amass mirderess. . She conféssed to
having killed by arsenic poison; (1) her daughter, amo-
4 sene Garrett, in 1937; (2)her mother in 1928; (3),.her-
ie husband, George Carrett, in 19393 (hy) her. daughter, —
Caroline Garrett, 6, in 190; (5) her daughter, ally
ie Sli gabeth. n.19));33 . 4: her husband, Claude’ Martin

: ak the time of her. arrest, a was also ei eae
br the } same method another: ‘husband, Roland Martin, who | |.
os z= “as the stepson of. her ‘sencond husband, gee Martin,

¥, was électrobuted at Alabanags |] ‘Kilby Prison on oct.’

ii; Looe | ? a
Source? Detective Cases = June Lee
Soe Bact | ; “4 Mateg iY 7 i rer aree
» Pit ea Beat rch. meetin i ee? ie

Like many poison slayers before and after him, Alfred
Cline was a repeat-killer. He slew nine before capture.

_of life.

Mary Creighton, one of the country’s most
notorious women poisoners, arrives at the
courthouse for opening of sensational trial.

Why are the most notorious
poisoners in history women? .. .
What type of killer favors
poison as a weapon?... Why are

so many poisoners mass killers?

OISONING people can get to be a habit. Once
tried successfully, it becomes a hobby—a way

For a certain type of murderer, it has psychological
advantages. There are some people who like to feel
that they are gods, shaping others’ destinies from
afar. For this type, when contemplating murder,

the use of poison seems the most logical. Poison HERE'S ¥
eliminates the necessity of being in on the final hour— it eone
it eliminates the use of messy bludgeons or guns. It SIMPLE «
precludes the necessity of even touching the victim. ’ tical, self-te
It eliminates fingerprints. All the clues disappear es
down the victim’s stomach. renting. Vc

There is something about the use of poison that xeades. WF
makes people who use it once resort to it, over and I¢s. BOOr
‘over again. Once a poisoner, always a poisoner. ln
That’s how it goes. Poisoning.is a dangerous habit, ++ +'the M

a part of y

but like a drug that gives the illusion that all problems
are solving themselves, the use of poison to eliminate
an enemy, seems to do the same thing.

In ancient times, poison was looked upon as a fine
way of eliminating political enemies. Consequently,
kings and emperors of old made it a practice to keep
animals near the table, upon whom they would test
their food. Some potentates, made eccentric by their
fear of poison, insisted upon their cooks eating with
them. Nevertheless, the clever poisoners found a way
to get to their victims anyhow. If it wasn’t through
food, it was through wine; if it wasn’t through wine
it-was through candy...

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TRUE HOMICIDE CASES

he VICTIMS

‘HELL-«

A much-married
mama with murder
on her mind—
poison at

her fingertips!

HONDA ‘BELLE MARTIN is a
most remarkable woman. The

very fact that she had been.

married five times would be
sufficient to set her apart. For not
many’women in Mrs. Martin’s area
of society either attain or aspire to
such records of multiple matrimony.
It’s the sort of thing one expects

Nye Loy Warwick

FOR
THE REDEEADED |

Garrett and Claude Martin, Rhonda
Belle picked up another husband—a
customer in the’ restaurant. where
she was working. She divorced him,
Rhonda. Belle said; “not very lone é
afterwards.

No. 5 is Ronald ‘Martin ‘who, be-
fore’ becoming Rhonda Belle’s hus-

: bang was her: stepson. His ‘father

honda Belle’s fourth husband,
Claude Martin.

When Claude | died in 1951, the
widow married “Ronald; whois her
junior by 23 years and weighs a
scant 130 pounds— which’ is:: 40
pounds less than. plump. Rhonda

' Belle.» ..:

to hear about among the café sets .

and, not infrequently, among cer-
tain romantically dizzy residents of

glamorous Hollywood, . California. ..

Indeed, so. often do we read in the
paper that so-and*so (‘‘blonde, cur-

vaceous, etc.’”’) has grabbed herself.

a fifth,’sometimes a sixth, husband

that the news is something less than:

exciting.
But, we can assure you right off,

there is nothing tiresome in the.

strange history of Rhonda Belle

Martin, now married to Husband:

No. 5.

Rhonda Belle got an early start.

in her matrimonial marathon. When
~she was only 15, she married a
boarder in her mother’s rooming
house, when they were living in
Mississippi.

She divorced No. 1 when she was
21. and married her next-door
neighbor, George Garrett. Between

\OmNp
D BT EC

Rhonda Belle. is not éniye ‘plump, a

but. husky: as well, Although: most

‘of her’ adult life she had jbeen a

waitress, during World War: II'she
was a metal-worker in an. Alabama
aircraft plant, ‘which 'takes*muscle.

Rhonda Belle had five. children

by. her’ second husband, George ;
‘Garrett. All five are dead. bi

And so is George Garrett. -

Mrs. Mary. Francis Gibbons,
mother. of. Rhonda Bells) also is
dead.”

Death first, Bick the. family cir-:
cle of Rhonda Belle in ‘their home °
in Montgomery, capital city of Ala

*bama, \in 1934.

Mary Adelaide, ‘aged’ 4, ‘was ‘the
first to go, .Then, in 1937, George

' Garrett. followed. Mary : Adelaide,
‘his first-born, to the grave. That
same year, Imogene, aged 3, ‘died.

‘In °1939,: death claimed Judith,

aged 12 months. ‘Ann Caroline, aged -

TIVE YEARBOOK,

6, died in' 1940. The last of'the chil-
dren, Ellyn Elizabeth, aged 11, was
buried three’ years later. |

Rhonda. Belle’s ‘mother’ ‘died’ in |

1944, ‘And. in 1951, Claude, Martin
was fatally stricken. € Se

With the exception | of Rhonda
Belle’s mother, all.the victims were
buried in the “Last Supper” section

of Memorial Cemetery, at \Mont-

1973

August,

1 CORREALE

gomery.
-- funeral ‘expenses.’
Va J, anuary, the shadow of death

_ once again hovered over the blight-
ed household. But this time, death
took:a holiday. And when Ronald
Martin was seized -with a strange

lingering illness, his: life’ was saved /

by, quick. medical aid.

‘As this is written, Ronald ‘lies in
a veterans hospital ‘at Biloxi, Mis-
sissippi, paralyzed from the waist
own,

At first, doctors were puzzled by
Ronald’s mysterious, crippling mal-
‘ady! But after repeated examina-
tions and endless tests, they: agreed
on a diagnosis: Arsenic poisoning.

The symptoms of arsenic poison-
ing rarely vary: A check back over
the medical histories of the six who

died in Rhonda Belle’s home over a
period, of |17 years ‘disclosed that

these ‘same symptoms had been de- ©

tected in every single instance.
Authorities were notified and an

investigation started... Exhumation
of Claude Martin’s, body was or-
dered and an autopsy showed, police
said, that he ‘had consumed fully

“enough poison to kill two dozen ©

strong ‘men.”
With two of her husbands. dead
and another seriously ill; and with

‘all her five children and her mother
- in their graves, it was only natural

that investigators: moved swiftly to
question Rhonda Belle.
Rhonda Belle realized
a total of $4,000 on her'six victims,
their lives were held exceedingly
cheap — amounting to only about
$66. a head.
Rhonda Belle confessed, authori-
ties said, that the lethal dosage was

‘administered in each instance by

lacing food she}served‘’in' the home
with ant poison, which is strongly
charged with arsenic.
“And most everywhere, arsenic in
this form is very easily come by.
In fact, Rhonda Belle was quoted
as saying that all she had to do to
obtain the deadly stuff was to go
into any drug or grocery store and
simply ask for. it.
Unlike some other poisons, such
as strychnine, ‘for:example, which
kills almost instantly, arsenic brings
‘on death-by slow stages of agonized

suffering. And; whereas it spreads .

throughout the’ entire body, symp-

toms are not always readily recog-

nizable.

This helps explain the mystifica- ~™
tion of doctors: who. first..examined:
- Ronald Martin when he was admit- ~

-ted to the. hospital.

Strangely enough, the first traces
of ‘arsenic found inthe body of
Rhonda Belle’s former stepson and
current husband were found in his
hair when a sample was tested in
the FBI laboratory at..Washington.

One’. may well say, then, that’

Rhonda’ Belle’ Martin. missed’ get-

ting away. .with murder—wholesale

ibs less than the hig ofa nel.
oe THE END

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Rhonda Bell Martin, who poisoned six members of her
family, listens as evidence is pointed out to jury.

From time immemorial, women have been notori-
ous poisoners. There are reasons for this. For one
thing, they have better access to the food that is
eaten in a home—and access to pest eliminators, like
rat poisons and cockroach powders. Also, at one
time, they were in sole charge of preparing love
potions and other type drugs and herbs. From love
potions, it was but a half-step' to poisons. So it
developed—the thought that the way to kill a man was
through his stomach.

And in spite of-the fact that poisoners share the
same fate as other killers, and go to the execu-
tioner just like the others do, they nevertheless always

Dr. Ben Galbraith is guarded in prison hospital after
suicide attempt. Before he was captured, he had
murdered’ his young wife and his three children.

inspire imitators. France had a plague of poisoners
after the Marquise de Brinvilliers in the 1670's,
poisoned her father and her two brothers for the
family fortune. The Marquise was tortured, be-
headed and then cremated for her crime, but she
had such a rash of imitators, that apothecaries were

- making a: fortune just from selling what they called

“succession powders” (poison).

BECAUSE there have been so many notorious
European poisoners down through the centuries,
few people think of the United States. as a place

’ where poisonings take place. But they do.

Just last year, a pleasant, motherly housewife,
Mrs. Rhonda Bell Martin, was arrested for attempting
to poison her fifth husband, Ronald. She was ex-
tremely cooperative when Montgomery, Alabama,
police questioned her, and reeled off the story of her
life, which soon had the good officers reeling.

Yes, she said, she had tried to kill Ronald by
feeding him arsenic in his whiskey. Years before,
she went on, she had killed her mother and two of
her four other husbands by putting arsenic in their
coffee. She had also poisoned three of her five chil-
dren by feeding them arsenic in their milk.

There was something cheerful about Mrs. Martin’s
poisonings and their aftermaths. She seemed to
enjoy the whole thing, from the poisonings, through
the attendant illnesses, to the funerals and burials.
She kept a lovely family plot where everybody was
buried, and preserved as souvenirs, the get-well cards
and sympathy cards friends sent to the family.

THEN: there was Mary Creighton. Mary had been
through a lot in her lifetime. She and her husband,
John, had undergone (Continued on page 66)

TRUE HOMICIDE CASES

EXPERIMENT?
many kinds of fi
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Pete Thorne, Joe
Roy Martin, all «

Here Are Ge
Many Kinds Of Best

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mother Mrs. Opt
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961 Park Place. \
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Box 1

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fish my brother is h
weighed 7% pound

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utes a I found a3
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13 FISH IN

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largest I’ve ever caug!
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cases. They are too well aware that poisoners
seldom strike on impulse. On the contrary,
neta Tata te such crimes are by their very nature cruel and
ipeatann yh callous and deliberately planned over a period of
a ii time. They are tough to crack, and even when the
oy opr t culprit’s identity becomes a practical certainty the

CC cases. 7 INVESTIGATORS don’t like poison

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dificult to obtain—so difficult that too often the
poisoner goes free. Such thoughts may have been in
the mind of McDonald Gallion, Alabama’s chief as-
sistant attorney general, when he set up that first
conference in the Martin case early in January, 1956.
There was a frown on his face as he greeted Tom
Carlisle, the state’s chief criminal investigator, and
Van Pruitt Jr., of the department of toxicology.
The visitors settled themselves in chairs on either side
of the lawyer’s desk while he leafed through a sheaf of
papers. He found the one he wanted and handed it to
Pruitt. :
“Take a quick look at this,” Gallion said briskly. “It’s ‘a
report from the FBI lab in Washington on an analysis
they made.” .
“What’s up?” Tom Carlisle asked.
“About a month ago,” the attorney began, “a young
navy veteran, Ronald Martin from Mobile, was admitted
to the vets’ hospital at Biloxi. He was suffering from a
severe stomach ailment—diarrhea, vomiting, terrible stom-
ach pains. All the classic symptoms of stomach ulcers. Also
the classic symptoms of certain types of poisoning. It’s not
usual for a fellow of 26 to get stomach ulcers, and Martin
didn’t have them, either. When the doctors couldn’t make a
diagnosis after eliminating every possible normal cause they
could think of, they sent strands of his hair to Washington.
The lab found arsenic.” .
“On the guy’s hair?” asked Carlisle.
Pruitt looked up from the analysis report and nodded.
“Arsenic in the body works its way to the hair and finger-
nails,”
The chief investigator mulled this over. “Couldn’t Martin
have taken the stuff by mistake?”
Pruitt shook his head. “According to this report the
poisoning was no accident. Arsenic deposited at the roots
of the hair keeps moving with the natural hair growth. In
Martin’s case, the stuff must have been ingested over a
considerable period of time—two or three months, any-
way. It looks like he was systematically fed poison in
regular doses, not one of which was lethal. In time, though,
the cumulative effect would have been fatal.”
“The boy’s in pretty bad shape already,” Gallion went
on, “but at least he’s alive and the doctors are doing what
they can for him. We want to keep him alive and he’s safe
so long as he stays at the hospital. The only sure way to
protect him is to nab the poisoner, so we’ll have to act fast.
I want a thorough investigation, but a quiet, discreet one,
into every corner of young Martin’s life—his .family, his
friends, his background. There’s always the chance, of
course, that the poisoner is a psycho, but usually in a cold-
blooded crime of this kind there’s a very sound, sane motive
behind it. And of course the poisoner must be a ‘person

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waist do
Coley s
visitors?’
“Yes,
to see hi
Mobile.
and she :
“With
“No,” t
come wit!
This m.
no concli

ooklyn, N. Y., home.

ogs must have. wun.

‘ames (Andy) Boyett,

river who had played.
d with Piccott in the.

aore reason to think —

how up at his home
‘mi police had set up
iblock system. And
he was the only.man
lam. ‘: atag
when the news of
TV, Boyett phoned
‘er they worked out

vould contact Dade

z, Howard had not

30, Boyett felt edgy

eputies to let them
zht show up at his

“~ yatcher reassured
bottled up in the
tt heaved a sigh

4) his wife and two
1 Miami,
vas a knock on his’

kidding me when I
“ Boyett recalls, “We

:: But when it came

who it. was.”

» herded her two.

‘Boyett went to
.., Howard,” said-

% ~ a leather jacket, looking dirty and beat. He ©

Bae
as |
¢ :
+
3

i oa
ae

Boyett looked at the friend he had once
\ known. He was standing in the doorway in

mt Re

“= motioned Piccott to come in. His mind was

F they talked it over Sunday. If Piccott
|, showed, he would call his brother. But
~ how was Piccott going to know he wasn’t
| phoning the police instead? Suppose he had -
© a gun? i ae

“You'll never know how much I appre-,
ciate this,” said Piccott. “I’m dog-tired and

a tia ct aa.

Pe haven't had anything to eat for three days.”

Boyett said he’d have his wife fix some-

thing to eat. -
“But what you need first, Howard,” he

» said, “is a shave and a good hot bath.”

Piccott, who has a mania for cleanliness

' readily agreed. As he started the shower

*. going, Boyett softly picked up the phone,

20 feet away, and called his brother who

> contacted the police.

Twenty nerve-racking minutes later the

wed up, Andy would: 2a = police still had not arrived. Mrs. Boyett

crept to the phone and called some neigh-

» racing. It had all seemed so simple when -

‘E> bors who phoned Dade authorities. This
5 Es time, the call brought results. “ts

Eight deputies—guns drawn—rushed into’

e Boyeti’s house, pointed their guns at him
. and yelled, “Stick ’em up!”

“I kept motioning for them to get into

the bathroom,” Boyette recalls. “They fi-
> nally got the idea and lunged past me.”

Piccott had just finished his shower and

* was caught literally with his pants down.
; All he had on was a pair of shorts.

He surrendered quietly, got dressed, and

_ started to leave the Boyett home with
’ sheriff’s deputies.

His brief iaste of freedom had made him
a nervous and physical wreck. He had lost
weight, and had been forced to spend two
broken-up nights sleeping in a dump-yard
and an empty rat-infested house. A friend

. whom he had been counting on had turned
him in and it was now more likely than

ever that he’d get the chair.

As the deputies led him back to a dismal
cell in the Dade County Jail, he turned to
Boyett and said softly—“I’m sorry about
this, Andy.” :

With Piccott’s recapture my interest in
the escape plot ended, but I did hear that
Mackiewicz was picked up shortly before

- midnight the next day trying to edge out

of town along a railroad track. He was
haggard and spent and put up no fight.

Donald C. Zorens was one of three ac-
cused killers who, along with a convicted
stick-up man, joined forces in a_ noisy,
hardware-smashing riot in Denver’s new
County Jail. Zorens, who is being held for
trial on charges he shot and killed Denver
patrolman Donald L.- Seick (This Rap I
Can’t Beat, April INsIDE, 1958), also set
fire to his mattress . . , but he later insisted
this was an accident, coming at the same
time as the riot purely by “coincidence.”
Warden David Kiebach said that Zorens’
contention was ridiculous, but Zorens went
on to hold a press conference, on advice of
his attorney, in which he said, “I guess I

- went to sleep with a cigarette and my mat-

tress accidentally caught fire.” He offered
as proof some burns on his ear . . . but the
warden was still not convinced, He told of
the riot, and of Zorens’ part in it. At about
8:45 P.M., a prisoner named Leonard Se-

- dillo, 26, slugged a guard as he was being

taken from a shower room in the infirmary
wing to his cell in the nearby maximum se-
curity wing. (Sedillo was convicted of rob-
bery, one of a long string of previous con-
victions) Zorens, according to the warden,
shouted, “Slug him . . . Get his keys.”
Other guards subdued Sedillo, who imme-
diately attacked the same guard again as
soon as he was let loose. He was locked in
his cell, and began tearing up his bed, sink

and toilet. The two.accused slayers—Ga-
briel Gallegos and Louis Vallejos—followed
his example, shouting and cursing. The en-
tire cell block joined them verbally, whis-
tling and shouting that Sedillo needed a
doctor. (Later, Sedillo was treated for a
bruised rib and cut finger.) After all the
ruckus had subsided, and guards dragged
Zorens from his smoke-filled cell and the

other three prisoners from their smashed

cells, the four prisoners were put back be-
hind bars, only this time they had no beds
to smash or burn. They slept on the floor
as a security measure. Zorens is pleading
innocent to the charge of murder, and the
warden admits. he’s never caused trouble
previously as a prisoner.

_ Alphonso Gillespie Jr., 26, and his wife,
Wilhelmina, both pleaded guilty to know-
ingly receiving stolen property in connec-
tion with the fabulous William Marshall
Bullitt burglary, which supposedly netted
somethjng like ~$200,000 (Money Is For
Partyin’, November InstpeE, 1957, and Jn
At The Finish, March 1nstE, 1958). Al-
phonso drew three years in prison from
Kentucky Criminal Court Judge L.R. Cur-
tis; his wife drew one year. Previously,
Alphonso had been tried in Federal Court
and sentenced to 18 months imprisonrhent
on a charge of conspiring to transport the
Bullitt money. A charge of transporting
$52,000 of this money will be aired shortly.
The Gillespies pleaded guilty to knowingly

’ receiving stolen property in another case,

and this charge was filed away by Judge
Curtis. In pleading guilty to receiving
stolen property, the Gillespies’ lawyer
pointed out that the sum was only $1500,
and that the wife had very little to do
with the crime. Therefore, the attorney
made a motion for-probabtion in her case,

and Curtis will rule on it later. In Connec-
tion with the same burglary—the William
Marshall Bullitt job—one man was pre-
viously sentenced to prison and four more
defendants will come to trial shortly,
making a total of seven people in*on the
record-breaking robbery.

Lee Roy Leick, 34, condemned to death
for slaying his wife five years ago in Den-
ver, Colo., and turned down in his attemot
to escape the gas chamber by a four-to-
three decision of thé Colorado Supreme
Court (J’ve Got This Plan, See .. ., March
INSIDE, 1954), is appealing again. In a
petition filed with the Colorado Supreme
Court by his attorney, Leick asked for a
rehearing of the close decision. Leick, twice
convicted in Denver District Court of kill-
ing his wife, Evelyn, for her insurance, has
been in death row at the state peniten-
tiary in Canon City for nearly three years.
His case touched off a controversy on the
state’s sanity laws that has kept it before
the high court longer than any other crimi-
nal proceeding in the court’s recent history.
Leick’s attorney states that because his
client has been kept in death row for three
years, his mind, “at no time strong, has
further weakened,” and that it is cruel
and inhuman to execute a man who had
to sit and wait for death so long. He went
on to say that the issue of Leick’s life or
death is a problem of “fundamental and
overwhelming substance” which “both our
_ Constitution and Humanity” require be

settled by having execution of the death

sentence set aside.

-Erwin Grady Rodgers, 52-year-old Mari-
etta, Ga., tombstone salesman had a double
victory when the state supreme court over-
turned his conviction for murder in the
death of his. wife (My Husband Is Planning
My Death, July 1nsrve, 1957), and then:a
Cherokee County jury returned a verdict
of acquittal in the death of a Negro handy-
man whom Rodgers shot the same night his
wife was strangled. Rodgers sobbed on hear-
ing the acquittal verdict, and stepped into
the world a free man for the first time in
almost a year. Rodgers had steadily main-
tained his innocence in his wife’s strangula-

‘tion, and explained killing the Negro handy-
man, Richard Jackson, by saying it was

Jackson who’d choked: Mrs. Rodgers. He,

Rodgers, had come into his home too late
to save his wife, but he’d chased the handy-
man to a car and shot him before he could
get away. The bullet caught Jackson in the
heart, killing him instantly. While testify-
ing in his own behalf, Rodgers had told the
jury, “I don’t believe-a jury such as this, a
cross-section of . Cherokee County men,
would ever convict a person for defending
his home and loved ones. . . .” He spoke
further, explaining everything that had hap-
pened that fateful night, and didn’t finish
for an hour and 40 minutes. The jury de-
liberated three hours and 45 minutes be-
fore acquitting him.

rs. Rhonda Belle Martin achieved a
rare distinction, but one which this mass
.poisoner cannot appreciate (Alabama’s
Burying Hellcat, June INsweE, 1956, and
On Death Row, January FRONT PAGE,
1958). She died in the electric chair, the
only woman to be executed during 1957 in
the entire United States.

tigation that was to continue for nearly two
months, that Mrs. Martin had been married
five times. Two of her ex-husbands were pres-
ently unaccounted for, but three were avail-
able—at least their records were.

Ronald Martin, currently in the Biloxi hos-
pital suffering from arsenic poisoning. Claude
Martin, deceased in 1951; cause of death, ar-
senic poisoning. And the investigators further
discovered that during the early 1930s, Rhonda
had been married to a Mr. George Garrett and
had borne him five children. Mr. Garrett,
Rhonda’s second husband, had died in Mont-
gomery in the same peculiar agony as had Mr.
Claude Martin. These were the same pains from
which Mr. Ronald Martin, husband number
five, was now suffering.

There were no children living with the Mar-
tins at present, so detectives set out to trace
them. ‘

Were they living with either of the grand-

. Parents? This line of search led them to dis-

cover that Rhonda Martin’s mother, Mrs.
~ Mary Frances Gibbons, had died in Mobile
; from a “painful stomach ailment.” And the next

Anema step, finding what had happened to the five
“\".. children, produced shocking results: ©

Mary Adelaide Garrett, died 1934, age 4.
' Emogene Garrett, died 1937, age 3.

Judith Garrett, died 1939, age 1.

Ann Carolyn Garrett, died in 1940, age 6. |
Ellyn Elizabeth Garrett, died 1943, age 11.

Each of them in agony. Eéch from a stom-
ach ailment!

Was this big, sad-faced, dumpy waitress a
modern Lucrezia Borgia—or worse? Had she
sent to death in screaming agony her own loved
ones—two faithful husbands, her mother, five
of her own children? -

What could have gone on in that mind be-
hind the plain, melancholy exterior? Was she
a homicidal maniac, killing members of her
immediate family because they were closest
to hand? Or was she something infinitely
worse, infinitely more evil—a mass murderer
for money? Rhonda Martin had collected sev-
eral thousand dollars in insurance money on
her deceased kin. af

This was pretty conclusive evidence, but
Thetford was still cautious.

7 Arraignment in death of fourth husband meant no more funerals fo

4.
“We can wrap it up,” he said, “if we find

where she bought the poison . . .”

Physicians; pharmacists, and others legally
able to dispense arsenic in Mrs. Martin’s
neighborhood were questioned. She had signed
for no poison nor was there any other record

_of purchases. A neighbor, however, had invol-
untarily supplied a vital clue during an earlier
interview, and a detective remembered it.

Mrs. Martin had mentioned that her house

was infested with ants. She just couldn’t get -

rid of them.

A quick search of Rhonda Martin’s home

revealed a box of ant poison.¢A check with
her grocer verified that she had been a con-
stant purchaser of the insecticide. A call to the
toxicologist established that the arsenic in
such a mixture could have sickened her ‘pres-
ent husband, and also have killed two previous

husbands, her mother and her children.

"THE search revealed an even more macaber
find. In a-drawer of Rhonda Martin’s
bureau police found dozens of get-well cards

and sympathy messages dating back to 1

the death of Rhonda’s second child. .
“Pick her up!” Solicitor Thetford ordered.
On March 9, 1956, detectives waited for

Mrs. Rhonda Martin as she left her job at the

Mobile restaurant. She was with two o

waitresses.

937,

ther

“What do they want with you, Rhonda?”
one of the waitresses asked.
“Trouble,” Mrs. Martin answered sadly.

~ “Just more trouble. I guess I was born for it.”

Faced with the information gathered during
the past two months, Mrs. Martin emphatically
denied that she had ever used poison—except
for ants. But she shuddered when told that the

body of her fourth husband, Claude, had been ’
exhumed in Montgomery, and that it had con-

tained arsenic.

“If necessary,” Solicitor Thetford told her
grimly, “we'll dig up your mother, Mr. Garrett

and all five children!”

Mrs. Rhonda Martin began to cry. “No,” she

wailed. “Don’t do that to

sleep...”

’em. Let

“Did you poison them ?”

“Some of ’em .. .”

r Rhonda.

Te} 34
Es a
‘<7 Nig

Rhonda’s third (still livi

. Were in the same plot. At ‘this

She had poisoned Claude, she
his coffee,” she said. “Ant poison in
And her current husband, Ronald?
poison again. This time in whisky}
instance, she had collected $3000
Ronald was insured in the same
- “How about the others?”

Well, she guessed she had poison
—George Garrett. She had a pol
too. Nees

-And she had killed her—mother
thought she had poisoned only th
children. For the little ones—milk.-
the milk. oie A

“Emogene,” she said, counting a
gers, “and Ann Carolyn and Ellyn

She denied poisoning Mary Ac
Judith, although admitting that}
stances of their deaths were sim
others. Pea

After her confession was
signed it and was formally chs
murder of her most-recently dep ted.
Claude Martin. She was “removed
omery, where the bulk of her p
taken place, for further questioning
George Garrett and the five Garrett
were located and exhumation order:
for them. ti

All graves, including that of _Clau
and space for Ronald Martin and for’

bodies of George and Ellyn Garrett have t =
recovered, and the latest report is that trace
of arsenic have been found in George's. B
sults of tests to be run on the other exhur
members ,of Rhonda Martin’s family are,
cording to police opinion, almost foregone .
clusions ! - _ epee
On March 14, the 49-year-old waits
waived preliminary hearings and was be
over to a grand jury. . eS
Mrs. Rhonda Martin faces an early trial, t
fellow workers and friends who have visited
her report no change in the plain, di mpy
woman’s speech or appearance. She was gloomy”
before; she is gloomy now. ; Soe
“Three husbands, a mother and five
dren,” one ex-friend remarked, shudd
“No wonder she never smiled. . x

<#,
be A
<.

nae a ga 2

ng): “I was just lue ‘

eon

It happened in... ,

BALTIMORE, MD.—A couple of

police officers spoiled the fun of a pretty
25-year-old girl by arresting her on
charges of disorderly conduct and toss-
ing her in jail. “Everytime I try to have

.a little fun I get in trouble,” the fun-

loving girl protested. Officers said when
they found her, she was running down
the street, clad only in a string of pearls

and a pair of shoes.

