NO SUGAR BOUNTIES.
THE LAW IS DECLARED UNCON
STITUTIONAL. Tht Comptroller of the Treasury Renders
n Opinion on the Celebrated Oxnard
Sugar Bounty Claims Claimants Can
Go Into Court and Test the Validity of
Their Demands An Important Decis
ion. Declared Unconstitutional.
Washington, Sept. 7. R. B. Bowler,
the comptroller of the treasury, yes
tar Jay rendered an opinion on the now
celebrated Oxnard sugar bounty
claims, in which he holds in effect,
first, that he, as comptroller has
jurisdiction of the case, and second,
that, in his opinion, the act of March
2, 1S95, making1 the sugar bounty ap
propriation is unconstitutional, lie,
however, decides that the papers in
the case be sent to the court of claims
for the rendition of a judgment, In
order that there may be furnished "a
precedent for the future action of the
executive department in the adjust
ment ia the class of cases involved in
these sugar bounties."
The particular claim decided is sub
stantially on the same footing as all
other sugar bounty claims, for the
satisfaction of which congress, at its
last session, appropriated S5,2l!S,2S9.
The comptroller answers at great
length the arguments presented by
counsel at the hearing, in which his
jurisdiction was attacked, and iD the
course of his reply, he sa3s statutes
which do not conform to the constitu
tion, are not law, and therefore, when
a statute is in apparent conflict with
the coustitution it becomes the duty of
the executive officer to determine for
himself as between the statute and the
constitution whether the statute is the
law.
As to the constitutionality of the
act, the comptroller says in part that
the principle has so long been decided
that taxation must be for a public pur
" pose; that an attempt to take money
from the people by the forms of taxa
tion for a purpose other than a public
one, is not an exercise of legislative
power and, therefore, that an attempt
to do so is a mere nullity, as an effort
by the legislature to exercise power
not granted by the constitution.
Manufacturing establishments have
been uniformly treated as private
rather than public enterprises. Nu
merous decisions are cited tending to
show that factories of all kieds, saw
mills, rolling mills, eta, are private,
and are in no sense public enterprises.
It is suggested that when congress
gets out of the domain of law and into
the realm of equity and justice their
power is unlimited. That would be
no doubt true if congress could get
out o the domain of law, but it can
not do so.
The bounty of the act of 1835 is not
limited to those who may have suf
fered an- injury by failure to receive
the bounty of the McKinley act, but is
given to all alike, whether they suf
fered loss or not. There is nothing
which indicates that it is intended to
make compensation for such injury,
and that cannot be implied.
By a refusal to pay the claims the
ultimate riirhts of the claimants are in
no way allected, for they have a per
fect remedy in court to test the valid
ity of their claims and obtain payment
thereof after a final determination of
the constitutionality of the law, if it
be held unconstitutional.
A. CONSPIRACY CHARGED.
Letter From a Dnlatk Man Who Says
the Prisoner Is Not Fraker.
Topeka, Kan., Sept. 7. The Kansas
Independent, a Populist paper, pub
lishes a letter from a citizen of Duluth
to its editor, I. W. Pack, which pur
ports to expose a conspiracy on the
part of the insurance companies and
the chief of police of Topeka to arrest
William Schnell and palm him off for
George W. Fraker of life insurance
fame. The letter is written by a Ger
man of the name of Harberger, and is
to the effect that Fraker or Schnell
Is a crazy hermit, whose great
ambition is to achieve notoriety.
The author of the letter
declares that it can easily be proven
that Schnell has lived in the woods of
Minnesota and Wisconsin for years,
and that he passed in the locality
where he was arrested as "King of the
Forest." It is alleged that it is not
the intention of the insurance com
panies to push his prosecution after
the money handed over to Fraker's
executor has been recovered. It ex
plains that the reason why Fraker's
companion in Minnesota was not taken
into custody was that he would swear
that the prisoner is not Fraker and
furnish the names of any number of
witnesses who would so testify.
