The San Francisco call. [volume], March 25, 1907, Page 1, Image 1

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

Image provided by: University of California, Riverside; Riverside, CA

                
Chicago Beauty is Eclipsed by several fair Californians --- See Page 12
Legends of Easter flowers were never
gathered more fully or more interest
ingly than in the article to appear in
the -Easter number next Sunday of
THE SUNDAY CALL
VOLUME CL— NO. 115.
Graft Prosecutors Are After the Millionaire Bribe Givers
Brutal Murder of Aged Woman Is Followed by Arrest of Her Son
RISING WATERS
SWIRL THROUGH
SLOUGH CITY
Stockton Again Struggling
in the Throes of a
Serious Flood
STREAMS IN STREETS
Channels Are Broken and
Sections of the City In
undated
WORST STILL AHEAD
Fear That Island Levees
Will Break and Steamers
Take Persons Away
SPECIAL, DISPATCH TO THE CALL
STOCKTON, March 24.— For
the second time within the period
of a week Stockton is struggling
in the throes of a flood. Shortly
after 3 o'clock this morning
Miner channel, one of the tribu
taries of the Calaveras River,
overflowed its banks and inside
of an hour the entire residential
section of the city was covered
with water in depths varying
from three to eighteen inches.
The extreme \u25a0western portion of the
city suffered heavily on all sides.
The condition In this district, built?;
up by the rich and well to do. is seri- ;
ous. The San Joaquln River has reached
such a stage that Jt is impossible for
any water to flow off the land. Stock
ton channel, the main waterway reach-
Ing the city, has broken through its j
banks, an unusual occurrence, and its (
water Is circulating slowly throughout
the Western Addition. The water here t
has no outlet and Its steady accumu- j
latlon from various sources has com
bined to make the situation alarming, j
STREAMS IN THE STREETS
The business district along Main
street was free from water tills even
ing. Weber avenue and other impor
tant business streets \u25a0were carrying
streams of Calaveras water.
At no place in this city, has the water
yet. reached a point as high as during
the flood of test. Tuesday. All streets
are passable with the possible excep
tion of Miner avenue, where the water
breaks over the channel and enters the
city in a ewift torrent. The outlook is
uncertain, tor a large body of water Is
due and with no possible outlet.
The damage done by the last flood
was so great that the merchants feel
that th« present high water will not
Injure them In any great degree. Stag
nation marks all phases of Stockton
life.
MORE HIGH WATER FEARED
The rains were heavy late this after
noon and reports from the mountains
were that the amount of water there
was sufficient to keep the river at flood
stage for some time. ' More high water
Is expected here by tomorrow. Th-3
southern portion of the city is only
partly CQvexjjd. Backwater is working
havoc in this section.
The telephone service Is more crip
pled than over before. The majority
of the homes are furnished with natu
ral gas. and the mains have become
co clogged with water that many are
without heat and light.* The train ser
vice Is yet greatly Impaired. In order
to set large bodies of water free, Santa
Fe roadbeds have been cut by the
residents.
It Is. feared the Island levees, which
liave withstood former freshets of mag
nitude, will go through. AH day boats
of the transportation companies have
been, plying to and from the island,
bringing cattle to Stockton and rescu
ing those whoso lives were in Immedi
ate danger.
SITUATION DESPERATE
Levees Breaking and Residents on
Islands Appeal for Help
SACRAME^ T TO. March 24.— Reports
Irorai the down-river- islands tonight
were not of . rainbow color. The eltua-
Continued «\u25a0 rase 3, Colons a
The San Francisco Call.
INDEX OF THE
SAN FRANCISCO CALL'S
NEWS TODAY
TELEPnoXB TEMPOaARV 86
MONDAY, MAItCH 25. 1907
WEATHER CONDITIONS
YESTERDAY — lUtn: mtiiimjia temperature
S2, minimum ternprramrp 43,
FORECAST FOB. TODAY— Showers; fresh to
brif k southerly wind*. Peje 7
j EDITORIAL
j We mtj accept In tb* rnHrst wiw District
j Attorney LunjrdrmV assurance that there In «>tJ
drnce ami le and sufficient to convict the in-
I di.-ted boodlers. Page 6
Boodlrr Sam Darls' dearbtrap must he closed.
