WAS IT MURDER?

Cortland Evening Standard, Saturday, January 20, 1894.

WAS IT MURDER?

MRS. LUCINDA EGBERTSON FOUND DEAD IN A WELL.

A Large Lady and a Very Small Opening to the Well—Coroner Bradford to Hold an Inquest.

   Last Wednesday morning Mrs. Lucinda Egbertson, a widow lady sixty years old, who lived with her nephew, Charles Hartman on the hill two and one-half miles east of Preble village near the scene of the Griswold-0'Shea shooting affair, was missed from the house. Search was made for her and at last at about 7 o'clock her body was found by Mr. Hartman at the bottom of a well near the house. Her head was downward. The well was fourteen feet deep and had five feet of water in it at the time, so that she must have drowned almost immediately after falling in.

   It was a mystery how she could have got there, as the well is covered by heavy planks nailed to joists. The only opening was a hole 10 1/2 by 11 3/4 inches in size. Mrs. Egbertson was a large lady, weighing 160 pounds, and her hips were uncommonly broad. It seemed impossible if she had contemplated suicide that she could have squeezed through that opening, and she could not have raised the platform alone and jumped in and replaced the platform.

   Coroner George D. Bradford of Homer was summoned and impaneled the following jury: Henry Curry, Mitchell Roberts, Joseph McNeil, James Steel, and Oscar Cornue. The jury viewed the body and then adjourned until Wednesday, Jan. 24, when the inquest will be held. Dr. Bradford performed the autopsy yesterday.

  

DANIEL DELANEY SKIPS.

BUT RETURNS AGAIN AND IS ARRESTED ON A WARRANT.

His Wife Wants Him to Support Their Nine-Year-Old Daughter—

Skirmishing for a Bondsman.

   Tuesday morning, Jan. 9, Daniel Delaney left his home at 77 Homer-ave. for parts unknown. He received his pension of $36, took the grocery book, claiming that he would pay the grocery bill, and said that he would be back to dinner. As he did not return Mrs. Delaney sent Mamie, her nine-year-old daughter, to find him but she was unsuccessful. Mrs. Delaney went down town later and learned from some of his friends that he had left on the 10 o'clock morning train for parts unknown. As he had at several times spoken of going to his relatives at East Wrightstown, Brown Co., Wis., she supposed that he had gone there now. She and her daughter were in destitute circumstances and he had left coal, grocery, meat and other bills around town amounting to about $75.

   Mr. and Mrs. Delaney were married thirteen years ago last November and Mrs. Delaney said that the first five years of their married life was very happy, but that he began drinking and had kept partially "soaked" for the past year, making it very unpleasant for herself and child. She told a very pitiful story to a STANDARD reporter of how he would come home nights intoxicated, and many nights would not return home at all. She received a letter from him Wednesday morning, which stated that he was in Utica and would be home Friday or Saturday. He arrived in town Thursday night, but did not go home till Friday morning.

   Mrs. Delaney yesterday morning swore out a warrant for him for the purpose of getting him to give a bond of $200 for the support of the child for the ensuing year. Delaney was arrested yesterday afternoon by Chief Sager and the former got Thomas Donnely to go before Justice Bull to furnish the necessary bond. Then ensued a scene, which was highly edifying to the bystanders.

   "Are you worth any property?'' asked the judge.

   "I am worth $10,000," replied Donnely.

   "He ain't worth 5,000 cents," broke in Mrs. Delaney, "It's all in his wife's name."

   "Upon my honor and my soul," said Donnely, "I would rather be out than in this deal."

   "You're too full to sign anything," said Mrs. Delaney, after which he came from behind the bar, and went to examining Justice Bull's curios and describing an anvil, which he had owned or seen that had reached the age of 3,000 years.

   Delaney was skirmishing around town the balance of the evening endeavoring to find some one to go his bail. He had worked on the corporation, and was earning $1.50 per day and received $12 a month pension when he left town but his wife states that he spent the greater part of it for liquor, while she took in washings and worked out. Late last night Hugh Corcoran furnished a $200 bond for the support of the child.

Jones M'f'g Co. Booming.