J. P. Davis, president of the Kansas
Mutual Life Insurance company, in an
interview said there was no doubt of
Fraker's identity, and that no effort
would be made to secure the return of
the insurance money until all inter
ested admitted it. He said that he
believed Fraker would be sent to the
penitentiary, although he admitted
that a number of prominent Kansas
and Missouri attorneys whom he had
consulted had expressed the opinion
that he could be convicted of no crime.
Kor Killing Daniel Stone.
Libkuty, Mo., Sept. 7. George W.
Russell was arrested at Smithville this
morning on the charge of having mur
dered Daniel Stone, the farmer who
was found June 25 at his home, a mile
east of there, with his skull crushed.
The officers say that the evidence is
very strong against Russell.. He runs
a pool hall at Smithville and has had a
bad reputation. lie once lived in
Kansas City, and is said to have killed
man there.
A Florida Girl's Terrible Fats
Amii.i,a, Fla., Sept. 7. Last Tues
day night Stella Johnson, the J 6-year-old
daughter of a widow who lives
near here, was kidnaped. This morn
ing the nude corpse of the girl, strap
ped to a log and horribly mangled,
was found floating in a small lake
about six miles from her home. The
girl's neck had been broken and her
throat cut from ear to ear. Her right
arm had been severed from her body
at the shoulder.
WILL SECURE JUSTICE.
This Country Will Investigatr
Chinese
Kiots.
Washington, Sept. 7. The United
States government, it is announced at
the state department, has decided to
enter forthwith "upon an independent
investigation of the Cheng Tv riots,
with the co-operation of a Chinese rep
resentative. As at first arranged, the inquiry was
to have been made in co-operation
with England, but there has been a
change of plan within the past few
days, occasioned partly by the fact
that the British consul at Chung King,
who is to conduct the investigation on
behalf of his government and to
whom, with the concurrence of an
American missionary member, it was
at first proposed to entrust the pre
liminary investigation of the facts,
has been detained at his post, and, it
is said, will not be able to begin the
inquiry for a month or more. There
are also understood to be other reasons
why the state department has decided
upon an independent investigation,
such as France has already made and
6uch as England will make' later.
It is said at the state department
that it is not true, however, as has
been represented, that the policy of
this government has been changed by
any feeling of dissatisfaction or re
sentment caused by any apparent de
lay on England's part in proceeding
with the inquiry. The department has
other reasons, which it is not yet pre
pared to make public
China is expected to lend her sup
port to the American inquiry to the
extent of supplying an escort to the
persons who will conduct it, but who
have not yet been designated, and
will probably furnish an official who
will co-operate with the American in
vestigators, as in the Ku Cheng in
vestigation. The investigation is ex
pected to be made by some officials
now on the Chinese coast.
TRANSFERS IN THE ARMY.
Kxtenslve Changes of Infantry Companies
and Troops of Cavalry Ordered.
Washington, Sept. 7. Extensive
transfers of troops in the West were
ordered to-day by the secretary of war
as follows: The present garrison of
Fort Buffalo, X. D.,to Fort Assinaboine,
Mont.; two companies of the Twenty
second infantry from Fort Assina
boine to Fort Harrison, Mont.; one
company of the Second infantry to
Fort Yates, N. D., to be joined by an
other company of the same regiment
now at Fort Keogh, Mont.; three com
panies of the Tenth infantry now at
Fort Yates and their commanding
officer, Lieutenant Colonel Couiba to
Fort Niobrara, Neb., from which two
companies of the Eighth infantry are
to depart for Fort Russell, Wyo. ; the
three companies of the Seventeenth
infantry now at Fort Russell to
go to Columbia barracks, Ohio.;
four troops of the Seventh cav
alry now in the department of
Texas, to the department of the Col
orado; four troops of the First cavalry
now in the department of the Col
orado to Oklahoma, two troops going
to Fort Sill and
two to r ort lieno. re- i
lieving four troops
of the Third or-
dered from Oklahoma to Jefferson
Darracks, Mo.
Fort Buford, N. D., and Fort Han
cock, Texas, are discontinued as army
posts and directions given to turn over
the public lands to the interior depart
ment. Where the troops and compa
nies to be transferred have not been
designated in the order, the depart
ment commanders will make the selec
tion of the troops to be removed.