CHARLESTON, S. C.—When a-
judge set bail at $20,000 for a window
cleaner who was being arraigned on a
felony, the man quickly whipped out a
checkbook and a well-worm pen and
offered the court his personal check. The
magistrate refused to accept it. The man
was charged with writing nearly $50,000
in bad checks in the Charleston area.

SILVERTON, TEX.—This town has
a new city commissioner backed by 29
votes and a flip of.a coin. The new com-
missioner and the candidate who op-
posed him at the polls, each of whom
received 29 votes in the city election,
decided to save the city the cost of a
new election by a coin toss.

_ BRAZIL, IND.—A 15-year-old high
school boy who shot a policeman in the
head faces stern disciplinary action. The

boy, armed with a water pistol, took a —

shot at a policeman passing by in a

squadcar. The policeman, who has only
a dry sense of humor, hauled the offend-
er to the Station for explanation.

CHICAGO, ILL.—A 25-year-old man
known as the “king of the traffic viola-
tors,” has earned the right to retain his

. title say Chicago police. Three years ago

he was fined $2700 for 41 traffic viola-
tions. This month he appeared in court
on 14 more counts.

AMARILLO, TEX.—A deputy sher-
iff here walked into a grocery store and
asked to see the owner. A polite young
man behind the counter told him the
owner was out to lunch, suggested the
deputy return later. The deputy did,

‘found the owner all right—tied hand ©
and foot in the backroom. The young ,

man and $180 in cash were missing.

fg J ISO

In At The Finish

James Warren Wilson, 21-year-old
youth from Cortez, Cal., and Bradenton,
Fla.,-accused of the murder of San Fran-
cisco,, Cal.; grocer Kurt Wolff (The Dead-
ly Birthmark, January mnswE, 1956), is
shown as he bows his head in grief as a

San Francisco Superior Court judge sen-.

tences him to life in prison. Wilson was

convicted of shooting Wolff during a
holdup. He was caught a few days later
and identified from a birthmark on his
neck and fingerprints found in the store.
In a written statement to the court, plead-
ing for his life, Wilson said he would try
to atone for his crimes. “I know that if

my life is not taken, I will repent for my

wrongdoing in ‘every way possible,” he
wrote. After Judge C. Harold Caufield
passed sentence, he strongly recommended
that Wilson never be granted a parole.

‘Walter E. Tips, arrested as a suspect in’
in the fatal shooting of Mary Alice Brod-
erick in Buffalo, N. Y. (Killer in the Win-
dow, June INSwE, 1956), has been declared
mentally unfit to stand trial and will be
committed to Matteawan State Hospital
for the criminally insane. Alice Broderick
was shot and killed by two deer rifle slugs
fired through the window of her home
while she was sitting at a dining room table
writing letters to friends. She had pre-
viously spurned the attention of Tips who
was a religious fanatic and who is, accord-
ing to the psychiatric report, mentally in-
capable . of understanding the charges

Mrs. Rhonda Belle Martin -has been
formally indicted for using arsenic to kill
her mother and two young daughters and
trying to kill her fifth husband (Alabama’s
Burying Hellcat, June INswWeE, 1956). She
has also been charged with poisoning her

third daughter which will be investigated
by a grand jury at a later date. Mrs. Mar-
tin has admitted killing her relatives for
“several thousand dollars” of their insur-
ance money.

Michael Timothy “Curly” Cavanaugh,
the 32-year-old convicted murderer of
Robert: Welch, has gone to his death in
the gas chamber at San Quentin prison
(Just a Bald Faced Liar, July rNswe,
1954). Welch, an ex-marine corps veteran
just two months. out of the service was
murdered in National City, Cal., and his
body dumped on the desert near Albuquer-

' que, N. M. Cavanaugh was tried and found

guilty of first-degree murder. and the
prosecution asserted that robbery had been
the motive for the murder. Cavanaugh had
a long record of minor crimes and had
spent time in mental institutions. Petitions
for a new trial both to state and U. S. Su-
preme Courts had been denied before the
execution, The prisoner’s-last dinner was
of fried chicken, fried potatoes, pie and
coffee. He spent the night writing ‘letters
and listening to the radio and after a heavy
breakfast of bacon and eggs was taken to
the execution chamber. Quiet and com-
posed, he made no final requests and made
no final statement.

Richard Kluckhohn, 21, the son of a
Harvard professor who was granted a
new trial for the shooting of Bernice Sea-
well in Raleigh, N.C., has been | retried
and sentenced to a term of one to two
years in prison. Miss Seawell was shot
while standing in a parking lot (Dry Fire,
September rmnsmpeE, 1955) and Kluckhohn
told officers- after his arrest that he was

handling the gun in his hotel room when
it discharged and had no idea it had struck
fourth husband, her first husband and a anyone. He was tried on charges of invol-

untary mans
to ten years
after an aj
Supreme C
left) stood
Hamilton H
“T am told
career in the
the judge sz
It is not a}
certainty of

Thomas

balmer fro:

convicted o
ald Wendor
die in Calif:
He Loose?
slashed you
men’s room
.Cal., movie
mediately a

and told a
to cut the
pen,” and
he panicke
found liter:
room whic]
in knives, <
The date

set.

David H
just learne:
by a Sulpt
torch slayi
was found
bile belong
a half year
nit? Febru
auto was t
tity is still
but was at
self becau:
initial ‘H’
which wer

.tors withheld the

was assembled.
ed that the time
one of the bodies.

interment of the °

, the most recent-
ition was set for
as dug up under
itt Jr., and he was
srvising the toxi-

his study of the
there were other
se, First, it was
the Garrett chil-
by a small life
earned, too, that
»bons, Rhonda’s
nd was buried in
3aldwin County,
iffered the same
her last illness.
possible poison

state Investigator
Rhonda Martin
ince. Often he
e in the guise of
t with her. The
2 redhead finally
March 7th. He
jelivery box and

asked questions
ida was renting
the name of Mrs.
id think of only
thead was still
was collecting
of Claude even
This conjecture
Coley communi-
in Washington.
oley wonder. If
lished a secret
idow of Claude,
; to do the same
widow. The in-
‘ing the various
ad on Thursday
ng address—this
under the name
itly, Rhonda had
tragedy in the

xicologist Pruitt
nation of Claude
and fingernails,
iable amount: of
veral men. Gal-
onger and Coley
onda Martin in.
afternoon, when
r work for the
ley entered and
that she was
ters, Chief Dud-
age for her.
‘tion. Slipping a
form, she went
vas taken to the
| holding charge.
‘ety Director Bill
tigator William
ail to take the
nery. They had
cant and Gallion
redhead. Rhon-
rise or fear. She
; the charge was:

‘re doing this,”
als escorted her
‘There’s nothing
nonsense.”
head was again
still maintaining
inocent.

roken when he
to me,” she de-
th. He’s a good-
. 5 feet 7, 135

eee

* alee
Bi

pounds, and has blond hair. We’ve been so
happy together.”

On Saturday morning, Coley and Nelson
E. Grubbs, of the state toxicological depart-
ment, went to the N. Conception Street
address and made a thorough search of
Rhonda’s rooms. They looked through a
raft of boxes and medicine containers but
could find no trace of arsenic. There was
only one book in the apartment—a Bible—
and Rhonda had methodically inscribed in
it a record of the frequent births and
marriages and deaths in her family circle.
There were plenty of deaths noted down.

In Montgomery, the authorities an-
nounced that they intended to exhume the
bodies of George Garrett, Rhonda’s mother,
Mrs. Gibbons, and the five Garrett chil-
dren. Meanwhile, Rhonda continued to
deny that she was a poisoner, although she
talked a great deal about her background.
She disclosed that there was still another
husband in her life, a man she married
when she was 15. He had been a lodger at
the boarding house her mother had oper-
ated in Mobile. This marriage had ended in
divorce four years later.

She had this to say about herself, wist-
fully and with a throb in her voice. “Every-
body always said I spoiled my husbands
and everybody always said I spoiled my
children. That’s the way I am. I always
spoil anybody I love.”

Regardless of this glowing tribute to her-
self, the authorities went ahead with their
exhumation plans, and on Monday disin-
terred the remains of George Garrett and
Ellyn Elizabeth. Further exhumations were
abandoned when, on Monday night, March
12th, 1956, Rhonda Martin confessed six
slayings. In a written statement many pages
long, she admitted that she had fed arsenic
to Claude Martin, George Garrett, Mrs.
Mary Frances Gibbons and three of the
Garrett children, Emogene, 3, Ann Carolyn,
6, and Ellyn Elizabeth, 11. According to the
police, the redhead declared that she had
used ant poison purchased at grocery and
drugstores “from time to time.”

The poisoning of Claude Martin was done
as the man’s three daughters ate at the

same table. Rhonda put two tablespoons of
the poison in his coffee at each meal for a
period of three months.

George Garrett’s demise was accom-
plished in a much‘shorter time when she
poisoned his whiskey for several days.
Finally, when he came home from his work
sick, she took him inside and dispatched
him with one last ant poison and whiskey
cocktail.

Emogene, according to the statement, was
disposed of as the result of a spur-of-the-
moment decision. The child asked for a
drink of water because she couldn’t reach
the faucet. Peeved, Rhonda dosed a glass of
milk with the deadly powder and gave it to
her little daughter.

Ann Carolyn, too, died from a single
glass of milk which Rhonda had doctored.

Mrs. Gibbons and il-year-old Ellyn
Elizabeth suffered the most before they
died. As a result of doctored coffee for over
a year, Mrs. Gibbons became a helpless
invalid before succumbing. Ellyn Elizabeth,
after drinking poisoned milk for a year,
lost the use of her limbs. Rhonda, after
watching the child’s crippled condition “for
a spell,” gave her a lethal dose and ended
her torment.

Rhonda also confessed to a murder at-
tempt on the life of young Ronald Martin.
She admitted adding ant poison to his cof-
fee for a period of two months.

The woman insisted that Judith Charlene,
1, and Adelaide, 4, had died of natural
causes. Pneumonia was responsible for
Adelaide’s death, she claimed, and Judith
was a victim of jaundice.

Whether this is so or not, may never be
known. The authorities, however, are satis-
fied with the evidence they already have.
On Wednesday, March 14th, the confessed
poisoner of seven persons, was arraigned
in Montgomery Recorder’s Court before
Judge John B. Scott. She waived examina-
tion and was ordered held without bond for
action by the Montgomery County grand
jury. It will be up to the courts to decide
how to deal with the redhead hellcat who
literally spoiled all her loved ones to

death. o¢4

The Girl

who Threatened
to Kill

(Continued from page 27)

some nearby town—Neenah, I think. But
Tessie only went out with him a few times.
That was while she and Mike were mad at
each other back in October.”

“Are you sure she hasn’t been seeing him
since?” Engerson asked.

“I don’t believe she has, though I know
he’s called her on the phone several times.
Tessie doesn’t tell me all her personal af-
fairs though—not by a long ways. She
keeps a lot to herself.”

Engerson thought the girl seemed nerv-
ous under his questioning and wondered
whether she was telling all she knew.

“What were she and McCormick mad at
each other about in October?” he asked.

“She wouldn’t tell me. But she was all
broken up about it and cried a lot. Finally
she gave in and telephoned him, and after
that they started going together again.”

“You told your father that Tessie went
out to mail a letter,” Engerson went on.
“Did you ‘actually see the letter?”

“Yes, she had it when she came out of
her room.”

“Who was it addressed to?”

“I don’t know. But the. only person she
wrote to regularly was a girl named Betty

who lived in the northern part of the state.
They met last summer on a vacation trip
and they became close friends.”

“Did she have her handbag with her
when she went out?”

“Yes, I saw her put the letter in it.”

“Suppose some boy she knew at school
had come by in a car and asked her to go
for a ride,” Engerson suggested. “Would
she have gone?”

Helen deliberated. “Well, she might have
if she knew the boy very well, I suppose.
But she would have called home the first
chance she got to say where she was, so we
wouldn’t worry about her.”

“Did this boy friend from Neenah have a
car?”

“Yes, he had an old Ford with some kind
of a special motor. He took Tessie riding a
few times last October.”

Helen described the youth as being about
Theresa’s age and sturdily built. She said
he wore his blond hair in a long, hep-cat
cut.

Again the chief had the feeling that the
girl was withholding information. He asked
to see the missing girl’s room and Helen
led him to a small, tidy bedroom decorated
with college pennants. Theresa’s school
books were open, as though she had inter-
rupted her studying to write the letter.

Engerson glanced instinctively toward
the waste basket—then bent down sudden-
ly as he spotted a single crumpled piece of
note paper in it. He smoothed it out on the
desk and saw that it was the beginning of
a letter dated that day. Theresa had writ-
ten three or four lines, made an ink

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ded. Evelyn was

9y Leick’s fellow
Se brokerage firm
sently revealed a

diabolical plot. Two men said they had
refused to assist'in it, but Gene Benton
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to participate when Leick offered him
$2000 to make it look like a holdup slay-
ing. Dukes declared that Leick had
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Leick were indicted for murder in Den-
ver district court. The motive for the
murder appeared to be $19,000 insurance
on the slain wife. Leick pleaded inno-
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Dukes pleaded guilty and was sentenced
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tentiary at Canon, Colorado. :

At his trial in March, 1954, LeRoy
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which declared him to be sane, Leick
was granted a new trial in 1955. On Feb-
ruary 18th, 1956, a second jury found
him guilty and again he was sentenced
to die in the gas chamber.

Leick, now 34, who has spent two
years now in Death Row, is studying re-
ligion. Under guard, he recently was
taken to a Canon City church to be bap-
tized. He expresses confidence that his
appeal to the Colorado supreme court
will result in a reversal of his sentence.

heeds Bell Martin
REDHEAD HELLCAT

(TD June, 1956) Hh.

Arrested in Mobile, Alabama,...on
March 9th, 1956, charged with the mur-
der of her fourth husband, Claude Car-
roll Martin, who died on April 27th,
1957, Rhonda Bell Martin, 46, confessed
to five other poison murders, the vic-
tims being her first husband, her mother
and three of her children. She divorced
two other husbands, was accused of at-
tempting to poison her fifth husband.

Her trial for the death of Claude Mar-
tin began on June 4th, 1956, and lasted
only one day. After three hours’ delib-
eration the jury found her guilty and
sentenced her to die in the electric chair.

An appeal to the state supreme court
delayed her execution, but on March
14th, 1957, the court denied the appeal
and set the woman’s execution date for

May 31st. (Continued on page 92)

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CASE FILE

(Continued from page 5)

A request by her attorneys for a re-
hearing caused another postponement.
The court denied a rehearing and up-
held the death sentence, setting the exe-
cution date for September 27th, 1957.

If the death sentence is carried out,
Rhonda Bell Martin will be the second
white woman.to die: in‘ Kilby: Prison’s
electric chair.. The first was Mrs. Earl
Dennison, executed September 4th,
1953, for the poison-murder of a two-
year-old niece. (‘“Alabama’s Borgia,”
TD January, 1953, Case ae December,
1953.)

FIVE BULLETS FOR THE
DISC JOCKEY

(TD January, 1956)

For 15 months Richard “Mad Dog”
Carpenter, 25, identified as the: slayer of
Chicago disk jockey RichardsF” Dix; 24,
was the object of an intensive manhunt.
On the night of: May 10th,.1954, Carpen-
ter forced his way into the car where
Dix and his fiancee sat and slew Dix
when he attempted to protect the girl.

On August 15th, 1955, Detective Wil-
liam Murphy spotted Carpenter on, a
subway train, took him off at:the next
station...Carpenter shot and killed the

“officer, commandeered a car and escaped,

On the night of August 18th Patrolman
Clarence Kerr saw Carpenter in a movie

. house and tried to arrest him. Carpenter

shot Kerr through the chest and_ fled:
Indicted for the-ymurder of Detective

Meh

, Turner, 34.

Murphy, the murder of Richard Dix and
the wounding of Patrolman Kerr, the
“most hunted man in Chicago” was tried
first for the murder of Detective
Murphy. He was found guilty and sen-
tenced to die in the electric chair. Ap-
peals delayed his execution, the date of
which finally was set for June 7th,
1957. On that date another postpone-
ment was granted for a hearing on his
sanity.

However, since the Illinois legislature
recently has voted to abolish the death
penalty for a six-year trial period, ‘Mad
Dog” Carpenter, who has refused. to
speak a word in 17 months in Death
Row, may escape execution.

‘THE GAMBLER AND THE
THREE NEIGHBORLY WOMEN

(TD September, 1956)

“In the spring of 1956 Mrs. Joyce Tur-
ner, 27, the hard-working
six. young children and expecting the
seventh soon, reached a point where she
felt she could no longer endure the
abuse of her husband, Alonzo Wesley
Lonnie, a gambler, refused
to work and repeatedly beat her. Joyce
discussed her problem with three women
neighbors, who agreed that she had
borne too much from him.

Mrs. Audrey Roakes, 32, lent Joyce

the money to. buy. a: gun, a 5-inch .22
vest-pocket. revolver, and Mrs. Clestell

_Gay, 32, went with her when she bought

it:. And on the night of June 4th, 1956,
Lonnie Turner was shot to death as he
slept in their home in Columbia, South

mother of /

Carolina. At first Joyce told detectives
that a strange man had entered the
house and shot her-husband. But-jater
the three women confessed the plot.

On September 6th, 1956, a jury con-
victed Mrs. Joyce Turner of murder,
with a recommendation for mercy,
which carried a life sentence. Mrs.
Audrey Roakes, convicted as accessory
before the tact also received a life
sentence. The same sentence was meted
out to Mrs. Clestell Gay. All three wom-
en now are confined in the South Caro-
lina state penitentiary for the rest of
their natural lives.

THE REAL KILLER OF
MILDRED HOSMER

(TD July, 1957)

Arrested in Springfield, Massachusetts,
on January 30th, 1957, charged with the
assault and robbery of two women,
Lucien Peets, 30, a parolee from Sing
Sing, surprised officials by confessing to
a murder committed two years earlier.

On January 25th, 1954, Mildred Hos-
mer, a young divorcee, was found
strangled to. death in her Springfield
rooming house. Santos Rodriguez, 26,

a waiter, was arrested for’the crime. On”

December 9th, 1954, Rodriguez was
found guilty and given a life sentence.
To this crime Lucien Peets now. con-
fessed. .

On April 9th, 1957, Santos Rodriguez

was pardoned by the governor and.

freed. The legislature voted $60,000 for

Rodriguez as compensation for his un--~

just imprisonment.

Lucien Peets pleaded guilty to man-
slaughter and was sentenced to 18 to 20
years, with two 10 to 12-year sentences.
for assault and one of 5 to 10 years,»
the sentences to run concurrently. His*

attorneys appealed for a_ reduction of!

Am,

ad ee

sentence for Peets, but clemency was res”

fused by the appellate division of su+ ie

perior court.

THE CHAMBERMAID FLIRTED
ONCE TOO OFTEN

(TD October, 1956) ta te

Deciding that a summer in the Cat~

skills was preferable to one in New York’,
City, Nellie Ferrick, 43, took a job as:

She “arrived there on June 12th, 1956,
and was given some of the best suites to
service. On her free time she’ was

~chambermaid at a hotel on’ Lake Kia ee
mesha in Sullivan County, New Yor, Eanes

squired by one or another of the male. \;

employees to the lake or to a nearby’

tavern.

On June 22nd Nellie’s body was found, Piet

foun

near the lake. She had been strangled:
to death. Police sought a man employe

who had quit his job at the hotel on the. *
Identified as Sheldon Raymond

22nd.
Woolridge, 24, he was picked up by state
police on June 26th. He confessed. the
murder. “She was awful pretty,” -he
said. But her
had .infuriated him.

_ Woolridge, who had a record for as-
saults:from the age of 13 and had been. -
a patient in mental institutions, was con-»** ;
victed “of. second-degree. murder and
-sentenced to 8 to 20 years in Dannemora-: %

prison at.Clinton, New York.

interest in other men.” ..~

MRT 1,

Jackie Smith

THE DISMEMBERED BLONDE
(TD April, 1956)

In General Sessions court in New
York on January 25th, 1956, Thomas
Daniel, 24, a harness firm employe,
and Leo Pijuan, 48, a hospital orderly
at Bushwick Hospital, Brooklyn, were
indicted, charged with first-degree man-
slaughter in the death of pretty Jac-
queline Smith, 20, a fashion designer.
Jackie had died in Daniels’ apartment
on Christmas Eve, 1955, as the result
of a bungled abortion performed by
Pijuan, who admitted that he never had
performed an abortion before.

Shortly after their trial began Pijuan
pleaded guilty and took the stand as a
witness against Daniel. He said Daniel
had offered him $100 to perform the
abortion. He gave the girl an injection of
sodium pentathol as an anesthetic. It
apparently was an overdose and he saw
that the girl was in a state of shock.
Unable to revive her, he summoned a
doctor from Lincoln Hospital, who pro-
nounced Jackie dead, and told them to
notify police. Instead, they dismem-
bered the body, wrapped the pieces in
Christmas paper and distributed them
in trash cans,

Judge Mitchell D. Schweitzer ruled
that Jackie’s death was established
through the testimony of the doctor
who was summoned too late. The case
went to the jury on May 29th and after
deliberating an hour and 35 minutes the
jury of 10 men and tWo women brought
in a guilty verdict.

On June 26th Judge Schweitzer sen-
tenced Thomas Daniel to prison for not
less than 8 years and 6 months and not
more than 20 years.

JAA LE

REDHEAD HELLCAT

(TD June, 1956)
In Montgomery, Alabama, Rhonda
Bell Martin, 46, was held in jail for her
trial on six first-degree murder in-
dictments. Her victims were Claude
Martin, her fourth husband; George
Garrett, her second husband; Carolyn
Garrett, 6, a daughter by Garrett; her
mother, Mrs. Mary Frances Gibbon and
two other daughters, Emogene Garrett,
13, and Ellyn Elizabeth Garrett, 11.
Her present and fifth husband, Ronald
Martin, stepson of her slain fourth hus-
band, is paralyzed from the waist down
as the result of ant poison which Rhon-
da confessed giving him in his coffee
over a period of two months. Ronald
is still undergoing treatment in a
Biloxi, Mississippi, hospital.

Two earlier husbands escaped death
through divorce, and two of her five
children apparently died of natural
causes.

Rhonda, a waitress in a Mobile res-
taurant was arrested on March 9th,
1956, after Ronald Martin’s illness was
diagnosed as due to poisoning, and con-
fessed to the series of crimes which
began in 1937. The motive was pre-
sumed to be insurance policies from
which she benefited.

Her trial, which began on June 4th,
lasted only one day. A jury, after de-
liberating three hours, found her guilty,
and sentenced her to die in the electric
chair.

| Report of latest legal developments

on cases published by TD

THE MODEL BOY AND
THE BABY SITTER

(TD January, 1955)

For Kenneth Chapin, 20, of Spring-
field, Massachusetts, death in the elec-
tric chair on June 2nd, 1956, was the
legal penalty decreed by the state for

the knife-slaying of Lynn Ann Smith,
14-year-old baby sitter, and her charge,
Steven Goldberg, 4, in the Forest Park
home of the Goldbergs on Septembe1
25th, 1954.

Kenneth confessed that he had seen
Lynn Ann near the window’ and
knocked on the door. When she opened
it, he pulled out his knife, ‘‘just to

scare her.” But she screamed, and he
stabbed her. Then, fearing the child
would identify him, he stabbed little
Steven to death.

On March 19th, 1955, an all-male

jury convicted Kenneth
two murders, with no
for mercy, and Judge

shapin of the
commendation
arles Fairhouse

sentenced him to e in the electric
chair. But on JungY# Ist the Governor's
Council approvedfa 6-months’ stay of

execution after overnnor Herter re-
quested the lay in order to allow
Chapin’s coufKel time to pursue appeals
in both statf# and federal courts.

WHO/WAS THE SOCIAL SET
FIREBUG ?

(TD September, 1955)
Frogn December, 1954, to June, 1955,
weewme Of incendiary fires had plagued

_—_—_

PENNSYLVANIA'S
HALLOWEEN HORROR
(TD February, 1955)

At 7 p.m. on the evening of Hallow-
een, 1954, 6-year-old Karen Mauk
went out with her trick-or-treat bag.
When she did not return to her home in

Conemaugh, Pennsylvania, neighbors
and police began a search. Her body
was found shortly before midnight,

scarcely 100 yards from the Mauk home.
The coroner stated that the child had
died of suffocation.

Suspicion attached to Harry Gossard,
39, a 6-foot, 200-pound ex-seaman, who
had a record of 5 arrests, two of them
on sex charges. Gossard finally con-
fessed that he had lured the child into
his-car on a promise of something for
her trick-or-treat bag, but he denied
meaning to kill Karen, saying that he
“slipped and fell on her.”

Convicted of murder and sentenced
to die during the week of June 4th, 1956,
Gossard lost his final appeal to the state
supreme court on May 2lst, 1956. He
was executed in the state’s electric chair
on the night of June 4th.

e Leah

Rumson, New Jersey. All were in a
residential section known as ‘‘Million-
aires’ Row.” None had cost a life, but
property losses were extensive.
eral unexplained blazes had broken out
at “The Needles,” one of the imposing
homes in the area.

In January, 1955, detectives m~
moned to a fire on an estate near The
Needles, saw a figure they took to be
Mrs. Elizabeth Needle running from the

Sev-

place. Arrested on January 13th and
charged with setting the fire, Mrs
Needle denied that she had been on

the property. She had gone to a drug-
store, she said, and was aware that of-
ficers had followed her.

During the investigation Mrs. Needle
continued to protest her innocence and
voluntarily did everything in her power
to help the police solve the mystery of
the incendiary fires.

On May 26th, 1956, a jury of 9 women
and 3 men acquitted Mrs. Needle of the
charge, after Union County Judge Ed-
ward A. McGrath had instructed them
that in cases where evidence points
equally to guilt and innocence the ju-
rors must acquit the defendant.

kenly thought that the
ie missing Anna and
had vanished with the
ids. It was then that
.at isn’t true,” he pro-
vas killed in a hunting

be?” Cardenas asked.
sk Shelton.”
ier sought a way out,
id I were hunting wild
‘ame on the Kennisons.
‘hen old man Kennison
His head was bleeding.
on with her gun. I shot
g or somebody, and I
appose I shot her.”
7 stared at the two men
aen you robbed them,”
the bodies and cut away
You carried the bodies
m. You destroyed their

stated, “we knew every-
t to us. O’Brien found
’s money belt. He drove
o City, while I stayed in

ardenas ordered O’Brien
od up and held for fur-
At some date soon, the
have an opportunity to
ary, at which time it will
iether they are innocent

2 end of visiting hours.
. clouds were sweeping
of Mexico that night as
ve along the fabulously
iy, edged by the pure
e blue gulf, on her re-
ile. She could not keep
All her life had been a
ything she touched went

born here in this State
nere her young husband
ith. Her father had oper-
near Lucedale, but she
e of those times.

clear memories were of
1 Mobile after her mother
eparated.
ad often, but while living
Conception Street, her
arated a boardinghouse.
elle first learned to wait
there, also, she met her

vorite boarder, the hand-
ierman.

a Belle learned that she
cinate men. The relation-
e boarder and the house-
-er had become serious,
da Belle was setting the
iarriage.

not the wedded bliss the
de had expected. By the
19, she realized that she
inhappy choice when she
is man in the upholstery
sked for and got a divorce

Rhonda Belle recalled the
e thought she would find
narriage. She was 21 then,
ext door—George Garrett
late.

