Creffield and the Holy Rollers made page one headlines from 1903 to 1907. When I was researching Holy Rollers: Murder and Madness in Oregon’s Love Cult I spent months transcribing hundreds of articles. I’m not sure why I was so obsessive. Maybe it was my way of immersing my self into a cult without joining one. Anyway, I’m posting them all for those who are really interested in the story, or are interested the history of journalism, or are interested in how a scandalous story played out in the "media" in a by gone era. Since I no doubt made typos and unconsciously corrected papers' typos, these web pages should not be cited in anything serious (e.g. your dissertation). For such projects they should only be used as starting points and you should refer to the original sources. If you want a shorter version of the story, buy my book. Enjoy.
July 11, 1906: Not Guilty
HEADLINES IN
PAPERS FOR THE SAME ARTICLE
Morning Oregonian (Portland) 7/11/1906 p1
Slayer Mitchell Found Not Guilty
Roar Of Applause Greets The Verdict.
Officers Powerless To Still
Women Crowd About Avenger To Congratulate.
Jury Deliberations Brief
State (Illegible) Opens With A Very Weak Statement,
And The Lawyers For The Man Who Killed Creffield Score.
Evening Telegram (Portland) 7/11/1906 p3
Sister Hiding From Mitchell
Slayer of Creffield Spend First Day of Liberty in
Vain Search.
Corvallis Times 7/13/1906 p1
Is Not Guilty
This Is The Decision Of The Jury That Tried George
Mitchell For Slaying Roller “Prophet.”
A Crowded Courtroom’s Applause Greets The
Verdict--Officers Unable To Quiet The Crowd--Women Congratulate Mitchell.
Corvallis Gazette 7/13/1906 p2
With Roar of Applause
Mitchell Trial Ended at Seattle--”Not Guilty” the
Verdict.
SEATTLE, Wash., July
10.--George H. Mitchell, who shot Franz Edmund Creffield, leader of the Holy
Rollers on First Avenue, May 7, was acquitted late this afternoon. After nearly
an hour and a half in the jury-room the 12 men who have listened to the testimony
in Mitchell’s trial filed back and announced their verdict “Not Guilty.”
Despite the advance warning
of the court that no demonstration would be permitted, irrespective of the
verdict, a roar of applause greeted the announcement and the court officers
were powerless to still it. The court room was crowded, but aside from those
who sat on the front row directly under the eye of the presiding Judge, the
spectators applauded almost unanimously when the clerk had read the words that
freed Creffield’s slayer.
Judge Frater was obviously
nervous when summoned to receive the verdict, and still more so when Mitchell
was acquitted and the crowd broke into cheers and applause. Raising his voice
above the tumult he ordered Mitchell “remanded into the custody of the
sheriff.” None save Mitchell’s attorneys and a few spectators realized the
purport of the order, but the men who had defended Mitchell knew what it meant.
JUDGE WAS A LITTLE NERVOUS
Attorney Morris hurriedly
demanded an explanation and threatened a writ of habeas corpus proceedings.
Then Judge Frater acknowledged his error and insisted he had merely attempted
to get the crowd out of the court room by the instruction. He cried to the
sheriff to let Mitchell go and the young man elbowed his way through the mob,
which was trying to congratulate him, into the corridors of the Courthouse. A
few minutes later he walked out of the building a free man again.
Mitchell was almost overcome
by the verdict, although he had anticipated it. For several minutes he
perfunctorily received the congratulations of the crowd, but there was
undeniable evidence that he was glad when he managed to escape from a flock of
women that insisted upon giving him hysterical congratulations. He felt better
half an hour later in the private office of his attorney than he did as the
center of an admiring throng at the Courthouse.
MITCHELL COMING BACK TO
PORTLAND
Creffield’s slayer will not
stay in Seattle long. He expects to go to Portland tomorrow night and his
brother, Perry will go with him. Peter View who owns the lath (illegible) mill
at which Mitchell was employed before he started to track down Creffield, has
offered him reemployment, and Mitchell starts immediately for Portland to
accept the work.
Charles Mitchell, the Salvation
Army leader (illegible) of Mount Vernon, Ill., who came west to help his son in
his fight for liberty, will return east at once. The elder Mitchell will try to
induce his daughter, Esther, to return with him. Mrs. Burgess Starr went back
to Oregon Saturday, when O. V. Hurt and the small army of Oregon witnesses for
the defense returned home. But Esther has remained her in charge of the police
matron. Now her father will step in and try again to reconcile her to her
family. If possible, he will provide her a home in Illinois, where the Holy
Rollers’ influence will be absent.
JUROR IS TAKEN ILL
In the last day of the
Mitchell trial there were dramatic situations following each other in rapid
succession. Early in the morning the story of Juror Start’s illness (illegible)
threatened to upset the entire case. The state had already determined to waive
its rights of rebuttal and begin the (illegible)) argument. The defense heard
of the jurors illness, and facing the possibility of a mistrial, hurried in
alarm to Judge Frater, to beg that the case be carried (illegible) through.
The defense demanded the
Juror Start’s condition be made known at once and when he was reported much
improved, the defense had the jury called in. Then Mitchell’s attorneys offered
to waive all arguments for the feared the collapse of Start.
The state would not consent
to this programme, and a counter-proposal that each side be limited to two
hours in arguing was accepted by Deputy County Attorney Miller. But the
attorneys wanted Judge Frater to hold the watch and call time on the speeches,
something he refused to do. The whole programme of hurried argument was thus
upset (illegible), and County Attorney Mackintosh opened for the county.
STATE’S ARGUMENT IS WEAK
Mackintosh made a half-hour
address that did not go deeply into the merits of the case. He concluded by
citing Judge Jacobs (illegible) charge of territorial days wherein he pictured
an impossible insane assassin shooting down his victim. The plea of insanity
was ridiculed by the State’s Attorney, but Mr. Mackintosh left the critical
study of the case to his assistant.
Obviously the Mackintosh
argument had not hurt the defense, and Attorneys Will H. Morris and Silas M.
Shipley hurried off for a moment’s consultation. Mr. Shipley’s suggestion that
argument be abandoned was adopted and the court was told that the defense would
not speak. Deputy County Attorney Miller tried to speak, but the court
sustained the defenses’ objection, on the ground that the defense had not
spoken, and there was nothing to which he could reply.
The defense insisted again
it left the case to jury out of consideration for them. and that was the way
the case hung when the court adjourned at noon to allow the state to produce
authorities to prove a right of speech.
COURT RULES FOR THE STATE
After an hour’s argument
this afternoon, the court held that in a case of such moment he would rule that
the state could occupy its full time and to give a fair opportunity to both
sides would allow the defense to withdraw its announcement that no address
would be made to the jury. Attorney Morris instantly served notice upon the
state that as the two hours’ programme had been abandoned, the defense would
speak at any length it chose. The two-hour plan would have allowed the case to
go to the jury today. An unlimited debate meant it might easily be carried over
until Thursday, for Mr. Shipley was prepared for a speech of several hours, and
Mr. Morris proposed, if necessary, to read the testimony.