AFTER ROTHSCHILD.
Another Attempt to Dynamite Him In
His Farls Hanking1 House.
Pakis, Sept. 7. M. Rothschild's
banking house in this city was the
scene yesterday of another nihilistic
attempt. At 3:2o o'clock a man en
tered the bank from the Rue Lafitte.
In the vestibule a detective, who was
on guard there, saw the stranger try
ing to light the fuse of a bomb which
he carried, with a cigarette. The
ashes on the cigarette prevented the
ready ignition of the fuse, and the
man, seeing that he was observed,
threw the bomb upon the carpeted
Uoor. The weapon did not explode,
and the man was arrested. When he
was taken to the police office he boldly
awowed himself an anarchist. He
made a desperate attempt to use a
razor before he was overpowered by
the detective and a policeman, who
had come to his assistance. Police
officials believe, from the appearance
of the culprit, that he is a brother of
Pawels, who perpetrated the Made
line outrajre.
To t'omhat SHverites.
Chicago,, Sept. 7. Democrats from
all parts of the state are attending the
meeting to-day of the Honest Money
league of Illinois at the Palmer house
for the purpose of preparing for the
presidential campaign of l89t. Lead
ers of the party were present, and
after transacting routine business dis
cussed the work of the coming year
and the means of combatting the free
silver element of the party.
A Tennessee Negro Lynched.
Nashville, Tenn.. Sept. 7. At Fay
ettevillelast night, Dock King, colored,
arrested on the charge of attempting
to criminally assault Mrs. Charles
Jones, near Fayetteville. was taken
from jail- by a mob of 200 men and
hanged. He protested his innocence,
but he was identified by Mrs. Jones
and her sister as the guilty man.
, Two Topeka Tapers Consolidate.
Topeka, Kan., Sept 7. The Kansas
Breeze, the official state paper, F. C.
Montgomery and T. A. McNeal, pub
lishers, and the North Topeka Mail,
Arthur Capper, publisher, have been
consolidated and beginning next week
will be published as the "Kansas
Breeze and Topeka Mail."
Air. Harrison Wants Adirondack Land
Old Foboe, N. Y., Sept. 7. The ne
gotiations which ex-President Harri
ion is carrying on with Dr. Steward
Webb, owner of thousands of acres of
Adirondack land, will probably result
in his buying a number of lots near
First lake, in the ' vicinity i Dodd
camp, where he now is.
FRAKER BE HIND BARS
WHERE HE DRAWS BIG CROWDS
TO SEE HIM.
Many Old Friends and Acquaintances
Have a Talk With the Swindler In the
Kansas City Jail Taken to Richmond
Lawyer! All Agree that He is Snro
to Go Over the Road.
Fraker, the Swindler.
Kansas City, Mo., Sept. f. Dr.
George V. Fraker was brought back to
Kansas City at 5 o'clock yesterday
afternoon.
James Patterson, a druggist of Ex
celsior Springs, was the first to grasp
his hand.
"Weil, Dr. Fraker, how do you do?"
he said with emphasis. The doctor
answered in a scarcely audible voice:
"How are you, Jimmy?"
Judge A. 11. Dooley oi Lxeeisior
' Snrinirs was the nevt tr srtfak tr him
and he was recognized, too, by the
doctor. Melvin L. Zener, the manager
of the Hartford Life and Annuity com
pany, which had paid 15,000 for
Fraker's "death," spoke to the doctor
but was not remembered by him.
E. L. Moore, manager of The Elms
hotel at Excelsior Springs, Attorney
D. J. Haft", J. 1. Davis, president of
the Kansas Mutual Life association,
the company which ran him down, and
United States Marshal Jo O. Shelby
were among others who crowded
around the doctor and spoke to him.
He was hurriedly driven to the sher
iff's office. As he sat with nervous
hands clutching the hat on his crossed
knees, he was beset, browbeaten, vol
leyed with questions. Every detective
and lawyer and newspaper reporter in
the room took a hand at it. He an
swered all qusti-ms -vith the same air
of meekn s and we :riness which has
character ..mI him snice his arrest. He
had said often that he was tired and
worn out from hiding out from the
men who were hunting him. He said
he was glad the thing wsis, over. He
did not appear glad, but he did look
resigned.