Jarrett attractive and he

the sparkling hair, lovely *

» eyes of Rhonda Belle.

-e been a happy marriage,
Belle thought back over

ne had lived with George

> five children born to her

during that period, it was grief and
mourning that came to her mind. .

She recalled her agony as Mary Ade-
laide died while George was working for
the railroad and they were living in Mont-
gomery. That death was hard to take
because poor little Adelaide had been: the
object of so much attention. The child
had not been normal at birth and had
never been able to walk well or to talk
like other children. The doctor said pneu-
monia was the killer of this infant.

But that same year, 1934, little Emogene
was born and soon brightened the Garrett
home.

Then, three years later, during the hot
summer months, as the rest of the world
was intent on the journey that had ended
in the mysterious disappeararice of
Amelia Earhart on her flight across the
Pacific, tragedy again thrust its sharp dart
personally at Rhonda Belle.

She remembered how she,had tried to
hold back the terrible sobs as she told her
mother that little Emogene had died of a
heart attack.

Indeed, it did seem to Rhonda Belle
that she had spent most of her life caring
for others, and grieving.

The year of 1939 had seen her live
through a double loss.

It was in October of that year that her
one-year-old daughter Judith was buried.

And before the bereaved mother had
had time to recover from that grief,
George Garrett became deathly ill.

Two days before Christmas he died.

Her life continued to be haunted by the
ceremonies of death. In less than five
months, Rhonda Belle was standing be-
side another grave in the Montgomery
Memorial Cemetery and hearing again the
words of the service that marks death.
This time it was her six-year-old daugh-
ter Anna Carolyn.

And even after that, fate seemed to hold
more unkindness for this woman who al-
ready felt so very much alone.

On August 1, 1943, while most of the
people in Mobile were reading the war
news and perhaps lamenting the fact that
liquor rationing was about to go into ef-
fect, Rhonda Belle was fighting a war
with her own emotions as she sobbed and
lamented the death of her 11-year-old
daughter Ellyn Elizabeth.

Now all five of her children had been
taken from her.

Still another blow followed the next
year, for it was in 1944 that death again
visited. This time she felt acute loss in
the death of her mother, Mrs. Mary
Frances Gibbons.

Now the redheaded woman was en-
tirely alone.

The years that followed were not pleas-
ant to look back on. During World War II
she found employment as a sheetmetal
worker at Maxwell Air Field in Mont-
gomery. After that she worked as a wait-
ress in various restaurants in Mobile
and Montgomery.

To each of the customers she showed
a gaiety she did not feel. Inside, she
— not hide her loneliness from her-
self.

While she was working at the Old
Normandy Café in Montgomery in 1947,
Talmadge Gipson came into her life, and
a few months later—on October 11, 1947
—he became husband No. 3.

But again, this was not the romantic
happiness the blue-eyed woman had been
seeking. Life with this hospital attendant
was not filled with joy at all as she had
expected it to be.

Five months later she left him.

While the divorce was in the process
of becoming final, Rhonda Belle knew that
she must work again to support herself.

She found a job at the Hazel-Atlas Glass
Company in Montgomery.

Here, as a packer, she met widower
en Martin and began going out with

im. .

“T’ye never dated a man I haven't
married,” she teased.

Claude was no exception.

They said “I do” before the justice of
peace at Wetumpka in Elmore County,
Alabama, on October 28, 1949.

Rhonda Belle knew that this was one
day before her divorce decree from
Talmadge Gipson became final, but she
felt that one day could not be important.

With husband No. 4, she had taken on
the responsibility of Claude Martin’s four
grown children—including Ronald, who
was now husband No. 5.

Now, driving through the blustery night
on the way home from the Veteran’s Hos-
pital in Biloxi, where Bud lay paralyzed,
Rhonda Belle found it hard to believe
that tragedy could strike her , again.
Death had visited those close to her so
often.

The next morning she woke up tired
from the long drive and weighted with the
sad burden of her ill husband, but she
went to work as cheerful as ever. She
wore her earrings that dangled three
flower buds from her pierced ears and she
talked sweetly with the customers, al-
though she could not keep the fatigue
out of her voice.

“Bud gave me money for a sewing ma-
chine last night and I bought it before
I came to work: this morning,” she told
the cashier at the Sea Breeze.

At 3 o'clock that afternoon she pulled
on her three-quarter-length -yellow coat
and left the café as usual. But she didn’t
start in the direction of her apartment.
She went, instead, to the office of Mobile
Chief of Police Dudley McFadyen.

The chief had a message for her, she
had been told as she left work, and so
she hurried to the police building on Gov-

ernment Street, only a block from the
café,

It came as a surprise to her when she
entered the chief’s office and found an
official delegation waiting for her. From
their expression, Rhonda Belle knew
something dreadful lay ahead.

In cold, clear phrases the chief told
the redheaded woman that she was under
arrest. For the past two months, Rhonda
Belle was told, an investigation into her
marriages and morals had been going on.
There was enough evidence on hand to
charge her with the attempted murder
of her husband, Ronald.

“{t don’t know what this is all about,”
she told the officers in her soft voice.
“There’s nothing to it.” And the woman
who had survived so many tragedies in
her family remained calm.

“Bud will be heartbroken when he finds
out,” she told.the officers. “I went to see
him Thursday night and he was glad to
see me and hated to see me go. He kissed
me tenderly. I love him so much. He’s a
good-looking man and we've been so
happy together.”

She twisted the wedding ring on her
right hand and explained why she was
wearing it.

“Tt’s good to always have him close to
me,” she said as she looked at the gold
band. '

But the officers had evidence.

The thoroughness of the Veteran’s
Hospital in Biloxi was not to be under-
estimated, and the mysterious illness of
Navy Veteran Ronald Martin had called
for thorough work.

Two strands of hair were the first bit
of evidence.

Dr. E. S. Garrett at the Veteran’s Hos-
pital had sent these two strands of blond
hair from the head of Ronald Bud Martin
to the National Laboratories for Research
at — Reed Hospital in Washington,
D.C.

The report that Dr. Garrett received

Scientific study of human anatomy is
a very recent development. As late as
1800, few physicians had any first-
hand knowledge about the interior of
the body. Most people had a super-
stitious horror of.the dead, and threat-
ened violence to any doctor who dared
dissect a corpse.

Yet there was strong and growing
pressure on the part of medical men.
No longer satisfied with what he could
read in the few books on the subject,
the alert doctor wished to see human
organs for himself. From avtopsta,
modern Latin for “self-seeing,” the
opening of a corpse was called an
autopsy.

Most early autopsies were per-

formed behind locked doors. Demand
for bodies ran so high that in 1827-29
the notorious William Burke mur-
dered at least 15 paupers in order to
supply Edinburgh doctors with sub-
jects for dissection. As laboratory
studies began to bear fruit, public
opinion shifted and anatomy became a
major branch of modern medicine. It
took only a few years to perfect meth-
ods by which cause of death can usu-
ally be determined. This opened a
radical new branch of criminal investi-
gation and the once illegal autopsy—
“self-seeing by experts” — became
a standard method of procedure in all
cases of suspected murder.

—Boyd G. Wood

Fifty-first of a series

concerning these hairs convinced him that
he had news which would interest other
officials.

Arsenic was the key word in the re-
port.

Dr. Garrett knew that when a person
is poisoned through arsenic, his body tries
to rid itself of the potion. And one way
nature has arranged for this elimination
is through the individual’s hair. This is
what had occurred in the case of Ronald
Martin. Someone had been feeding the
boy such large quantities of arsenic that
his whole system had rebelled and thrown
him into a state of paralysis!’

In his own efficient and thorough way,
Dr. Garrett began to question Ronald
Martin. What the boy told him of his
marital life led the physician to delve
deeply into the long string of deaths which
had followed in his_wife’s footsteps
throughout the years. Dr. Garrett’s eyes
had widened with horror to learn that
eight persons had felt the cold finger of
death upon them in their life with Mrs.
Rhonda Belle Gibbons Alderman Garrett
Gipson Martin Martin!

Dr. Garrett had taken his information
to the chief attorney at the Regional Vet-
eran’s Administration in Montgomery.
Not much time was lost in relaying the
growing suspicions to Montgomery’s Cir-
cuit Solicitor William F. Thetford.

Thetford summoned Deputy Solicitor
Maury Smith, and the investigation was
started in full swing.

Another official whom Dr. Garrett had
advised of the high mortality rate in
Rhonda Belle’s husbands and kinfolk was
Alabama Attorney General John Patter-
son, son of the crusader whose murder
had touched off the famous Phenix City
clean-up.

Patterson was prompt in assigning his
chief assistant, MacDonald Gallion, to the
case. Thus, a galaxy of top-notch investi-
gators, supplemented by State Investigator

W. B. Painter, Montgomery Detective T. -

J. Ward and State Toxicologist Vann
Pruitt, was delving into every corner of
Rhonda Belle’s life.

One of the first to be questioned was
Ronald Martin’s sister, Lorraine. “I
haven’t been around Rhonda Belle for
four or five years,” she told the officers.
But she and some other relatives did
have definite ideas about the redheaded
woman—and they didn’t mind telling the
lawmen about them.

Of course, these reports from relatives
and neighbors ‘would not make a case
against the much-married woman, but as
the officials checked back through the
records, they became interested in the
death certificates on file in the Bureau of
Statistics.

The death certificate for Emogene
showed “Death by accidental poisoning.”
This was in complete contradiction to
what Rhonda Belle had told relatives—
she had claimed that her daughter had
died of a “heart attack.”

Interviews with the physicians who had
attended the various members of Rhonda
Belle’s fast-dying household brought out
further evidence.

When all the medical data were col-
lected on the desk of Assistant Attorney
General Gallion, he noted that the deaths
of Rhonda Belle’s husband No. 2, George
Garrett, her five children and her mother
were all characterized by the same symp-
toms: acute diarrhea and vomiting.

“These are symptoms of arsenic poison-
ing,” Gallion told the group of officers
working with him. “I guess that there’s
nothing to do but dig up the body of
one of the deceased.”

A brief conference was held. It was
decided that, since husband No. 4—Claude

48 aN

Martin—was the most recent to have been
buried, his corpse should be the first to
be exhumed.

The case against Rhonda Belle was
ready when Toxicologist Pruitt completed
his autopsy report on his findings:
“Claude Martin’s body contained enough
arsenic to kill several men.”

The morning following the arrest of
Rhonda Belle, newspapers across the
country headlined the event, hinting that
this mild-appearing, quiet woman had,
between 1937 and 1951, very possibly used
arsenic to poison six members of her
family and, via the same method, had pos-
sibly attempted to do away with her young
husband No. 5, Ronald Martin.

At a preliminary hearing, Rhonda Belle
was specifically charged with the murder
of Claude Martin. re

To the friends who knew her best, who
worked with her and lived in the same
house with her, the accusation seemed
impossible.

Through her ordeal, Rhonda Belle re-
mained imperturbable.

“If they say I poisoned anyone, they’re
wrong,” the redhead maintained. “I have
never had a touch ‘of poison in my hand

IS YOUR NAME IN THE BOOK?

You can’t vote in the presidential election
November 6th if you're not registered.

in my life. There has never been any in
my home. 1 took care of Claude. Bud and
I both loved Claude.”

The officers who had brought her to
Montgomery looked in disbelief at this
woman who still wore her white waitress’
uniform.

“My arrest came like a bolt out of the
blue. It‘ was the worst thing that ever
happened. There I was and they came up
and said I was under arrest for murder
and I didn’t know what to think. I hadn’t
any idea they were checking on Claude’s
death. It was a shock to me. I just know
Bud will be heartbroken,” she went on
as she stared intently through her glasses.
On Monday afternoon, March 12, 1956,
Solicitor Thetford had news for the
woman whose life had seemed jinxed.

“We've exhumed the body of George
Garrett, your third husband; and that of
your daughter Ellyn Elizabeth,” he told
her. “I don’t have to tell you what we
found when we got the laboratory re-
port.

“Also, State Investigator Coley has been
all through your papers at Mobile. We’ve
got the insurance policies, too.”

Rhonda Belle suddenly seemed to sag
under the weight of the evidence against
her. “All right,” she said evenly, “I'll tell
you everything.”

When the long confession session was
over, the red-haired waitress had signed
a statement covering 11 legal-size pages.

Six deaths were explained in that docu-
ment.

Six deaths by poison.

Ronald Martin, now in the hospital
paralyzed from the waist down from
arsenic poisoning, had almost become
victim No. 7. Only through Dr. Garrett’s
persistence in tracking down the cause
of his malady had the murderess’ long
reign of horror been brought to an end.

“Ant poisoning with arsenic,’ Rhonda
Belle confessed calmly. “It’s not hard to

get. I bought ant poison at the grocery
stores and drugstores from time to time.”

Three or four times during the last
three or four months that Ronald has
been at home he had unknowingly sipped
the poison she had placed in his coffee.
Each dose had consisted of two or three
teaspoonfuls.

The list of victims, each of whom she
had poisoned in a slightly different
manner, included three of her children:
Emogene, Anna Carolyn and Ellyn Eliza-
beth; also her second husband, George
Garrett, and her mother, Mrs. Mary
Frances Gibbons.

On one point Rhonda Belle was firm.
Her two tier children, Judith and Mary
Adelaide, had actually died of natural
causes.

Milk was the drink she had used to
cover the taste of the arsenic potions
when she had dispensed them to her three
children. Garrett had got his deadly dos-
age in his whisky. Arsenic-treated coffee
had been the vehicle used to murder her
75-year-old mother.

The modern Borgia declared that she
had planned the poisoning of two of her
five husbands and of her mother as long as
a year before their deaths; her three
daughters had been murdered “on the spur
of the moment,” in each case after she had

_had a quarrel with their father, George

Garrett. Rhonda Belle remarked that one
night she had given Garrett an “arsenic
highball.” The next day, while he was at
work, her husband became ill and had to
be brought home. Rhonda Belle put him
to bed, suggesting: “All you need is a
good shot of whisky.” It was to that drink
that she added ant poison. The next morn-
ing husband No. 2 was dead.

The only reason Rhonda Belle gave for
slaying her mother was that the elderly
woman “bothered me.” She didn’t explain
in what way.

What was the motive for these whole-
sale assassinations? Solicitor Thetford
shook his head when the confession was
finished. “She’s mean,” he declared. Scoff-
ing at the possibility that these had been
murders for profit, the solicitor stated:
“She had a small amount of insurance
on each person. On Claude Martin’s life
she collected only $2,000.”

On March 14, 1956, Rhonda Belle was
bound over to the grand jury. As we go
to press, the confessed murderess is in
the city jail in Montgomery awaiting the
next session of the grand jury.

An ironic touch to this case lies in the
fact that, during the time Rhonda Belle
was administering -poison to Claude
Martin, she was residing across the street
from Kilby Prison in Mobile—within view
of the cell occupied by arsenic poisoner
Mrs. Earl Dennison; the only white
woman ever to be executed ‘in Alabama!
Mrs. Dennison had fed arsenic to her four-
year-old niece.

How did Rhonda Belle take her down-
fall? Strangely enough she wasn’t con-
cerned with the enormity of her crimes.
What seemed to bother her more than
anything else was how the last man she
had tried to kill would take the news
of their marital status. When it was
pointed out to her that an Alabama law
defines marriage between a woman and
her stepson as “incestuous,” the redhead
simply moaned:

“I didn’t know there was anything
wrong with that until I read in a romance
magazine last month about a movie star
who had an annulment because he had
married a stepchild. I guess rightfully
I’m not married to Ronald. But I do love
him. I know Bud will be just heartbroken.
... I just know he will.”

Dial Se)

[Continue

Mrs. Schroeter
phone call at onc
his job and heade:
way to Arkadelr
could take him. }!
Mary Dell’s au
memory and sear
up with a few
seemed only to a

First, she remer
that Sunday mor
the time had see
registered in M:
scious mind that
a date to see so:
Mac’s Café, in to
automatically ass.
Mary Dell’s fiance
she realized that
if the caller had b
just come to the }

Secondly, the
closet in Mary De
all her clothes we
and-gray figured
ing on Sunday mc
coat she had worr
day night were m

Just one thing h
On Friday night.
home from work
conference of NY
be held on Sunda
sas, a long drive
phia. Mary Dell b
way to go, the au:
big shots” would
wanted that bett«
thought she migh
she met some of
NYA conference.

“T talked her ou
ter told the missir
so little money, a
that she would hz
portation and bu
hotel room. She f
go; but maybe if
ing that way on ‘

Lee Furlow agr
bility, but count
“You say you thi
ing a date to meet
Isn’t the bus tern
ing?”

“That’s right,” }
might have taker

Furlow teleph«
there recalled Ma
the place on Sun
Saturday night «
Briley, but she }
ticket, hadn’t dine
Sunday so far a
could recall.

A few minutes
was in the sheriff’
Bill Wells of Cle
was a solidly bui
keen eyed, witt
poker-faced inte!
tures.

He listened qu
him what had har

“Tll have to é
Wells said soft]
daughter’s boy fri
with anyone in p

“Well, she was
plied. “But she w
you mean. Back
lot of boy friends
she went steadi
thought they had

st night he was back.
e, gave him hypodermic
ing had seemed to help.
1 0n his deathbed asked

father whispered. They

nly service.

and, indeed, she needed
is year she had suffered
‘a. Since then she hadn’t

: for others.
buried in Montgomery

dear departed mother,”
after the funeral. “I’ve
»r’s insurance. I’m going
yeside Claude.”

to call him by his nick-
his woman was indeed
ake care of her, as his
until he realized that

hen Bud had asked her
2»ver known really well

ooth felt a fondness for
of memories for both of
ne south, seemed more

2 azalias are more beau-
2en. And the Mardi Gras
ve,” she told her young

an husband was easily
d to the Gulf Coast city.
idly expanding Mobile.
nuge Hollingsworth and
sity like a proud mother
in-looking woman. Her
on her cheek and the
realized that the pock-

dl that mattered.

“I get bored staying home all the time,” Rhonda Belle told
Bud one night. “I don’t want to waste my time just doing
nothing. I’m going to find a job.”

“Whatever you want,” Bud answered with a smile that
sent a thrill of happiness through Rhonda Belle.

“lye worked as a waitress here in Mobile before and I
know I can find a job—at least a part-time job,” Rhonda
Belle went on. “It won’t pay much, but I just want some-
thing to keep me busy while you're at work.”

Working at the Sea Breeze Café, however, did not keep
Rhonda Belle from devoting abundant time to loving labor
for her husband, as she did her best to bring every possible
satisfaction to his life. _

She told customers at the café:

“Everybody always says I spoil my husband and every-
body always says I spoiled my children. That’s the way I am.
I always spoil anybody I love.” \

Those who had known the redheaded woman for many
years agreed that she had been good to everyone with whom
she’d come in contact, even though life had never been par-
ticularly kind to her. Rhonda Belle’s most bitter period was
when she had lost the five children she had borne to husband
No. 2, George Garrett. Four-year-old Mary Adelaide was
the first to succumb. The child had passed away in 1934

Below, Veteran’s Hospital at Biloxi, Mississippi.
It was here that Rhonda Belle would come to visit
ailing mate after a hard day’s work in café, right.
Here, too, police got first clues in murder probe.

from pneumonia. In 1937, three-year-old Emogene had been
stricken with a heart attack; baby Judith, one, was another
victim of pneumonia in 1939; five months later, her daughter,
Anna Carolyn, six, had come down with a fatal throat in-
fection; and finally there had been 11-year-old Ellyn Eliza-
beth, who, in 1943, was to die from a stomach disorder.

“You know what I regret?” Rhonda Belle confided to her
co-workers at the café. “It’s that Ronald and I can’t have
children, We both want children but we can’t have any.”

But there were compensations. It was so much fun and
so different to be married to a young man with young ideas.

“Come on and have a drink,” Bud encouraged. And so
Rhonda Belle learned to drink with him, and to enjoy it, too.

She also learned to smoke with him.

Everything seemed fun when she did it with Bud.

But adverse circumstance had always haunted this woman,
dnd in the summer of 1955 the ill-starred role of the redhead
was again that of a nurse.

Bud had started to feel bad and to complain. “I don’t think
I can make it to work today,” he finally admitted one morn-
ing. After that, he visited a physician.

“The doctor says maybe it’s ulcers,” Bud told Rhonda
Belle when he came home from the check-up.

That seemed simple. Rhonda Belle [Continued on page 46]

Sra RRttze
CAFE

Shelton’s action in calling his Victoria
bank did not seem to him like the gesture
of a man who was running away from the
law. Nevertheless, the search for the pair
continued.

Meanwhile the bodies of the Kennisons,
which had been buried, were exhumed
and sent to Detroit when Kennison’s
brother Adrian, of Evansville, Indiana, ar-
rived to claim them.

As the investigation into the double
murder was pursued, Attorney General
Auirre developed a new theory in the case,
which might provide a more plausible
robbery motive. It was startling, but one
which Commander Torres was inclined to
believe credible.

Auirre thought it quite possible that
Shelton and O’Brien had. managed to con-
vince themselves that the Kennisons were
actually the Thorpes, traveling under as-
sumed names; that the two motel man-
agers had plotted the murders in the hope
of making a big strike.

Kennison was nearly Floyd Thorpe’s age,
and Pauline Kennison could have passed
for a woman some years younger than she
actually was. Besides, there was a re-
semblance between the two women.

Commander Torres was told, but he
could not prove, that O’Brien had left the
motel about the time the Kennisons
checked out. According to the story,
O’Brien came back to Victoria by plane
from Mexico City three days later, ex-

plaining that he had hitchhiked a ride to
the capital. Torres’ informant said O’Brien
stated that he had been on a business trip.

An examination of Everett Kennison’s
guns by experts revealed no fingerprints,
and the weapons were clean. It was im-
possible to tell wether either the shotgun
or the rifles had been recently fired.

Up and down the length of Mexico a
search for Shelton and O’Brien continued.
No official charge was issued against the
pair, since there was no evidence what-
soever that they had any knowledge of
the Kennison murders. Commander Torres
wanted the two men located so that he
could question them.

On Monday, April 2, 1956, the two-week
search for the two motel managers came
to an end. Shelton and O’Brien were
located at Ocozucuautia, near the Guate-
mala Border. The authorities took the
pair into custody as they sat eating break-
fast in a restaurant. Taken to headquar-
ters, they denied any connection with the
double murder. However, Shelton and
O’Brien were returned to Mexico City.
There, authorities allege, the two men
confessed the shotgun slaying of the Ken-
nisons.

oobrding to Chief Deputy Melchor
Cardenas of the Mexican Secret Service,
he questioned Shelton and O’Brien for
several hours. At one point, Cardenas in-
timated that perhaps the Kennisons had
been killed in error; that the two motel

managers had mistakenly thought that the
Kennisons were the missing Anna and
Floyd Thorpe, who had vanished with the
Michigan state funds. It was then that
O’Brien broke. “That isn’t true,” he pro-
tested. “Kennison was killed in a hunting
accident.”

“How could that be?” Cardenas asked.

“You'll have to ask Shelton.”

The other prisoner sought a way out,
saying, “O’Brien and I were hunting wild
turkeys when we came on the Kennisons.
I had a blackout. Then old man Kennison
was on the ground. His head was bleeding.
I saw Mrs. Kennison with her gun. I shot
twice at something or somebody, and I
was scared, so I suppose I shot her.”

The chief deputy stared at the two men
for a moment. “Then you robbed them,”
he said, “maimed the bodies and cut away

.their fingertips. You carried the bodies

away and hid them. You destroyed their
clothes.”

“Well,” Shelton stated, “we knew every-
thing would point to us. O’Brien found
$1,000 in Kennison’s money belt. He drove
their car to Mexico City, while I stayed in
Victoria.”

Chief Deputy Cardenas ordered O’Brien
and Shelton locked up and held for fur-
ther investigation. At some date soon, the
accused pair will have an opportunity to
face a judge and jury, at which time it will
be determined whether they are innocent
or guilty.

Love Has a Bitter Taste

{Continued from page 17]

knew that lots of men suffered from
ulcers. But she was worried anyway, and
insisted that Bud let her quit work to
give him all her attention.

“You need to get out more,” Bud pro-
tested as she nursed him day and night,
but Rhonda Belle would not hear of it.

Still, in spite of her constant care,
Bud’s health did not improve.

“The doctor says I’d better go to the
Veteran’s Hospital in Biloxi, Mississippi.
He just doesn’t seem to know what’s
wrong with me,” Bud told his wife late in
the fall.

Through tears she said good-by to him,
and then hurried to tell her landlady
about it.

“He didn’t want to leave me, but I told
him it was the best thing for him,” she
sobbed to her friend.

“I’m so lonesome without Bud that I
want to come back to work,” Rhonda
Belle explained to George Manos, owner
of the Sea Breeze Café.

“Sure, glad to have you back, if you’ll
work a half shift from 11 in the morning
to 3 in the afternoon,” Manos told her.

It was not an easy job and the pay was
just $9 a week plus tips, but she faced
it cheerfully.

“Every Friday I go out to the mill and
collect Bud’s sick-insurance check,” she
confided to her friends, “so I’ll get along.
I’m not used to anything fancy. I’ve never
worn a dress or coat that cost more than
$10, or a pair of shoes that cost more than
five dollars.

“IT could do more work, but I spend most
of my time running back and forth to see
Bud. It’s 80 miles over there to the hos-
pital and my car is about worn out, but
I guess that old ’50 Buick will make a few
more trips.”,

And faithfully, three or four times a
week, Rhonda Belle would fix herself to

46 raN

look as cheerful as possible and make the
journey. Her fingernails were brightly
manicured and her hair carefully treated
to show the glow of red which she knew
Bud so dearly loved.

Sitting lo hours by his bedside,
Rhonda Belle knew that all was not going
well with her young husband.

She could not hide her grief when Bud
was stricken with paralysis and was no
longer able even to move his arms.

“Honey, you take my wedding ring,”
Bud said one night as she stood beside
him and looked down at his wasting body
that looked so fragile beneath the white
sheets. “The doctor doesn’t think I should
go on wearing it.”

Rhonda Belle could not hide the tears
as she took the plain gold band from
the bedside table and slipped it onto the
third finger of her own right hand.

“The doctors don’t tell me anything, but
they think I have some kind of nervous
trouble,” Bud told her. “They’re making
all sorts of tests on me; they’ve even
taken some hairs out of my head to con-
duct some kind of experiment concern-
ing my nerves.”

Months dragged on and Rhonda Belle
felt forever tired. Powder and rouge could
not hide the weariness in her face. It
took a lot of walking to serve the cus-
tomers who gathered in large numbers
for the five-cent cup of coffee offered in
the Sea Breeze. Even in low-heeled shoes
her feet were swollen at the end of each
shift.

Early in March of 1956, Bud, in his
thoughtful way, gave her a surprise as he
kissed her tenderly when she came to his
bedside. .

“Look, honey. I’ve saved my govern-
ment check for you. It’s there in the
drawer of my stand. Now you can buy
that sewing machine you’ve wanted for
so long.”

“Oh, Bud, ‘you're so wonderful. I'll get
it tomorrow.” Tears showed in her dark
blue eyes. .

“Get well soon and we'll have lots of
fun together, darling,” she whispered

as she left at the end of visiting hours.