Pa*e 6
There Is notting In the world bo difficult as
the wise and lionent administration of charity.
i Pare 6
A* to Railroad Commissioner Wilson! Pa.cc- 8
GRAFT SCAXDAL
Bit) Industrial captains will be Indicted by
the Grand Jury. Fig* 1
To'edo officers unable to find PetwlJpr. the
Home Telephone Company brlbe-giTer, who Is
bellered to Lie In Egypt. Pfcgs 1
Ixiuls Clam*. Inditted manager of Pacific
States- Telephone Company, not yet located. P. 2
District Attorney Ijßnc<ion promises further
•ensational development* in lnreKtlgatlon. P&pe 2
Boodle Board of Supervisor* to resume Ipjjls
latlon for city today. Pace 2
/
j t-'ITV
Six tl-.ups hold up Helcht street restaurant at
3 a. :n. and after seenrins $56.50 make their
escape from district without being causrht by
the police. Pa*a 12
Three companies of First Itejriment, N. G. C,
will be reviewed this week by the State In
spector. P«*e 7
United Irish Socletlea appoint committee jto
confer with Gf rman Amertjan League oa fonn
inr an antl-En?llsh alliance. Pace 12
Bomance that opened in the Xorseland enfia
in the detention ward of the Receiving Hospital.
Par* 8
sininßA.v ,c*.Xi^;
Murder of ased widow in Oakland !• f«l-"
lon-ed by nrrest of her ima 6layer. Pa«e 1
Professor Clarke of State University issues
bulletin flvlng methods of eradicating hop
aphis. Pare 4
Obnrolies of Oakland observe Palm Sunday
with anthetn* end sermons. Pag« 4
Oakland real estate business Is helped creatly
by the forthcoming outlay by the city of $1,000.
000 on parks and Kewera. \u25a0 Ptfe 4
Eugene Sheffield and Mis* Florence Ward of
the University of California are married. They
will leave for several years' stay In tlie Alaklcan
mining regions. Pare 4
Captain Brothers, his wire and five danghtrrs
believed to hare twHshed on scow schor>nfr
Mjßier*. Pare 3
COAST
For the Rpcond time within a week Stockton
j streets are flnod^l by the overflow of Min-r
j Channel. It !s feared that island levee* «SU
! 1.r.-sk. Page 1
Engineer charged with responsibility for Santa
re wrevk in l»* Angeles says lie did not bare
time to read his ojxlerß. Pare 6
! Eight miners bai ird by avalapcbe of know oa
j Ilmve Mound and four killed. Pase 1
Portland citizens ptadf* |3fM>oo .for i: f.n't
j Investigation and tsk Ileney and Burns to con-
I duet H. Plje 1
QtUtfU irinerj esH rasssnieptlac for the'
j formation of a union independent of the Indjs
j trial Workers «>f the World. Pug* 4
<:illett pockets h!l! which tended to shut San
Fmncls<-o out of a dcelred wnter supply. In the
Tuoiumne River. Par* 3
United States watches with anxiety threatened
uprising In China due to spread of famine? P". 3
Unwritten law Is pleaded In Missouri rust
and slayer is acquitted. Page 4
Harry Thaw issues statement denying tlicrn-
I mor of diKsenttlon among his couutrL Fare 3
Atitomohlle of a i);iUe and Mii^; The>Nl<»»-ii
Shouts held up by Glen Echo Constable, who
fire* upon them for refusing to stop. Page 3
FOREIGN
President Bonilla of Honduras flees after the
defeat cf his a-%oy by Mcaragruans. Pare 5
SPORTS
' Manager Nolan, represetnlng Battling Nel- j
•on, refuses to confer with. Joe Gens' manager.. \
Pare 5
Walter Miller will ride Grazlallo. the favorite.
In tbe Besnings handicap today. Pare 5
Veteran greyhound. Friendless Boy. wins from
some speedy ooorsera at Ingleslde Park. Fare S
Gebhard . handicap for two-year-olds i will I>e
run at Emeryville on Saturday. Pare 5
San Francisco baseball team does brilliant
work In a practice game. Page 6
High scores made by riflemen at Shell Mound
In spite of tbc stunn. Page b
MARI.MS
Vessels engaged In . salmon trade In northern
waters prepare to doparC^loA^^ Par* 7
Mi.M^r;
Contracts are awarded ' for construction of
electric power plants to be tißid in- developing
copper mines in Shasta County. *'« Pare 6
Important meeting of hydraulic miners of Cali
fornia will be held this eprlnjr. Pare 8
(THE CALL'S
BRANCH OFFICES
Subscriptions and Advertise-
ments will be received in San
Francisco at following offices:
ICSI FIIiLMORK STREET
Open -until 10 ' o'clock ;«very night.'
818 VAX .NESS AVENUE
Parent's Stationery Store.
I SIXTEENTH AXD MARKET STS.
Jackson's Branch..
CSS HAIGUT STREET
Christian's Branch.
1096, VALENCIA STREET .""
Rothschild's Branch.: .
1531 CHURCH STHEKT
George ' Prewltt't Branch.
»200 KILLMOHI2 STREET
Woodward's Branch.
SAN : 3rRANCISCO^vMONI)A:Y; ; ]MAHCH 25, 1907.