Hefoie Fraker was taken away a re
p i ter talked with him.
"I notice," he said, "that a great
many people seem to believe there was
a conspiracy with several persons in it.
Now this is not true. When 1 went on
that fishing excursion I was preparing
to take a trip to California to bring
back my nephews. I had collected
some outstanding debts and had 540
in my pockets when I fell in the river.
When I got out of the water half a
mile below where the accident oc
curred, riy clothing was covered with
mud and I was wet to the skin. I first
thought of going back to the camp,
but I did not want to return to the
Springs in such a plight, so I stayed in
the brush all that night and the next
day and caught a freight train for
Kansas City the next night."
Dr. Fraker was placed in cell No. 4
on the south side, third floor, of the
county jail. From the time of his ar
rival until late in the evening the jail
wcaicfciv i tv.
to see mm. rrooauiy uu were admit
ted to see him, but very lew suceeeaeu
in engaging him in conversation ana
fewer secured any inf rmation from
him. Dr. Fraker was tired and slept
fairly well last night, though after
enjoying the freedom of the Northern
woods s-o long, confir.cment in a close
jail was most disagreeable.
About 10 o'clock Fivker induced one
of the other prisoners to shave off his
Eurnsides. The amateur barber did
a butcher's job before an audience
that would have delighted the pro
prietor of a museum. When he had
finished Fraker's face, was bleeding,
but fairlv smooth, with no beard left
j except his mustache, which is light
and thin and not very long. The
presence of the crowd disgusted him
. and he would sit reading newspapers
and pay no attention to the remarks
and questions of his visitors.
Fraker was taken to Richmond, Mo.,
on the 5 o'clock Chicago. Milwaukee
and St. Paul train this afternoon,
Sheriff J. R. Holman of Ray county
and City Marshal Byers of Richmond
having come after him.
Attorneys Half and Van Valkenburg
say there is no chance that Dr. Fraker
will escape conviction in the circuit
oourt of Ray county, where ho will be
tried on five counts of attempt ng to
cheat the insurance companies. The
information lodged by Mr. Van Valk
enburg in Ray county against Dr. Fra
ker, and on which the warrant for his
arrest was issued, charges him with
violating section 3S0 of the statutes
of Missouri. This statute makes it a
felony, punishable with seven years
in the penitentiary, for a person to at
tempt to obtain money from any other
person by means of a cheat or fraud or
false pretense, or trick of any kind.
"You will notice." said Mr. Haff,
'that to violate this statute it is not
necessary for a person tc obtain the
money by fraud; the simple attempt to
obtain it is a violation of law. The
statement is made in some quarters
that because Fraker did not obtain
any of the insurance money, and did
not seek to obtain any of it, his will
having left it to his relatives, he can
not be convicted under this statute.
All supreme court decisions on this
point hold that it is not es-entiil that
the person himself should actu
ally receive the money. It is suffi
cient for conviction if it be delivered
in accordance with his wish, or for his
advantage, or for the purpose of effect
ing some object of his.
Other lawyers who were asked about
the possibilitv of conviction in Fraker's
case said the statutes covering at
tempts to defraud were very broad
and would undoubtedly cover the case
of Fraker.
SOMKTIII.N'O ABOUT GEOKOK HAI'.KY.
Although Attorney Herrick has per
sisted in his refusal to say whether or
not it was George Harry who gave him
the information that led to Fraker's
arrest, Fraker says to-day that he is
positive that Harry was the man.
"How about your boy at the shanty
where you lived?"
"He never heard of me as Fraker
and did not know anything about my
history. That is impossible. His
name was Fred Springstead and he
couldn't possibly have known any
thing to tell about me. He thought
my name was SchDell."