Ominous storm clouds were sweeping
in from the Gulf of Mexico that night as
Rhonda Belle drove along the fabulously
beautiful highway, edged by the pure
white sand of the blue gulf, on her re-
turn trip to Mobile. She could not keep
her thoughts still. All her life had been a
tragedy and everything she touched went
wrong.

She had been born here in this State
of Mississippi, where her young husband
was now near death. Her father had oper-
ated a sawmill near Lucedale, but she
remembered little of those times.

Her first really clear memories were of
her early years in Mobile after her mother
and father had separated.

They had moved often, but while living
out on South Conception Street, her
mother had operated a boardinghouse.
There Rhonda Belle first learned to wait
on tables. And there, also, she met her
first beau.

He was her favorite boarder, the hand-
some Walter Alderman.

At 15, Rhonda Belle learned that she
knew how to fascinate men. The relation-
ship between the boarder and the house-
keeper’s daughter had become serious,
and soon Rhonda Belle was setting the
date for their marriage.

But this was not the wedded bliss the
15-year-old bride had expected. By the
time she was 19, she realized that she
had made an unhappy choice when she
had married this man in the upholstery
business. She asked for and got a divorce
from Alderman.

Looking back, Rhonda Belle recalled the
second time she thought she would find
happiness in a marriage. She was 21 then,
and the boy next door—George Garrett
—asked for a date.

She found Garrett attractive and he

could not resist the sparkling hair, lovely ~

curves and blue eyes of Rhonda Belle.

It should have been a happy marriage,
but as Rhonda Belle thought back over
the 12 years she had lived with George
Garrett and the five children born to her

during that period,
mourning that came to

She recalled her agc
laide died while Georg
the railroad and they w
gomery. That death >
because poor little Ade
object of so much att
had not been normal
never been able to we
like other children. The
monia was the killer o

But that same year, 1
was born and soon brig
home.

Then, three years lat
summer months, as the
was intent on the jourr
in the mysterious
Amelia Earhart on he
Pacific, tragedy again tl
personally at Rhonda E

She remembered hov
hold back the terrible s:
mother that little Emo¢
heart attack.

Indeed, it did seem
that she had spent mos:
for others, and grievin

The year of 1939 h
through a double loss.

It was in October of
one-year-old daughter .

And before the bere
had time to recover
George Garrett became

Two days before Chr

Her life continued to
ceremonies of death. !
months, Rhonda Belle
side another grave in
Memorial Cemetery and
words of the service t
This time it was her six
ter Anna Carolyn.

And even after that, f:
more unkindness for thi
ready felt so very muck

On August 1, 1943, v
people in Mobile were
news and perhaps lame:
liquor rationing was ab
fect, Rhonda Belle wa
with her own emotions
lamented the death of
daughter Ellyn Elizabe:

Now all five of her «
taken from her.

Still another blow f:
year, for it was in 1944
visited. This time she
the death of her mo
Frances Gibbons.

Now the redheaded
tirely alone.

The years that followe
ant to look back on. Dur
she found employment
worker at Maxwell Ai
gomery. After that she \
ress in various restau
and Montgomery.

To each of the custo:
a gaiety she did not
could not hide her lone
self.

While she was work
Normandy Café in Mon
Talmadge Gipson came
a few months later—on
—he became husband N

But again, this was 1
happiness the blue-eyed
seeking. Life with this hb
was not filled with joy
expected it to be.

Five months later she

While the divorce wa
of becoming final, Rhond.
she must work again to

Neighbors reported that Rhonda was the"sweetest, dearest
woman alive". She devotedly nursed each of her children,

her many husbands and her own mother into their graves!

by LESLIE GOMEZ :
*RHONDA BELLE MARTIN was looked upon b

: members of her own sex as a “man’s woman.” Her per-
\ '” sonality was vibrant and she gave the impression of being |

a hail-fellow-well-met, But she had very little time for

females. Her charm was saved for the men with whom

she came into daily contact at the cafe where she worked

in Mobile, Alabama. Most people who knew Mrs. Martin

considered her a faithful wife and loving mother despite
her lack of warmth where other women were concerned.

one would have called her pretty because she was
ses te bloom of youth, wore glasses and her 170 pounds
were not distributed in such a way as to attract the attention
of Hollywood talent scouts looking for another Marilyn
Monroe or Jayne oreo eth pe Martin did have red
i ady wit and smiles for the men.
nisi ssoment liked that; and as a result Rhonda made
out all right with her tips. Women working with her in the
restaurant saw another side to her personality. They had
ideas, but there wasn’t anything definite they could put their
fingers on. Perhaps that was why some of the fair sex weren’t
too surprised when Rhonda Belle Martin was picked up by
the police as she left work at the restaurant on March 9th,
charged with poisoning—or attempting to poison—at least
eight people. | ;
Rhonda had always seemed to be a kindly, good mother
and a devoted, loyal wife. Perhaps, as her defense attorney
claimed during her trial, she harbored a streak of schizo-
phrenia. Regardless, she obviously had the ability to play
the role of two women—a ruthless, mass murderess as well
as a mild housewife wrapped up in her family and her home.
She had acted her split characters so well that two husbands
had died in agony at her hand still believing in her love.
Another had sat paralyzed in a veterans’ hospital unaware
until the“last minute that the woman who visited him from
three to four times a week, each time with a gift, and whom
he believed was his adoring wife, had robbed him of his
health and physical movement in an attempt to destroy his
life so she could collect a paltry $3,000 in insurance.
Rhonda Belle Martin’s rat poison went off the track
when her fourth husband revealed a stubborn constitutional
indestructability not present in her six previous victims. _
Physicians at the Mobile, Alabama, hospital were fasci-
nated by Roland Martin’s case. They tested, probed, poked
and X-rayed the young navy veteran but still couldn’t arrive
at a diagnosis which gave them any satisfaction. It could be
peptic ulcers because certainly the seat of the trouble lay in
the abdominal region. Yet it didn’t act like ulcers should all
the way through, even though the patient did have the com-
mon ulcer symptoms—he vomited, had diarrhea and his
stomach pains were sheer agony.

“

OY,

‘Zo

Ye
t
¥ #

d
t after three days suffered a nervous breakdown an
re to be returned to the ——. There the doctors con-
ferred and then called in Mrs. Martin. i
They admitted they were stumped and told Rhonda:

Sleuths who were credited with breaking mass :
poison case (I fo r): Carlisle Ward, Painter :

AT BAA SUA TE
CASES MAGAZ INE ’

Improving somewhat, Roland was sent home in October,

June,

“Your husband is a veteran and entitled to a veteran's care.
We advise you to take him at once to the Veterans Adminis-
‘4 tration Hospital at Biloxi, Mississippi. It has the best physi-
cians and medical equipment available anywhere. If anybody
can find the source of your husband’s trouble, they can.”
Rhonda had no alternative but to Pass this advice on to
| her deathly-sick husband. At first he was reluctant to leave
Mobile, where the couple had their home, but as usual he
soon succumbed to his wife’s prompting. He had always
been powerless to refuse Rhonda anything.
“I have a car, you know, honey,” she insisted, “And
Mobile is only fifty miles away. I can run over to see you a
couple of times a week.” ae
That last was the clincher.
’ At the VA hospital in Biloxi, Roland Martin became the
‘ medical staff's cause celebre. His condition was regarded as
a challenge to the hospital doctors’. professional capabilities
and they resolved to find the cause of the young veteran’s
disability. Despite their continuous and meticulous care—

and Rhonda’s constant visits—his condition grew worse, and.

shortly he lost the use of his legs. There was every indica-
\ tion that the muscle corrupting ailment was edging upward.
“ One thing the VA physicians soon were convinced of—
Martin did not have stomach ulcers. Along with the usual
ulcer symptoms, his breath continuously carried an odor of
garlic, «nd garlic was not present in his diet. Furthermore,
his ansles and eyelids were swollen, his heartbeati irregular.
4 Most significant of all, his hands bore yellowish, strange
i; callouses. Then there was the spreading paralysis.
“We'd better test for arsenic poisoning,” the chief of staff
decided one day about a month after Roland’s entrance. “His
‘ case bears all the marks.”

! An attendant was instructed to cut a few strands of Mar-
1% tin’s hair close to the scalp and to tell the patient the hair
i was needed in the test for nervous disorders. The hair was
clipped and sent to the state scientific laboratory at Mont-
1 gomery. :

Ee “If arsenic is discovered,” the VA physicians were briefed,

: These three little girls “irritated” their mother. So they were quieted—cruelly and fatall

“it will mean that the patient has been fed small doses of
the poison over a considerable period of time. It will also
mean that some homicidal maniac is making an attempt on

\ his life. There’s no chance that Martin took the stuff by

accident. It was administered, and without his knowledge.”

When Martin’s hair specimen was sent to Vann V. Pruit
State toxicologist at the Montgomery lab, the VA hospita
chief sent along a note explaining his suspicions and asking
for a hurry-up job on the analysis.

f bene days later the chief of staff's telephone rang. It was
Pruitt calling from the state scientific laboratory.

“You were absolutely correct in your deduction, doctor,”
the drug expert said. “There was arsenic in the hair you
sent us.” ~

“Doesn't that mean that there’s a potential murderer
loose?” the physician asked.

“Everything points in that direction,” Pruitt said, “and
I’m taking my report to the state attorney general’s office im-
mediately. This calls for quick action.”

Hanging up, the toxicologist called the attorney general's
Office and asked for an appointment the following day. When
he emphasized the urgency of the matter, an appointment
was set for the next afternoon and the attorney general’s
office said Tom Carlisle, the state's chief criminal investiga-
tor, would be present as well,

As an authority on poison, Pruitt knew that poison cases
are among the toughest in crime annals to crack. When a
killer sets out to poison a victim he does not act on spur
of the moment. He deliberately plans his motions and carries
them out over a period of time. In addition, even if the
criminal’s identity is known, it is difficult to obtain enough
concrete evidence to present a successful case. Pruitt knew
how torturing and cruel a poison death could be, and was
resolved to uncover the maniac responsible for making
young Martin an incurable invalid.

The next afternoon Pruitt and Carlisle met in the Office of
McDonald Gallion, chief assistant attorney general of Ala-

CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

y with arsenic.

anes

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four visits a

tarted to lag,
e to produce
“here's $4,500
the death of
“If what we
true then he
probable vic-

exhume his

listrict attor-
n the ground
ill know that
e there if he
n will either
we're on the

Toxicologist
charge of re-
ains from the
over of dark-
on the night

and Lyerly
esults of the
.da Bell Mar-
ne restaurant
Biloxi to see
as completely
had been cast

igs confirmed
Undeniable
id in the re-

- than sus-
d the men
nore than

_.. poisoned
-mpted to kill
manner. The
ning to one or

that he was
1 evidence to
> notify Oscar
r in,” he said.
onfession.”
who had been
ere Mrs, Mar-
ecome known
istomer, made
je the restau-
Friday after-
ne off duty.
IcFadyen has
told her. “I'll

thing. She got
headquarters
»f McFadyen’s
old her, “Mrs.
e to hold you
ymery are on
t. They have
ainst you.”
was not told
was until the
ry arrived. It
Attorney Gal-
licitor Maury
Painter and
)}4 North Con-
ess. She wore
th hands and
n belonged to
hat he wanted
that belonged

gainst her, the
ehemently de-
the death of
ige of ar-
‘oland was
Montgom-
iidnight Satur-

Mrs. Martin impressed those who saw
her in court as a rather plain woman with
a kindly appearance. She wears false up-
per teeth and fashionable brown-rimmed
glasses. Her figure is good for a woman of
her age and weight. She paints her finger-
nails a bright red and her eyebrows are
streaked with black lines for shading.
Ten-cent-store earrings pierce her ears.
There is a hardness about her dark eyes,
but her southern drawl is sugar coated.
She always refers to her young husband,
Roland, by his nickname “Bud.”

“Bud will be broken hearted when he
finds out I’m being held in jail,” she pro-
tested. “I went to see him on Thursday
night and took him a gift. He held me in
his arms and told me how glad he was to
see me and how he hated to have me
leave his beside. He kissed me. I love him
so much.”

She kissed the ring belonging to Roland.
“It’s good to have him so close to me,”
she cooed. “If anybody says I poisoned
people they’re wrong. I have never
touched poison in my life. There has never
been anything like that in my home. I
loved Claude and took good care of him.
Bud and I gave him hypodermic shots
when he was sick. We took turns caring
for him because we both loved him very
much.”

When the officers told her that she had
broken the law by marrying her step-son,
Mrs. Martin protested that she hadn’t
known there was anything wrong until’
she read about a similar case in a movie
magazine where the wife got an annule
ment after finding out such a union was
against the law.

“ guess I did wrong,” she said, “but I
do love Bud. One of the reasons we got
married was that Claude asked Bud to
take good care of me before he died. Bud
kept his promise, all right.”

Mrs. Martin said that she had lived at
several different addresses in Montgom-
ery and worked as a waitress at the old
Normandy Cafe, as packer at the Hazel-
Atlas Glass Company, and as a sheet metal
worker at Maxwell during World War II.

She expressed complete surprise con-
cerning her arrest. “Bud will be heart-
broken,” she said. “He knows I’m innocent.
This whole thing came so unexpected.
Bud is not going to like this at all. He’s
so sick. The doctors said he had ulcers. I
regret that Bud and I couldn’t have chil-
dren. We both wanted children, but we
couldn’t have any. I regret that so much.”

Assistant District Attorney Gallion and
the other officers took turns questioning
the woman. They pointed out the evidence
against her repeatedly. On three occasions
she sobbed briefly; but at all other times
she remained cool and calm in her de-
nials.

It was not until three days after Mrs.
Martin had been taken into custody (dur-
ing which time she had been questioned
a total of twenty-five hours) that Investi-
gators Painter and Ward discovered she
had a tender spot for her 17-year-old
step-daughter, Manalee. When the de-
tectives centered all of their questions
around this girl’s life, Mrs. Martin broke
down and made a full statement that cov-
ered eleven legal-size pages. That was on
Monday night, March 12.

In this statement, the five times married
Mrs. Martin said she poisoned Claude
Martin, her second husband George Gar-
rett, her mother and three of her children.
Ant poison, purchased in grocery and
drug stores, was the medium used.

Gallion announced that Mrs. Martin ad-
mitted feeding Mr. Garrett poisoned
whisky over a period of several days. The
father of her five children had been

brought home from work sick. She
watched him stagger around in the back-
yard for a while and then took him into
the house and fed him another shot of
whisky containing ant poison. He died
shortly after that.

The ant poison was given to Claude
Martin in his coffee while he ate at the
same table with his three daughters. Po-
lice said Mrs. Martin who seemed as
deadly as the poisonous black widow
spider, put two teaspoons of the liquid
poison in the coffee at each meal over a
period of three months. His son, Ronald,
whom the widow married in December
after Claude’s death in April, 1951, had
been poisoned in the same manner over a
period of two months before he was taken
to the hospital.

The woman’s first victim was 3-year-
old Emogene. The little girl had been
playing with her toys in the yard. Tired
and thirsty, she came inside and asked
her mother for a drink of water. Mrs.
Martin admitted pouring powdered poison
in a glass of mill and giving it to Emogene.
The child died soon afterward. That was
in 1937. .

Gallion said the woman killed her 60-
year-old mother, Mrs. Mary Francis Gib-

bons, by placing arsenic in her coffee over.

a period of a year. The elderly woman
became violently ill and was a helpless
invalid when she finally succumbed. Mrs.
Martin collected $750 in cash, an auto-
mobile and sorhe personal possessions
after her mother’s death.

Eleven-year-old Ellyn was fed poison
for almost a year before she died in 1943.
The doses were given in milk and crip-
pled the child before her mother finally
administered enough to kill her. Neigh-
bors said Mrs. Martin expressed much
grief when the little girl lost the use of
her limbs.

The third child the mother admitted
poisoning was 6-year-old Carolyn. She
died in 1940.

After the startling confession of whbdle-
sale murder had been made Mrs. Martin
said she had feared for years that she
would be caught. “I feel much better now
that I’ve talked,” she told the officers. “It’s
like having a heavy cloud of fear lifted
from my life.”

Asked if she had any motive for the
wholesale murders the woman mumbled,
“No.” Authorities were at a loss to explain
her actions, but they had several theories.
One, of course, was the insurance angle.
Mrs. Martin collected a total of $4,500
when her husband, Claude, died. There
was only burial money, approximately
$200, on each child, but even that smail
amount could have played a part in the
planned murders.

The confessed murderess said she had
repared for the death of her husband,

oland, by setting up a mail address in
Mobile. Roland had a $3,000 policy on his
life. Mrs. Martin would have received
that amount. She was also drawing a So-
cial Security check for $65 a month from
a generdl delivery box as the widow of
Claude Martin, although she had remar-
ried. The second mail address in Mobile
was to be used to receive another Social
Security check which she hoped to col-
lect when Roland died.

Detectives Painter and Ward, who had
been closer to the poison case than any-
body else and to whom the first confession
had been made, believe Mrs. Martin suf-
fered from a complex that no one wanted
her around. They also think she was fasci-
nated by the effects of the poison and, in
most cases, administered the doses in
small quantities so death would be linger-

g.
All the officers who worked on the case

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bama. The trio immediately got down to business. Pruitt
handed copies of his report on Roland Martin’s hair to the
two Officers.

After the report had been read, Pruitt went on to explain,
‘When arsenic is present in the body it gradually works its
way up into the hair and into the finger and toenails of the
person afflicted. Arsenic first enters the hair at the roots and
then moves up as the hair grows. Same with the nails. Speci-
mens of Martin’s hair shows that he has been fed arsenic
in some form or other over a period of several months.”

“I understand that the victim in this case is in pretty tough
shape,” Gallion said. “To protect him from further harm,
and to protect others if a poisoner is on the loose, we'd better
get moving right away. To get the evidence we need, we
must have absolute secrecy and must conduct our investiga-
tion with utmost discretion. I'll alert the VA hospital to
this effect. Good thing young Martin doesn’t know he is
being poisoned or he might tip off his wife and you know
how women are.’

“The patient was first taken sick in Mobile, wasn’t he?”
Carlisle asked. “Then we'll start from there. Our state in-
vestigator stationed there, Oscar Coley, can handle it. Pll
call him in and brief him right away.”

Carlisle told Agent Coley- the facts in the case and -im-
pressed upon him the need for complete security. “Better
start at the beginning and check on Martin’s background,”
he suggested.

“First I want a look at Martin,” the Mobile detective said,

“and a talk with the hospital authorities.”

At.the VA hospital at Biloxi, Coley stood for a short time
in the doorway to Martin’s ward and watched the young
veteran. The paralyzed patient was a pleasant looking man,

with, straight blond hair and a slim figure. In his prime,’

Coley learned, ke had only weighed 138 pounds. His face
was thin and ravaged by his suffering.

A cooperative nurse told Coley that Mrs. Rhonda Martin
drove over to Biloxi from Mobile three or four times a
week regularly. “She fusses over him and its plain that he

She wept when governor denied a reprieve from chair.
10

is crazy about her,” the nurse said.

empty-handed.”

Coley learned that Martin had three sisters who also
visited him. But these girls, the nurse said, never came with
Rhonda, or at the same time. “Once they were entering the
ward and saw her there,” she said, “and they turned around
quickly and left, and did not return until the boy’s wife had
gone.”

From the hospital records Coley got the vital statistics he
needed. He noted that the young veteran was only 26 years
old and that he had worked in a paper mill at Mobile until
stomach attacks forced him to leave in June, the year before.
Coley also jotted down that when Martin had joined the navy
he had listed Boylston, just outside of Montgomery, as his
home. The records also showed that Roland and Rhonda had
been married on December 7th, in Prattville, Alabama.

The state investigator ingested everything on the record. In -

a complicated case such as this, almost any bit of informa-
tion might prove to be the key that would unlock the mystery.
Through at Biloxi, Coley next centered his investigation

around the Martin home on North Conception Street in ~

Mobile, where Rhonda still occupied their two-room flat.
Coley talked idly to the neighbors: and learned that Rhonda
was more than 23 years older

“And she’s devoted.
‘Always brings him a present of some kind. She never comes

. ps . rieAts >
on ail thane Psa

aad ah Sy ig

(Continued on page 58) q

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62 >

agreed that Mrs. Martin was a woman of
superior intelligence who had planned the
murders of the adults over a long period
of time. When the investigators asked her
how she managed to escape detection for
more than twenty years she explained that
she had not employed the same physician
with any two of her victims. She changed
doctors each time and the physicians
knew nothing about previous sicknesses
in her family.

Talmadge Gibson of Prattville, Ala.,
Rhonda’s third husband and who was
married to her for only five months, told
investigators that he figures he was “just
lucky” to escape a poison death. “The only
thing I can figure that kept her from
poisoning me,” he said, is that I got shed
of her too quick or I didn’t havetno in-
surance.”

Mrs. Rhonda Bell Martin was specifi-
cally charged with the murder of her
fourth husband, Claude. She appeared at a
hearing in Montgomery Recorder’s Court
before Judge John B. Scott on Thursday,

_March 15, and again the following day.

After hearing a partial report of the
evidence, the judge said, “It appears that
the defendant is guilty of murder in the
first degree and she will be held without
bond until her appearance before the
Montgomery County Grand Jury.”

Circuit Solicitor William F. Thetford
said there would be no special session of
the grand jury to handle the case. The
defendant was told she could plead guilty
or not guilty or waive the hearing.

Mrs. Martin stood mute for a few mo-
ments while she made her decision. Then
she said, “I wave preliminary hearing.”

State Toxicologist Pruitt testified that
he had been in charge of removing Claude
Martin’s remains from Memorial Ceme-
tery on March 2. “Examination of cer-
tain organs of the man’s body, along with
his hair and fingernails disclosed an ap-
preciable amount of arsenic,” he said.

Asked if sufficient poison had been
found to cause death, the toxicologist re-
plied in the affirmative and assured the
court that his scientific tests showed
clearly that Claude Martin had died from
arsenic poisoning.

Investigator Painter testified that Mrs.
Martin had told him she purchased the
ant poison put in her victim’s drinks in
grocery and drug stores in Chisholm.

When Judge Scott asked the defendant
if she had any statement she wished to
make Mrs. Martin shook her head. The
confessed murderess was then taken to
the police identification room and Photo-
graphed.

Murder Over the Strip Queen

[Continued from page 3]

points of interest to the photographer,
such as the seven clips from the fired
cartridges and a pair of white plastic ear-
rings on a dresser. Four bullets had ripped
into Bernstein, but only the one in the
head had been needed. Three other shots
had missed the target. The weapon, the
officers deduced quickly, had been a .32
caliber Colt automatic.

At the time, the officers did not expect
the Bernstein case to prove as baffling as
had the murder which only a few days
earlier had rocked Kansas City. Wilma
Allen, lovely wife of a wealthy motor car
dealer, had been kidnapped and slain and
her ravished and nude body dumped in a
Johnson County, Kan., field. With an
around-the-clock search for her slayer
already underway, police headquarters
now became an even busier scene.

One fact emerged quickly from the de-
tectives’ first appraisal: Bernstein’s as-
sailant had a motive other than robbery.
Money in the victim’s pants and a strong
box holding three pocket watches and two
silver belts were not disturbed.

“Probably woman trouble,” said Ford,
whose excellent memory now recalled
Bernstein’s savage beating several years
ago of an attractive woman who later
had declined to press charges. Her action
was not surprising considering the bach-
elor Bernstein’s reputation as a charmer
where women were concerned.

The man who had heard the shouting
before the shooting was anxious to tell all
he could. Clad in pajamas and overawed
by the circumstances, he volunteered a
comment that seemed to make things jell
for the officers.

“T think I heard a woman’s voice just
before the shots,” he said.

That, thought Bennett, could tie in with
the earrings. Perhaps a woman had come
for a rendezvous and left as a killer.

It was dawn by the time Bernstein’s
body had been sent to the morgue and
the officers were back at headquarters.

Gibson informed Ford and Bennett that
six men were being pulled off the Allen
case to help them track down Bernstein’s
slayer. Ford went directly to the files to
test his memory. It had not failed him.

“Nothing sensational,” the stocky detec-
tive mused, his glasses pushed back on
his forehead. “Six arrests for speeding
since 1950. That woman he beat up was
Jan Thayer. Happened back in September,
1950, and I understand she and Bernstein
haven’t been hitting it off too well since
then. Let’s get her down here.”

Jan Thayer, only a few years younger
than Bernstein, presented a striking fig-
ure as she entered the detectives’ office.
She was the operator of a swank floral
anc gift shop on the city’s renowned
Country Club Plaza. Her appearance re-
flected the many hours and dollars ded-

sicated to it in the city’s plushest stores

and beauty salons.

Her last trip to the police station had
been in 1953 in connection with her being
held up by two masked men and robbed
of jewelry valued at $5,000. Calm and self-
assured, Mrs. Thayer—a divorcee—said
of her relationship with Bernstein:

“We were friends at one time. But
that’s past history. I hadn’t even seen him
in two months... I’m about to be married,
you know”

Ford and Bennett hadn’t known, but the
fact indeed interested them, especially
since her husband-to-be had been ques-
tioned several years ago in connection
with another murder. The officers ex-
changed glances, their expressions indi-
cating each considered Mrs. Thayer and
her fiance well worth further investiga-
tion. The man was called in and grilled
at great lengths. He had been out-of-town
and could prove it, he said.

Increasing the detectives’ suspicion was
word that Bernstein had been hounding
Mrs. Thayer for money. He claim d she

owed him back salary and had not ‘epaid
a loan he had made her in con: >2ction
with the floral shop. Bernstein fo nerly
had been a business partner © Mrs.
Thayer. He wanted a total of $4,7 | plus

interest.

Mrs. Thayer admitted the tw had

a eee

clashed over f
she said, had t:
iness af’ x
to mus ig
bitterly BY
For the sax s
desk space Ht
office equipmen

She was show

“T hope you
them,” she sai
“Those thing

Indeed, ‘offi
day, -Mrs. 7
store manag
say he had s
five pairs
Bernstein’s root
you could find
dime store.

The next da
fiance, who ha
license a few
death, were giv:
results proved i

The detective
ing the murder
ing solely on \
that period fifty
in the case anc
called in. But
Thayer off thei
learning Perri:
ministrator for
file suit in beh:
to collect the r
victim by Jan T

The other wo
identified as Be
clerks and bart
say further star
anova with wh
But the busine
say compliment
Charles Bernst:
shrewd, unethic
skirted the pur

Then came a
the slaying that
shot, but whe
stymied
meager |

A resi
Hotel in south
young man bur:
the day after th
at the rear of ¢
thought the y
bellhop at the B
Ford and B
Bellerive and
several ex-bell!
One, John Pio
former’s descrip
hair, dark com
He was a dance
Mighetto, a nz
seemed even s
linked to the B
if there was so
about concernin
that had becon
That, he said, is
Sure, he’d come
no record and ;
was right. Ther:
deed he was ext:
operative.

Disappointed
again concerning
the night Berns:

“Well, I supp:
you,” Mighetto s
hope you guys
utation.”

He went on to
a 24-year-old ni
Wynell Bettis. \
bombshell rep
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a year before she died. The second child,
Carolyn, six, had been killed by poisoning
in 1940, while the third, Ellyn, eleven,
had been killed after a year of regular
doses.

“I feel much better now that I’ve
talked,” Rhonda said after her confession.
“I have feared for years that I would
be caught. It’s like having a cloud of fear
lifted from my life.”

She simply said “no” when asked if
she had any reason for the wholesale
kiltings. There was the life insurance,
however, and the Social Security, but the
officers were skeptical that this loomed
large enough for mass murder. The chil-
dren had little more than $200 insurance
on their lives.

Rhonda Martin admitted that she had
set herself up to receive Social Security
on Roland’s death by renting a separate
mail box.

