The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • 15

Sos fingclcluneiay mm SUNDAY MORNING. MAY 9, 1920. PAni-Hl 3 POTTER JURORS FAIL TO AGREE. STORY.OF THE MODERN BLUEBEARD Watson, Perhaps Part Negro, Betrays Evidences of Revolting Moral Perversion in the Manner of His Many Murders of Women Whom He Married. tCtiuuiibrU from First Page.) Deliberate Nineteen Hoars in Case ot ex-Captain Who Shot Ills Wife.

After deliberating nineteen hours, a Jury In Judge Craig's court was discharged yesterday without having found a verdict In the case of Raymond C. Potter, former army captain charged with assaulting his wife, Wilda E. Potter, and two other persons with intent to murdei. The Jury stood 1 to 6. The case was continued till tomorrow to be reset for trial.

Potter was represented by H. I Geisler, Claire Woolwine and S. S. Hahn and the case was prosecuted by Dep. Richardson.

placed ion watch In the lobby ot the hotel when Watson arrived. HI8 CAPTURE. From dates at hand, the officers believe that he had Just killed and I'urieil Nina Lee Deloney in the mountains near El Centro, and was still under the. influence of one of his murderous spells. He' plainly showed it In his face, Detective Armstrong said.

Atier dinner Watson and Mrs. Wombacher went downtown and ardent wooing, quick marriages and, at intervals of about three months, sudden deaths by violence. When questioned about these details Watson, said he did not remember. But the scraps of paper, receipts, letters and other records show the methods well. These facts were uncovered by the investigating officers one by one.

Hundreds and hundreds of telegrams were sent on the case. The newspapers, carrying on an Independent Investigation, literally burned the wires. The result was Nina Lee Deloney, one. of his victims, lay, and eald: "There she is, behind that rock." Another was when Watson looked upon the remain! of Mrs. Deloney at the Inquest.

The last time was when he whisked out of Jail in El Centro to oscape lynching. The lips and arms mark the brute In Watson. The hands speak ot his newer mind. The man's minor personal traits and habits are apparently good. He always dresned well.

He was then home. believing ine amassing an immense num-1 rrlmlniil nn hi fhlmiiv2i 11 hrfTV. called for assistance from ffL.J Harvey W. Bell, two of the veterans piete siorj. sheriff ClimVs criminal depart- TWO Suitcases full Of documents Th mot at dmnlnvn found in Watson's possession at the iCOrne'r an(j followed Watson as ho were lists of property these women had owned Teleerama to these relatives time of his arrest gave the officers the start.

The trivial beginning ot the case was this: TRIVIAL BEGINNING. Mrs. Kathryn Wombacher, formerly of Tacoma, whom Watson went Into the Htll-street Pacific Electric station and there got his grip. There was a peculiarity about the way It had been checked. He did not have the check with him, but had left It with the candy girl.

annnlolmifl trt rl.n. uu-spoKen, mild-mannered when courting; women. His method of operation required a "good front." It was of the gamo with him, and he jaid attention to the trifles. HOW HE WORKED. Watson's bait in the matrimonial gams were cleverly worked liner advertisements In newspapers.

In these he held up to the prospective victim first of all, a home, a thing always nearest to the heart of every womaniy Then he dangled visions of good income, good treatment, a trip around the world, or Honolulu or Australia, and later a return to some small town in the West, with home life, a position of a banker's wife, and things of that sort. These advertisements always brought the Information theyv had received typewritten letters signed with names under which the missing women married Watson. The originals of these were sent to Los Angeles and here they were estao lished as forgeries. Among these married In Seattle last November. Iutle3 They rod8 to Hollywood or.

under the name of Walter Andrew, the same street car with Watson, came with him to Los Angeles and 'trailed him to his home, watched started their married life by estabTthe house all night, and hv the lishing a home on Rosewood ave- morning, when he went out for a niic. Hnllvwonrt. 'A fpw davs after walk, entered the place and searched were post cards mailed from different points in Southern California, months after the women themselves had been buried by Watson. The financial transactions were checked up one by one, and invariably Watson's name, under one or the' other arrival here. Watson said he had to the locked grip.