The fact that it was shortly after an
exchange of letters between himself
and Harry that Herr ck got his first
intimation of Fraker's whereabouts
points to Harry. Before there could
be another exchange of letters Fraker
moved to Minnesota, and not long af
terwards Harry disappeared. Simul
taneously a svore was robbed in Ra
ton, N. M., where Harry's mistress
is said to live, and simultaneouslj
too, Mr. Herrick's friend dropped out
of sight. Harry knew the name and
address of the only man in Wiscon
sin who knew Fraker's address. Fra
ker thinks Harry wrote to this man
for his address and that as he knew
of the previous correspondence be
tween the two the young man gave it.
If Harry committed the robbery with
which he is charged there was a mo
tive for him to keeD his whereabouts
secret. When he was arrested two
weeKs ago there was no longer any
reason for him to keep himself hid,
but he needed money and there was no
easier way of cetting it than by giv
ing up Fraker and securing the re
ward previously promised, probably
more money than Harry had ever be
fore seen in his life.
Harry was one of the men who was
with Fraker on the night of the al
leged drowning. He was the chief
witness for the Fraker heirs. He tes
tified that he saw the doctor fall in
and drown. He may be a witness
against Fraker at his trial in Ray
county, though his former testimony
might impeach his evidence now. It
has developea recently that ne
has been a professional thief for
years and that as long ago
as 1S75 he was a friend of Dr.
Fraker. In that year Attorney James
Garner was prosecuting attorney of
Kay countj'. The James gang was
looting banks all over Western Mis
souri and bank officials were uneasy
and in Richmond, Kay county, all sus
picious strangers were arrested and
held until the3T could give some honest
excuse for being in town. Among the
suspieious ones arrested in Richmond
was George Harry and he was held till
officers from Texas came and took him
to Texas on a charge of horsestealing.
BOMBS FROM THE CLOUDS.
Dynamite llalloons Prepared for Cnban
Kehels.
11 aktkokd, Conn,. Sept. 5. Samuel
Andrews, a machinist of this citv,
claims to have perfected a war balloon
j which he has sold to a syndicate of
New York Cubans for use in aid of the
Cuban insurgents It has been tested
, in the fields and is said to work per
fectly. Instead of the ordinary car fixed
, with an armored box from which a
number of bombs ean be suspended
: the bombs are ignited and released by
autoinatic machinery in the box and
: after all are discharged, the box ex
i plodes, destroying the balloon. An
1 irews claims to have a device by which
! he ean control the direction of the
balloon.
New York, Sept. 5. Advices from
Santiago de Cuba are that Dr. Donald
Dodge, alias Frank M. Boyle, who
; says he is a correspondent of a New
i York paper and who sailed from
j Nassau by the Ward line steamer
i Niagara, was arrested by the
', Spaniards upon his arrival in Santiago
, de Cuba and confined, charged w ith
i being an emissary of the Cuban junta
; in New York on his way to Maceo's
; rebel camp. Despite the Spanish mil
i itarj' governor's expressed purpose to
j have Dodge court martialed and shot
; as a spy, Consul Hyatt, after several
long interiews with the civil governor,
succeeded in having the case trans
ferred to the ordinarv courts.
THE
Deposits
COLD RESERVE.
Made to Offset Anticipated
Withdrawals of tiold.
New York, Sept. 5. It was quite
evident yesterday that the Morgan
Belmont bond S3ndicate expected an
other large drain on the sub-treasury
this week. At the opening of business
it was announced hat the Farmers
Loan and Trust conipan3r had depos
ited S?,0'X0(0 in the suo-treasury. No
explanation of the deposit was made,
but it was gene. ally known that it
was for the account of the bond syndi
cate and the belief was confirmed
later by Washington advices.
This is the second financial institu
tion to come to the aid of the syndi
cate. The first was the American Ex
change National bank, which deposited
8500,000 about a week ago. At that
time it was said that a number of na
tional banks and financial institutions
which had been members of the bond
syndicate had agreed to aid Messrs.
Morgan & Belmont in their eil'orts to
keep to the spirit of the contract with
the government to maintain the gold
reserve against exports in every way
in their power.
Medlco-Lesal Congress.