Deputy County Attorney Miller
immediately abandoned his demand for speech. He declared the defense had
paraded its anxiety for Juror Start’s health before the jury, but the state
would be willing to abandon the idea of argument if the court would explain the
waiver was by mutual consent.
That was agreed, they jury
was called in and the court explained.
INSTRUCTIONS TO THE JURY
In his instructions to the
jury, Judge Frater declared that a verdict of manslaughter would not be
received, since there were none of the elements of manslaughter about the case.
He held that murder in the first or second degree, or acquittal, were the only
alternatives. Voluminous definitions of the various degrees of murder and the
effect of a plea of temporary insanity were given by the court and the case was
given to the jury.
Scarcely a person in the
crowded courtroom left the building while the jury was deliberating, and when
the knock came at the door that told of a decision, clerks and Courthouse
visitors rushed from all surrounding offices about the courtroom to listen to
the announcement. Just before he admitted the jury, Judge Frater announced that
he would tolerate no demonstration, but when the words that freed young
Mitchell were read a few minutes later, the court bailiffs and Sheriff’s deputies
were unable to restrain the applause that lasted for nearly a minute.
Women shouted their approval
and a frenzied rush of the throng of women that has followed the trial ensued
towards Mitchell’s seat. The young Portland boy, who had sat with anxious stare
until his fate was known, stood awkwardly by the rail receiving handshakes and
congratulations until the court ordered him set free and his attorneys called
him to leave the courthouse.
PURSUED BY WOMEN SPECTATORS
When Mitchell elbowed his
way into the corridors of the courthouse, the women rushed pellmell after him.
Down three flights of stairs they followed to the jail doors, whither Mitchell
headed to gather his belongings. Women peeped through the bars and gurgled
their appreciation of his freedom, while Mitchell bade jailers and fellow
prisoners goodbye. As the prisoners’ parting cheer rang out, the women rushed
to the street to greet him again.
Surrounded by his attorneys
and father, brother and Superintendent Gardner, of the Boys’ and Girls’ aid
Society of Portland, Mitchell escaped the women. But all the way down town
crowds turned to look at him, and the curious passerby called for the news of
the acquittal.
Mitchell’s freedom was
accepted with acclamation by the street crowds. Extra editions of the afternoon
papers proclaimed his acquittal before the court house crowd reached the
business district, and Mitchell’s attorneys were showered with congratulations.
EXPECTED TO BE FREED
Mitchell’s own expressions
of appreciation, however, counted the most.
“I expected it all the time.
I did not believe the jury could do anything but acquit me,” Mitchell said to
the Oregonian afterward. “But I want to give all the credit to my attorneys.
They won this fight. Of course, I am grateful to the jurors and to the court. I
am particularly thankful that the people of Oregon rallied to my support. Thos
who came up here to aid me did me a service I can never forget.
“I was not allowed to see
the papers that contained any news of the trial, but now and then the jailers
told me what they were saying. When my brother came, he brought me clippings,
particularly of the Oregonian. I want to thank the Oregon papers for the
fairness they showed in telling the whole story. I am glade the people of
Oregon know all about it, and I feel they sympathize with me.
BACK TO HIS OLD JOB
“I want to get away from it
all here. Just as soon as possible, I want to get back to Portland. I expect to
be there tomorrow night, but something may prevent it. My brother is going with
me and is going to stay there. Peter View has offered me my old job, and I
think I shall accept it and go back to work immediately.
“It was hard enough to spend
two months in jail, but they have been kind to me here and they have made it
just as pleasant as possible. So far as one can enjoy confinement, I have found
pleasure in it, but of course, no one really enjoys being locked up.
“I did not realize the
danger to me in the killing of Judge Emory until the attorneys spoke of it in
court. I was in the tank when young Thompson was brought in, and I caught a
glimpse of a paper that told of the shooting. But that seemed so different from
my case that I did not think much of it. Thompson did not speak much to any one
and kept away from the rest pretty much.
PRISONERS WISH HIM GOOD LUCK
“It was a long wait this
afternoon while the jury was out. They were only gone a short time, but it
seemed an age to me. My father and brother were with me in the tank. They and
the prisoners all spoke hopefully, but we did not discuss the case much.
Finally, when word that the jury was in, the prisoners all called ‘good luck’
to me. When I went back for my belongings they cheered the news of my
acquittal. It did me good to know they sympathized with me.
“I don’t know what I can say
to Mr. Hurt and the others who aided me from Oregon. But they know I am
grateful. I don’t think my sister Esther will go back to Portland with us. My
father is going to try to induce her to go home with him, and I hope she will.
We all think it is better.”
WOMEN RELEASED FROM CUSTODY
Mrs. Maud Creffield heard
tonight of the acquittal of George Mitchell, but she would not discuss it even
with Mrs. Kelly, the matron of the police, with whom she has lived ever since
the killing of her husband. Last night Mrs. Kelly was given and order for the
release of both Mrs. Creffield and Esther Mitchell. They were needed no longer
as witnesses and she was directed to turn them loose. The two women
disappeared, seeking a private room somewhere in the city.
Late this afternoon Mrs.
Creffield reappeared at the police matron’s home for some of her belongings,
but she did not tell her address and would not discuss the case. Tomorrow
morning the couple agreed to return to receive their warrants for witness fees.
Mrs. Kelly stated tonight
that the two women were apparently evenly balanced in mind on all topics save
that of Creffieldism. They were “peculiar,” Mrs. Kelly said, on that issue. But
the police matron believed both women are sane, though she is anxious that each
return to her parents. She will counsel that action tomorrow.
Daily Oregon Statesman (Salem) 7/11/1906
George Mitchell Acquitted by Jury
Young Man Who Killed Holy Roller Creffield Found “Not
Guilty” after Hour and Twenty-five Minutes Deliberation---Verdict Is Greeted by
Applause From Audience in Court Room---Defendant Receives Ovation.
SEATTLE, July 10.--It took
the jury in the trial of George Mitchell just an hour and twenty-five minutes
to determine the youth not guilty or murder in killing Holy Roller Creffield in
Seattle on May 7. The verdict was read at a quarter to five this afternoon and
was greeted with rounds of applause from the excited audience. Every face
assumed a happy expression and many women were hysterically weeping through
their smile when the verdict was being read. A few minutes later the prisoner
was discharged from custody. He shook hands with the jurors and was then
treated to a general ovation. Men and women crowded up close to the rail to
shake hands with the youth, who was clearly the hero of the house.
As he went down stairs to
the jail to gather up a few of his effects and told farewell to the jailers and
his fellow prisoners of the past few weeks, his was blocked by people eagerly
crowding over the banisters to catch a glimpse of the acquitted youth.
Asked as to his feelings
with regard to the killing and as to the ordeal which had thus suddenly
terminated, the young man replied that when he killed Creffield he hardly knew
what he was doing, so worked up had he become by the wrongs of his sisters had
suffered. He stated that he could not regret that he removed the man from the
possibility of harming his family.
Mitchell will leave tomorrow
for Portland where he will probably resume his position in the mill, which he
held previous to killing Creffield.