In it the officers leave on business. His favorite ex- i rouna oocumems mm nnaiiy iea 10 tm fid cuse was that he was an agent for Mil the silution of the whole case. There were bonds, savings stamps registered to Alice Ludvlgson, one of the the United States government, operating against diamond smugglers, murdered wives; marriage licenses. This gave him a chance to leave suddenly and stay away weeks at a letters from women, storage house Stronger than Any Advertisement that Gould Be Written time, to visit the other wives in tne telegrams Dy me score, vicinity, thereby keeping their bus-(Watson's arrest followed when ho Mrougni many replies. A search of Watson's papers revealed many clippings from northwestern papers, showing that he placed his liners tinder the nnmes of O.

It Gordon, H. M. Lewis, c. N. Andrews, and others.

Stacks of letters written on dainty stationery show that reviles were not lacking. The worn-a who answered were school teachers, widows, shop girls, who had grown weary of the dally toil behind counter and women who thought they saw a chance to make a good catch. The ads were step number one. The. letters Watson kept there re scores of them in the Sheriff's office show that he discarded those that did nnt hm.a this kind aroused Mrs.

Wombacher's The Bluebeard fought like a fiend curiosity. Watson carried a black when he was placed under arrest, hand grip which she could not open. He was finally subdued and hand-Thls aroused her suspicion. She cuffed. back to the house he paid a visit to the Nick Harris De- tried to talj? his way out Deputies tectlve- Agency and told of her bus- Couts and Bell persisted in asking ptcions.

J. B. Armstrong, the agency questions. First Watson claimed he supertrtendent, was placed on the a detective He said he was a concerning the of his aliases, appeared connected with them. Evidence uncovered here led to the Identification of a body found near Plum Station.

as that of Betty Pryor, on of Watsoli's wljies. Bigamy, forgery, misuse mails, swindles and murder began to pile up- against the Bluebeard. Then the break came his nerve crumbled, the will live, after two attempts at suicide, asserted itself, the master mind became panicky and Watson made his bargain witi the law. He offered to make a clean breast of his crimes for a chance to save his neck. The bargain was put through, and the confession The maze of marriages ar.d murders disclosed by the Sheriff's office and the independent investigations by the newspapers occupied the front-page columns for weeks here and throughout the country.

The story of these, as woven together from official records, is printed The dates or watson ao- srovernment man rf.usfi t0 snow senees here corresponded to some of th.i his credentials, and finally said that I the big safe robberies in and around Angeles, and Detective Armstrong decided he might be the Fifth-street ''tor yegg. Threo weeks later Mrs. Wombacher received a telegram from Watson, sent from a near-by 'suburban town, asking her to meet him at the Hayward Hotel for dinner. She reported It to William O. Hanson, general manager of quality about Correspondence followo'l.

and then personal meetings. Watson was kept busv mapping out appointments so that they would not conflict. Large hotels- the Washington, the Land, and other firRt-elass hotels in Tacnma. Snnkn r1" i-r-ernmonto and other cities the Harris agency. Armstrong was separately elsewhere In The Times were the meeting places.

Thn came 'called from his home and was today. Viewed from any angle, it is a sto-y never before equaled in the criminal history of this country. It ir he were taken to San Diego he could clear up the whole business. In his possession were found bank books and safety bo keys on San Diego banks, and the officers at once grasped the opportunity. "Let's go," they replied, and placing Watson In one Of the Sheriff's cars, started, TWICE TRIES What his motive was for suggesting the trip, only Watson knows.

He may have been stalling for time. Perhaps he hoped for a chance to escape. It is not unlikely he wanted to kill himself at the first opportunity. Somewhere near Oceanslde he rftanaged to extract a small knife secreted somewhere on his person, and with It he cut his throat Pulling his overcoat collar above his chin he succeeded in hiding his wound until San Diego whs reached. He bad almost bled to death.