New Yop.k, Sept. 5. The Medico
Legal congres , which convened in
this city to-day, has attracted a great
number of leading scientists, lawj-ers
and physicians, not only from this
country, but from Europe. The ses
sions of the congress will be held in
the United States court in the post
office building. It will continue until
the night of September '., when a ban
quet will be tendered the visitors at
the rooms of the Press club by the
Medico-Legal society of New York.
For a Banker's National Association.
New York. Sept. 5. At a meeting
of the New York State Banker's asso
ciation, resolutions were adopted de
claring in favor of a national associa
tion made up of delegates from state
associations and a committee was ap
peinted to arrange for a national
meeting
Women May Go Armed.
Lexington, Ivy., Sept. o. In an edi
torial in his paper H. H. Gratz of the
Kentucky Gazette, says that the next
legisture will be asked to repeal the
law prohibiting the carrying of con
cealed deadly weapons so far as
women are concerned. He declares
that it is necessary for women to go
armed to protect themselves from
necro assailants.
An Illinois Leader Dies In Kansas.
Blue Rapids, Kan., Sept. 5. Jam
G. Strong, ex-state senator of Illinois,
died this morning, aged 59. II located
in Dwight, 111., in JS59, and was di
rector, secretary and treasurer of the
Plymouth, Kankakee and Pacific rail
rad, ani identified with the Kankakee
Kiver Improvement company. In J87Q
be introduced the first bill for the ap
pointment of aboard of railroad com
missioners in Illinois
FINDING OF FRAKER.
CAPTURED BECAUSE
BETRAYED.
HE WAS
He Tells All About His Insurance Swind
ling Denies that Be expected 820,000
From Ills Heirs Talks Very Freely
About His movements Since His Mys
terious Disappearance Distribution of
Money Enjoined.
Fraker Was Betrayed.
St. Joseph, Mo., Sept 4. A reporter
met Dr. Fraker, the insurance swin
dler captured Sunday in the woods of
Northern Minnesota, and his captors,
Attorney Robert Herrick and Chief of
Police Wilkerson of Topeka, at Tal
mage, Iowa, on the Ohicago Great
Western railway at 9 o'clock this
morning, Between Talmage and St.
Joseph, which was reached at 1:50
o'clock this afternoon, the reoorter
talked with Fraker and the others and i
obtained the complete story of the '
chase and capture, now published for j
the first time.
Speaking of the capture, Mr. Her
rick said: "Wilkerson deserves great '
credit for his part of the work. For '
myself, I am the company's lawyer, j
and it is my duty to protect the com- j
pany from any injustice through the i
courts. Of course, I shall get a good J
fee for this work and Wilkerson will ;
get enough to justify him in making :
the trip. There is no stated reward :
out. All offers of reward have been
withdrawn."
"The other clues have generally been I
fakes and we did not get Fraker until I
we found some one who knew him and '
knew where to get him. It is useless
to ask who that person is, because I
hall never tell."
The man under arrest is Dr. G. W.
Fraker, by his own confession and by
the positive iden fication of Judge M.
W. Sullivan of Excelsior Springs.
Any stranger who had never seen
him before, but had seen his picture,
would be struck with the resemblance
to the pictures, though he now wears
short burnsides with a short mus
tache, a mixture of red and yellow.
His trousers are patched, his brown
wool shirt shows evidences of wear
and his slouched hat has seen long and
rough service. In short, he looks very
much a hermit, who had lived a long
time in the woods.
When asked to tell the story 0 his
wanderings, Dr. Fraker said there was
not much to tell.
"I did fall into the river the night
we were fishing," he said, "and came
very near being drowned. However,
there was driftwood iloating in the
6tream and I caught a log and floated
down the river for a considerable dis
tance. Finally 1 found a place where
I could touch bottom and waded out
on the land. I laid there all that night
and all the next day."
When reminded that the current at
the point where he disappeared formed
a whirlpool where the best of swim
mers would .not think of venturing,
he said he knew it was a terribly dan
gerous place and considered his es
cape from drowning a miracle
No amount of questioning or argu
ment could make him change this part
of the story in the least.