AINTER and Ward, who with Coley

did a master job on the case, obtained
the woman’s confession. It was their con-
viction that Rhonda killed because she
was psychologically certain that no one
wanted her around. They also believed
that she was fascinated by watching the
reaction of her victims under the poison.
That was why, in so many instances, she
administered the stuff in such small doses
She had liked to watch her victims suffer.

When asked why she had not been
discovered before, Rhonda Martin replied
that she had never hired the same phy-
sician for any two of her victims during
her twenty years of poisoning. .

On March 15th, 1956, Mrs. Rhonda
Martin was specifically charged with the
murder of her fourth husband, Claude, in
Montgomery Recorder’s Court before
Judge John B. Scott, and held for the
county grand jury. It was decided that
no special session of the grand jury would
be called to consider her case. When asked
if she had any statement, the prisoner,
who had stood mute when asked to plead,
merely shook her head. During the pro-
ceedings she displayed no emotion.

At her trial, which set some sort of
record for brevity, she sat like a monu-
ment and not a trace of feeling passed

over her face.
The trial lasted only two days, starting

on June 5th and ending June 6th around
midnight when the jury, out over three
hours, came in with a verdict of guilty.
In Alabama a verdict of guilt in a first-
degree murder case is automatically a
sentence of death in the electric chair.

Mrs. Martin died Oct. 11th, 1957—
the second women put to death
in the electric chair in Alabama his-
tory. *

BOARDED BY PIRATES

(Continued from page 35)

Benton went to the anchor and threw
it overboard. It dragged briefly but
then held. Johnson cupped his hands
and shouted to the girl on shore to
swim out to the cruiser. Her reply came
indistinctly. She made no move.

“I swim better than you,” Johnson
said. “‘I’d better go in and get our two
rifles, then help her swim out. You
keep these characters covered till I get

back with her. Then we'll put the pas-
sengers over the side and find ourselves
an island.”

“Look, you can’t leave the captain he

269

aboard to die,*’ Hokanson said. “We
can put a life jacket on him and they Be
can tow him to shore so the plane can |
pick him up.” =
The two men gave their grudging
consent. Then Johnson plunged into the
water and swam toward the island. 4
Hokanson and the fishermen carried
Boatwright out on deck and wrapped
him in two life jackets. Benton, gun in
hand, waited impatiently as they lowered
the captain into the water. Then the |
fishermen stripped to their shorts. , e 4
“I'll take your wallets,” the gunman a
said. “You won’t need money on that te

island.” +.
The men from Pennsylvania handed =|
their wallets over. One of them con- oe

tained $500, the money from which
Boatwright was to have been paid. ;

Then the four men dived overboard.
While two of them towed the semi-
conscious skipper with ropes, the other
two swam alongside him to keep his ‘4
head above water. Hokanson breathed {|
a sigh of relief when at last he saw them
carry the captain up onto the rocks.

For a time, everyone stood around
Boatwright, and the mate could not see z
what was going on. Then Johnson , *
plunged into the water again, carrying
two rifles tied together. The girl had «7
remained. on the island and was bending
over the captain. :

Johnson had difficulty swimming with ‘
the two heavy rifles. He gasped for 99%
breath as his partner hauled him aboard. . 783

“The captain died just after they got — 4.9
him ashore,” he said. :

“Then we're really in trouble,” Ben- ‘
ton muttered. “Where’s Lillian? Why
didn’t you bring her with you?”

“She wouldn’t come—said she could
never make it to the boat. She said for
us to go on without her.” ss

“You could have helped her get -
out here. I want her with us.” ;

“What worries me is that she’ll shoot
off her mouth to the Coast Guard. But =
she swore she wouldn’t tell them a |
thing.” / ou

“Well, we'll be on some small island
where they’ ll never find us anyhow,”
Benton said. ‘Maybe it’s just as well
that Lillian stayed behind. She’d get:
pretty restless there.” ,

“O. K., let’s get out of here before es |
that plane shows up,” Johnson said. ~
“Haul up the anchor.”

ENTON went to the anchor cable. = |
“Throw her in reverse,” he called

to Hokanson. ap oon

The mate backed up slowly. Both of fay 4 .
the men began tugging on the cable. — |
They had their backs to him.

Hokanson had been weighing his
chances for survival if he stayed on |
the Muriel and took orders from: the
two desperados. After they reached a
safe hiding place—if they did—-what — .
would they do with him? He’d been @ =
witness to the murder, so why should #
they let him live? They'd killed once. .
Why not again? is

OW many did she Rill??? OM 3000

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Her husband became violently ill and Alabama police

became suspicious. And the more they investigated

the deeper they got into an incredible case of mass murder

NVESTIGATORS dislike poison

cases. They are aware that poi-

soners seldom strike on impulse.

On the contrary, such crimes are
by their very nature cruel and callous
and deliberately planned over a period
of time. They are tough to crack. Even
when the culprit’s identity becomes a
practical certainty, evidence to clinch
the case against him in court is difficult
to obtain—so difficult that too often the
poisoner goes free.

Such thoughts may have been in the
mind of McDonald Gallion, Alabama’s
chief assistant attorney general, when
he set up that first conference in the
Martin case with Tom Carlisle, the
state’s chief criminal investigator, and
Van Pruitt Jr., of the department of
toxicology.

The visitors settled themselves in
chairs on either side of the lawyer’s
desk while he leafed through a sheaf of
papers. He found the one he wanted
and handed it to Prosecutor Pruitt.
“Take a quick look at his,” Gallion said.
“It’s a report from the FBI lab in Wash-
ington on an analysis they made.”

‘“What’s up?” Investigator Carlisle
asked.

“About a month ago,” the attorney
began, ‘‘a young Navy veteran, Ronald
Martin from Mobile, was admitted to
the Veterans Hospital at Biloxi. He was
suffering from severe diarrhea, vomit-
ing, terrible stomach pains—all classic
symptoms of stomach ulcers.

“Also they are classic symptoms of
certain types of poisoning. It’s not usual
for a young fellow of 26 to get stomach
ulcers, and Martin didn’t have ulcers.
When the doctors couldn’t make a
diagnosis after eliminating every pos-
sible normal cause, they sent strands of
his hair to Washington. The lab found
arsenic.”’

“On his hair?” asked Investigator
Carlisle.

Toxicologist Pruitt nodded. “Arsenic
in the body works its way to the roots
of the hair and the fingernails.”

The chief investigator asked, “Could
Martin have taken the stuff by mis-
take?”

Pruitt shook his head. “According to
this report, the poisoning was no acci-
dent. Arsenic deposited at the roots of
the hair keeps moving with the natural

hair growth. In Martin’s case, the poi-
son must have been ingested over a
considerable period of time—two or
three months, anyway. It suggests he
was systematically fed poison in regu-
lar doses, none of which was lethal. In
time, though, the cumulative effect
would have been fatal.”

“The boy’s in pretty bad shape,”
Prosecutor Gallion went on, “but the
doctors are doing what they can for
him. We want to keep him alive and
he’s safe so long as he stays at the hos-
pital. The only sure way to protect him
is to nab the poisoner, so we’ll have to
act fast.

“I want a thorough investigation, but
a quiet, discreet one, into every corner
of young Martin’s life—his family, his
friends, his background. There’s always
the chance, of course, that the poisoner
is a psycho, but usually in a cold-
blooded crime of this kind there’s a
definite motive behind it. And the poi-
soner must be a person close enough to
the boy to have been in a position to
slip him the arsenic.”

“Does Martin know he’s suffering
from arsenic poisoning?” Carlisle
asked.

“No,” Gallion answered. “When the
doctors took samples of his hair, they
told him they were going to test it for
a nervous disorder. It’s just as well he
doesn’t know, until we have more facts.”

Ronald Martin had been living in
Mobile and it was there he had become
ill. So it was in Mobile that the first
phase of the investigation got under
way. To Oscar F. Coley, the state in-
vestigator stationed in Mobile, went the
assignment and his chief, Tom Carlisle,
briefed him on the few known circum-
stances.

To make inquiries in a criminal
probe without arousing suspicion re-
quires the tact of a diplomat and Oscar
Coley was made to order for the job.
First he drove across the Alabama state
line into Mississippi and visited the
Veterans Administration Hospital in
Biloxi. Although he did not question
Ronald Martin, he took a look at the
young patient.

The Navy veteran was a good-look-
ing young man, with blond hair, a thin
face and slim but sturdily built. From
the doctors Coley learned that Martin’s

illness had caused complete paralysis
from the waist down.

Coley spoke to the ward nurse. “Does
young Martin have visitors?”

“Yes, indeed,” the nurse answered.
“His wife comes to see him almost
every night. Drives all the way from
Mobile. She never forgets to bring him
some little gift, and she fusses over
him. His sisters come to see him, too.”

“With his wife?”

“No. They never seem to come with
Mrs. Martin.”

This might mean something, or noth-
ing at all. Coley drew no conclusions,
but he filed the tiny nugget of informa-
tion away in his mind. The hospital
records supplied other general data—
the name of the paper mill in Mobile
where the young man had worked be-
fore his illness, the address where he
lived with his wife, Rhonda Bell Mar-
tin, and the history of his illness.

Apparently he suffered his first at-
tack in June, and the symptoms were
typical of a severe gastric disturbance.
A Mobile physician had made a tenta-
tive diagnosis of stomach ulcers, but
the ailment had not responded to treat-
ment. There had been X-ray pictures
made on October 2nd, and in Novem-
ber young Martin made a brief stay in
a Mobile hospital, where he was kept
under observation and his case studied.
He grew worse and in December his
doctor advised him to enter the Veter-
ans Hospital. Unquestionably, this de-
cision had saved his life.

In the young man’s file were other
facts of which Coley made a note.
While in the Navy Martin had listed
his home as Boylston, suburb of Mont-
gomery. The record also showed that
Ronald and Rhonda had been married
in Prattville on December 7, 1951. In a
case where it was so difficult to unwind
the tangle of mystery, the investigator
could afford to overlook nothing, no
matter how trivial.

The next morning State Investigator
Coley parked his car a short way up
the block from the house on North
Conception Street in Mobile where
Rhonda Bell Martin lived in a two-
room furnished flat. A few discreet
questions in the neighborhood had
elicited that information as well as
identifying details of the woman's ap-

pearance. So Coley was not surprised
to see a stockily built woman of middle
age, wearing the white uniform of a
waitress, step out of the house and
walk to a battered sedan parked at the
curb.

Rhonda Bell Martin was at least 20
years older than her young husband.
Moreover, she was neither beautiful
nor glamorous. In a modest way, she
was attractive and pleasant looking.
She had auburn hair, neatly coiffed,
and blue eyes that smiled agreeably
through her heavy rimmed glasses.

She drove along Conception Street,
Coley cruising behind her, until she
came to a small restaurant. She parked
the sedan and went inside. A few min-
utes later, when Coley followed her,
she was already bustling from table to
table, taking orders.

Coley sat down at a table and caught
her eye. It was only 11 o’clock and still
too early for lunch, so Coley ordered
coffee and doughnuts. He chatted so-
ciably with his waitress. She was
pleasant and cheerful and Coley, sizing
her up, could see how a young man
might find the companionship he
needed with such a woman, in spite of
the difference in their ages.

Leaving the restaurant, Coley de-
cided to drive to Prattville, seat of
Autauga County, to check on the Mar-
tins’ marriage license. He had no rea-
son to regret the 150-mile ride. On the
way back he detoured to nearby Mont-
gomery and stopped off at the town of
Boylston to make some inquiries. Then
he went on to the Montgomery office
of William B. Painter, the state inves-
tigator assigned to that city.

Coley telephoned Tom Carlisle and
told him of his visit to Prattville. ‘This
may mean nothing at all,” he said to
his chief, “but there is a peculiar setup
in the Martin family. In the marriage
license application young Martin’s ad-
dress is listed as Fifth Street, Boylston.
Now, the woman gave the same address
and, what’s more, gave her name as
Rhonda Bell Martin—same last name
as the boy’s. The application said she’d
been married before to Claude Carroll
Martin, who died April 27, 1951. I
stopped off at Boylston and spoke with
the neighbors. According to them,
young Ronald Martin was Claude Mar-
tin’s stepson.”

“Then he’s her stepson, too,” Carlisle
said slowly. “In Alabama such a mar-
riage is illegal. The law does not allow
a woman to marry her stepson.”

“They probably never gave it a
thought, since there was no blood rela-
tionship.”

Carlisle considered the new develop-
ment. ‘“‘As you say, the setup may have
no bearing on the case, but we cer-
tainly ought to look into the father’s
death.”

“That’s why I stopped off at Painter’s
office,” Coley agreed. “I thought you’d
want him to handle this end of the in-
vestigation.”

nilk for a year until s
Ann Carolyn was luckier—she died after taking one glass of the milk

fed poisoned

Ellyn Elizabeth (1

“I don’t know why you’re doing this,” Mrs. Martin said. “There’s nothing to it.”

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The Last Lady Guest On Death Row

(eontinued fram page 39)

the warden’s office, passed through the
cell block to the back stairs and from
there into the room where the execution
chair was installed.

Rhonda Belle was led from her cell at
the same time, unassisted but with two
stolid prison guards at each side should
she need support. The slow walk to the
chair began. It was less than 20 paces
away...

Within six minutes the condemned
woman was strapped into the garish yel-
low chair, the skull piece positioned and
adjusted and as the authorities watched,

the black bag dropped over her head,
masking it from view. With the last words
of the 23rd Psalm echoing in the stark
chamber, the warden placed a piece of
wood inscribed ‘‘READY”’ over a small
apperture that connected the chamber
with the control room.

The switch was thrown but Rhonda
was destined to have a few minutes more
of life before it was discovered that the
main electrode at the back of the chair
had not been connected.

This was hurriedly rectified and the

switch thrown again, all in hushed si
ence. This time over 2300 volts surged
through the waiting woman’s body whict
leaped against the restraining bonds thee
abniptly Groped lax and lifeless.

Rhonda Belle Martin had expired im
mediately on the first charge, the prisoe
doctor officially pronouncing her dead #
12:16 a.m. Her body was taken im
mediately to a local funeral home.

Freed of lust and homicidal intent #
last, her body was claimed by her
brother, Murray Gibbons, who laid her te
rest in the family plot beside those she
destroyed. Last rites were given at a de
serted graveside by an unknown minister
while two solitary mourners looked on
Murray and his wife. A reporter and the
grave digger looked on from a distance
and not a tear was shed. The surviving
relatives breathed easier!

There’s A Killer Lurking Behind That Door

(continued from page 25)

‘‘What have we got for a lead?”’ Scott
asked.

Nunes shrugged. ‘‘We've been after
the guy for the past six months. About all
we can be sure of is that he must be some-
one who lives in the area. He knows
where and when to strike.”’

Captain Ables agreed. Whoever the
person was, he attracted no attention
while selecting the victims. Any stranger
would have been noticed in the com-
munity where almost everyone knows
everyone else.

‘“‘He’s got to get rid of the stuff,’
Nunes said. ‘‘It’s no good to him until he
turns it into cash. We've got the serial
numbers ona lot of the loot he’s taken but
it hasn’t shown up in any pawnshops. My
hunch is that he peddles the stuff himself.
Likely, the persons who buy it know that
it may be hot but if the price is right, even
persons who would not steal can be temp-
ted to buy what they may suspect as hay-
ing-been stolen.”

“Let's get on it, then,’’ Sccs said.
‘‘Put every man available checking spots
around here, around the county and ask
help from San Francisco, Sacramento
and Reno, where he may have unloaded
some of the loot.”’

To aid the investigation, the PG&E of-
fered a $10,000 reward foz information
leading to the arrest and conviction of the
killer. An additional $10,000 was quickly
subscribed to add to the reward.

A long list of items that had been taken
in previous burglaries was printed and
given to the deputies.

‘Stress the reward,’’ Nunes told his
men. ‘‘Leave a copy of the list at bars,
service stations or any place you think he

may have tried to unload some of the
stuff. Twenty grand may loosen up a ton-
gue.’

‘If we get a lead, how do we tie him to
the killings?’’ a deputy asked.

‘‘We’ve got the slugs used to kill the
victims,’’ Nunes said. ‘Ballistics can
identify the weapon that fired them. If
we're lucky, he may hang onto the
weapon.”

Ballistics had identified the slugs as
having been fired from a .38-caliber
weapon. The fact that no casings had
been found at the scene indicated they
had come froma revolver. It wasn’t likely
that the killer would have taken time to
collect the casings ejected from an au-
tomatic after the murders.

The first lead developed from Reno,
Nevada.

Police there, checking pawnshop re-
cords, came up with a rifle with the serial
numbers that had been taken ina burglary
near Auburn about two months previ-
ously. The pawnshop record gave the
name of the person who pawned the
weapon. He was a service station emp-
loye in the city.

The man was questioned. He readily
admitted pawning the rifle.

‘I was in this club shooting craps,” he
said. ‘‘There was this young guy at the
table who had a bad streak of luck. He
went busted and asked me if I wanted to
guy a good rifle cheap.

‘‘L asked him how much and he said he
wanted fifty bucks. I don’t hunt, so I told
him I wasn’t interested. He asked me if I
would give him forty and hold the gun for
a couple of weeks, or if his luck got better
he would buy it back and give me twenty
more than I paid him

‘*I took a look at the rifle. I don’t know
a hell of a lot about rifles but it looked
good to me. I finally gave him thirty bucks
and he said he would give me fifty whee
he bought it back. I held onto it for abouts
month and when he didn’t show up, | get
short of cash so I pawned it for fifty.”

The Reno police and investigators from
Placer County questioned the mas
thoroughly. He was able to establish that
on the day the rifle had been taken in the
burglary in Aubum, he had been workirg
in Reno. He had also been at work a the
time the slayings took place in Roseville

‘*What did the guy look like?"’ he «=
asked.

‘*Young, maybe 25,” he answered. ‘1
gave him my name and told him where
could locate me, but 1 didn’t get his name
or where he was frei. He didn’t say ®
but I don’t think he was from here. | thet
he just came in to do a little gambling”

“Could you identify him, if you s*
him again?”’

“I think so,’’ the man said.

When the report was given to Captat
Nunes, he said, “‘It’s like we figured
He’s peddling the stuff he grabs in the
burglaries on his own. The question ®
whether he has tried to unload any of tte
stuff around here, or whether he takes #
to Reno or San Francisco so that it W
be harder to trace. It depends upon hew
smart he is.”

The effort to distribute the list of a
cles that had been taken in the midday
burglaries in Placer County was inte
sified.

The payoff came when the owner of
small business informed a deputy that
man had offered to sell him a color tek
sion set at a ridiculous price.

“Did you buy it?” he was asked. |

‘‘No. I just had a feeling that it
have been stolen.” ?

‘But you didn’t have any proof? bin
know the person who offered it to yOu:

(continued on next page)

The witness nodded. ‘‘You know him,
too. You had him in jail for awhile.’

The witness named Kenneth L. Partin,
a }}-year-old youth who lived in the
sarby suburb of Citrus Heights. Partin
had gFOWN Up in the Roseville area. He
had been arrested for maliciously setting
roadside fires in the Loomis Basin area
two years previously. He had no other
police record and had been fined and
given a two-year suspended sentence for
the offense.

“He'd be a natural for the midday burg-
lar," Nunes said, as he discussed the sus-
pect with Sheriff Scott. ‘‘He’s well
known around here and wouldn’t create
any suspicion if he was casing a place to
burglarize.””

Sheriff Scott called in District Attorney
Daniel J.Higgins and his deputy Jack E.
Shelly. Scott explained that Partin re-
sembled the description of the young man
sho had sold the stolen rifle to the service
station operator in Reno.‘*We can’t tie
him to the murders with the evidence we
have at this point,’’ Scott said. ‘‘But I
would sure like to question him and
search his place. How do we go about it
without jeopardizing our case in the event
we do come up with evidence?”

“Do you think that fellow in Reno
could identify him as having sold him the
stolen rifle?’’ Higgins asked.

Scott said it was possible. However,
since the transaction had taken place in
Reno, the charge would have to be filed
there. ‘‘AndI don’t want him out-of-state
in the event we do come up with some-
thing,"’ he added.

“He's still on parole from that charge
of setting fires,’’ Higgins said. ‘‘I think ifI
*ent to court with information alleging
that he was suspected of breaking his
parole and on suspicion of burglary, we
ould get a warrant.”

“How soon?” Scott asked.

Higgins said that Shelly would have the
Pper work finished in an hour. It would
tave to be taken before a judge. ‘‘I think
*e can have it in a couple of hours,” he
said. “‘Meanwhile, you can check and be
wre that Partin is around when we are
teady to serve it.”’

“If he is the guy, let’s hope he hasn’t
gotten rid of the gun he used to kill those
People,"’ Nunes said. ‘‘We haven't got
my eyewitnesses and damn little physical
inte unless we can come up with the

It was late afternoon when a search
*arant and a warrant for the arrest of

atin as a parole violator was issued.

Partin was taken into custody and his
tome thoroughly searched.

ith Partin in jail, the deputies and
Wchnicians in the crime lab worked al-
®0st around the clock. A fast run was
™ade to the California State crime
atory in Sacramento with a number
Weapons,

Two days after Partin was takggq into

_ eustody, Sheriff Scott and Beputy D.A.

Shelly appeared with the sijspect in the
court of Judge Wayne Wylig, Shelly pre-
sented the court with information charg
ing that Partin had murdered Bill Harring:
tion and Carla Burkart. After examining
the bill of information, Judge Wylie or-
dered that Partin be held for trial on the
charges. :

Newsmen were not allowed to examine

the information that had been filed with -

the court.

‘*‘What have you got?’’ a reporter
asked Sheriff Scott.

*‘No comment,”’ Scott answered. ‘All
I can say is that the charge would not have

been filed if we did not think we had suffi-
cient evidgace to suppyrt it.”

"Did ygy find the gun"? a newsman
asked Shelly,

‘Il can’t answer that or any other ques-
tions,’’ Shelly said. ‘‘The defendant is
entitled to a fair trial.

However, on May 3, 1977, the murder
charge was dropped against Partin. Lack
of evidence was cited as the reason.

At this writing, he was still being held
on the probation violation which stems
from the arson conviction. And the
police investigation continues into the
murder of the two PG&E employes. *

Four Bullets In A Seven-Inch Circle Of Death

(continued from page 19) t

registration, the oldest one is from her
second marriage and the youngest one
from her third marriage. No children from
the first."’

‘‘For Christ's sake! How many times
has she been married?”’ said the inspector
who, like most Bavarians, was a good
catholic and did not believe in divorce.

‘*Three is all she put down in her regist-
ration,”’’ said the sergeant. ‘‘I better get
on out there. I'ma little afraid what I may
find.”

‘*Yeah,”’ said the inspector, shifting
the cigar. ‘‘It’s bad about the kids. Let’s
hope they weren't in the house at the
time. I'll wait here untill hear from you.”’

The sergeant nodded and went back
down the autobahn to Starnberg. He cal-
led the inspector less than a half hour
later. ‘‘Miss van Bergen and her daugh-
ters are all right,’ he said. ‘‘I don’t know
what the situation is.”

‘‘What do you mean, you don’t know
what the situation is?’’ growled the in-
spector. ‘‘Was Knaths shot there or
not?”

‘‘Nobody knows,” said the sergeant.
“Or, if they do, they aren't talking. I
think they really don’t know."

‘‘Now, wait a minute,”’ said the inspec-
tor. ‘People know when somebody's
been shot in their house. What the hell
happened? Start from the beginning.”

‘I went to number five Muehlteich
street and rang the bell,’ said the
sergeant. ‘‘Andra, that’s the nineteen-
year-old daughter, opened the door and I
identified myself and said I'd like to speak
to her mother.

‘*She took me into the living room and
there she was with the other daughter.
They asked me if I'd like some tea ora
drink. I said I'd take a little tea.”

‘Listen Sepp! I didn’t send you down
there to drink tea,’’ exploded the inspec-

tor. ‘‘What about the murder? What in
hell are you doing anyway?”

‘*Reporting,’’ said the sergeant liter-
ally. ‘‘Just like it happened. You want to
hear it or not?”

The inspector sighed. *‘Go on.”’

‘‘Nobody was upset or excited or any-
thing,”’ said the sergeant. ‘‘It was just as
if they had people-from the Homicide
Squad dropping in for tea every after-
noon. The oldest girl brought me the tea
and then I asked Miss van Bergen if I
could speak to her alone for a moment.
She said, ‘Of course.’ And the girls got up
and left the room without being asked.

‘Il asked, ‘Do you know a Mr. Klaus
Knaths?’ and she said, ‘Yes. He is my
lover. He lives here with us.’

‘I said, ‘Did you know that he was
found shot to death out in the street here
this morning?’ and she replied, ‘Why no.*
and then she began to cry.

“I continued, ‘Do you know Mrs.
Sabine Knaths?’ and she said, ‘Yes, we
allused to go out together, but after Klaus
moved in with me, she doesn't come here
any more.’ .

‘I said, ‘Did you see her last night?
and she said, ‘I don’t remember.’

‘I said, ‘Did you see Mr. Knaths last
night?” and she said, ‘I think we made
love. Maybe it was only in my head.’

‘I said, ‘How is it you don’t remember
last night?’ and she answered, ‘I was
drunk."

‘| said, ‘You don’t remember anything
of what happened last night?’ and she
said, ‘I think Klaus came back from Ber-
lin and we made love. Somebody called
me earlier. A woman, I think. I don’t
know what she wanted. It could have
been about Klaus.’

(continued on next page)

Rhonda Belle liked to ‘‘take care’’ of people so she | stvicstorsheroiotryesnateven
killed her victims very slowly, prolonging their agony
as long as possible—she nursed them to death.

exclaimed brazenly, ‘I don’t see any-
thing wrong in having a good time, what
différence does being married make?”

Seven years and many rows later, the
marriage ended in the divorce courts with
Rhonda and her husband each accusing
the other of marital infidelity. Vehe-
mently denying Alderman’s charge that
she had been having an affair withGeorge
Garrett throughout her marriage, Rhonda
assured the judge that she wasn't even
acquainted with the man! Yet official re-
cords reveal that the day after her divorce
decree became final, Rhonda married
George Garrett and hurried off with him
to Montgomery, the state capital. This
marriage was also quarrelsome although
it lasted far longer than any of her subse-
quent alliances.

Her second husband was a railroad
switchman, a likeable person by all ac-
counts but like many of his underpaid
counterparts of those days) he drank too
much. But unlike his workmates, his im-
moderate drinking was to contribute to
his untimely death while barely 34 years
old.

Mrs. Garrett, George's mother, did ev-
erything she could to dissuade her son
from marrying Rhonda. His married sis-
ter remembers the tongue-lashing their
mother gave her 21-year-old son. *‘She’s
a tramp and a hellion! Certainly not good
enough for you, son. Drop her, she’s mar-
ried and living with her husband. If you
marry her, she'll do the same to you!
Fool, leave her be!’’ But the son
wouldn't, not even when his mother beg-
ged him with tears of concern in her eyes.
They were married on May 2, 1928, in
spite of the opposition but Mrs. Garrett
refused to allow her son near the hquse
and her intense dislike for her son's wife
increased.

The incident which brought Rhonda
Belle into the family circle was the tragic
death of their first child during January,
1934. Named Adelaide, the girl was born
with a congenital deformity and died at
the age of 3. Four other daughters born
during that I 1-year marriage also died...

The death of Adelaide broke Rhonda
up. “I cared for her night and day during
those three long years,’’ Rhonda told the
police during her lengthy confession,
‘until she finally passed away with
pneumonia.”* Dr. Ager, the psychiatrist,
theorized, ‘‘Until the child's death the
Garretts avoided the woman but after-
wards welcomed Rhonda who seized the

Rhonda married Ronald after kil-
ling his father.

opportunity to gain attention and sym-
pathy for herself. I suggest it gave
Rhonda Belle an urge to nurse sick people
and if they were too healthy to need her
attentions she would see to it that condi-
tions changed!"