But fate was against him. He was taken to the San Diego County Hos ERE IS GHASTLY LIST I requires indexes and catalogs to keep it in mind, and only a skeleton of it can be given in these columns. GRISLT CLIMAX. A few days ago came tha dramatic OF WATSON'S "WIVES climax of the case. Watson, still weak from the self-inflicted wounds, led Woolwine to the grave of Nina Lee Deloney.

and thus made good his ghastly pact. The expedition into the desert thirty miles from El Centro has few parallels in ir Six Named, Seven Known Murdered, Threi More Probably Slain, Nine Living Mates, Three Probable. dramatic features. A mob tried to lynch 'Watson before ho got out of pital. There he again tried to com Kl centro.

Hack in Los Angeles, he was "railroaded" through an indict ment, taken to court, pleaded guilty to murder in the first degree, and to (ConUnmtl from First Page.) morrow will come up for the sentence he has bargained for. This, in the outline only, is the story qf Bluebeard Watson, archfiend, modern Jack-the-Rlpper, the criminal horror ot the age. Future months and years may add more ghastly details to it. Time cannot detract' from it. It Is unlqua in criminal lore.

The criticisms reproduced tfelow, written by the coldly analytical disinterested professional music critics of the Los Angeles newspapers, critics whose natural tendency is to seek out and describe the faults rather than the virtues of that which they judge, exceed in emphasis and lavish praise anything that could be written in an advertisement. these criticisms, concerning the joint recital by Leo Ornstein, anV the Knabe Ampico at Trinity Auditorium, Tuesday night, May 4th, carry the force of absolutely unbiased opinion, and the authority of those who write with intimate knowledge of their subject. FOR A THIRD SEWER. Council Takes Step to Conitrnot Another one Along Broadway. The City Council yesterday took the first steps toward constructing a new $400,000 sanitary sewer sys ramento, school teacher.

Married Watson under the name of Harry Lewis at Davenport, Aug. 28, 1919. tVatson adopted her 7-year-old daughter, made a will in Mrs. Williamson's favor and then obtained $3300 from her. He took her on automobile trips and was to take her to the Grand Canyon this summer, probably intending to bury her there.

On several occasions he suggested she take out an insurance policy on the child's life. Mrs. Williamson is now in Los Angeles and Is helping authorities in the case. She has recovered most of her money. Kathryn Wombacher.

dressmaker, of Spokane. Married Watson under the name of Walter Andrew at Spokane, Nov. 8, 1919. Watson obtained $2200 in cash, and then brought tier to Los Angeles, leaving her in a home at Hollywood. Once he took the woman to lonely canyons at Catalina, where It Is believed he planned to murder her, but was thwarted by the arrival of a party of picnickers.

Mrs. Wombacher's suspicions led to Watson's arrest. She is now In Los Angeles. Margaret Burns of Spokane. Married Watson under the name of Samuel Arthur Melrose at Colfax, Oct.

6, 1915. He left her soon afterward, with $500 of her money, causing her to lose her mind, according to Mrs. May McCalmont, a sister. After deserting her Watson kept up his characteristic correspondence with the women from all parts of Canada. Photographs of Watson were identified by the girl's rehv- There were Btab Vounds the neck and a stab round each breast.

Watson ltoutly Cenles knowing anything About it. But the date, the place and the way in which it was -burled end strength to the belief that it was Wation's work. Another probable, but unnamed, victim Is she whose body was found near Tacoma in 1907. When Watson's crimes first began to claim public attention, a press dispatch from Tacoma stated a body found there thirteen vears ago was tentatively identified as that of a Mrs. Charles Newton Harvey.

This is the name often used by Watson. KNOWN WIVES LIVING. Kathcrlne Kruse Watson of 8alem, and Nelson, B. C. At present regarded as the "original and genuine" wife of the super-murderer.