Seattle Daily Times 7/11/1906 p1
Audience Shouts Approval of Verdict
Orders of Court Forgotten in Enthusiasm Aroused by
Result of Trial of Mitchell and Demonstration Follows.
Man Whose Fate Was Being Determined Most
Self-Possessed of Anyone Connected With Case.
Declares He Has Never Felt Fear of Result and Says He
Will Go to Work After a Day or So Spent in Seattle.
by E. O. Kelsey
George Mitchell, killer of
Franz Edmund Creffield, the man who posing as God, had as his avowed object the
ruin of the former’s sister, Esther, walked from the iron barred cell in the
county jail which has been his home for the past two months, yesterday evening,
a free man. Twelve citizens of King County, sworn to uphold the law, after
listening for two weeks to the details of the killing and the circumstances
leading to the act of the farmer boy which, on the morning of May 7, ended the
temporal existence of the self-styled Joshua, had a few moments before declared
him innocent of any legal crime.
If Mitchell felt any
elation, if any burden of fear had suddenly slipped, from his mind he did not
give any evidence of the fact by his demeanor. While a crowded courtroom voiced
its approval of the verdict by a noisy demonstration and shoved and struggled
to get within hand clasp distance, the man who was the cause of it all sat
quietly, displaying no more interest than has marked his attitude during the progress
of the trial.
TALKS OF FUTURE
Later, sitting in the office
of Morris & Shipley, the men who fought hard and long to give him his
freedom, Mitchell listened smilingly while his brother Perry talked
enthusiastically of what the future had in store for the two. “George and I are
going to stay in Seattle for a few days. He has not seen anything of the city
as yet, you know, and then we are going to Portland, where he already has a job
at $3 a day offered him.” Thus, and at greater length, Perry Mitchell, who was
the first to grasp his brother’s hand after the jury had returned its verdict,
talked with poor success to conceal his emotion.
Into the office of the
attorneys also came Charles Mitchell, the father, who during the day had been
present in the courtroom, a figure made conspicuous by the blue uniform and red
jersey of the Salvation Army.
“How long are you going to
be here, boys?” he asked and then, when told that his sons would be down town
in a few minutes, “All right, boys, I’ll see you after a bit.”
NO FEAR OF RESULT
“I am glad to get out of
door once more. It is good to breathe fresh air once again. No I did not worry
much during the trial for I felt that my attorneys would see that I got out of
it all right. I did not believe any one would punish me for what I did. I did
not have such a bad time while in jail and the men in the cell with me have
always said I would be set free in the end. Those fellows treated me pretty
well while I was locked up and said they were glad when I told them of the
result.”
Haltingly, having to be
urged at every step, and the while bashfully twisting his cap between his
fingers, Mitchell in this wise answered the various questions put to him as he
sat in the attorney’s office.
It was 3:14 yesterday
afternoon when Judge Frater finished reading his instructions to the jury. These
instructions were brief and special stress was laid upon the necessity of the
jurors satisfying themselves that the insanity claim of the defense had been
proven if a verdict of not guilty was rendered. The jury was further instructed
that a verdict of manslaughter would not be accepted and that if guilty at all
the defendant was guilty of murder in either the first or second degree.
CROWD AWAITS VERDICT
After the jury returned to
the secrecy of the jury room, the defendant was taken back to the jail. He says
that while he was waiting he was not nervous and that he spent the time talking
with his cell mates. If this is true he, the man most vitally interested, was
the most self-possessed of any one immediately connected with the case.
It was an hour and
twenty-five minutes before the jury arrived at a verdict and during this time
the people who have crowded the courtroom during the progress of the trial
remained in their seats nervously and in low tones discussing the possibilities
of the deliberations which were going on behind the door which hid the jurors.
Finally there came a rap
which informed the bailiff that the twelve men desired to enter the courtroom. Judge
Frater, his face blanched by an excess of emotion, mounted the bench and told
the audience that whatever the verdict he positively forbade any expression of
feeling. Then the jury was brought in, and after the preliminary formalities
had been gone through with M. H. Ring, the foreman, handed the verdict to Clerk
Dell Case, who read “Not Guilty.”
For a second there was not a
sound and then, forgetful of the court’s orders, the audience sprang to its
feet and voiced its approval with hand clapping and cries of “Good.” Bailiff Gallagher
pounded his gavel in a vain attempt to put a stop to the demonstration, and
Judge Frater sharply remanded the defendant to the custody of the sheriff.
REMANNED TO JAIL
“What is that, your honor?”
exclaimed (illegible) Mr. Morris, who had caught the words of the court. “This
man is innocent, and I want him to be free. If you are going to giver him into
the custody of the sheriff I want to begin habeas corpus immediately.” Judge
Frater stated that he wanted to clear the courtroom and wanted Mitchell taken
back to jail, but Mr. Morris objected, and after a moment the court ordered the
sheriff to release Mitchell, which was done.
Mitchell, however, went back
to the jail for a few moments, to leave it again, followed by the good wishes
of the men with whom he had been confined so long and accompany his attorneys
down town.
And thus ends the case which
is without parallel in the court annals of the Pacific Northwest. Confronted
with the undisputed fact of a deliberate killing, the jury, judging from the
verdict, believed that Mitchell was suffering from an insane delusion when he
fired the fatal bullet. Medical experts had testified to this effect, but more
potent than the medical testimony was the testimony of the men who had personal
knowledge of the unspeakable practices of the Holy Rollers of which body this
boy’s sisters were members.
It was this evidence which
caused even the officers of the state to admit, even while they tried hard to
secure a conviction, that the world was better because of Creffield’s death.
Seattle Star 7/11/1906 p1
George Mitchell is Now a Free Man
Jury Quickly Returns a Verdict of Not Guilty and
Slayer of Creffield Is Given His Liberty
---Rejoicing in Court Room.
“We the jury find the
defendant not guilty.”
Biting his lower lip till it
seemed that he must bruise it and breathing so heavily that the heaving of his
chest was apparent to those in the furthermost corner of the crowded court
room, George Mitchell sat yesterday afternoon and waited through what must have
seemed to him an age of formalities for the fateful words that meant so much to
him.
SAT MOTIONLESS
For a moment after the
reading of the verdict that was to send him out into the world a free man he
sat in his chair motionless, staring straight ahead of him. Then there came to
him the cheering and the hand clapping of the throng gathered in the room and
he reached out and grasped the hand of “Big Bill” Morris, his senior counsel.
During the confusion of the
demonstration Judge Frater succeeded in making known to the jurors that they
were excused from further duty and as they arose from their seats in the jury
box, Mitchell made his way to the entrance to the jury room and as the 12 men
passed him he shook each by the hand.
EXPRESSED HIS THANKS
When, by these handclasps,
he had expressed his thanks to all of the jurors, he stepped over to the
railing separating the public and private portions of the court room and there
for several minutes received the congratulations of men and women, most of them
from Oregon who had sat through the more than two weeks of trial and waited for
what they all seemed so certain of a verdict of “not guilty.”
BROTHER IS HAPPY
Perry Mitchell, the brother
of the slayer of Creffield, was the happiest man in the crowd. He followed with
eyes all aglow every movement made by George and smiled and laughed and patted
him upon the back until he became almost hysterical.