Rhonda Belle lost no time in becoming
pregnant again, although George refused
to believe another child could replace
Adelaide in his affections. Another
daughter Emogene, was born to them II
months later, but George, in a constant
depressed state, failed to be reconciled
and began to walk the same violent path
that Rhonda's father had taken years be-
fore.

The country was in the agonies of the
‘Dirty Thirties.” Employment was rare,
thoney more so, and when George did
find work he spent the money on booze,
lost the job and took it out on Rhonda and
the child. A sordid story, repeating itself,
until George accused Rhonda Belle of
sleeping with Hubert Brown, a friend of
his. She denied it but he beat her so un-
mercifully that the neighbors sent for the
police.

After that, the couple separated,
Rhonda and her child moving back to
Mobile with her mother who had remar-
ried. In less than a month George re-
ceived a telegram, ‘‘Come at once stop
Emogene in serious condition in hospital
stop Rhonda.”’

George and his sister boarded a train

ieke admitted that the successful poison-

J taking scrupulous care of her remaining
of Emogene crossed her mind when

two daughters, seven-year-old Carolyn
and Ellyn Elizabeth, 11.

The sister-in-law, Mrs, Emma Lee
Cone, kept in touch with Rhonda Belle
mainly because of the children and be-
cause of her concern, she became a star
witness. She was to remember many little
things which confirmed Rhonda's con-
fession. Mrs. Cone stated that after her
brother's tragic death Rhonda seemed to
change for the better. She was more at-
tentive and affectionate to her two daugh-
ters for one thing and another, she main-

“When I reached into the sink
denet for the rye, | noticed a bottle of
fest Ant Poison.”’ I must have been out
émy mind because | added a few spoon-
wisto the glass of rye and gave it to him,”
ve wld her interrogators years later,
wahng benignly. Subsequent investiga-
we proved that a pinch or two would
wee made the man very ill!
Basking in sympathy, Rhonda carried
‘sobravely’’ for the next five months,

for Mobile two hours later but recere
another wire while on the train informa
him that Emogene had died at “?
a.m.** Rhonda met the two at the
depot, the picture of a grieving
being greeted by an understanding
band and sympathetic sister-it-
Rhonda explained that Emogene
suddenly cried out in pain after playig
the afternoon in the yard. *‘She just
out and never spoke another w
Rhonda declared to her husbati
‘‘wasn't that strange?” ;
An autopsy revealed that the twe
half-year-old child had been poisoned
the coroner brought ina verdict of
by misadventure, since everyone
cenvinced that Emogene had sw
some toxic substance by accidet
George, was not so easily convinced
when he demanded a *‘more thoroug®
vestigation’’, a pathologist urged the @
traught father ‘‘to forget it’’. That #4
1937. Rhonda had buried her first ¥

Rhonda and her husband ach
some sort of reconciliation after the
eral and lived together once again,
another girl within 10 months. But bé
the baby reached its first birthday, it
of yellow jaundice. Once again Rhe
revelled in the outpouring of symp
from friends and relatives, while G
took to drinking heavily again. To
all, he was fired five days before Chet
mas! “

Nevertheless, Rhonda did what
could for him, fixed him a meal whi
refused to eat, then gave him whisky # fs ;
insisted on drowning his sorrows # ® if ; : ‘4
stuff. Later he passed out in the yard ; : f
although it rained all night and thet
erature dropped below 40 dest
Rhonda ignored him and slept pea¢
in a warm bed. In the morning, Gee®
was vomiting and suffering a high feve:

“George just has a cold,’ R
reassured his sister, Mrs. Cone, »h®
sisted that ‘a doctor should be ¢
Three days later, Rhonda Belle’s 8
marriage came to an abrupt end
George Garrett died. “It *®
pneumonia,"’ the grieving widow #&
serted to those who asked and indeeé
death certificate was signed to that r.
Victim number two was consigned 10 8
grave in 1939 without anyone probing =
the delicate question as to the true ©"
of death. : ri

In her I1-page confession Rhé

.
i geet Tenge Sng

° - 7
-— ate
sa on agg sags ne He
rn gy won geet te tengo Feet
Bake: age T oe $
eo :

a
ggg gir Feige ot

-
— ~
te

°
pape pore
Qo gets

‘
ents

oa
——

tained the house in a spotless condition
and deyoted her evenings at a sewing
machine. making dresses for the girls and
other things to earn money.

From all outward appearances, the
widow seemd happy and secure in the
litde world she herself created, until an
impromptu visit by her daughter, Caro-
lyn, to the home of George’s sister shat-
tered that security. Mrs. Cone never for-
got that incident because her niece died
three days later.

“Carolyn had been to a classmate’s
birthday party and on the way home af-
terward she popped in to say hello. We
were, great friends and after a half-an-
hour she suggested that it would be nice
to stay the night with me. I telephoned her
mother and Rhonda was furious! She in-
sisted that Carolyn was her daughter and
belonged at home with her. I told her over
and over again that | knew that and
couldn't understand why she should be so
upset. She didn’t answer that and slam-
med the receiver down. | sent Carolyn
home.

‘I called the next day to see if she had
cooled down and it was then she informed
me that Carolyn was sick in bed, vomiting
and running a high fever. Rhonda sug-
gested that Carolyn had eaten too much
candy and stuffat the party, andI thought
that reasonable énough.

“Carolyn was still confined to her bed
the next day sol dropped in for a visit and
the child did appear very ill. l asked her if
it hurt and she said that her stomach and
head gave her pain and that sometimes
her throat rasped terribly too. The very
next day she died... poor thing.”’

Later Rhonda Belle was to inform all
and sundry that Carolyn’s death was at-
tributed to a diseased throat and ‘*com-
plications.””

The jurors were startled when the state
prosecutor pointed out that the symp-
toms of arsenic poisoning were unmis-
takable and that Rhonda Belle must have
been very cunning indeed to conceal the
true nature of the deaths from physicians
who signed the death certificates. He
stated that the symptoms develop within
one-half to one hour after the poison had
been swallowed, but could be delayed if
there is a constriction of the throat, diffi-
culty in swallowing, profuse vomiting,
headache, burning and colicky pains in
the throat and stomach, dehydration and
muscular cramps at the extremities. A
general paralysis precedes death.

The ensuing trial also pointed to the
fact that Rhonda learned by experience

(continued on page 38)

The six-time slayer liked to “take
care” of people.

The Last Lady Guest On Death Row

(eentinued fram page 29)

and knowingly concealed her deeds by
having each member of her stricken fam-
ily treated by a different doctor who was
unaware of the previous tragedies. With
the knowledge she gained by watching
her victims die, she sidetracked the un-
suspecting physicians and used her per-
suasive powers to influence their diag-
nosis. Of course an autopsy would have
exposed her at once but there seemed no
reason to doubt such a loving mother at
that time...

Rhonda admitted that she was never
worried. After her ‘‘loved ones’? were
buried she would always carry flowers to
their graves on religious holidays, on the
anniversary of their births and deaths and
even on some Sundays. She liked to be
thought of as ‘‘dependable’’. Rhonda also
insisted that once she got them sick, she
worked very hard to get them well again.
‘love waiting on sick people. I cared for
many of my neighbors when they became
ill but I never harmed them in any way.”’

During 1942, Rhonda Belle moved to

her mother’s place in Mobile and began to

direct her attention to her surviving
daughter Ellyn Elizabeth. To ensure that
the child, then 11, needed her love, she
began dosing her milk with an arsenic
compound but in small amounts until
Ellyn became bedridden, a chronic in-
valid.

Dr. Ager, the court-appointed
psychiatrist stated later, ‘‘Rhonda Belle
would never talk about this, but by her
previous statements it is pertinent to un-
derstand that she would, no doubt, find
some gratifying inner satisfaction every
time she was able to bring her daughter
back from the very brink of death. For
over a year she had the child lingering in
this see-saw fashion so there can be no
other explanation.”

Finally, the girl lost the use of her lower
limbs and before her arms went limp she
wrote a letter to her ‘Aunt Emma’’ beg-
ging the woman to visit her ‘‘before I go to
heaven.’’ When Mrs. Cone arrived she
found the girl in a piteous state but the
mother seemed quite unconcerned. Nor
was she particularly worried when the
aunt drew her attention to the awful mess
that the girl kept vomiting. ‘It looked like
the very intestines of Ellyn’s stomach,”
Mrs. Cone confided to the police long
afterwards.

Ten days after Mrs. Cone’s visit, Ellyn
Elizabeth died, the fourth victim of
Rhonda's poisonous love. A severe

Take stock in America.

Now Bonds mature in less than six years,

“stomach disorder’’ was responsible fot
Ellyn’s death, the mother declared to
friends and relatives. Captain William
Painter viewed this portion of the confes-
sion with dismay and commented that
‘‘with events listed one by one, two
deaths by natural causes and four by ar-
senic, it seems incredible that no one
thought to inquire further into the
deaths!"’

However, Rhonda’s love had not been
fulfilled as yet. In August, 1943, her
mother, Mrs. Mary Frances Gibbons, lay
bedridden, a hopeless cripple, the result
of drinking arsenic-laden coffee. Six
months later, Rhonda used the last of the
original 8-ounce bottle of ant poison and
disposed of her mother!

Alone, Rhonda Belle entered another
phase of her life by switching to heavy
drinking and prostitution. She also con-
tinued to have intimate relations with
Hubert Brown, the man her late husband
had accused her of having an affair with
the night they separated.

Then Hubert died and Rhonda became
a waitress. Since his body was not ex-
humed and the records show nothing of
any Consequences concerning his death,
it must be assumed that he died of natural
causes.

In less than two months, Rhonda had
marred a widower — 51-year-old Tal-
madge Gipson, a male nurse — in spite of
her plain, almost drab appearance. The
groom put it this way, ‘‘She looked as
lonely and pathetic as I felt. She’d make
conversation convenient by waiting on
me as soon as | came in for a beer and
later I asked her out on a date. It was she
who suggested marriage after we had
stayed at a roadhouse for a night and I
knew that first week we weren’t making

it.”

Talmadge explained, ‘‘She wanted me
to turn over my pay checks to her, WhenI
refused, she insisted that I take out a life
insurance but I told her nothin’ doin’. I
didn’t believe in life insurance, still
don't.”"

The balding, bespectacled man's
adamant stand on finances no doubt
saved his life for Rhonda’s interest in him
waned and she wanted to move back into
Montgomery. However, before another
week had passed, they had separated.
Rhonda left him after a violent quarrel.

Talmadge worked at a Veteran’s Hos-
pital with mental patients and during his
brief marriage saw many peculiarities
concerning his wife’s behavior. He de-
scribed her as ‘‘shrewd and very intellig-
ent.’ (The court psychiatrist stated she
had an IQ rating of 140.)

He gave the police some insight as to
some of those ‘‘peculiarities.’’ ‘‘We
would be sitting in the living room, when

she’d suddenly become irritable ang
throw things around. She was moody ~
she was aggravated by some silly litte
thing, she would stay that way all day
One day I gat to wondering why all her
kids died and | said to her, “Ronde
you've had a lot of bad luck, how com
so many of your people are dead? Whe
went wrong? Was it something you inher
ited or was it him?” é

But instead of answering, the woma
became angry. ‘‘She grabbed the by
knife that I used for trimming the bushes
and came at me. After a tussle, I took ¢
away and told her that was it, no more’
She left soon afterwards.”

Talmadge Gipson obtained a divorce
which was decreed as final on October %
1949, but Rhonda Belle had already ma
ried a shop foreman of a glass manufac
turing company the day before! Techs
cally, the act placed her in the category &
a bigamist, since the Alabama las
specifies that a marriage by either party #
prohibited until 60 days from the date
the decree. In the eyes of the law, ignoe
ance is no excuse!

It was a planned, whirlwind courtship
with Rhonda placing all the traps she
could devise. Working at the same com
pany, she spotted Claude Carrol Marts
who earned a grand total of 450 dollars
month. A good wage for those days’
Knowing that he was a widower and the
his wife had been killed in an auto aco
dent not three months before, Rhonds
made a point of parking her car near he
every day. The unsuspecting forema
never once thought that their daily meet
ings were especially contrived.

Rhonda also played on the fact that
Claude was extremely worried over i
welfare of his two teenage daughters
Lorraine and Mona Lee. His eldest, 4
son, was away Serving in the navy.

Home life with Claude and his fare
was one of tranquil harmony and becam
a steadying influence on Rhonda's
havior. She gave up her vices and from a
outward appearances became a person @
high character and impeccable morals «
at least that was how the family saw het
They were impressed with her devotn#
to them and their father. It was a very
happy household for 16 months. :

In February 1951, Ronald, Claude
24-year-old son arrived home on leat
from the Navy and brought dissensw#
and hostility with him. After meeting
stepmother, a bond of mutual attract#
ripened into an out and out affair whx*
neither could conceal. j

The husband became helplessly a
soon after he became aware of his wife
and son’s affair and after 25 years of com
stant attendance, with never a day's *
ness off from work, Claude was bu
off to hospital. Rhonda Belle claimed #*
was ‘‘terribly worried’’ about bet
husband's failing health. She managed #
have her husband admitted to no less that

(continued on next page)

eee

w hospitals and be examined by eight
gecialists during his six-week illness.
Sntten into the record this way, this fact
wpears Very commendable but actually jj
tad the effect of keeping physicians off
mc for Hons Seemed to have got dewn to
#e Futs!

Of course Rhonda did everything she
could. She fed him, she gave him his
acdicines and always brought a flask of
ywecial’ coffee with her as an extra! No-
tedy suspected her true intentions!
Eventually Claude's condition became so
grave that the Red Cross, with Rhonda
pressing them hard, arranged for his son,
Ronald, to be flown back on emergency
leave.

They all nursed the ailing man. The two
pris, the son and Rhonda Belle... One
avestigator was quoted as saying, ‘‘One
could report that he was ‘‘nursed”’’ to
éeath. Claude died of ‘tan obscure nerv-
ws disorder’ April 27, 1951.

Rhonda Belle arranged an expensive
feneral for her fourth husband and saw to
#that he was buried close to George, her
second spouse and her five children. She
«andalized relatives and friends by walk-
eg off from the open grave arm-in-arm
sith the son but neither of them seemed
‘scare. According to the teenaged daugh-
ers, both went on a three-day binge and
ent money like water!

“She kept Ronald a virtual prisoner in
énak and lust until she got him to marry
ter, explained Mona Lee. ‘‘Both Lor-
twne and I left and found an apartment for
surselves. It was too awful to stay with
er carrying on!

“Ronald would come home from the
Navy on leave and she would keep him
ceastantly drunk. Eventually, he’d sober
*p and try to get back to his depot but
thonda would quickly get a fresh supply
@ hquor and swamp him with it. Ronald
* in the Navy for seven years and
“ver went AWOL before.

Whether or not Rhonda was aware that
* Mate statute prohibited marriage to
“epchildren, the law determining such
ons as incest, nevertheless she went
head and induced Ronald to marry her
teh months after she buried Claude.

daughters had moved away and the
*avy threw Ronald out on aDishonorable
wharge. Freed from service obliga-
*ons Ronald allowed his wife to lead him
“to four years of drunken debauchery.
'y. were evicted from their home as
wedesirables and then drifted about from
re place to another until the money ran
®t. Then they moved to Mobile and
"ested a comfortable two-room flat. To
“Pport this, Ronald found a job at a
Paper mill while Rhonda worked as a
“etress and played the game as a loving
wfe. This aiso included the systematic
soning of the young husband, 21 years
younger than Rhonda Bell.
applied her previous experiences
Utmost caution but time began to run
s' for Rhonda Belle from the very first
grains that Ronald unknowingly in-
Wed. Blissfully ignorant of her fate,

Rhonda went on her serene way adminis-
tering ‘‘love’’ with increasing doses.

The young nayy veteran was admitted
to the hospital] j; Mobile gp the Sth of
December, 1955, suffering from seyere
pins pain: A physician, Dactor James

endids, had made a tentative diagnosis
of stomach ulcers but try as they might,
the complaint would not respond to
treatment.

Meanwhile, ‘dependable’ Rhonda
drove the 35 miles every evening after
work to the Veteran's Hospital in Biloxi,
Mississipi, where her husband lay
paralyzed from the waist down. Ronald
eagerly looked forward to her daily visits
and was more than appreciative of the
coffee and doughnuts she smuggled in
with her! Of course, after the two months
of extensive treatment by the hospital and
Rhonda, Ronald had wasted away to
mere skin and bones!

The doctors were baffled. What could
be causing the once robustly healthy man
to waste away? An alert intern gave them
the answer! He noticed that white ringlets
had formed around the patient’s finger-
nails, a tell-tale indication of arseninc
poisoning. Strands of Ronald’s hair were
sent to the FBI crime laboratory for
analysis and within a few days the
intern’s suspicions were confirmed.

Ronald was placed on a strct diet and
Rhonda was casually informed that no
‘‘extras’’ were allowed. Since foul play
was suspected the police were informed
and the case was given to Captan William
Painter to unravel. An investigation into
the family past soon brought Rhonda into
the foreground and she became their
only suspect.

Realizing that the poison would have to
be purchased in one form or another, the
police began a routine check of the phar-
macies and stores that Rhonda was
known to have used. With very little
money coming in, Rhonda Belle had run
up an $160-doilar account at the local
grocery store andat the police request the
manager produced carbon receipts of ev-
erything she had purchased. Among them
was a Sales slip for ant poison! In a matter
of hours it was confirmed that the active
ingredient just happened to be arsenic.

Rhonda Belle was never to see her fifth
husband again. A warrant was issued and
she was arrested within hours of the
police appraisal of the chemical contents
concerning the ant poison.

Showing no surprise or fear, she slip-
ped a coat over her white uniform and
docilely allowed the police to escort her
from the restaurant to the Mobile city jail.
She remained serene as the charge was
read and casual when advised of: her
rights.

‘I don’t know why you're doing this,”*
she commented. ‘“There’s nothing to it at
all. It’s just a lot of nonsense. I didn’t kill
Claude. He was my husband. I didn’t kill
anyone.

‘‘Ronald will be heartbroken when he
finds out what has happened to me,"* she
declared as officials escorted her to a

waiting aytomobile. ‘I love him sq much.
We've been so happy together.”

Throughout the 200-mile trip tg Mgnt-
gometry, Rhonda Belle never dispiayed
any sign af emotion or HeFvOuSHess, al:
théugh shé did chain-smioke. When they
!@ached the capitol, she was locked up in
the county jail, still maintaining her inno-
cence.

For three days she steadfastly denied
having caused the deaths of her relatives,
even though confronted with proof that
the exhumed organs disclosed an apprec-
iable amount of arsenic.

The investigators had no doubts about
their evidence. Every day brought in fresh
reports that added to and confirmed the
fact that Rhonda Belle had left a trail of
death wherever she went. They de-
spaired of ever shaking her unperturbed
manner but on the evening of March 12,
1956, when they were about to give up
and return her to the County Jail, Rhonda
inexplicably leaned forward in her chair
and confessed, listing all the poisonings
with the exception of her daughters,
Adelaide and Judith.

It was a formidable list — two hus-
bands, three daughters and her mother,
as well as the attemped murder of her 5th
husband, Ronald Martin. The 11-page
confession was duly signed, witnessed
and placed as evidence for the prelimi-
nary hearings and eventually the trial,,
which took just one full day. The court
appointed George Cameron as the attor-
ney for the defense.

Rhonda’ Belle Martin, 52, was sen-
tenced to die by electrocution on Friday
13, 1956, but under the Alabama law, the
sentence was suspended pending an au-
tomatic appeal. When the original sen-
tence was upheld, her attorney obtained
another postponement on the ground of
insanity. Subsequent examinations
proved his client more than capable and
Rhonda was taken to Kilby Prison, and
booked into Death Row.

She had already been informed that
Governor James E. Folsom had studied
her case and the transcript of the trial, had
decided against clemency and had de-
creed that the execution be carried out in
accordance with the state law.

Rhonda was not left alone for a minute,
not that she needed the wardress with her
in the six-by-twelve, white walled cell,
Rhonda maintained her serenity to the
end. She had eaten a simple meal of ham-
burger steak and mashed potatoes with
cinnamon rolls and coffee at 6 o'clock.
She was due to die at midnight.

Frank Lee, the police commissioner,
had asked the condemned woman if there
was anything she required and was re-
lieved at the quiet ‘‘No™ he received. The
wardress left when the prison chaplain
entered the cell and the only visitor after
that was a barber appointed to shave her
head, which he did in absolute silence.

At five minutes before the crucial hour,
the prison officials who had assembled in

(continued on next page)
' 39

agriculture. Whenever W. E. needed him back in Bibb County
to make a deal for him, Jim would return to help his employer
out. You see, W. E. was footing the bill for his education. Jim
pursued academics off and on in this manner for four years. He
learned more during this time than most college graduates to-
day learn while working toward a master’s degree.

Jim Clark passed away on June 13, 1981, at the age of 81. His
heart just ran out of strength. He was taken to the hospital at
night and died before dawn the next day. His old Buick was
loaded with produce just as he had left it, but he was not there to
drive it. As I looked at the squash and potatoes stacked on the
hood, I felt a twinge of sadness. I had known Jim for 53 years.
Whenever and wherever I saw him, he always had a smile on
his face. He would say, “Yes, suh, do you need a watermelon or
some peas?” Jim was indeed a hustler, and what a wonderful
man he was! Tears came to my eyes asI looked at the old Buick.
The car had lost its driver. I had lost a friend.

CHAPTER SEVEN

An Unsuspecting Victim

3 Mae brings

on the winds of decision with its
awesome gusts that shake the
very roots of the earth as it
tosses trees helter-skelter. Dur-
ing this time, the people of west
Alabama make up their minds
as to what and how much to
plant before the ensuing sum-
mer arrives with its hot, scorch-
ing rays.

Such were the thoughts of
Dick Meigs as he ambled along
the old Pondville Road six miles
southwest of Brent, Alabama,
on the morning of March 8,
1909. It was about six o’clock in
the morning, and the weather
was calm and nice as the sun be-
gan its journey across the clear
sky. A good day indeed to fish or
frolic; and, if one’s energy per-
mitted, even work a little.

Being a practical man, Dick
Meigs decided to do a little
work. He headed toward his
son-in-law’s house to borrow a
shovel so that he could plant a
few fruit trees. He strolled along
in no particular hurry to Billy

Tollie Mason stands before
the gallows where he was
hanged a few minutes later
for the murder of Dick Meigs.

folTTyaedjueg. pesusy ‘yoetq--*£T 10g “NOSYN

‘Ty

“OL6T..*€E-9sn-ny uo

McKELROY, Jim, black, hanged Selma, Dallas Co., August 29, 1884.

“Selma, August 29.-Jim McKelroy, the negro wife murderer, was hung to-day.
He murdered his wife near Orrvidile last fall. He was soon captured and tried. His only personal
plea of defense was made when the judge was about to pass sentence upon him, at which time he
said: ‘I do not think you ought to sentence me to die. I was forced and driven to commit the
crime. I did it because I simply could not help it. Seeing and knowing what I did of my wife had
made me so mad that I was crazy and did not kow what I was doing. That’s all I have to say.”

“On the scaffold to-day he refused to talk, and met death firmly. The execution was void
of any exciting incident.”-Daily Register, Mobile, AL, 8/30/1884.

a wed eek ue

- ne : arr y ee Cw SON CEY | BOs dhe,
fenced ber or of tio jury who | trayed the story of tie filing. dk was a The Tunkeyog Nowa Jn dlaguasing a now road oo q
Convicted bor. Sho stronously dontod having | turrible orluie and was terribly espinte., by way of that town from Amerteus, Ga., to en 4 COLIF
| taken apytuluj from tie body of her victim, A. L'. R, Montyomery, and insists upon a public meot- w Ber. 4
Annie Jordan, und says she bought the jer- |, THE CRIME, ing. It says: “The citizens of Tuskegeo
soy which she. had on when arrested, aud} Thoawful crime for which Peulino McCoy, | should at an early date as practicable meet en Attorney ¥a
which was iuentitied as tho property of tue | the woman Murderer, wont to the gallows and | masse at the court house or some othor place | °
dvad girl, and alicks to It that Anuie swapped paid tho severest penalty of the law, was coms | to discuss the practicability of the Amoricus, “ MORTGAGE
‘shoes with bor, and that is why she had An~| jitted on Thursday, tho 1th day of last Foie | Preston and Lumpkin railroad taking in Tns- ! . mes
Div’eeboes, days the swap was made because | ruary, between ‘Lhree Notch aud Midway, on | kegee on its way to Montzomery, and otfer- ewes
Annie's shoes hurt her aiter the continuous | the Montgomery & Eufaula railroad, ing the road some inducement to come by | F2Al - Msatate - d
Walk from Montgomory to this place, and she|' Her victim was Miss Annie Jordan, a young | here. apr30-te. 164% DEXTER |
“, Wanted something larger, 60 as to get along lady sixteen years of age, and the daughter o CALEB YARD
* more cowfortably, Mr, and Mrs. M. V. B. Jordan, of Montzom- Woe are willing to boar personal testimony ie A rr
7.) Paulino dealed that hor motive for commit- eary. About ten days before she came to her | to the oflicacy and value of Hood’s Sarsaparii- Pla EDUCATIC
« ting the crimo was rubbery, and stated that | untimely death Misa iJordan wandered away | la, which we have been advertising some
‘the victli did not havea nickel. she says} from sthohome of her parents on Martha | years in our paper, having used it for nlood ' }
“that Annie caiue to her Louse here and asked | streot and disappeared, When last seen in | impurities with gteat success. It isa prep- Vir (DRINIIUS £
‘her to go to Mutauia, and that she consented | this Viclolty she was walking along the | aration of standard orerit, made of perfectly B ardin Sch :
"+ to go aa far as Three Notch. Just below there | Montgomery & Eufaula railroad track near | pure ingredioats, ard thoroughly effective in |.~ Car IN’ Cnoo: ‘
Pauline wanted to tura back, but Annia would | the city limits fn company with anegro girl | cleansing and purifying the system, For | Néar Louisville, Ky, ‘Nex:
*<Not hear-to it, and: - ¢ s cx.,/ about her own age. The distressed | eruptions, boils, Otc, it cad #9 rolied upon | 19 Address KE. L. McCiruna
san wie THEY HAD AN OPEN BOW, and almost heart-brokea parents spared | every time. Our own exporifie vith it hag:}'icnvRew.dy-U,. Dupuy, D, D.
and whon Aunio finally raised her arm to| no effort to discover her whereabouts, and | been most gratifying, and we dca glad to give |. Yio Ky mF
4 .:Yatrike Pauline, the latter grabbed her by the had all the highways leading out of the city |} it’ this indorsement.—athol (iiasa,) Tran- :
7 throat and choked her severely, and left her | watched for her, but all this was of no avail, script."
‘ ae ao he bg ot ago pono ee > Prony Was seen or heard of her Work i toss
‘:struggie, and said she not thin 1€6 | until the dead body was found. or esumeu, rere iy 7
s Aials was dead, bg ouly ron! 7 gat ph ~ The —— See of the unfortu- The work on the sewers has bean resumed - ¥ * THE, ON:
, s0rO sho recovered, 80 as not to be botuered | nate young lady was readi y gocounted for mb r ; ia ce Mata
se by ber any more. She also said that she ac- when it. was known that she was subject to pony SF ane lag a ro piling up the dirt

used Jake McOoy, her father, of the crime | fits of mental abervation. She had previously | to g rapid couclusion, apd This. Hhought ca be Br illiant <

through fear, Wandered from home sometimes, but always i ; a 4
a) Doria the whole of the above conversation | returned until the last mystorious disappear- cnenite tine: p= Bape “eo
the condemned women kept up her whimper- | ance, from which death alone lifted the vail of | caim and serene acain The contract for the Durable
» dng, and the nervous twitchiag of her bands | mystery, ; other sewers, it is thought will be let out at
“> had passod into a shaking. She said: “I| The family had about yielded all hope of | an early day. il E qo
Bint a bit skeard, but 1’s got de trembles aw- finding the lost giri when they received a tele- x conomica.
rs Nenpal ‘a ui ac Reo om wating that she — been ye vat re! ~ The Grand Jury
», She was dressed In a cheap white mnusiin | ‘That telegram was received onthe 25th o : i
- Waist and skirt and had a knot of a finer qual- | Foruary, on the same day the ADVERTIS®R re- |, The Grand Jury was busy yesterday loox- Are Diamond Dyes. Th
“{ty of the same material tied ina neat bow | ceived tho following special from Midway. ~ | ing after evil doers, and many anxious ‘faces | in Strength, Purity and Fast:
‘about ber throat. ‘Cho sleeves aud collar THE VINDING OF THE BODY, Wore standing around the outer doors, won- | are just as good. Beware vi
Were trimmed in white Jaceand eho bad on “This morning, . while out hunting, some | dering what they would be called upon to i :
no shoes. Her hands were encased ina palr} boys found the dead body of a young white | ‘ell. ‘Every citizen ought to be willing now | **¢ made of cheap and infe
“ot white yarn gloves and she kept them tight | woman on the Perrick plantation, | and then to do some service for his country, | give poor, weak crocky col: ff
cl¥ closoud. She was about five feet eight inches | near Thres Notch, about three | and as good service is done sometiinas on the 6 col ne
“Jn hoight, was of a passably good figure and} miles West of this piace, Her appear- | witness stand as from the Jury box. ’ 39 colors; 20 cer.
ota dark brow color a shadsa or two] ance is that of anics younglady. The condi- + en eee — Send postal for Dye Book, Sam
‘darker than the ordinary ginger snap. Her | tion of the body indicated that she had been Offensive breath vanishes with the use of | for coloring P hotos., making the
. face was not a repulsive one, aud her features | dead several days. An inquest was he!d over | Dr. Sage’s Catarrh Remedy. (ro cts. a quart), etc, Sold by Dr
» ere on the whole rather good, with the b0s- | the body this evening. As she wasa stran ger |:

sible exception of her nose, which was rather | in thess parts the body has not bon identified. Warner & Co. guaraatea satisfaction or no ehaailbanaicentaadtas
vlarge and flat. There was a quite de- | The dresaiag, the age, the size aud tho hair, | pale, Suits made to order for gentlemen FE ildi :
terinined look about her face that betokened | answor the descripdon given inthe ADvun $15.90, $18.40, $20.05, $21.15 up. Tott or Gilding or Bronzing Fa:
woe to the person making her angry, }TISHR about a week ago of a young lady who > ) : DIAMOND Pp
She occupied an ivon cage on the left hand | wandered from Montgomery,”’ . : oo yom ‘ iy :

. Bide of the county jail, on the upper tloor, and} ‘The stricken parents went to Midway on i} LJ Ls! i : Pea Gold, Silver, Bronze, Copper.
had won the good willof her kesyers by her | tho night of the 25th of February and identi- 5
.{docLe manner and quiet demeavor, fied the body as that of their Inissing daugh- ?