"I don't "know just when it was," he
continued, "that I left the river, but
with my clothing muddy and bedrag
gled, my hat lost my hair full of sand,
I was in co condition to go back to
the Springs, and accordingly I came
to Kansas City. I had former! y stopped
at first-class hotels, but this time, be
cause of my appearance, I did not want
to go to one of them, and so went to a
rooming houe on Grand avenue south
of Fifth street, almost diagonally across
from the Centropolis. I stayed there
four days. On the second day I went
to Twelfth street near Walnut street,
and bought a razor, and then I shaved
off all my beard, and if anyone in
Kansas City who knew me had seen me
on the streets he did not recognize me.
"At the rooming house no one asked
my name, and I did not volunteer to
tell it. Then I went to Chicago.
While there I think I saw Dr. I. N.
Love of St. Louis, but he was talking
to some ladies and I did not approach
him. From Chicago I went to Milwau
kee and stayed most of the fall of that
year. By Hiat time the name of Fra
ker had been too much advertised, and
I told a roommate that I was from
Denver and that my name was William
Schnell. I went by the name of
Schnell from that time on."
"How about your being called
Quick?" was asked.
"You don't understand German,
then?" he replied. "Schnell is the
German for Quick, and a few people
used the English word for it, that is
all."
"I lived in Wisconsin and Minne
sota ever since."
"Were you in the timber or the
towns?"
"I stayed most of the time in towns.
There are no big towns outside of Mil
waukee in that country. I went from
one place to another. No, I won't tell
you what towns we visited. You must
excuse me now."
'Why did you conceal your ident
ity?" "I didn't."
"Yes, but the assumed name and the
fact that you kept out of sight when
the companies were looking for you
proves the contrary. "
"Well, I had not decided to stay
away until the papers said all kinds of
things about me. Then I knew I was
in disgrace and could not make a liv
ing if I came back. It was you news
paper boys who got me into it."
Then after a long pause he said:
"No, it was my own fault and no one
else's. I have wanted to come back a
thousand times, and came near com
ing, but the disgrace and what people
were saying about me kept me from
doing so. This living death is horrible
and I am glad now I am going back."
"It was telegraphed from Duluth
that you expected a share of the in
surance money."
"That was not true. It was all to
go to my heirs."
"Were vou not planning to buy
some land with springs and spend
$20,000 making a resort of it?"
"The way that came to be told was
that I said the springs had good medi
cinal qualities and it would take S20,
to fix them up right. I never said I
had that much money, or would de
velop the springs. I stayed in the
woods in that part of. the country for
the last six months to get the benefit
of the sprlngi, because my health has
Veen bad. I have been sick nearly
three years now and nothing did ma
any good until I reached those
springs."
Dr. Fraker carefully avoided answer
ing questions intended to reveal his
means of subsistence. Finally, when
the question, ''Who gave you away to
the insurance companies and furnished
the information liiat led to your
arrest?" was bluntly asked, the doc
tor started suddenly and said: "I
think it was George Harry, one of the
men who went fishing with me. I
wrote him from Wisconsin last win
ter. He was in New Mexico then. He
answered my letter and I wrote again,
but never heard from him."
"In my second letter I told him
about a young man, whose name I
won't mention, who was very kind to
to me when I was sick. I told him
the young man's name and I think he
wrote to nim and got my address after
I moved into Minnesota. I am
satisfied that Harry gave me away.
He is in New Mexico now under ar
rest. He was arrested at Moberly two
weeks ago for burglary. I don't know
of any one else who had the means of
knowing just where I was, who wonld
give me away."
Dr. Fraker denies that he has seen
Johnnie Edmunds, his former office
boy, since he left home. He also says
he knows nothing of Menendez. the
Spaniard, who was fishing with him.
He says he has not seen a Kansas City
paper or any of his Kansas
City acquaintances since he went away
more thau two years ago. He went
smooth shaven most of the time, but
grew a beard in Minnesota because of
the mosquitos. He says his main ob
jection to coming back is that his pri
vate history has all been raked up and
scattered broadcast by the newspapers.
STON-E SILVER WORK.
rhe Governor Confers With Bland Com
mitteemen for Four States.