And in the meantime, not
forgotten in this shower of congratulations, Messrs. Morris and Shipley held a
reception of their own and accepted in as modest a manner as possible the
thanks and congratulations of a host of friends of Mitchell and of their own.
JURY COMES IN
It was 3:14 o’clock when the
jury retired to its room to deliberate. At 4:40, in answer to a knock upon the
door from inside of the jury room, the bailiff was informed that the jury had
agreed upon a verdict. Judge Frater was at once notified and Mitchell was
brought up from the jail, where he had been taken when the jury went out. At
4:45 Judge Frater ordered that the jury be brought in. a moment later, the
verdict was handed to the court and then by him to the clerk, who read it in a
clear, strong voice so that everyone in the crowded room could hear it.
When the words “not guilty”
were reached, the crowd, disregarding the court’s previous instructions, broke
into cheers and hand clapping.
SHAKE HIS HANDS
Then began the handshaking
and the congratulations, and this continued all the way down the stairs and
through the corridors to the jail. Men and women crowded about the man who had
just been freed from the charge of Murder and, despite his efforts to break
away after leaving the court room, his journey to the jail occupied probably
ten minutes.
In the jail Mitchell was
greeted by the prisoners with whom he had been confined with shouts and cheers
when the announcement came to them that he had been acquitted. He shook hands
with them all and promised to come back and see them before he left the city.
Then with Silas M. Shipley, one of his counsel, he walked down town and
registered at the Stevens hotel, where he will remain until his departure from
the city.
GOES BACK TO PORTLAND
Mitchell intends to return
at once to Portland, where he has secured employment. The father will go back
to his home in Illinois and the brother, Perry will go to Portland.
Morris & Shipley, who so
successfully defended Mitchell this morning, received a large number of
telegrams from Oregon congratulating them upon their victory and thanking them
for their efforts on behalf of Mitchell. They also received a letter which they
declined to make public, in which the writer offered Mitchell a good position
and also educational advantaged.
ESTHER IS FOUND
Esther Mitchell has been
found. Immediately after the return of the jury’s verdict she joined Mrs.
Creffield, and the pair engaged rooms in a down-town rooming house. Esther’s
father is endeavoring to persuade her to return home with him, but this she
flatly refuses to do, and insists upon staying with Mrs. Creffield
Another “Holy Roller,”
Levins by name, is in a logging camp near Allavia B. C. and has written to the
women in an endeavor to get them to join him there. The women are determined to
go, and it is the fear of the Mitchell family that they will follow their
determination.
BEYOND THE POLICE
The police have been called
upon for aid, but state that they can do nothing towards holding the girl, and
her father feels that it would not be right to force her to return, preferring
rather to let her go with Mrs. Creffield if she is determined to follow that
course. The women have been supplied with money by Frank Hurt, according to Mr.
Mitchell, and it is his belief that Hurt is willing to furnish the funds with
which to join Levins in British Columbia.
Evening Telegram (Portland) 7/11/1906 p1
Says Brother Is Murderer
Mrs. Starr Disappointed By Acquittal Of Mitchell.
Declares Him Guilty
Declares Taking Off Of Holy Roller Prophet A
Cold-Blooded Crime.
Sister Of Avenger Says Trial Was Farce And Travesty
On Justice.
“I certainly am disappointed
in the verdict of the jury which tried my brother for the cold-blooded murder
of Edmund Creffield. George Mitchell is no better than any other criminal who
commits murder, and he should have been punished just like any other man. The
trial was a farce, the verdict a travesty on justice. The witnesses for the
other side all lied. The newspapers lied, so what could you expect?” Mrs.
Burgess E. Starr, sister of George Mitchell who was yesterday acquitted of
murder of “Holy Roller” Creffield.
An impressive example of the
mysterious and baleful power which Edmund Creffield, the late high priest of
the “Holy Rollers,” had over the minds of the victims of the infamous doctrines
of religions appears in the vehement arraignment of the Seattle jury which yesterday
acquitted George Mitchell of first degree murder in slaying of the self-styled
Joshua by Mrs. Burgess E. Starr, of this city, a sister of the avenging youth.
While she does not say in so
many words that her brother ought to be hanged for his crime, the inference is
plain from her statement regarding the outcome of the trial, made to a
representative of the Telegram, at her home, 429 East Main Street, this
morning.
As soon as the reporter made
known his mission, tears welled up in the eyes of the woman whose home
Creffield is supposed to have broken up; her lips trembled and her fingers
clutched nervously at the doorpost against which she leaned heavily. Her two
children, big eyed, curly-haired little girls, clung to her skirts, and looked
up into her face evidently wondering why there should be tears in their
mother’s eyes.
“THEY ALL LIED,” SAYS MRS.
STARR
“They’ve all lied about
Creffield,” she burst out bitterly. “Only one side of the story has been told. Creffield
and his friends kept silent under all the infamy and charges heaped upon him. He
was too good and great a man even to answer his accusers. He did not make me
leave my home. That’s all a lie. One time I told him that I was unhappy and
that I thought of going away, but he persuaded me to remain with my husband and
children, and when I did go I left of my own free will and went to the coast to
become a follower of Mr. Creffield.
“They just hounded him to
death. George Mitchell and his friends had it all fixed up to kill Creffield. He
knew it and he made no attempt to escape them. Oh how they lied and lied about
him! He never did the things they said he did, and he was vilified because
people didn’t know him, didn’t understand him.”
“What do you think of the
verdict of the jury?” she was asked.
For a moment she did not
speak, using all her will power to restrain her tears.
“Do you approve of it?” was
the next question.
She shook her head
vigorously.
“No, no; I don’t.” she
exclaimed emphatically. “George Mitchell is no better than any other criminal
who has committed murder. He should have been punished the same as any other
man.”
“Then you think he ought to
be hanged, even if he is your brother?”
“There is no brotherly or
sisterly feeling between us any more. I say he should be punished just like any
other man. There was no justification for the cold-blooded crime which he
committed. He had no wrongs to avenge. My sister and I were fully responsible
for our own acts, and it was none of George Mitchell’s business (she always
referred to her brother as George Mitchell--never as brother) what we did. I
know that a lot of Creffield’s enemies got together and decided to kill him,
and Mitchell was selected to put him out of the way. They why should he escape
punishment? It was the premeditated and cold-blooded murder of a good and a
harmless man. The murderer’s lawyers worked day and night to fix up lies for
the witness to swear to, and then the newspapers kept lying about Creffield,
and all his friends and the jury believed these falsehoods.”
“Do you expect Creffield to
rise again?”
Mrs. Starr did not answer.
“Will ‘Holy Rollerism’
flourish without him as a leader and prophet?”
No answer.
“Is there any one to take up
the work where he left off.”
NONE TO TAKE CREFFIELD’S
PLACE
Shaking her head sadly, she
murmured in a husky whisper:
No man living can take
Creffield’s place.”
“Do you still continue the
practices and believe in the doctrines that he taught?”