Married prisoner under the name of P. Watson, which he says is his right name, at Nelson, B. June 13, ISIS- Had joint account with Watson in a San Diego bank until the time of his arrest. Recently made a trip to Ortonvllle, where Watson nent her four $23 money orders. Woman refused to talk.

Sirs. Maude E. Goldensmltli, Wallace, Idaho. Married Watson under the name of Charles Newton In Tacoma on Jan. 11, 1919.

Wrote to Sheriff Cline that she found names of Charles Newton Harvey and J. P. i tem In-Broadway. The system as proposed, will start at Seventh street and Maple avenue, then fol low Seventh street to Broadway, mit suicide by cutting his wrists. This attempt also failed.

The next day he was brought thick to Los Angeles, almost dead." He had nothing to say, so the officers dumped the contents of the black grip on the big table In their room and went to work. The Job lasted more than a month. Working under the personal direction of Sheriff Cline and Chief Deputy Al Manning, one of the ablest criminal investigators In the country, the two deputies and Detective Armstrong began the unraveling of the tangle. In his statement to Woolwine, Watson, alleging that he is mentally unbalanced, pointed to the fact that he carried the tokens of his crimes with him against all good judgment, because he derived a sort of satisfaction from looking them over. Thia in part at least.

Is true. In the black grip were wedding rings, Jewelry belonging to the. dead women, letters from and to them, their personal trinkets, deeds to their property, tax receipts In their names, and storage-house receipts for trunks put in by Watson under different names. sorting and Indexing of this mass of papers took several days. Then began the teal Work.

Wires to the authorities throughout the West and in many Eastern States brought piece by the evidence the officers needed. Deputies Couts and Bell and Undersheriff Manning established that seven of the women Watson married were missing. They found, in storage in Los Angeles, Vancouver, Seattle, San Francisco and Sacramento, the trunks and oth-eri belongings of the missing wom en. The dates when these trunks were put into storagj were significantly close to the dates of marriages, in most of tha cases. SINISTER DATA.

In Watson's possesion were found stacks of whit papers with signatures of different women on the bottom. There were carefully-typed lists of the women's relatives, with personal notations regarding children and thinss of that sort There north on Broadway to Fourth street, and a connecting sewer will atart at Sixth street and Broadway, and READ WHAT THE CRITICS SAY: eena aiong west Sixth street to urana avenue. This will be Broad way's third system. To prevent tying up trafflo when actual construction begins, the onlv excavations will be made at street Intersections, where shafts will be sunk, and the sewer laid in tunnels tweniy-rour feet below the surface of the street. Cement pipe will be used.

It is thought that the work Florence Lawrence, Morning Examiner: "La rt night's program revealed alike the Impeccable technic and unusual Interpretative skill of the soloist and the marvelous tonal possibilities of the Instrument which reproduces with such amazing exactitude his quality of touch, shading and Florence Reed, Evening Expresa "The Knaba Ampico reproduced tha temperamental touches of the artist, hie tone colorings, his mannerisms, his rhythm, tempo, beauty of thought In Interpretation In much tha tame manner that a photographic plate keenly sensitized reproduces the acene to which It la opened In the Mash of taking the Burton Kneisely, Editor of The Record "Ornstein and the Knabe Ampico could net be told apart. "The Knabe Ample Reproducing Plane played Ornstein as well as Ornstein himself played Ornstein her was Ornstein to the lifaJ It le a strlk-ing tribute to be able te say sincerely that the Ample added to the delight of last night' concert. It did Just that!" win Degin in August. WOMEN'S ATHLETIC CU itlves, and the letters in the posses-lar Initials on Jewelry. Photo-I fc slon of her Identical In Interest in the proposed Women's graph of Mrs.

GQldensmlth and her family are handwriting with those sent to Mrs. Alice Estelle Snyder, and signed as L. Gordon, the Spokane detectives say. Literature in Watson's pockets at the time of his marriage to Margaret Burns had name of J. P.