A MURDER rivaling in horror, and ghastliness '.the grewsome tales of Edgar Allan Poe
was uncovered in Oakland yesterday by the- finding of the mangled corpse of an aged
widow in a closet in her home- and the subsequent arrest of her son as the slayer.
Find Bloodstains on Young Man
Jailed as Slayer or Mother
Woman who Trn» >ln!n, her ion, who U accused . of x murderlnc her, and a
diacram MhoTrlne the flat la T»h ich the pair lived and the manner In
which tbe body vraM .hidden. -\u25a0• ' '. ,' ' ','.... ']\u25a0_ .' ",'
EIGHT MINERS BURIED
BY SNOW AVALANCHE
Four Are Taken Out Dead
Vand- the Remainder
Found Alive ;^7!
EELLINGHAJI." Wash.. March 2t. —
Eight minors were buried alive in -an
avalanche -off-snow- at tlift' -.Britannia
mine on Howe Sound, forty miles north
of Vancouver, yesterday. morning. Four
wore taken out dead, and four were
rescued. Two Japanese : were in Jthe
group, and "one was --kil I cd. ", The' sur
names of. the" dead Britishers are Mc-
Bridgr,- Wilson 'and McPhcrson.. ".;-
The ' men; had been working :ln itlie
logging, camp owned by . tho Cooper
Company, securing material"; to timber
the mine. About 9 o'clock a; storm
broke over tho mountain, - and' the
workmen started down the, incline: to
tho inine. They had not proceeded far
when' a huge mass of snowv swept ' the
*sid«.of the hiU," burying the s mcn In its
path.' "."; " \u25a0' \u25a0\u25a0, \u25a0\u25a0' ' \u25a0\u25a0" : .". '•_\u25a0: \u25a0' '\u25a0
Fcllpw- workmen rushed instantly to
the-sccne and. began diggirig-*6ut their
CITIZENS OF PORTLAND
PLAN WAR UPON GRAFT
Pledge^^so,ooo "Fund and
Ask ; Heney and Burns
to Take Hold
PORTLAND,: March ,-24. — The : ' Ore
gonhin \u25a0 pays;_that. : 550,000- Ms \u25a0.-.being
raised as arftinvestigatlon"fund;to bring
Francis.. JrvHeney". and .' Special . Agent
Burns. to Portland.to?probe,into;munic
ipai \ graft. *;'A Transactions Tr= for years
back " will ', be "examined under .the
searchlight^of Hhetinvcstlgation. -
•; It is understood that a. small coterie
of ! citizens," allTor.whom'are, large tax
payers, 1 has .pledged' $5000.' as ,a i nucleus
for the - 150,000. ".Theso/citizenß* believo
that the moneylcan ; be « raised' within a
f ew; days.Tand - they, assert J^that .« lf more
than : $50.000 ; is necessary;. for ; a . thor-J
ough"' lnvestigation "it will be"obtalh
abie:- ' : v: /; ; "^ , ; " : .'.,':..;\u25a0. .-;
\ >The* exact nature ! of ;,the:transactions
which ; tho< investigators "want 'brought
to^ltghtMs'nbt'specined.r;-* * ; \\ "\u25a0\u25a0' : • :
comrades.' , ,Tha ; flfst out
"was aHvc'-butiunconscious.^, t < .:
'vN6no/6f'.the;reBcued*2men^ it y is, be
lieved, will fdie as' a I.result/of;the;acci
dent.. , "\u25a0''. . " -'* ""•'' ' ."\u25a0\u25a0 :"\u25a0\u25a0;. "<
Body Mangled and
Then Hidden in
Locked Closet
OAKLAND, March 24.—Se
curely'locked in a closet, the key of
which was missing, the corpse of Mrs.
Martha E. Soderberg, a widow, 64
years of age, was found with her throat
cut and body shacked 'about 9 o'clock
this morning in her home at 463 B
street in North Oakland, and tonight
Erland H. Soderberg, her sonra steye
dorcj employed; in San Francisco, is
confined in- the city prison as the mur
derer of his'mother. .
Evidence in the hands of tho police
points strongly to ; the guilt of the
prisoner. Every, circumstance surround
ing the case marks the crime as one of
cold-blooded ' atrocity, _ the - slayer, ' after
haying concealed the body, of the victim
in the closet, having spent some time in
attempting to - carefully ". remove every
trace of the crime.
*: The- body of Mrs. Soderberg .was dis
covered by Olgen H. Valentine,. -who
lives In the house adjoining that ; oc
cupied by Soderberg and - his mother.
Valentine , had . his - curiosity aroused
this morning, by the fact . that Mrs.