This she did not answer
directly, but went into a strong defense of his beliefs, saying that his
doctrines and teachings furnished all his followers with a comfort, faith and
hope that no other religion could.
It was the relationship
existing between Creffield and Mrs. Starr, revealed by the latter in a
confession to her husband, that led to Creffield’s conviction and confinement
for two years in the Salem penitentiary. It was Creffield’s influence over her
and her sister, Esther Mitchell, that furnished the motive for their brother
George’s crime.
Seattle Daily Times 7/11/1906 p1
Much Credit Due Prosecuting Attorney
Attitude of Kenneth Mackintosh in Mitchell Case Was
That of an Able and Conscientious Officer of Law.
Case of the State Presented Succinctly and
Vigorously, as Was the Sworn Duty Entailed Upon Office.
Lawyer for the People Brilliantly Assisted by John F.
Miller and Every Line of Clever Defense Fought.
The hard fight which Kenneth
Mackintosh, prosecuting attorney of King County, ably assisted by his chief
deputy, John F. Miller, waged against one of the strongest moral defense ever
introduced into a murder trial is ended. The claim of the stat that George
Mitchell committed murder in the first degree when he shot Franz Edmund
Creffield near the corner of First Avenue and Cherry Street on the morning of
May 7 was tamped into the minds of the jury as consummate skill as any pair of
lawyers could muster.
While Mr. Miller has been in
charge of the details of the fight, Mr. Mackintosh, in his official position as
chief, has been a living exemplar of the stern dignity of the law which forbids
the slaying of one man by another save in the defense of his very life. His
tone all through this sensational trial has been cold, incisive, and sternly
compelling. He has been fighting for the law of the land, which it was his
sworn duty to do.
He has sought in every way
within his power to rob the case of any emotion. His examinations and address
to the jury have been splendid examples of the duties of a prosecuting
attorney. There was no oratory--no sensationalism in his conduct of the case. He
was there as a representative of the law-abiding people of this community, to
protest against any man taking the law into his own hands, no matter what the
provocation, and to demand in the name of law and order, which the society of
modern times has set up, that a man who does such a thing should be punished
according to the letter of the law which he is sworn to enforce.
It has been a hard, wearing,
at times, an unpopular task. Just across the Columbia River, in Oregon, there
was a public sentiment which in the words of John Manning, prosecuting attorney
of Multnomah County, would have prevented a man in Mr. Mackintosh’s position
from being elected dog-catcher had he even dared to pretend to prosecute this
case. This public sentiment was reflected in King County. The stories of the
disgraceful rites which this “Holy Roller” inflicted upon his women victims
affected the minds of the men and women of this community, and it was
practically a stone wall which Mr. Mackintosh found it his duty to face.
In his official conduct,
however, there was not a trace of weakness. The “Unwritten Law” had no effect
upon his conduct. It is not contained in the statues of the State of Washington
which he had made an oath to sustain. He ignored sentiment. He spurned the weakness
of pity. He prosecuted the case relentlessly, vigorously, resourcefully and
diligently and performed his duty to the whole public regardless of the ideas
off any man or community of men.
In much of this work John F.
Miller was his mouthpiece and his right hand, but the responsibility and the
burden were those of Mr. Mackintosh. It did not matter to him whether the
reward be the political oblivion of the dog catcher’s wagon or the honor of a
seat upon the bench of the superior court which he was addressing. He performed
his duty as he saw it with the law of the land behind him and a conviction that
he was doing his full duty in his heart.
HIS WORK A REVELATION
To many, his work in Judge
Frater’s courtroom was a revelation. He had been charged with the crime of
youthfulness and he had been said to be inexperienced in the criminal law. The
trial of this case has failed to prove either. On the contrary, his examination
of talesmen and witnesses is a worthy example for many more exploited
practitioners of the law. He has been brisk, businesslike and has evinced a
praiseworthy inclination to throw aside much of the burdensome litter of the
technical formalities, not in the manner of a man ignorant of the law, but in
the style of one able to sift the wheat from the chaff and to save the county
and community the money and the time consumed by useless and stereotyped
phrases.
To Mr. Miller was given the
task of combating the cleverly presented prosecution of Will H. Morris and
Silas M. Shipley. He watched this pair of attorneys like a mother wolf and
fought doggedly and resourcefully against the evidence showing the character of
this man Creffield, which he knew and Mr. Mackintosh knew they would succeed in
some way in getting before the jury.
His vivid personality
impressed the jury from the start, and his mastery of the law was a feature of
the case to the end. He was, what his duty called upon him to be, an able
assistant to his chief in a case which the law called upon them to prosecute as
a case of murder, and prosecute they did in the face of hard, bitter odds,
bravely, gamely and cleverly.
Seattle Post Intelligencer 7/11/1906 p1
Mitchell Freed By Jury’s Verdict
Youth Who Shot Crefeld Is Declared “Not Guilty” Of
Murder
Auditors Show Approval
Oration Given Mitchell When Verdict Closing Long
Trial Is Announced
After a trial which lasted
two weeks and two days, it took the jury in the George Mitchell case just one
hour and twenty-five minutes to determine that the youth was not guilty of
murder in killing Franz Edmund Crefeld on the streets of Seattle, May 7, last. The
verdict was read at a quarter to five o’clock yesterday afternoon, and was
greeted with rounds of applause from the audience.
The courtroom was crowded
yesterday afternoon, as it became apparent that the end of the trial was near. The
audience was composed largely of members of the bar of King County, women and
personal friends of the accused man. Few left the courtroom when the jury
retired at 3:14 o’clock, and the general opinion was that the jury would return
the verdict in a few minutes. It was not until 4:40 o’clock, however, that the
rap on the door of the jury room announced that an agreement had been reached.
In the meantime, the
prisoner had been taken down stairs to the jailer’s room. There was a pause
while he was brought up and the court took his seat. The judge addressed a few
words of warning against any demonstration, whatever the verdict. The audience
listened with bated breath to the proceedings of the court, the polling of the
jury, the question by the judge, and the handing over of the verdict to the
judge.
When the words “not guilty”
were pronounced, however, the feelings of the audience were not to be
restrained. Despite the court’s orders, the spectators began enthusiastically
to clap hands in applause. An expression of happy sympathy spread over almost
every face in the courtroom.
PRISONER SELF-POSSESSED
The jury was dismissed and
the prisoner temporarily remanded into the custody of the sheriff. As the
jurors stood up to go, Mitchell seemed one of the most self possessed figured
in the courtroom. People began to crowd up to the rail to shake hands with the
young man and to offer a word of congratulations. It was to avoid such a scene
that the court had remanded the prisoner. At the requests of his attorneys
Mitchell was at once dismissed, and left the room a free man.
His way down the stairs was
blocked by people eager to shake hands with him, and it was not until he was
again behind jail doors that he was free from these eager attentions.
“Good bye, boys, I’ll see
you tomorrow,” was his farewell to his fellow prisoners of the past two months.
He intended to come back later for his possessions and accompanied his
attorneys down town.