Watson printed on it. Mrs. James Creamer. Spokane. Married Watson under the name of Athletic Club is constantly growing, according to Miss C.

J. Erickson, secretary of the Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs. The organization dinner, scheduled for the 12th Inst, will be held instead at next son was found In atsonS possession. Mrs. Goldensmlth also sent to Sheriff CHne telegrams and original letters in Watson's handwriting.

Woman prominent in Idaho. Watson said she was worth $30,000 and in his confession claimed credit for attempting to get the money. She Is now in Wallace. Idaho. Mrs.

H. L. Gordon of Saskatche Tuesday at Christopher's. Various Creamer In Coeur, d'Alene. Idaho, ciuo leacers wlU 1 Oct.

SI, He vanished March wan of 1. with approximately $4000 under the rled -Watson name of hers. Mrs. Creamer said her hus 77iii wonder instrument is easily within YOUR means our terms will mac it so. 4 Come in and hear iL tor Johniton 4 Murphy Fontw.ar fer U.

ii lVt 41W18 West Seventh Street to iT P. HIT T. STDFFT JT AT fr fr i-m -x 4.j the if 'vi band promised a trip to Mexico and South America, wanted to make wills In each other's favor, and showed all the earmarks of Watson. Sha identified a photograph of Watson as that of her husband. Now owns an apartment-house in Spokane.

POSSIBLE WITTS. Mrs. Florence Adelaide Long, wealthy widow of Venice. A will in her favor characteristio of Watson's first steps immediately preceding or following a marriage, found in Watson's possession. Will was made March IS, at tha time Watson had a room under the name of James Lawrence at the Seaside Terrace, Santa Monica.

The day after Watson's arrest woman dropped out ot sight and all efforts to locate her for further information have been to no avalL Mrs. Minnie E. Bui lew. Chicago. Wrote Sheriff Cline she feels certain Watson is her husband, he having married her.

'she said. In Chicago Inst fall under the name of Charles V. Gordon, one of his aliases. Shortly after marriage, Gordon disappeared with several thousand dollars' worth of diamonds. Description and details fit Watson.

Lillian Whitney, San Francisco. L. Gordon in Winnipeg on April 12, 1919. Ha deserted her eleven days later. Sha last heard from him from Oakland in December of last year.

Tie said ha was opening a bank near Davis, Cal. Following publication of news of Watson's arrest Mrs. Gordon brought photograph to Chief Constable McRaa of Vancouver, which was sent here and positively Identified as that of Watson. "I placed an inheritance of $10,000 In trust for my children where neither of us could touch It for twenty years," tha woman told Vancouver authorities. This undoubtedly was the reason why Watson deserted her.

She Is now In Vancouver. Mattla Irene Root, married Watson under the name of H. L. Gordon In Sacramento, March 1919. Letter signed Irene, accusing Watson of deception and threatening suicide, found In his possession.

It speaks of a trip to Honolulu and Australia and in every other detail checks up with Watson. The women was last reported to be living in Fan Francisco. "A Friend." Wallace, Idaho, or Kellogg, Idaho. Wiiter of an letter to Chief of Police at Ppokane, undoubtedly a wife of Watson's, who desired her name withheld from publication. Inclosed In her letter was an itinerary ff Watson from Dee.

24, 1911, to Feb. J. 1920. The itinerary was based on telegrams and letters she received from Watson from British Columbia. Washington.

Oregon, California and Idaho. The dates and places of mailing absolutely chetk with Watson's rnoementa as known; authoritles- EJiMSiu r. Williamson, Sacra- believed to have married Watson under name nf Walter Andrew Whit- ney in San Francisco. Oct. I.

1919. According to information given the officers here, Watson and Mr. Whit- ney came to Los Angeles after the wedding and resistered at the Alexandra. 1 K-lcher 2. ftr cunning th woman's check for Watson left for the Imperial Vslly and never came back.

Mrs. Whttny ts now in Frnrir..