St. Louis, Mo., Sept, 4. Governor
Stone, who had a conference last night
with ex-Congressman It. P. Bland on
the silver question, said to-day: "We
merely talked over in an informal way
the work of organization of the
friends of silver in accordance with
the . general plan adopted by the
recent conference at Washington.
At that conference I was appointed a
member of the provisional committee,
with instructions to confer with the
leading free silver Democrats in Mis
souri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa
with regard to the selection of a com
mitteeman in each of thoe states to
take executive charge of the work. I
have opened correspondence in pur
suance of that idea and as soon as the
free silver Democrats in the states
named indicate to me the men for the
work I will report the names to chair
man Harris of the national committee,
who, I suppose will issue a call for
another meeting of the friends of sil
ver in order to perfect the organiza
tion of the silver forces in the Demo
cratic party for an aggressive cam-
The Defrauded Insurance Companies Pro
ceed to Tie Up Some of the Money.
Kansas Citt, Mo., Sept. 4. At 10
o'clock this forenoon Judge Foster,
Judge Sandusky, Judge Fowler, At
torney Claude Hard wick of Liberty,
Attorney naff and J. P. Davis of To
peka were in the office of the clerk of
the United States cireuit court. Mr.
Haff filed five suits by five of the de
frauded insurance companies They
were against James E. Lincoln, exec
utor of the Fraker estate, George W.
Magruder, trustee for the Fraker or
phans, W. E. Fowler, judge of the
probate court at Liberty, Nancy J.
, Magruder and Cynthia A. Hatfield,
sisters of Dr. Fraker, and the Commer
cial Savings bank of Liberty.
The court is asked to set aside the
judgment whicn was rendered in favor
of the Fraker heirs, and that Lincoln
; and Magruder be ordered to pay back
the judgment money, with principal
and interest, and that Judge Lincoln
rind the other defendants be enjoined
' from paying out any of the money.
j The court made the order as asked for
I without objection.
I Two More Victims for Holmes.
Denveh, Col., Sept- 4. J. W. Hum
mel of Sandwich, 111., has written a
friend in this city suggesting the pos
'. sibility that F. J. Gregory and his
9-year-old daughter. Dee, who disap
peared from their home in Kearney,
Neb., March 6, 1694, may have been a
victim of H. H. Holmes. Gregory
; had 810,000 in his possession when he
left home. He formerly worked at
Noldredge, Neb., for J. W. Burnett, a
real estate dealer in this city. There
j is no evidence that Gregory ever had
; any business relations with Holmes.
Big Clothiers Assign.
LomayiLLE, Ky., Sept. 4. Henry H.
Wolfe & Co., one of the largest whole
sale clothing firms in the South, filed
a deed of assignment in the county
clerk's office yesterday. The firm orres
about S2o0,000 and has assets which
they believe will equal if not exceed
that sum.
Bank Notes Not Boycotted.
Washington, Sept. 4. The boycott
declared by the Knights of Labor
some time ago on national bank notes
became effective yesterday, but the
bank notes are as eagerly accepted to
day as they ever were. John W.
Hayes, secretary of the Knights of
Labor, says he cannot tell how long it
will take the boycott to begin to show
its effect, but thinks that in the course
of sixty davs' bank notes will begin to
be turned down by a great many peo
ple. '
The Laddonla Bank Reopened.
Mexico, Mo., Sept. 4. The Farmers
bank at Laddonia is again open and
ready for business. The attorney gen
eral, bank examiner and receiver and
attorneys net here yesterday and the
matter wa- settled. The directors of
the baDk i-.:ive fully complied with the
law.
For Female Su2Traeo
Tremon, N. J., Sept. 4 The gub
ernatorial state convention of the
People's party of New Jersey was
held in this city. . W. B. Ellis of
Trenton, was nominated for governor
after several others had declined the
honor. The Omaha platform was re
affirmed and a resolution passed favor
ing woman suffrage.
The Duke d'Arcos, Spanish minister
to Mexico, and Miss Virginia Wood
bury Lowery of Washington wet
married at New London. Conn.