George Mitchell had little
to say regarding the outcome of the trial and his present prospects. That he
was overjoyed at the removal of all doubt as to the outcome of his trial was
plainly evident. Yet his conversation was chiefly about such commonplaces as
the way in which the walk down the steep hill tired the muscles of his legs,
unaccustomed to such exercise, or about how good it felt to be out in the fresh
air again. “It was a pretty stiff time,” he said regarding the term in prison
and the trial, “but I trusted Mr. Morris and Mr. Shipley to get me out. I never
could really feel that I would be convicted for such an act.
DOES NOT REGRET ACT
“I suppose I had brooded
over the wrongs the man had done so much that I hardly knew what I was doing,”
he stated and when asked a leading question as to whether he felt any regret at
killing Crefeld he replied in the negative.
Of all the crowd at the
courthouse yesterday, Mitchell’s brother, Perry, was perhaps the most frankly
and openly happy. He was the first to congratulate George. When the verdict was
read, and he wrung his hand with the vigorous shake of true feeling. Mitchell’s
father also was present throughout the day.
Today Mitchell expects to
leave for Portland to resume a position he formerly held in a mill there. Perry
will accompany him while their father will go east to his Illinois home.
ATTORNEYS ARGUE FOR VANTAGE
Prosecuting Attorney Kenneth
Mackintosh was the only one who addressed the jury yesterday, and his talk
lasted about half an hour. Judge Frater’s charge to the jury lasted about an
equal length of time. The remainder of the day was occupied by the attorneys on
either side seeking vantage ground with reference to their addresses to the
jury.
Under an agreement between
the attorneys, to which the court refused to become a party, in the morning the
time for each side was to be limited to two hours. When Mr. Mackintosh had
spoken, the defense waived its right for argument, claiming that by so doing it
ought to prevent Deputy Prosecuting Attorney John F. Miller from making his
closing statement.
Judge Frater withheld final
decision on the ruling until the afternoon session, when authorities might be
brought. Court adjourned at 11 o’clock, the judge stating that he had not yet
completed his preparation of instructions to the jury. At 1:30 p. m. the
question between the attorneys was again argued, wit the result that the court
decided that the matter was entirely within its discretion. He ruled that
Miller might have the last say, and that the attorneys for the defense would
have the right to speak as long as they wished.
Mr. Miller at once stated
that he was willing to waive the argument, on condition that the court would
state to the jury that this had been done by mutual agreement between the
attorneys. The defense was willing.
JUROR IS SICK
One reason advanced by the
attorneys for the haste in finishing the trial was the sickness of H. E. Start,
of Vashon Island, one of the jurors. A physician during the morning declared
the juror had cholera morbus, and advised that he should not attempt to take up
the work of juror that day. Start, himself, however, was willing to make the
attempt, and though evidently ill, got through the day without mishap.
The judge’s instructions
were brief, and among other things, he laid special stress on the necessity of
the defendant who pleads insanity establishing his case, is a verdict of not
guilty is to be rendered. The jurors were instructed that they might return any
one of three verdicts, murder in the first or second degrees, or not guilty. The
verdict of manslaughter was debarred.
M. H. Ring, of the Seattle
postal service, was foreman of the jury.
Oregon Daily Journal (Portland) 7/11/1906 p3
George Mitchell Is Acquitted
Slayer Of Franz Edmund Creffield, Holy Roller
Apostle, Is Freed By Jury.
Crowd Roars Applause Despite Court’s Order
Defendant Will Return To Portland Tonight And Resume
His Former Position In Lath Mill Belonging To Peter View.
(Special Dispatch to The
Journal)
Seattle, July 11--Less than
two hours deliberation was required by the jury last evening in the case of
George H. Mitchell, to decide that the defendant was innocent of murder for
killing Franz Edmund Creffield, the holy roller apostle, on the streets of this
city May 7. After being out about an hour and a half the jury men returned with
the verdict of “not guilty,” which they presented to the court.
The verdict of the jury was
received by a thunderous outburst of applause which it was impossible for the
court officials to suppress, although Judge Frater had warned the crowd that no
demonstration would be permitted, whatever the verdict might be, before the
jury came in.
REMANDED TO SHERIFF
In order that he might get
rid of the boisterous crowd, as he explained afterward, Judge Frater ordered
the prisoner remanded into the custody of the sheriff. Mitchell’s attorneys
realizing the import of this order immediately objected, threatening habeas
corpus proceedings, and the court admitting his error, ordered the sheriff to
release the prisoner.
Delighted with the freedom
of the youth, who has had such a hard fight for his life, the crowd of
spectators rushed upon him when he was pronounced a free man and overwhelmed
him with congratulations. Men, women and children, hysterical with joy,
followed Mitchell all the way from the courthouse to his attorneys’ offices,
into which, to his expressed relief, he escaped at last.
INSTRUCTIONS TO JURY
Late yesterday afternoon the
case was presented to the jury and the instructions given by the court. The
instructions were to the effect that the verdict must be acquittal or murder in
either the first or second degree. Manslaughter, according to the court, did
not enter into the case as a possibility.
This evening Mitchell will
start for Portland, where he will resume his former position in the lath mill
of Peter View, who has offered him reemployment. his brother Perry will
accompany him. Mitchell’s father will return to his home in Vernon, Illinois,
and will be accompanied by his daughter, Esther, if he can prevail upon her to
go with him.
Neither Esther Mitchell nor
Maud Hurt Creffield, widow of the Holy Roller leader, can be induced to make
and expression as to their view of the outcome of the trial.
Oregon Daily Journal (Portland) 7/11/1906 p8
Manning Says Mitchell Did Just Right
Declares Any Right-Minded Man Would Have Slain
Creffield as Did Mitchell.
“Mitchell did the only thing
he could have done, and it was just what any right-minded sane man whose home
had been destroyed as Mitchell’s was would have done in the same circumstances.
The jury did just right in acquitting him,” said District Attorney John Manning
this morning. Mr. Manning returned from Seattle last night, where he had gone
to testify on behalf of Mitchell at his trial for the murder of “Holy Roller”
Edmund Creffield.
“They would not admit my
evidence,” continued Mr. Manning, “and the objection of the prosecuting
attorney to it was well taken. I knew it could not be admitted unless the judge
strained a point, but I wanted to do all I could to help Mitchell, for I think
he did no wrong. What I would have testified to was the mental condition of the
Mitchell girls when they were under the care of the district attorney here. My
evidence was not needed, as it developed.
“There is just as strong a
popular sentiment for Mitchell and against Creffield in Seattle as there is
here, and the people took a keen interest in the trial, and expressed their
satisfaction over the verdict of acquittal in no uncertain manner.
“I am glad that Mitchell was
acquitted.”
Corvallis Times 7/13/1906 p2
The Acquittal And Trial--New Facts Brought out by the
Testimony.
The acquittal of George
Mitchell by the Seattle jury, which took place last Tuesday afternoon gave
profound satisfaction in Corvallis and vicinity. The first news of the result
was received by Victor Hurt shortly before six o’clock, less than an hour after
the jury came in with the verdict, and the welcome news was passed from person
to person by all who heard it. In every case there were expressions of approval
to the effect that the slayer of the Roller reptile had been set free. The jury
seems to have been out only a short time and to have reached a verdict with
perfect unanimity.