   A report was circulated upon the streets this morning that the Jones

Manufacturing Co. had sold out. A STANDARD reporter called on Mr. E. E. Lakey, secretary, treasurer and general manager of the company, at the office at noon to-day and he said that the report was absolutely false in every respect, that the only sale that has been made was that he (Mr. Lakey) had purchased all the stock of Mr. Frank Rice and was ready to buy all the stock that he could get hold of. A carload of desks were shipped to Boston to-day and another load will be shipped next Tuesday.

   The plant, which still belongs to the Cortland Desk Co. will be sold Monday, Jan. 29.

Cortland Water Works near Broadway.

CORTLAND WATER WORKS.

A New Company to Take Possession of the Plant.

   A contract has been drawn and duly signed by the fulfillment of which part of the stock and plant of the Cortland Water Works Co. is to be transferred to other stockholders when certain preliminary steps which are really only a matter of form have been taken. The capital stock of the company is $100,000, and for the past two or three years it has been owned wholly by Messrs. B. F. Taylor and L. J. Fitzgerald. The new stockholders will be Messrs. B. F. Taylor, L. J. Fitzgerald, C. F. Wickwire, T. H. Wickwire, E. H. Brewer, Fitz Boynton and H. R Rouse. The preliminaries will probably be finished in the course of two weeks, when the transfer of stock will be made and the new company will perfect its organization.

A Syracuse Appointment.

   ALBANY, Jan. 20—Secretary of State Palmer, Attorney General Hancock and Comptroller Roberts met to-day and appointed George A. Glynn of Syracuse, as the compiler of the manual which is to be prepared for the use of delegates of constitutional convention which convenes here in May.

Phillipine Islands Thrown Open.

   MADRID, Jan. 20.—A government decree has been issued abolishing the obligation of a special passport for entry to the Phillipine [sic] islands, which for centuries has irritated foreign visitors and closed the archipelago. The decree is expected to result in an extensive immigration of Americans to the islands.

Steamer Monowai.

AFFAIRS AT HAWAII.

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS BY THE STEAMER MONOWAI.

Provisional Government Pursuing a Waiting Policy—Politics on the Islands Booming—Big Holiday Celebration on Jan. 17— Sensational Rumors of an Alleged Attempt of Minister Willis to Nullify the Restoration Policy.

   SAN FRANCISCO. Jan. 20.—The steamer Monowai arrived from Sydney, Aukland and Samoa via Honolulu. She brings full Hawaiian advices to the Associated Press nearly a week later than previous advices. (Copyrighted, 1894, by the Associated Press.)

   HONOLULU, Jan. 12.—Since the sailing of the steamer, political affairs have been a drug in Honolulu. The government has been pursuing a waiting policy on the ground that no definite action can be taken here until some definite policy regarding Hawaii has been announced by the United States.

   The candidacy of Walter G. Smith, editor of the Star, to fill the vacancy to be created upon the return of Hon. F. M. Hatch, who will resign to accept the position of minister of foreign affairs, still holds a prominent place in Hawaiian politics. Objections are urged to Hatch as the representative of sugar corporations and attorney for Claus Spreckels.

   As stated in our last dispatch the fight is virtually one between the radical and conservative elements of annexationists.

   Both Minister Willis and Consul General Mills appear to be sore on account of United States government in Hawaii as well as on account of the personal snubbing they claim the American residents here gave them lately.

   The government has determined to celebrate Jan. 17 as a holiday, and preparations are being made to carry out a big demonstration, which will include a military display and a torchlight procession. Both the American league and annexation party will take part, as will the new German political organization to be organized in favor of annexation.

   The question of a republic still occupies attention, but the government delays action, awaiting absolute rejection of Hawaii's hopes by the United States congress.

   Rumors of an expected Royalist uprising have been prevalent recently. In an interview with Marshal Hitchcock that officer said:

   "The government is fully prepared to meet any outbreak, either here or on other islands. The Royalists have threatened so long that the royal standard would be raised on one of the islands, that we have prepared to thoroughly squelch any uprising that may be made either through irresponsible persons or through the influence of the Spreckels-Cornwell faction."

   The marshal also said:

   "The Royalists have sent several lobbyists to the United States lately and I understand that Hon. H. C. Ashford goes by the Monowai today to appear before a committee of congress at its present session.

   "Ashford was preceded by Hon. E. C. MacFarlane and Arthur Peterson, accompanied by Hon. Sam Parker, for the avowed purpose of enlisting Claus Spreckels in the lobby campaign in favor of restoration.