"
: Aadays ig tg ng bet acta adminis- | ter, m 3 fa Fi i +h: Vans =
“tered to ier by the advico of physicians as: ..| "At first the crime was completely shrouded re ui? ip ef meg
g % SHE WAS THEN BREAKING LowN | In mystery. Itappesred that tise Jordan vu Aid MUU PLA WIND
3 and would be unablo to go through the trying | and the negro girl with whom she was seen : " “We hereby notify all partic
3 ordeal before her without occasioning muca | near this city, separated before they reache } “FOR SALE BY redeem them, or make other :

trouble. She raliiei quickly under their} Union Springs. Tne young lady wasseen at} . __, Beginning to-morrow we v
-dniigence and was soon quiet again and said | Union Springs, however, and left there on the IRVINE, GERSIBE & ALEXARDER, interest duc. Now is a charce

. Bho was ready to go. 15th of #ebrusry, accompanied by the young actual value, In additiow to Lh
~All proparetions being made at 12:10, “fif-| negro woman, Pauliae McUoy, to. whom the . sOW a eies S eingamene tn
‘teen minutes later the sheriti and his deputy | crime “was finolly ~ tracod, Pau- |‘ Bo Not Be Misied, Of ‘a good @rlicle of sewelry oe
entered the cell and put handcuffs on her] live: ~ was arre.ted on suspicion The celobrated Montevallo Coal is the best of the.fancy prices they are so
ande, They did not pinion herarms, The} and carried to Midway on Saturday night, | grate coal sold in this market and is now sold | rhinestone jewelry in the city.
procession wont down the jail steps to the Kebrusry 25tb. On Monday following, she | exclusively by the Moutevaiio Coal Compaay.
rear ofthe building headed by Sheriff «Mc- | made a statoment which Wau to the oflect that | Sead in your orders before the cold weather. . pg
Orea, carrying the nocee in his right -hand | her stepfather, Jake MoCoy, followed them on rush, a epp ern 3
dangling along. Tt was made of hemp and | their way to Wutaula, and between Three MONTEVALLO CoAL Company, a >,
. Was one-fourth of an inch in diameter. Thea | Noteb and Midway, told Pauline to go back to | oct3-3taw-m 203 Bibb streate* | | Ps NO. 9S
‘came Pauline guarded by two deputies and Union Springs and he would contiaue the x ‘ : ig , ener
pes po her Leer the physicians ay BY ysine Journey = ene pouns laay; that | gor Jor- Chancery Court, ey Beps0-tf
and representatives of the preas, he foot | wan objected to the arrangement and refused i : ;
‘of the rear stops of the jail and around whic’ | to go on with Jake, when he geized her and Chiaeitl bine: eae cae
J WAS contre 1 quist a crowd was atwo herse dragged her from the railroad to a secluded aaa Dp WehKigtt pon 8 ce of
~ farm wagon containing a single plain unvar-| spot: and that she (Pauine) eaw nothing | the docket a number of cases wore continued.
i Mished pine coflin. © ‘he condemned by the} more ot Miss Jordan after her stop father | Among the casos set for to-day the only im-
, Bid of two deputies steavily mounted the took her by force to the bushes, portant ono was that of BP. LB. Mekonzia ys,
+» wagon by means of a chair and took her seat This statement from the young negro | the Montgomery & Florida and the Southern
‘7 on the head oftbecoitin, 6 ee Wowan wos credited, and led to the conclu- | Railway, Construction and Laud Company,
en THE PROCESSION : sion that Miss Jordan had been Outraged and LECUES WORE AN SES BATT Ry
Composed of the wagon bearing the -woman! murdered by Jake McUoy. Pauline was held | 7 ve wre?
\ Paullze, heavily guarded on all sides, Sher-| under arrest, however, and officers started
iff McCrea aud two deputies in bis buggy and | outin search of Jake, He was found anil
the reporters in o{ber vehicles flowly wound.| arrested Monday night, February
ite way over the hill a little southwest of town Zith, on r. N. Be Powell's
- Into the valley where plantation, eight miles west of Union
. WO OFVHRR EXECUTIONS Springs. Jake stated very positively that he
have takon place. The march was without | had been at work on the Powoll plantation
‘Incident and the condemned sat in the Wagon | two months, and had not been to Union
almost jiumuvable aud did not utter a syliable | Springs since December, 1887, He was subse-
duriuy the whole journey. quently given a preliminary trial, and proved
The gailows was an oldstructure and w2s of | conclusively by reliable witnesses that he was
tho old faghioned stylo, two upright postsanda!athome and at work on the day when the
cross beau. ‘Lhe trap was about four by six} crime was committed. The oaly evidence
and was situated ip the rear instead of in the | against bim was the charges brought by his
middle of the platform. The drop was about stop-daughter, Pauline, and he was. dis-
“ix feet and eight inches ani the height of the charged Pauline also had a preliminary
Zallows was about thirteen foet. ‘Around the | trial. Her own statoments were contlicting,
frame was an cuclosuie which was mado of | and the web of circumstantial evidence waa
posts driven in the ground and bagging railed | gradually and surely wound about her. The
to the cross poices on the beams fora height of | tuagistrate before whom the prolimipary trial
4 about twenty feat thus making it impossible | and investigation took place bound her over

4 for any one to witness the execution not le-| to the Grand Jury, and she was sent to jail to - & oa ay! ;
J gally perinitted to ba prosant = # await a fina! trial. we : ay) TQ L iN dD
3 M 2 ft. L

<6 0 ee

ex Lhe condemued wowmeu was helped out of At the last epring term of the Bullock Coun-
Athe wagon and walking into tbe enclosure ty Circuit Court she was tried, convicted of AN :
amounted tho steps to the platform and » ® | murder in the first degree, and sentenced to Pag! : ah EL coeh Ved P
a TOOK A SUAT ON ‘THE TOP sTEP, death on the scaifold. 78 de SAA EM BAD ete Parties wanting {
“She then calmly looked at tha Sheriff and THK CONFESSION, i ‘ ay a ee : hand
ei is deputies artanging the rope, and then at | A tow weeks atter ;the final trial Pauline a, id be a them in my nands,
‘ygbe vowspaper en of whom A6rO Wore sov- | made a full confession of the crime and told : ‘ In ranti .
yqral, and then at the physiclans. Nota sylla~ | how she, with hor own hands, had mardored Sy ANN a OL AVY FES ° ex i I ersons W anting to
g'0 ORcaped her, although a tumultnous heay- | the belplors and defenceleoss girl Frou her sd thy fed Wa ee kad ea be) Ba Sg dt Extensive Corres:
fag of ber'bosom was noticeable and there was | own Confession, It developed that tho crime |, EK 1 i ee, Be LS oa i tt SIOER Ga
ggg uervous twitch about her Ilps. Twice she | wis cilt-mittod for tho purposes of robbery. | 4) BY &S oe ¥ fe 4 ny tthern and, Weste
aa Obasrved to compress them go tightly | She plated the fiend any robbed poor Annie | . . 1} lands put in my hands fu:
ugg ot the blood neaviy started trom them.” She | Jordan of her clothing and her lite. She] - Abseolu ek at ou wo bale
‘Tags Derinitted tu sit thus for about five mia- | claimed that she did uct intend to kill Miss “ oe PT f
8, at the oad of which time, the Sheriff and | Jordan, but ooly onticed her otf the railroad This powder never varws. A marvel of purity Ay ; qadress
deputies huving finished all preparations | to a recluaea spot to rob hor, The Young | strength and wholesomenes4, More ecovumica : et
Inade everyiblug ready, told hor to take lady resistod aud sha choke’ her down. Then } than the ordinary kinds, and cannot be sold in P. O. BOX 22.
Jast’ look on the world. She gazed loag . sie robbed her of hor dress and shoos and Jeft | competition with he multitude of low test, short l G fk
‘silently, and once or twice strained her | her. When arres’ed Pauline was wearing the | Welxht alum or hoxphate powders. ‘Sold ouly / B 1 R M N

; Fa) to ‘#e0 Mf, boyond the merry danciag of dead girl’s clothing. The shoes and dress | Senn res Ae op ued done} Sunset | | marllett

ak es

’ \

and a munitions plant

Negro Pays With Life
For Street Car Slaying

David MeGuire. the third of three
Birmingham Negroes convicted on a
murder charge in the slaying of

| Conductor J, O. Hall in an atlempt+

ed robbery on a Pratt-Ensley street
ear in 1938, was electrocuted early
today at Kilby Prison, according to
an Associated Press dispatch from
Montgomery

McGuire is the second to die for
the slaying. Edward Wimbuah pres
viously having Bone to the electric
chair, A third Negro, Harvey, Lee
Gimeore, alas was given the death
entence here. Bul the sentence was
commuted to lf imprisonment,

A fourth Negro. Harvey Gibson,
was slain at the scene of fhe rod.
ery

|. oa ae ana

~_Shomnson and a

~-tooped over one of the side braces.

ti bit Wits vebaubdioti aula dali betora
tho tine of execution, there was a goodly
erowd already inside the jail walls. tn-
eluded in this crowd was Chief of Police
Burke. Lieutennnt Rondeau, Sergeant
detail of twenty men
kO preserve order and render whatever
assistance Sheriff Dorlan might desire.
“the scaffold was erected on the east
side of the jail yard about midway be-
tween the jail building and the entrance.
Tt is soventeen feet hich from the ground
co the cross beam, and eight feet from
the beam to the platform, which is nine
feet from the ground. Tho platform is
six by nine feet and the trap four by
five feet. Thirteen steps, that supersti-
tious and alleged unlucky number, lead
up from. the edge. of the brick walk to
the platform. The rope, with the hang-
11's noose ticd on one cnd, hung from
the centre of: ths cross beam and =
he
trap door tell toward the south and was
caught by two spring catches, which held
-it securely.and prevented, it from bound-
ing back agpinst the body of the doomed
nun as he shot through the opening. On
the north side of the seaffold was drawn
taut the rope that held the trap, and
in the support alongside was stuck
tho keen-edyed hatchet that was
to that' rope and launch William
MeNeill, into eternity. The seaffold was
constructed by S. C. Aekridge, and he
did his werk well. It was painted black.

The crowd inside the walls kept in-
crexsing as citizens in twos and threes
who had made their way through the
crowd on the outside were admitted by
order of the sheriff. By 9 o'clock the
roofs of houses from which a view of

, the gailows could be obtained were cov-

ered with spectators, while in® the tops
of trees two blocks away could be seen
neople anxious to get a glimpse of the
fivst le execution held in Mobile
caunty for twenty-eight years. Others
procured ladders and scaled the walls,
‘and. recardless of the broken 33 hot-
tles that cover the tops of the walls, they
seated themselves there in the hot, broil-
ing sun. seemingly as contented as if oc-
cupying a box at the opera.

A considerable space was reserved
about the gallows and inside this
twenty stalwart policemen — stood to
prevent any *encroachments - upon the
space so reserved by the crowd that
was soon to he admitted. Iinally, at
ten minutes past 9 o’clock the big double

ates of the jail enclosure were opened,
re the crowd, surged in like a mighty
body of water, held captive by a dam,

“yushes onward when that dam is broken.
.In the twinkling of an eye almost there
was a sailicient number of people inside
‘to fill un all the available space in the
‘enelosuve adiacent to the gallows. To
the credit of the crowd, both inside and
out, be it said it was most orderly
" throughout the entire proceeding,
* The death watch on MeNeill began
Tuesday. That afternoon, about 4
‘o'clock, he was removed from the cell he
had occupied since his conviction, to the
rear room on the western side of the jail,
opening on the main corridor and just
sopposite the office. There the con-
demned mahyspent the last days of his
+ life, most of the time reeeiving the re-
ligious consolations of his spiritual ad-
visers, Rev. J. Todd, colored, presid-
ing elder of the Montgomery district, and
Rey. W. EH. Neilson, colored, of Mobile,
Pastor of the Warren-street Methodist

Chureh. ;

Ivom 8 o'clock. yesterday morning until
the time of his death, MeNeill’s spiritual

+, their wives, his mother, sister

two- “year-old daughter, were with

: prayed with him and offered

ie doomed man all the consolations that
teligion can give to those standing in
the shadow of the valley of death.
Liromptly at 10 o’elock Sheriff Dorlan
notified McNeill that his hour had come
ard to uronare to go to the gallows. Mce-
Nill asked to be left alone with his snir-
‘ital advisers for a few minutes. This
request was granted and what took place
thdn is best-told in the words of Rev.
W.| H. Nelson: “Upon the first or see-
‘onl mecting that I had with McNeill I
‘told him that he ought to confess his
erinje. and all the details of it, but he
steadfastly refused to make any confes-
‘sion! ‘Thursday I came to see him about
“4 o'(dock in the afternoon and left about
6 o’¢lock, promising to come back and
spend the night with him. I came back

sever

* to sfiend the night between 10 and 11

and was told that he had made
several enquiries for me. I sat and
talked to him, read the Bible, and prayed
‘with him. Then he became anxious to
lie down, but seemed to be very restless
and uneasy when [ told him that I
wanted to speak to him. I told him that
he was going to die in the morning: and
I wanted him to speak freely to mo
about the killing of his wife. I called
his attention to the statement he first
-muade that he had caught his wife in a
compromising situation with his brother-
in-law, Marvray, between 10 and 11
“o'clock at night, and that when he un-
‘dertook to beat her she seized the axe to
uttack him, and then’he killed her. I
furthor told* bim that -the papers con-
‘tained a different story of :the killing. He
still stuck to his first statement and said
se thatehe killed his. wife between 10 and 11
p’clock Saturday night,

o'clock;

» He‘stated. that |

wit ' hits si Co Fett ceaeonie
With me and Rew. May edd. lle then
Stated that his wite was n-leep when be
killed ber and that it was very early Sun-
day morning, about day, ora little be-
fore, when he killed her. le said that
his statement that Marvrsy was in hed
with her is untrue and that he was not
there, Ife said he felt that Marvray was
between him and his wife, and that he
had rather see her dead than to see
Marvray or any other man take his place
with ber. .He said that he would make
this statement to everybody when he as-
cended the gallows, as he had done to
us.’ ,
“MARGH TO THE GALLOWS.

At 10:05 o’clock the line of march
was formed inside MeNeill’s el and the
party came ont in the following order
and ascended the scaffold: The two col-
ored preachers, -Reys.:.J. S. Todd and
Ww. Nelson, with Sheriff Dorlan be-
tween them, the .uurderer, Williain Me-
Neill, escorted by Jailer Id. Laurendine
and Deputy Rube — Dorlan. MeNeill
walked with a firm step and ascended
the stairs without assistance. When he
eae hed the scaffold he turned to the

“st and faced the crowd. Clearing his
throat he addressed his hearers as. fol-
lows, in a calm, clear, dispassionate
ton» of voice:

{ want to thank the jail offi-
cials. Sheriff Dorlan and his deputies,
for manv kindnesses shown, and, next,
Messrs. Browne and Tonsmeire, who did
rie in their power to. rescue me from this
ate.

“This is the death God intended me
to die—this is the death God wanted me
to die. I wan’t to say that my con-
science tells mo to tell the truth and
that [ will enter the kingdom of God.

“In regard to the killing of my wife
I desire to say that she was not on her
knees when I killed her, but that she
was fast asleep. There was no provoca-
tion at the time. I got up in the morning
and «did it. I loved my wife. 1 came
here from Birmingham to try and live
right. Marvray was trying to get in be-
tween me and her. Everything I said
about the shirt, the police, the sisters, Alice
and: Jennie is true. The story I told

‘about the killing is not tru

“T want to say to you—you who are
wives—if you have a good husband treat
him right. This killing was not done in
a spirit of maliciousness; it was love
that made me hit that blow. I loved
my wife, Gentlemen, sometimes a man
ean make his wife do wrong by gambling,
drinking and other evils. I did not do
that. She got every cent I made by my
dsily labor, but, still she did not treat
me justly.

“Wives, try to he true to your hus-
bands, you can cause them fo do things
they don't want to do. "Woman is the
curse of the world. Her wrong doing has
already put her in her grave and is
about to send me to the same place, leav-
ing a little orphan child to the tender
mercies of the world. I ask the people
of the town to send her any old dresses
they might not need.” (Here MeNeill
breke down for a second aud sobbed bit-
terly.)

Continuing he said: “I hope my wife
is in glory and that I will meet her there.
The congregation will not break up and
the sabbath will have no end. To-day L
feel free to announce I will wake up in
glory. I ask you/ail to come with me,
but don’t come to the scaffold...

“Wives. be true to your husbands, be
J wouldn't have done it, but for

made me kill her. I coudn’t
It’s nature, but I will soon be

have no doubt of that. I
down with the King and talk

old world and, its troubles.
There is always something wrong. God
did not intend us to stay here on earth.
He says we must go to hell or heaven.
I am going to heaven. My last moments
are my best.

“God's angels stand here to grasp my
soul and bear it up to heaven. Young
men. there is a hell and a_ heaven.
Choose between them. God is speaking
through me. Listen to what a dying
man says. I am standing over my doom.
Don’t lose vour soul. It is precious.
God has made man after his own image.
I feel the gates open and can look into
the kingdom. I can see my old father
and my three little children. I. hope I
will also see my wife.

“Tn conclusion—”

Here Rev. Nelson interrupted) MeNeill
and asked. him if he would not turn bis
child over to him. MeNeill replied that
he had given the child, a bright little
two-year-old girl, to his sister.

Continuing MeNeill said: “I want to
see who is in this crowd, who will raise
his hund and promise to go to God. You
aro not promising MeNeill, but you are
promising God.’ Several hands were
raised and MeNeill continued: “Lf there
are any sceptics among you, tell them
there is a God. I want to see you in
heaven. I am going there. The road is
picked out. That is all I have to say.’

The hymn, “Jesus, Lover of My
Soul.” was then sung, MeoNeill’s clear
tenor voice rising above the others and
being heard distinctly.

Rev. A. F. Owen, who had joined the
party qn the scaffold, remarked: ‘This
is the happiest moment of his life.”

Roy.’ W, H.. Nelson thep, spoke about

ioe.
ill sit
+

‘Burrell Kimbrough.

Cth ORE Perot P they seeded gy anny
several hours, the jit recurred aver
diet fixing the penalty at death An
appeal to the supreme court was taken
the day MeNeill was senrenced, January
27, 1804, when he was sentenced to be
havged Mareh 9, IS04. The supreme
court affirmed the finding of the lower
court on April 11, last, aul re-sentenced
MeNeill to be hanged on May 18. ‘The
governor refused to interfere and. the
penalty was paid. Messrs. Samuel BR.
Browne and Henry Tonsmeire were the
attorneys for McNeill, and they worked
unremittingly and without hope of re-
ward to save their client's neck, but to
no purpose.

The jury that tried the case was com-
posed as follows: Clayton B. Clark, elec-
trician, foreman; James Doody, dairy-
man; Charles WBarnett, clerk hard-
ware store;;_ Robert T. Buckley, dry
goods clerk; Daniel Neinveither, carpen-
ter; Charles P. Horta, shoe clerk: James
I. Brown, canvasser; John P. Sweeney,
grocer; William M. Jounston, coal and
wood dealer; Ben Newbold, carpenter.

Sheriff Dorlan attendee to all the «e-
tails of the execution himself. He ad-
justed the noose, put on the black
cap, handeuffed McNeill’s hands
behind him,- tied his feet together
with a broad band of black cloth, and
then hastily descended to the ground
and ent the rope that launched the mur-
derer into eternity. The execution went
off without a hitch and the sheriff is to
be complimented upon the perfect man-
ner in which he performed — his duty.

HANGING IN EUTAW.

Eutaw, Ala, | May 18—(Spec ial.J—A
very large crowd of people, mostly ne-
groes. caine here from all parts of the
county to-day to see the hanging of
Armstead Rise. colored, for the murder
of an inoffensive colored man named
Although the hang-
ing was private the negroes hung
around the jail inclosure in great crowds.
Tho drop fell at 12:27. He was pro-
jem dead in fourteen minntes. He

ade a short speech on the gallows and
died game. Tt is said that this was his
fifth murder, according to his own cou
fession.

BLACKWALL THAMPS TUNNEL.
(London Daily News.)

Hitherto the work of excavating and
constructing the Blackwall tunnel has
been carried on without the safeguard of

compressed air, the adoption of whieh
has from the outset been arranged for,
Thé :contractors, Messrs. Pearson &
Son, of Victoria street, are, however, of
opinion that they have gone as far as it is
safe or practicable to go with ordinary
pumping in the tunnel itself, and that to
attempt to go further would be to incur
great risk of a serious settlement. They
have, therefore, brought their air lock
into use, and have just commenced work
under pressure.

The men engaged in the operation of
tunneling are practical miners, and _ the
mere excavation is in no way very serious
business to them. It is to be feared, how-
ever, that the necessity for this special
condition of their labor will tell painfully
upon some of them.’ They have before
them about twelve hundred feet: of tun-
nel to construct actually under the river,
and at the central portion of it they will
have above them at high tide somewhere
about eighty feet of water and only
about seven feet of a loose and porous
river bed, To keep out this head of
water there must be an atmospheric pres-
sure, of about thirty-five pounds to the
square inch, over and above the ordinary
pressure of the atmosphere. This is the
theoretical necessity, at all events, though
it is said that in practice something con-
siderably under what theory seems to re-
quire is found sufficient in ‘such work. It
is, however, a pressure great enough to
enuse some men serious distress, and, of
course, the undertaking is beset by peril
for all engaged in it. It is a'satisfaction
to know that the county council has made
special provision for the insurance of the
lives of the workinen _engaged here.

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SATISFACTORY K
RESS WITH ‘i

SCHEDULE “A"™ Dis
“B" . PROCKEDED
CLOSE—IN Til

Washington, D. C.,
satisfactory rate of }
tariff bill was struck
day, and was}kept uj,
the hour of adjournn
items that had been
A—‘“chpmicals, — oils
Thursday evening wer
schedule B—*earths,
glassware’—was taken
with to its close, Ti
“metal and manufact
stecl.””

The resolution for
of the senate at 10 2
taking up of the tariff
agreed to after a
sion, in which Frre
Maine, said that in his
mentary methods she
to defeat the measure: |
able to. get the Repu
senate to take the sanu

Dolph professed his
with the senator from

Allison denied the
understanding on the |
to the action on the |
senators would act. ot
judginent. Chandler
New Hampshire, wa
senators not to get ur
there would be_ filibus’
Lill. The questign wa
had nou been decided
likely to be decided ux
been the fullest possi
bill. Then, he took it.
cided. ;

Aldrich made a stats
tables, showing that se
duction of revenue he
this bill on matters «©
fine hosiery, wine. bra
cordials, absinthe,
diamonds, and a tax +
posed on sugar. He d
on what principle the
in that way.’

Vest, a member of
mittee, replied to wh
“fallacies” put forwar
articles which he ret
which duties were re
of minimized importa
“insectivorous matters
ho said, had but 2 poe
intelligence of the
he thonsht that ht
would go down with t
argume mts. The finan
said, had = endeavored
duties on h®urics and
had endeavored to mal.
tion so that the livin:
people might be deere;
not hope, for a tariif |
prices of agricultural
gold standard, the de
ver and ‘the destructin ts
kets for: American agi
had brought the farm
down to.a point that h-
individual who could k:
falling into the hands o
or banks. The F poi
himself jhad’ acted wna
margins abroad for Am.
products, but if the :

fur

ai Lorne

The man and woman were fed out in
, cornfield, and when one of the nee
troes ncntioned attacking the girl, the
roung. man grappled with the negro
jrolding the pistol and attempted to
\wrest {t from him, officers sald. Three
Shots were fired while the two’ fought
‘ver the pistol, and officers sald that
\ pot bore evidences of a terrific struggle,

yround torn up. The man

{hey said. ,

(held the gun on the man while
/companion attacked the woman,

Trea negroes then _ fled,

which had been parked

ridge.

Assault Reported Late

\wth cornstalks knocked down: and the
put up a
prave fight in defense of his companion,

“after the man. was subdued, one of
the negroes held the pistol on him while
the other negro’ led the woman a few
feet away and criminally attacked her,
iaccording to officers. This negro then
his

apparently
‘making their escape by an automobile
on Fairview
/ Avenue, The man took his companion to
a home in Capitol Heights where a phy-
‘siclan was summoned to care for her
and the county officers were notified.
| Deputies Moseley and Sellers went ta
the scene of the crime and found the
‘woman’s watch and a .32 caliber cart-

A similarly brutal attack upon an un-
accompanied white married woman about

j the recovery programy and his
thus far to adhere formally to the ode
of the automobile industry was ore of
the questions of police which Jolson
took with him to the While House,
There was no indication, however, that
any sudden action on the part of the
administration would be taken.