The trial brought out
information concerning the practices of Creffield that simply stagger belief. Facts
were told on the witness stand that cannot be printed, and of a character that
seem impossible to believe. Had they been known at the time Creffield was in
Corvallis, there is not the slightest doubt that the trial of Mitchell would
never have been in Seattle. Returning witnesses from the trial have repeated
the stories to friends, until the naked truth with references to Creffield’s
doings has become generally current. The result is that the public now knows
that it was not religion but complete depravity that was the controlling motive
in the life of the Roller viper, and that when young Mitchell stung him to
death on the streets of Seattle, he ridded the world of one of the biggest
devils in it. The wonder is that, doing such things, Creffield was suffered to
lice so long. The tar and feather party, when they brought the villain from the
house over the Willamette and did their stunt with him and Brooks had an
opportunity that they did not understand, and in what they did to the scoundrel
dell far short of what Creffield deserved. It is an enormous responsibility to
take human life. Men, however, make the laws, and men are fallible creatures. The
statutes of man do not cover hideous villainies of the kind of which Creffield
was guilty. There was no way for a penalty half a thousandth part commensurate
with his offense to fall on him save by the law of might and right. In seizing
it, George Mitchell both removed the offender and provided for the full
exposure of his unprintable and unbelievable practices.
When Deputy Attorney Miller
was in Corvallis seeking information with which to prosecute Mitchell, he was
told some of Creffield’s doings, referred to above. That was one thing that
made his stay in Corvallis brief. He scouted at the idea that such things would
be done, but lived to learn in the trial from which he has just emerged, badly
beaten, that all of it was terrible, dreadful truth, and that there was even
more than he had been told.
It is believed that the end
of the trial marks the end of Rollerism. The exposure incident to the trial
will doubtless make all former followers ashamed of the very name of Rollerism
and of their connection with it. That influence alone should be sufficient to
bury the cult in the same oblivion with the nasty body of Creffield.
HEADLINES IN
PAPERS FOR THE SAME ARTICLE
Morning Oregonian (Portland) 7/12/1906 p5
Esther Declined to Be
Reconciled.”
Corvallis Times 7/13/1906 p4
Esther Declined to Be
Reconciled
Avenger Mitchell Fears His Sister May Join New Holy Roller
Colony
Girl Turns From Father
Police Matron Takes Sides With Her And Chides
Relatives For Publicity Given In The Search After Her Release.
SEATTLE, July
11.--(Special)--Esther Mitchell refuses to be reconciled to her family. Despite
her father’s pleadings today, she would not agree to go east with him, and she
would not turn completely away from her former companions. She still clings to
Mrs. Maud Creffield and the Holy Roller faith. Her father believes she will
eventually desert the fanatical creed, and, in the meantime, he has agreed with
her, so far as possible, to shield her from further notoriety.
Both Esther Mitchell and the
police matron with whom she stayed for several weeks showed a bitter resentment
toward the Mitchells for discussing her attitude. She has taken a sudden
aversion to notoriety, although apparently seeking it when she first came to
Seattle.
The elder Mitchell was sent
to his daughter today by Mrs. Kelly, the police matron. Mitchell called at the
matron’s home and asked for information about Esther. Mrs. Kelly insisted the
girl was willing to meet him and would not attempt to hide. She chided him for
so much publicity in his search, and offered to assist him. While the two were
talking Esther Mitchell called up the matron by telephone.
Esther was asked if she
would see her father, and promptly agreed. The interview followed. Mrs.
Creffield went with Mrs. Kelly to the County Clerk’s office to collect the
witness fees for herself and Miss Mitchell. The two women were paid for the
actual time they were in attendance at the trial. Mrs. Creffield has been held
by the police matron since the shooting of her husband on May 7, being released
only the night before the case went to the jury. Miss Mitchell has been in the
police matron’s custody since she came to Seattle.
A former custom provided for
the payment of witness fees to persons detained in custody for the entire
period they were held. But this has been upset by recent court decisions and
the women were only paid for the time actually in court, or rather from the
time the case opened until they testified and were dismissed. Police Matron
Mrs. Kelley did not ask and the women did not tell where they are staying.
George Mitchell, her
brother, and her father, have feared Miss Mitchell would attempt to return to
the Holy Roller sect. The story that the sect was to be revived with a colony
in British Columbia sent the men of the family on a hunt for Esther Mitchell
early this morning. The father found her through the police matron’s efforts.
“I don’t know whether there
is another as dangerous as Creffield living or not,” said Mr. Mitchell tonight.
“They tell me there is a man in British Columbia and two in the East. Whether
this is true or not I am convinced public sentiment will never permit another
colony to spring up. The men will either be killed or promptly shut in jail.”
Mitchell Sr., will visit a
son near Dayton, and his sister in Minneapolis, on his way East. George
Mitchell and his brother return at once to Portland. Morris and Shipley, the
attorneys who defended Mitchell, today received a large number of telegraphic
congratulations. Among the senders were O. V. Hurt of Corvallis, who said:
Accept my thanks and
congratulations for services performed.”
George Schnobel, former district
attorney in Multnomah County, also telegraphed his congratulations. The
attorneys for the defense only received $650 from the Corvallis fund. Out of
this expenses were paid, leaving a small fee for the lawyers’ work.
HEADLINES IN
PAPERS FOR THE SAME ARTICLE
Oregon Daily Journal (Portland) 7/11/1906 p8
Holy Rollers To Go To Canada
George Mitchell Believes His Sister And Mrs.
Creffield
Will Start Colony.
Two Young Women Have Eluded Their Friends
One Man And Some Of The Women Who Occupied A Waldport
Camp Of “Apostle” Have Gone To British Columbia.
Seattle Daily Times 7/11/1906 p9
Mitchell Seeks His Sister
Spends First Day’s Freedom in Searching Lodging
Houses of City for Esther--She is in Hiding.
Fearing that the killing of
Creffield will fail to turn his sister away from Holy Rollerism if she is
allowed to remain under the influence of and in the company of Mrs. Maude Hurt
Creffield, the wife of the man he killed, George Mitchell spent the first day’s
liberty he has enjoyed for two months in searching the lodging houses of
Seattle for his sister Esther. The last seen of Esther Mitchell and Mrs.
Creffield was yesterday afternoon when they told Mrs. Kelly, the police matron,
that they were going to hire a room in some lodging house and seek employment
in Seattle. This was only a few hours before the jury returned the verdict that
made Mitchell a free man.
George Mitchell arose before
7 o'clock this morning, and after eating a hurried breakfast he left the
Stevens Hotel in company with his father and his brother Perry to find his
sister. The search for the sister proved unsuccessful this morning. The young
girl and Mrs. Creffield, although short of funds, did not call at the county
clerk’s office to get the witness fees awaiting them. That they will remain in
hiding until he leaves the city is the opinion of the brother.
George Mitchell and his
brother Perry will continue the search for several days. The girl’s father
wishes her to go to his home in Illinois where he promises to care for her.
This is also the desire of the two brothers.