   The showing of the finance department since the taxes began to come in on Dec. 15, continues to improve. The cash balance yesterday was over $278,000 and the minister of finance announced that all expenses of the government to Dec. 1, 1893, have been paid together with all official salaries and pay rolls to Jan. 1, 1894.

   Just previous to the sailing of the Monowai a sensational rumor was current, which was traced to an authoritive [sic] source, that a few days after [provisional] President Dole's reply was delivered to Minister Willis, and before full details of Willis' demand and Dole's reply had become public, Willis called on Dole and endeavored to persuade him to return all of his (Willis') correspondence on the subject of restoration and to expunge from the records Dole's reply and everything pertaining to the subject, and to maintain absolute secrecy about the whole transaction.

   Dole flatly refused to enter into such a plan, and it is said that Willis then attempted to force Dole to act according to his wishes, threatening to take the American men-of-war out of the harbor and practically break off diplomatic relations between the United States and Hawaii. Dole refused to enter into the project and Willis' alleged attempt to nullify his restoration policy failed.

PAGE TWO—EDITORIALS.

Western Editorials.

  

◘ For vigor of expression, for breezy, lively utterances, the western American editor can read the world a lesson. He has not been toned down by the despotism of conventionality. He employs words which were not in the dictionary originally, but often land there after he uses them awhile, and then they become a part of the standard English language.

   For instance, read the following brace of paragraphs from Field and Farm of Denver:

   There is no necessity for the large army of thugs and hoboes infesting this city just now, and the excuse made by many of them that they are hoboes because they cannot obtain work should not be accepted as extenuating evidence by the justice courts or by the public. Work can be obtained by any number of able-bodied men in the farming districts of this state or anywhere in the agricultural localities of the Rocky mountains. True, at this time of the year the pay will not be as large as it is in sowing or harvest times, but the remuneration for the amount of work done will suffice to keep the men well fed, clothed and supplied with tobacco, a much better condition of affairs than that of loafing about the city like gaunt, starving coyotes, sleeping in foul lodging houses and begging for nickels wherewith to buy food. The man out of work who really wishes to keep his head up will be able to find a job in the country if he conscientiously looks for it.

   Very soon Uncle Sam will be called upon to dig down in his jeans for the neat sum of $1,631,000 for domestic purposes. Indian Commissioner Browning has notified the House committee on Indian affairs that he estimates this amount as necessary to run the dusky establishment for the next fiscal year. The noble red man is not only a nuisance, but a high priced luxury as well. It is time that he were put to work like other domestic animals.

  

◘ France commences at once to build 32 new warships of various classes. The English, with those already under construction and the ones recently ordered by the Gladstone government, will during the next three years increase their navy by 40 new vessels. Four of them will be large battleships. The new vessels just ordered cannot he built for less than $20,000,000.

BREVITIES.

   —Rev. H. W. Fish will occupy his pulpit to-morrow morning and evening, instead of being absent as previously announced.

   —Two rosebushes on the south side of the house of Mr. E. J . Moore at 8 Miller-st. have put out shoots six inches long. New leaves have started and look fresh and green.

   —We are indebted to Mr. George W. Nye of McLean for a basket of about the largest, fairest, and most delicious Tompkins County King apples that we have ever seen. Mr. Nye evidently understands how to grow good apples.

   —The grand jury came in yesterday afternoon at 4:30 o'clock reporting no indictments. The oyer and terminer court then adjourned sine die. The circuit court and special term of the supreme court adjourned to Jan. 29 at 10 o'clock A. M.

   —The Clionian and Gamma Sigma societies started out on a serenading trip last night and favored several members of the faculty [Cortland Normal School] with choice selections The societies were in two separate parties when the tour began, but there is a rumor that they decided that there was strength in union as well as protection for both later in the evening, and that a consolidation of forces resulted. A very proper conclusion.

   —It should be remembered that the forecasts which govern the weather flags displayed upon the Standard building are for the period covered by thirty-six hours in advance. Many people who look up at the flags expect to see a change in the weather the instant a new flag is run up, if that flag does not correspond with the existing state of weather, while it may be twenty-four hours or more before that change comes. If the flags told only the weather at the present moment, there would be no advantage in them, because every one can perceive what that is. But the forecasts are uniformly very correct for the next twenty-four to thirty-six hours and can almost always be depended upon.