1939-10-28 — Page 15

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THE CHINA MAIL, OCTOBER 28, 1939 TO-DAY'S STRANGE STORY OF REAL PEOPLE

NO. 75 THE WILLIAM MARSH RICE CASE

By VINCENT TOWNE

certi-

In the autum of 1900, William March Rice, a millionaire Texan, 85 years old, lay ill in New York City. He was attended by his regular phy- sician, Dr. Walker Curry, a practition- er in high standing. Rice died and Doctor Curry issued a death flcate, giving bronchitis and decline as the causes of death, body was embalmed in the usual man- ner with a fliud containing formalde- hyde. There was no hasty burial. In- deed, the corpse was held for 45 hours after the embalming.

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Rice left about $8,000,000. Two wills were found. One had left the estate in trust to a man in Houston, Texas, for the founding of an institu- tion in that city for the education of Negroes. But just before Rice's death he drew a new will in the pre- sence of two witnesses, both of whom have since sworn that they saw him sign it. This later will changed the trusteeship of the estate to Albert T. Patrick, a young New York lawyer, whose father had been freight mana- ger of a railroad in Texas owned by Rice, upon whose advice the young man had come to New York.

The morning of the old millionaire's death, Patrick appeared at the bank of S. M. Swinson & Son, New York and presented several large checks purporting to have been signed by Rice. A defect in one of the checks caused suspicion, and Rice's home was called upon the telephone. Charles F. Jones, Rice's old valet answered and stated that the check was genuine, but the bank insisted that Mr. Rice should give his verbal approval. Then the bank was informed that Rice was dead, and an investigation followed.

The trustee under the former will came to New York and interrogated the valet, Jones, a weakling, whose contradictory answers caused grave suspicion. Jones was arrested, given the third degree, and under that or- deal stated that Patrick had killed Rice by the administration of cor- rosive sublimate and other poisons. The case was called before William Travers Jerome, then a magistrate and afterward district attorney. Pa- trick was held and an autopsy on the body of Rice was ordered. This authopsy was conducted by Dr. Ed- ward J. Donnelly, coroner's physician, and the well-known poison expert, Professor Witthaus, later examined the viscera.

Nothing unusual was noted in the body except two small patches of "consolidation" at the back of one lung. According to sworn testimony, the coroner's physician, after ex- amining these patches stated:

"The old man must have had a cold!" and Dr. Witthaus, on being offered the lungs, stated, "They are of no use to me."

After Professor Witthaus had taken the viscera, all the other re- mains were cremated. According to the testimony of Robert Aurich, the attendant at the morgue, a physician connected with the prosecution had remarked "I wish I knew more of microscopy. Then I could make a pot of money out of the Rice case."

After his examination, Professor Witthaus reported an absence of pol- son in the viscera and a few days later the story of Jones was changed. He now swore that Patrick had not poisoned Rice but had smothered the old man with a pillow, but when cross-examined the valet again changed his story, stating this time that he had, at Patrick's instigation, placed over the face of the sleeping Rice a towel containing a sponge sa- turated with chloroform.

Patrick was brought to trial for the murder. Coroner's Physician, Don- nelly, and Dr. Hamilton Ki Williams, who had assisted with the autopsy, went of the stand and swore that only the vapor of chloroform could have produced the effects noted in the lungs. They were backed by the

testimony of two other physicians, but were contradicted by that of a dozen medical men,

Patrick was sentenced to death Four and a half years he languished in the death house at Sing Sing, 17 times. during this terrible period he saw fel

Mrs. Patrick At

The Death House.

low convicts pass the grating of his Like a veteran criminal lawyer, she cell to enter the death chamber. At sifted all of the evidence and present- the time of Rice's death the young ed the facts to specialists. One of lawyer had been engaged to a woman these, Dr. William Smith of Kirksville, whose confidence in his innocence in- Mo., a stranger who had not known duced her to marry him-in the Tombs Patrick, volunteered to help her and Prison after he had been sentenced. circulated in Patrick's behalf a peti- Thenceforward his devoted wife wag- tion, which was signed by 250,000 ed an untiring battle for his freedom. persons.

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GALA

TO-NIGHT

IN THE

Mrs. Patrick charged that $2,000,- 000 of the fund left by Rice for the in founding of the Negro institution Texas had been spent in the endea- vor to send her husband to the elec- tric chair. As the result of her fight, Patrick's sentence was commuted to life imprisonment on December 20, 1006, and six years later he was par- doned by Governor Dix of New York.

Valet Jones mysteriously disappear- ed and remained in hiding for three years after the commutation of Pa- trick's sentence. After his return he was quoted as intimating that Rice's Texas heirs had provided for him ab- undantly during the period of his exile.

UNION DISSOLVED

Shanghai, To-day. The Chinese Workers' Union organ- ised a year ago under the auspices of the "puppet" Tao Tao Government, was dissolved yesterday on orders by the Japanese military authorities.-- Our Own Correspondent.

THE NEW FRENCH REMEDY. THERAPION No.1 THERAPION No.2 THERAPION NO.3

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