In reply to questions of newspaper
men, Johnson said if the Detroit manu-
facturer violated any provision of the
code the Government probably would be
compelled to take action against him.
voit Would Be Violation © .

He added: that operation of the Ford
plant on a steady 40-hour week basis
would be a violation. Under the code,
though, in an emergency peak period
Ford may work employes up to 48 hours
a week so long as the average over the
three months effectiveness of the code
does not exceed 35 hours.

Should action be decided upon by the
administration in case of violation of the
automobile code, Johnson would lay the
evidence before the attorney to start
prosecution. The penalty is fixed at $500
for each day’s violation.

Even before Johnson went to the
White House he had set himself defi-
nitely against placing in other codes the
“merit” clause included in the charter of
the auto industry.

The Administrator said he had prom-
ised the auto manufacturers “in an un-

Out for Auditor
Veteran In State’s Service,
Announces Plans To.

Enter Race Next Spring

Judge Charles FE. McCall will make the
race for’ State auditor in the Democratic
primary next year and up to the present
time has no. opposition for the place.
Judge McCall told The Advertiser re-
porter Wednesday that he had definite-
ly made up his mind to run and would

file his formal announcement at the
proper time. f
Judge McCall is the most widely

known official at the Capitol. He came
to Montgomery in 1907 at the request
of Gov. B. B. Comer, He served as chief
examiner of accounts in every acdminis-
tration from Comer through Graves. He
is serving as an assistant examiner in
the Miller administration. Prior to Com-
ing to the Capitol he served as probate
judge of Choctaw County.

During his 26 years’ service at the

has come

two weeks ago in the same vicinity was
‘revealed yesterday by officers who de-
clared that the incident went unreported
until yesterday. Two negroes answering
the same descriptions as the pair that
attacked the young woman yesterday,
were involved in that case, it was said.
“The woman, who lives beyond Fairview
Avenue, had started to town and duc to
the fact that her automobile had only
one ‘light, she decided to drive on a
back street, it was said. The two ne-
grocs are said to have jumped on the
running board of the car, forced the
woman from the seat and dragged her
into the woods where they cach attacked
her. ‘To avoid publicity the affair was
not reported to officers and it came to
Ught yesterday following this other at-

hiring,

He siid today, however, that although
the same provision had now been in-
cluded {!n a number of other
codes, he did not intend to approve them
in that form.
Actually, Johnson said, the interpre-
tative paragraph was meaningless.

discharging

To Reject Provision

guerded moment" that they could insert
after the collective bargaining guarantee
for labor In the act a stipulation that
advancement
Would be conducted without regard to
union or non-union affillation.
Over the protest of organized labor
and the NRA’s Labor Advisory Board,
Johnson recommended this clause
President Roosevelt and it was accepted.

pending

State Capitol Judge McCall

into contact annually with practically
every county official in Alabama. He has
been of great assistance to county of-
ficers in thelr problems due to his in-
timate knowledge of the law. He knows
more about the State's affairs from a
financial standpoint, and more about
the affairs of the various counties and
the duties of county officers, than any
other man in Alabama. His long ex-
perience has enabled him to become
thoroughly familiar with every detail of
bookkeeping and auditing, both of the
State governmental departments and the
various county offices.

The office of the State auditor since
the creation of the office of State comp-
troller, has not become dimmed in au-

tack,

gro.

The young woman told officers tha
she put a ring in her mouth and tha
she must have swallowed it.

his officers declined to say.
other than that they had arrested

about 20 miles from Prattville.
Sheriff Chambliss wanted to transfe

fused here on account of the
Court Street affair. The Sheriff woul

Famous Baritone Passes

Marcel Journet,, world famous opctrati
baritone, died at his home here
night. He was 65 years old.

WILESROGERS

Beverly Hills, Calif., Sept,
Editor The Advertiser:

}

* According to a description of the ne-
groes involved in. the attack here yes-
terday, furnished by their victims, one
was a heavy-set negro, over six feet tall,
while the other was a medium-sized ne-

Details of the Autauga County attack
were lacking and Sheriff Chambliss and
anything
a
uegro for an attack on a young widow
in the southeastern part of the county,

his prisoner to the Montgomery County
jail,, but permission to do this was re-
Scuth

not say to what. jail he took his prisoner.

~ At His Home In France

VITTEL, FRANCE, Sept. 6—(”)—

to-

See some of the papers are kinder ex-

Johnson called’ the coal conferees back

into session after a three-day adjourn-
ment and within less than an hour said
things “look a lot better now than they
have at any time.”
Into this jumble of controversial sub-
jects a new dispute was thrust today with
the opening of a public hearing on the
code for the construction industry, es-
timated in normal times to employ
5,000,090 workers.

The hearing was barely underway with
nine major construction groups support-
ing the proposed charter, when demands
for higher wages than the code calls for
were presented by M. J. McDonough,
representing the puilding trades depart-
ment of the American Federation of La-
bor. ‘

While this hearing went forward a
master.code for retailers also was awalt-
ing the administrator's attention. Arthur
D. Whiteside, a deputy administrator, had
prepared a price control provision that
was expected to expedite the charter for
all retailers jn the nation,. including
druggists and grocers.

BoyWho Slapped Woman
Gets Four-Day Jail Term

KELSO, WASH., Sept. 6—(4)—No
dancing for six months, Devorl Bailey,
20, was told today by Justice of Peace
Lester Huntington, when the youth ap-
‘|peared before him on a charge of slap-
ping a woman at a dance hall here Sat-
urday, Aug. 26, Bailey also must spend
his next four Saturday nights in the
county jall.

t
t

~
~

Viscount Grey, Famous

thority because the State auditor is an
independent officer charged under the
constitution with the final supervision
of every State department's books and
accounts, The comptroller is appointed
by the Governor and responsible to the
Governor but the State auditor is re-
sponsible to the people who elect him.

“I feel that my long service,” said
Judge McCall, “will enable me to fill
the office of auditor for the good of the
people of the State and at the proper
time I will file my formal announce-
ment as a candidate in the Democratic
primary for the position.”

Convict Escapes But
Returns To Prison Job

NASHVILLE, TENN., Sept. 6.—(P)—
Fscape from prison was easy far D.
Tittles, but he did not know what to do

ae gat betwen
the projecis are advertised and
the bids age to be opened.
Charid, Snead, director of
trict Bureau of Public Roads,
of the city yesterday and Is ex)
return to his office Wriday, The
program, which some time ago
milted to the local Bureau «
Roads and was returned to t
Highway Department for rev
ready for the Bureau's con:
again, it is reported,
Anticipating early action on
work the local office-rof--the
Reemployment Service, which
ply labor for the projects in N
ery County, was opened yesterd:
old Federal building. This ag

‘

also supply labor for any con

projects that Montgomery ma
take in a public works program
loans from the Government
through the Alabama Advisory

The employment agency ‘is 1
rection of C, A. Dart, and me
for the work are to be chosen
sis of their ability and from |

of those now on relief if poss’

The road paving program v
nearly every county in the Stat:
work is allocated primarily wit
of relieving unemployment.

2. Of 6 Balloo:

CHICAGO, Sept. 6—(4)—C!
erson, managing director of tl
national alr races tonight sai
the two contestants still unre
the 2lst annual Gordon ball:
were not heard from by n

Two of the six balloons th
away Saturday night have not
ported officially and authoritic
ed opinion that they likely ¥
in some uninhabited spot, prc
Canada.

The unreported entries are |
bag piloted by Capt. Francizn
and the American civilian bali
ed by Ward Van Orman.

Henderson salq it was cus!
let 80 hours elapse before st

race.

Lieut. Commander T. G.
was conceded a good chance of
clared winner. He brought
balloon down in Connecticut
from the starting point Tues
French entry settled to earth
igan Sunday about 145 miles
starting point; the German ¢
down also in Michigan after a
flight and the Belgian entry
ground near Roscommon, M:
275 miles away.

Third Pair Of Tv

with freedom when he got it.

two-year sentence for voluntary man-

walked to liberty from the prison quarry
late yesterday.
Today guards escorting prisoners to
the quarry found Tittles sitting on a pile
ot rocks awaiting thern.

“I’m cold and hungry,” he said. “I've
been wandering in the woods all night.
I want to come back.”

Tittles, 25-year-old convict serving a |

slaughter at the State Penitentiary here, |

HAMILTON, MONT., Sept
io third pair of twins, bo
today at the household of Mr
| Hans Vigoren.
\ Ten years ago the first +
| born, the second pair coming
\later. One of the second twi

infancy. The youngsters born !

reported in fine condition.
The latest arrivals boosted
ens family to 12 living childr:

Texas Counts Storm Toll; 22

BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS, Sept. 6.—
(P)—Twenty-two known deaths, hun-
dreds of injured and property damage
running into millions of dollars formed
the dark-hued picture tonight of the

ae
great hurricane which lashed South

| Experienced relief workers
opinion, however, that the
probably would be increased
districts, tsolated by high we
followed the deluge of rain
| plored.

cited over “what will Henry Ford do.”
Well, thats the -least thing we got to
‘ worry about nowadays, He will do bet-

British Statesman, Dies

Texas Monday night and Tuesday.
Newspapermen and relief workers,

Eight persons were known |
their lives at Matamoros, for

good enough. There is only one draw
back to this “buying in September

j ing stuff on approval. They will do

4 October, when they start to

at the party.

in Texas, and

think I saw

Plovias;

epaper,

Yours, WILL.

bik
way

ees

ter by labor than anybody else, so that’s

Women with charge accounts, ‘and send-
lot of September. buying, but Lord he.
returning
the clothes, because they dixa't look good

They say there is a hurricane down

little squib about it in some Cal.fornic |

ee Citra Me ie, ay heg
eh aie Sat

SAME AHORA RHP BARRONS CRIT,
new ne ae i staal

_CHRISTON BANE, ENGLAND, Sept 7.
—(P)—Viscount Grey, of Falloden, former
British foreign secreiary and ambassador
to’ Washington, died today at the age
of ‘71. ,

The veteran statesman, one of the most
prominent in Gree’ Britain, had been ill
more than a week from a malady the
eact nature of which was not disclosed
ut was thought to have resulted from
nigh blood pressure.

Deeth came et 6:95 a.m., today. The
Viscount had been ih a coma since Mon-

”

a
2D

ploughing their way through mud and
water and debris of every description,
finally were able to communicate to the
outer world accurate details of the trop-
{eal fury which spread death and deso-
lution through the rich valley of the
lower Rio Grande,

At the same time, the astonishing fact
was revealed that, on the face of pre-
liminary surveys, no lives were lost in

Brownsville, a city of 30,000 persons near
the mouth of the big river, despite the

day, when .he suffered a relapse.

eine

Ba Hid
aS cual Cee

pie ene tata aby
ANE A at
ia be, aan

terrific winds and general destruction of
property.

Hondo. and one at Port Isabe

Brownsville’s established
jured showed 20 at that city,
lingen, seven at Mercedes
Matamoros.

The number of persons suff«
injuries, such as cuts by flyin
bruises from hurtling debris
mated roughly at around 1,50

Eight hundred persons
homeless in Brownsville, acco
complete surveys, Many busi
ings were destroyed or dan

ak apni let, SX Bo &i Ey =
Bicone Wet
% 5 Sess

‘

Race Still Mi:

search for them would be star!

search for the balloonists entei

Born To Montana |

lingen, two at San Benito, se:

Local Cotton

RA, Strict Middling . coves 8.80
4 Middling eeenause sy SIRS

ere Strict Low Middling oe 8.25

rade

Eik Spobden

black, elece Ala. (Montgomery) October 27, 1933.

Wull Day and Night Service
of The Awrocinted Press

V MONTGOMERY, ALA, T

te Hod

3 i Overpower Cais a e Setted
be 4 In Car Parked On South
pty

Court Street Extension

i centiy Withheld

i hi

Spot Two Weeks Ago
Hidden Until Yesterday

yind beat a man and criminally attacked
behiis young. woman companion — early
ME { wednesday morning on the South Court
msStreet extension. Sheriff Sam Stearns
na it aid that a negro, Nathaniel Williams,
EAeeyunad. been arrested in connection ‘ with

Williams had any part in the crime,
ae) 9 Meanwhile, Sheriff B. D. , Chambliss,
sof Autauga County, announced at: Pratt-
we ‘ville that he had arrested another negro
ic charged with attacking a young white
a4 1 woman in the southeastern part of that
county Wednesday morning. The sheriff
‘gremoved the ee to an unidentified
A jail.
ra « County" ottiinl here who Investigated
i the South Court Street affair were un-
py able to supply the name of the couple.
mExtensive inquiry last night revealed
‘athat strenuous. efforts were being. made
a0 withhold the names of the cucattie
sain the robbery and attack.
According to the officers, the couple
avere scatcd in the automobile when the
“#iwo negroes approached,.. one of them
7 lourishing a pistol, and ordered the
a souple out. of the car. As the young
Kgvoman got out, one negro covered her
Mwith the pistol while. his confederate
gyent through. the man's pockets, took

nid

“having more.
: Fight In Cornfield
‘The man and woman were led out in’
“@3 cornfield, and when one of the ne-
msroes mentioned attacking the girl, the
young. man grappled with the negro
Hiolding the pistol and attempted to
Ad vrest it from him, officers sald.. Three
APhots were fired while the two fought
pgver the pistol, and officers said that
&eg)}pot bore evidences of a terrific struggle,
fe vith cornstalks knocked down and the
#emround torn up. The man. put up a
hasi@ie@orave fight in defense of his companion,
iSepeems hey said. ach Me :
th After the man“was subdued, one of
Hthé negroes held the pistol on him while
the other negro, led the woman a few
Mm feet away’and criminally attacked her,
# according to officers. This negro then
ait held the gun on the man while’ his
§companion attacked the woman.

The negroes then fled, apparently
if making their escape by an automobile
k“@ which had been parked on Fairview
Avenue, The man took his companion to
a& home in Capitol Heights where a phy-
%y sician was summoned to care for her
gaand the county officers were notified.
Deputies Moseley and Sellers went to
Pa the scene of the crime and found the
4 woman's watch and a .32 caliber cart-
Wat ridge.
is ' Assault Reported Late °

A plmilarly brutal attack upon an un-
accompanied white married woman about.

|| Millions Died In
War Needlessly
«|| Englisfiman Says

LONDON, Sept. 6.—(4)—Millions who
weré killed’ in’ the great war need not
have met death, declares David ~ Lloyd
George in the first volume. of ont war
memoirs just published,

The war, he insists, should hi ick:
ed in 1916, and it: might have been de-
cided by 1915. He characterizes the al-
lied strategy in France in the earlier
stages of the war as a “sanguinary mis-
take,” which nearly lost the — the
conflict,

One feature of the volume is an éut>
spoken attack on. Viscount Grey,. then
Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey, for
the part he played in that office,

By coincidence, the book is published
as the noted liberal statesman is lying
at.death’s door.

In the course of his narrative, Mr.
Lloyd George lashes the war office again
and again for “mental obtuseness” and a
“pitiable lack of initiative.”

Coal Code Fy ght
Near De thereat

Tahson Opposes ‘Merit’
Clause. In Agreements;
Another Dispute Arises

WASHINGTON, | Sept, 6.—()—The
possibility that the Jong-controverted la-
bor questions in the. bituminous coal
fields of the Appalachian. Mountains
would be flattened shortly was. indicated
tonight by Hugh S. Johnson, the NRA
administrator,

The Administrator predicted an early
accord between non-union mine. operas
tors and spokesmen ‘for the workers a
few hours before he went to the White
House with a full report of the progress
of the recovery program.

‘Out of this conference officials | ex-
pected significant decisions designed to
place the full weight of the administra-
tion behind a sweep to cut aside ob-
stacles, that have slowed down the mo-
mentum of the NRA.

The ‘attitude of Henry Ford toward
the recovery program and his failure
thus far to adhere formally to the code
of the automobile industry was one of
the questions of police which - Johnson
took with him to the White House.

There was no indication, however, that
any sudden action on the part of the
administration would be taken.

In reply to questions of newspaper
men, Johnson said if the Detrolt manu-
facturer violated any provision of the
code the Government probably would be’
compelled to take action against him.

. Would Be Violation

He added that operation of the Ford
plant on a steady 40-hour week basis
would be a violation. Under :the code,
though, in an emergency peak period
Ford may work employes up to 48 hours
a week so long as the average over the
three months effectiveness of the code
does not exceed 35 hours,

Should action be decided upon by the
administration in case of violation of the
automobile code, Johnson would lay the
evidence before the attorney to start
prosecution, The penalty is fixed at $500
for each day's violation.

Even before Johnson . went to the
White House he had set himself defi-
nitely against placing in: other codes the
“merit” clause included in the charter of
the auto industry.

The pled sumiacened anid he had prom
ay

GS: Warships
Aim Silent Guns
At Rioting Cuba

New: Government Pledges
Order ‘In All Republic,’
~ Some Looting Reported

Aliens. Protected

Navy Secretary Swanson

Speeds Toward Island;
Marines Await Order

Copyright, 1933, by the Associated Press
‘ HAVANA, Sept, 6.—The new Cuban
Government tonight guaranteed order “in:
all the republic’ as reports of scattered
disorders reached the capital while
American destroyers lay within gunshot
of the island and others sped in this di-
rection,

The guarantee was conveyed in’ a

manifesto which revealed that command
of the armed forces soon will be re-
turned to the heads of those organiza-
tions, whose non-commissioned officers
and enlisted members participated in
Monday's night coup which brought
about the resignation of President Car-
los Manuel de Cespedes and his cabinet.

Jose Irizarri, one of the five members
of the executive commission which has
taken. over rule of the country, declared
that the Government had no official in-
formation “regarding the movement of
U. S. Marines, war boats or the arrival
of the American Secretary of the Navy,
Swanson,” and that hence he could not
reveal the official Government attitude.

Sergio Carbo, another of the commis-
sion members, declared, however, “It
would be offensive to the Government
of the United States to even think’ of
the possibility of armed intervention at
a time. like this.”

Equal representation was promised to
each revolutionary faction as the “exec-

(Turn to Page 1)

Senior McCall
Out F or Auditor

Veteran In State’s Service
Announces Plans To
Enter Race Next Spring

Judge Charles E. McCall will make the
race for State auditor in the Democratic
primary next year and up to the present
time has no opposition for the place.
Judge McCall told The Advertiser re-
porter Wednesday that he had definite-
ly made up his mind to run and would
file his formal announcement at the
proper time.

Judge McCall is the most widely
known official at the Capitol. He came
to Montcomery in 1907 at the request
of Gov. B. B. Comer. He served as chief
examiner of accounts in every adminis-
tration from Comer through Graves, He
is serving as on assistant examiner in
the Miller administration, Prior to com-
ing to the Capitol he served as prema
Judge of Choctaw County.

During his 28 venars’ sorvicw iar i

Hurrying ]

SECRETARY |.

Speed Pi
In Road

None Of Usta’
In State Wi
National Pre

Under a recent rulin
General's office work ¢
road paving program {:
part of the national }
be speeded up once th.
proved by the U. S, } _
Roads in Washington,
yesterday. ;

Atty. Gen, Knight, it
ruled that the State
days for the advertish)
fore the opening of bk
where no State funds r

In this program the
apportioned te the Si
ernment and the Attor
that any precedent .
might prescribe would

The Bureau of Publ
instance, it is said, wil:
days for the period b
the projects are advert!
the bids are to be ope

Charles D. Snead, dis
trict Bureau of Public
of the city yesterday e:
return to his office Fria
program, which some t.
mitted to the local }
Roads and was return
Highway Department
ready for the Burea:
again, it is reported.

Anticipating early ac
work the local office
Reemployment Service,
ply labor for the proje
ery County, was opened
old Federal building, °
also supply labor for
projects that Montgon
take in a public works
loans from the Gov
through the Alnxbama /

The employment age
rection of C, A. Dart,
for the work are to be
sis of their ability ane
of those now on relief

The road paving pre
nearly every county in |
work {s allocated primes
of relieving unemployy:

e A Su los, UF a} bvewk ast WAS Soudad e

pe ft SOs “trol Revie Kee

Cow | aes “: ome re AV NG Poke & |
he “hwo. weeks _

= ime tech ee to om fue ea “This cells

te hg mem A oe ivou _— lot Done wae or caadlows
— be (A Mov eey | corridey | of ha aie Ge Vou.

wee 6% Feccton Morne, fe Ves Wee
emo : area: qanf cell ae or

ve wrep0ing- Pier Cred (yw ies ee
(ety era eee
Chas Oe es Westin of Le ce
7 "aah, Delieyiie Ferciay |
aan “Tsou sael core A See (aS | Cousitutly
ow We free ioe Skveks. eke Heens Oppered!
Phe ha a ee depot of ct.
CO: epu OS, “GD Pewyedl ct.
e foe cel| for. Meas A tyose rok oft
HWS oe eae “ol Ke fale beste Shwksin.

if eels oral ACCOMM ID Dovson_ Cieuee
pred fue depulios Be. eevee,

UA __Pavsons_ “Worl ae ly. tee Cowous sok
on. Rgite Gao o- << % Reus fousess_ aad yeaa An tm The
poy Trove) | ae EVAL NCI thos.
“Mens cave ae ey of he.
J oe eee
oes No? Lest adress Tro, Crowd _
wu Whe, shrest belo Te _pornchors [oflis _

= aie

cell te acducmphek these a Wy, Cote _
Wet fo Covey gisbl peas Cont
\nHuow ably _ Leaeecl-troable le/Spoko ¢ LF cortiads
Wade. ediweon _ tneeyrees - oa (Wika ey
Ow Gadvisedt — VU eqroes _ wt To vets c
“ote Cotract ds | SGew solos fay

ae Ivor ht aboot omtre eA : (ness onl led
— he, ager

Ile Soul ed hod Mode eose worth Gow |

“digiwc\ (Mont? 64) UD aS Sovit fe Tue CY \wie

te wert |ni's Ge.

ha ud wmaputtenl He le Deo, [UA
ho Suid Gets Cine Tad: WUa$_ fri ‘ae

ed id. te “Tyeuscl tat heuer

— Pgh. Ce: DEE Ce. rontheh enktek wih
tetas ft oa ae Wa hehe Cow Lecl <r, j
oe Cyd, bur GIS: Sou

pce Rg te ed ie eat

ke woemtd G0 bo leowes

ete bes Woyeto.e Getto. Meewuey todey cy CU, re
ry bveek Gat Soul Skyves) og TA Coe

Meroe" see-get Brew fast Preve To Dyer ot -

of (ae_Hontouery C Retest

—

Boece |. Folly BOO percems weetlG Weqrses =

‘C. ores oe

Derr fo eykend spwrihvel Com frrt te

: oes es ower fol Rh eero walked
Tres ae os ea

ah Ov te
polte tas = io cel: Stoudk ooh leon
on Mae Conc sion of Tee me,

SRE Pace hy SPE es ef (tlle de"
Wal Us b to = Wis wife

Deputy Stuns af Katey Ret fe. lencok @ |
ee ee los ae She = shone Youre

_ Arve ly cratered te beet orn, Sat re

ee on ee, Se ae

)
ye
yh

}

3
‘a _Yester y Mon '
ns vicinit exposed to a defi-
ciengy 16 {datrees. from’ the
is empery race of 69 “de-

‘Miles Loses.”

heral
Ooi,
ess,
ash-

mioad

oleh aed

mnent

ark-

and
give
rtin,
Co.,
song

Bir-
onse
Z ad-

Fuel

Pea ntro-

com-

n In-

1 rs

ase ning- hospital declared the man sane,,

shair-
Brit-
urch-

eal

. * man said yesterday, |
eworecast psi tly cloudy and
fee iecr for todi..
Wihe predicted ‘emperatyres for
oday are 45 low at.4d\aa and
66. degrees high at af mm,
ovlefy and

. 4
Mdxim ) ang, jinimum. tem-
perature ere 55 and 51.degrees
with a niean of 53.. a ee, Sees

Mercy Plea.
For His Life ¢

a tt nee

Outwardly calm, a 35-year-old
Georgia white man was to have
died in the electric chair last night
after Gov, Gordon Persons, turned
down his plea for mercy,

Deasmon' Miles was ordered put
to death at Kilby Prison shortly
after midnight for the swamp kill-
ing of a fishing companion near
Andalusia, Ala., 17 months ago.

Prison officials said the» con-
demned man took the news of the
governor's . decision “without a
word,” and that he was “as: calm
as he could be.’ » tae

Miles was first scheduled to die
on Aug, 8, but Gov, Persons
granted a stay of execution so
psychiatrists, ;at. Bryce Hospital
could find.out whether he was in-
sane, He refused to intervene fur-
ther ‘when three doctors at the

The Roberta, Ga., resident was
convicted of killing a fellow towns-
man, James Alton Hill, while on

MaDick-|a fishing trip into Alabama.

lover,

pilum,

Bir-
Bir-

WP ensa-

‘

re |Tension, Fatigue Caf

Hill’s shotgun-riddled body was
found in a swamp near Andalu-
sia more than a month later.

Miles/was arrested in the slain
man’s car after a traffic accident
near Luverne,

Both at the trial and later at
a clemency hearing before the gov-
ernor’s legal adviser, the defense
insisted. that Miles is: mentally ir-
responsible.

6 ae WB! Ce go

PAOVIN GG Ot ipa

ci te
His

Beli

In Shigaay
SCARBOHS.

—Foreign Se
said today ¢

phasis in Coe

leads him to

ers are wavel

West’s growi
/ He called f

ern might in

British Cons¢
vention, eve
West was. ke
for high lev
tions,

Any new I

have to be ‘fag

pose and on a
said, ‘‘otherw
false hopes

worse
brokn down

and destroyecg

the greying @
“T think tl
the minds of
whether the
thrown or int}

derant force. fis

“The Sovie
nomic proble
ries or diff
Western Pow

In shifting
said, ‘‘they
their old the
world would®
if left to its

“Tt is imp
estimate th

our greate iia
strength midge?

macy. What
ready to se
P
den’s plep
West was
Minister [ye
| ander. He
back her 1p
riod from fi}
urged by }
Minister E
“We com
(Tug

yh &
B® Se%)

he:
Bs

f wh ‘

a te

, r ‘ i $

Ou Carr
[Sab
pas Fabs Le oe os Sen
ee secre
oe ee
oe ee aise ir
oye eee

re eos
oat Atinued pru B Aen /Hordieee

Nhs lf (a2
Ls ad ‘ 0 wise lef ab 8 0 A cresg a oir
ey

’
Phinda! SEE -
l~A F142 a voy err oe ee

: i

MILES, Roy Lee, black, elece Alas SP (Bullock) 6-30-1930.

ew, ; [Distt eR.

goes Tie dt CY, cle Slit te 0d

| Lect
he tons 4p ifiglig Gajoley E Key
eR ity oh mt Bi a Spent ae ROLE cng / Ll. tek, AL2-0 |

er ve a he eel othe nat GO fitm VT mane

ge Merath Fx (90-2)
ca alee Woy on /-26-29, Prabha dod hebrew
eer Le pi ae Thee after “le wank fp ee al lnc ohlres loesh

4 Vrs tn. et fl tak Ble |
Sats senor tots ell te fete scar | bu lee pee Tf ALLLALL 1% y 2 oe |
cr Ss 2 Mites LEE get puck 2 Teed abcess Roan ——

Kets

Abweu ee Ont + ewraeked, dug %

Metadata

Containers:: Box 1 (2-Documentation of Executions), Folder 15
Resource Type:: Document
Description:: Perry Mackey executed on 1914-06-26 in Alabama (AL)
Rights:: In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
Date Uploaded:: June 26, 2019

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