George Mitchell is satisfied
that an attempt will be made to form another Holy Roller camp in the wilds of
British Columbia. One of the men who were in Creffield’s camp is at present in
British Columbia. During the trial some of the women who were formerly members
of Creffield’s Waldport camp passed through Seattle on their way to British
Columbia, presumably to join this man. George Mitchell fears that Mrs.
Creffield may induce his sister Esther also to go to British Columbia. The
brother is convinced that his sister is not yet completely sane.
Esther Mitchell declared on
Saturday that she would not go home with her father. She said she did not want
to have anything to do with the rest of her family. Her father pleaded with
her, but she declared that she was 18 years old and could do as she pleased.
W. T. Gardner,
superintendent of the Girls’ and Boys’ Aid Society of Portland, who had charge
of Esther Mitchell after she was taken from the Creffield camp, also urged her to
go home with her father, but she refused. If the girl is found the father will
use force to take her home.
Seattle Daily Times 7/11/1906 p6
(From a column of thoughts,
for a lack of a better term for it)
When a man becomes violently angry is he “Insane?”
“The jury in the Mitchell
case didn’t stay out any longer than the law would allow, after Judge Frater
finished his charge. Mitchell was found “not guilty” by reason of insanity.”
“Now if Mitchell were really
insane when he killed Creffield--is he not insane today?--and if he be insane
today where are the officers who should cause his arrest and incarceration at
Steilacoom? Such officers are sworn to do their duties--and here seems to be a
very emphatic duty.
Morning Oregonian (Portland) 7/11/1906 p4
Calls Him A Creffield
Centralia Man Says Wife’s Affections Were Stolen.
Accuses Fraternal Insurance Organizer Of Using
Business To Cloak Free Love Propaganda.
CENTRALIA, Wash., July
10.--(Special.)-- Daniel M. Bedell, of this city, has commenced suit against
one A. S. Briggs for alleged alienation of the affections of the former’s wife
by the latter. The plaintiff asks for damages in the sum of $10,000. Mr. and
Mrs. Bedell have only lived in Centralia a comparatively short time. Briggs is
a promoter of an insurance company known as the “Fraternal Knights and Ladies,”
and as such he has made Centralia his headquarters for over a year, although he
claims residence at Puyallup.
Bedell, in the complaint
filed in the Superior Court of this county, says that Briggs has formerly been
a lecturer on what is commonly called “free love” and is still practicing “that
unholy doctrine, and the same doctrines and teachings of the defendant being
somewhat upon the order of the Holy rollers, as established by the late Elijah
Creffield, who has just paid the penalty of his crime with his life and for the
same kinds of wrongs and outrages that the defendant herein is practicing.” Briggs
is also accused of writing loving and endearing letters to Mrs. Bedell and
meeting her at home in the absence of her husband and making love to her.
The attorney for the
plaintiff, Frank Burch, claims to have the letters in his possession and will
introduce them into court at the proper time. The complaint also alleges that
Briggs has persuaded Mrs. Bedell to threaten divorce proceedings against her
husband as a result of his teachings. In conclusion the complaint says:
He (Briggs) is the organizer
of what is known at the ‘Fraternal Knights and Ladies,” in order that he may
get into the company of the acquaintances of girls, women and married women, in
order that he may all the better ply his acts of villainy, sow his seeds of
free love, and then ripen the same into his free love practices, and all of
which the defendant has don in the home of the plaintiff.
Briggs has been a familiar
figure on the streets of Centralia for over year. He is a quiet, elderly
looking gentleman with a light mustache and gray hair, quiet of voice and a
person who would make friends with women very easily. a very large chapter of
the Fraternal Knights and Ladies shows that at least he has done that part of
the work very well. Mrs. Bedell is a large, strong-minded young woman and a
niece of Floyd A. Brittain, or Centralia, a well known citizen. She came to
Centralia several months ago.
(Under this is an article Old Lady Shoots Man, Accused Of Murder Of Unwelcome Suitor Of Her Daughter. In Parkersburg, WV, and below that is an article Preacher Shoots To Kill, Fatally Wounds Brother-In-Law Then Cuts His Own Throat, In Mangum, Ok.)
Chapter of Holy Rollers where these articles are some of the sources:
Chapter 22: The Verdict
***July 10, 1906: Mitchell Case Goes To Jury
July 12, 1906: General Rejoicing at Mitchell’s Acquittal
***
Newspaper Articles about Creffield & the Holy Rollers
1897-1903: B.C. (Before Creffield)
October to December 1903:Holy Rollers Burn Furniture & Pets
January to March, 1904: Holy Rollers Tarred and Feathered
April to June 1904: Holy Rollers are Committed to the Asylum
July 1904: Creffield is Found & Arrested
September 1904: Creffield's Trial
April 1906: Men are Gunning For Creffield
May 1906: Creffield is Murdered, Murderer is Considered a Hero
May 1906: Holy Rollers Found Starving Near Heceta Head
June 1906: George Mitchell's Trial Begins
July 1906: Hurt Testifies of Debauched Wife and Debased Sisters
July 1906: Esther Mitchell Kills Her Brother
August to October 1906: Seattle Prepares for another Big Trial
November 1906: Maud Hurt Creffield Commits Suicide
April 1909-August 1914: Esther Leaves the Asylum
1953 Stewart Holbrook's Murder Without Tears
1951Startling Detective Magazine, Nemesis of the Nudist High Priest
***
Chapters from
Holy Rollers: Murder & Madness in Oregon's Love Cult
Part 1: The Seduction
Chapter 1: Trust Me, Brothers And Sisters
(Life Before Creffield [B.C.])
Chapter 2: God, Save Us From Compromising Preachers
(Creffield's Preachings)
Chapter 3: The Flock
(Profiles of the Holy Rollers Were)
Chapter 4: The Holy Rollers
(Things Start to Get Wild on on Kiger Island)
Chapter 5: Housecleaning
(There's a Sacrificial Bonfire)
Chapter 6: Community Concerns
(Officers Visit)
Chapter 7: Esther, The Chosen One
(Creffield Plans to Marry 16-Year- Old)
Chapter 8: Tar and Feathers
(The Men of Corvallis Act)
Chapter 9: Sane People Don’t Go Bareheaded
(Holy Rollers are Committed to the Asylum)
Chapter 10: More Beast Than Man
( Creffield is Arrested)
Chapter 11: God Will Plead Creffield's Case
(Creffield in Court)
Chapter 12: Scandal
(Shocking Testimony at the Trial)
Chapter 13: Calm Before the Storm
(The Holy Rollers Resume their Lives)
Chapter 14: Giving Up The Ghost
(Men are Gunning for Creffield)
Part Two: The People V. Creffield
Chapter 16: The Widow Creffield
Chapter 19: An Inherited Streak of Insanity
Part Three: The Madness
Chapter 23: Seeking Reconciliation
Chapter 24: Another Holy Roller Page One Murder
Chapter 25: What Can Papa Do For You?
Chapter 26: Human Life is Too Cheap In This Community
Chapter 30: The Final Chapter
(What Happened to Everyone Afterwards)
The Epilogue
(Heaven's Gate)