Soderberg, . contrary ;• to" her c usual cus
tom/ had not been outside ; the house
since about *4 o'clock, yesterday iaf terr
noon, ; and . entered the house to find
out whether or not ehe was ill.; After
going through the residence .and, find
ing: no .trace of the aged -woman, Val
entine.tried the door, of a closetin.the
parl6r, which hefound locked.
FIND BODY OF VICTI3I \
\u25a0 . \u0084 • ..•',•\u25a0 v- \u25a0'\u25a0\u25a0\u25a0\u25a0 \ \u25a0 \u25a0: . r \-\u25a0 '
- Belng/a close'friend ;of Soder
bergs. Valentine knew -that this
.was \, never locked' -under, ordinary* cir
cumstances, and as he had been unable
to find- any trace of Mrs.; Soderiberg In
the'; house "he feared ; thkt she;. might
iiavc locked herself >in the closet. and
"taken her; own life.' Hastening' from
the house, he went" to' the' home , of Mrs.
C.-M. Chiriatlanson. who owns the. house
ocupled; by the Soderbergs, at ;465 B
street.fto' secure a; key. With \u25a0which:jto
open :the "closet. Accompanied, by* Mrs.'
Christianson, he re-entered .the house
and* unlocked the" closet _'door; when; tho
discovery* wUs made ; that Mrs. " Soder
berg, instead .of. having committed sui
cide, "had been the ; victim of ;a' most
brutal murder. \, \u25a0' ;
•\u25a0> ..The ; body, Jwith-.throat rCiit . fromj ear,
to oaf.andailong.gash across;the.ab
domen, .was ,'. found" wedged "in van-? up- %
right* position; in a corner, of .tho closet/
Around '.• the-' head 3 and body; had »been
Continued on I'age S f Col unin 1
At one place in the world the Feast
of the Passover is still celebrated ex
actly as in Biblical times. Read the
illustrated article about it in
THE SUNDAY CALL
Big Industrial Captains
Will Be Indicted by
the Grand Jury
Graft prosecutors will indict all officials of corporations xoho in any
way aided or encouraged bribery of the Supervisors.
* * * * * * * *
y ...
Louis Class and Abram Detxviler, telephone magnates, indicted by
the Grand Jury, not yet located by the authorities.
* * * * * * * *
Ruef's lawyers carry a dismal message from the captive at the St.
Francis to the home of his partner. Mayor Schmitz.
*.V*«* * * * *
Supervisor Rea given the short end of the boodle because of ani
mosity existing between him and Gallagher.
Toledo Officials Are
Unable to Find
Detwiler
SPECIAL DISPATCH TO THE CALL
TOLEDO, Ohio, March 24.
That A. K. Detwiler, in^
dieted in San : Francisco for
complicity in the telephone
bribery cases, is in this coun
try is x now, firmly established
unless when he left Friday
night he left the country a
second time. The Toledo
police have been instructed
by the California authorities
to be on the lookout for Det
wiler, and if he can be found
to hold him for them.
Efforts to locate the son
of Special Agent Burns,
whom rumor has had in To
ledo for some days, proved
futile, and even the state
ment that the San Fran
cisc authorities had ordered
Detwiler ? s arrests was hush
ed up. for many hours. But
that Detwiler came to To
ledo is stamped with cer
tainty from the statement of
Mrs. -Detwiler givenout to
night.
1 'We arrived in Toledo
on Friday last, " said ; Mrs.
Detwiler. "and we went Immediately to
the^ home :of George DetwUer. . That
same night A. K. Detwiler left Toledo
for the, coast. -We . landed from our
trip abroad only a week ago. and.' l
wanted to remain In New York, but
Mr.' Detwiler insisted "on , coming to
Toledo and then proceeding to San
Francisco. I am in no way intimate
with Mr. Detwiler's "business deals
and could. throw, no light on them, even
if ', I . cared \u25a0to do • so. The story' that
Mr.t -Detwiler \u25a0 is ?in Antwerp or \u25a0 Cuba
or Belgium 'or Egypt waiting. for an
interview . with his attorney As alto
gether false. As George stated yestcr
day''and last night, Mr. Detwiler is on
his way to the coast, to f aco whatever
charges there are to/ face.
, "At the time he left Friday-night
I am sure ho did not know that he had
been indicted. ;Or course, he imd heard
of the other Indictments, and had read
of them in the papers. -It is likely that
he ; may have - expected just what ' has
happened, but I- do not think he knew
he' had -been indicted when \u25a0he left here
on (Friday, last. We went abroad pure
ly for, health and pleasure. At the time
we sailed; neitner. of us .had any Inti
mation of the affair nor were we try
ing to evade any action that has since
developed. The first we knew of ; , the
rumors to connect Mr. Detwiler with
the '\u25a0 telephone \u25a0 matters which "-.were pub
lished some , weeks ago, was , when
received copies of ? the Toledo , papers
sent by George ; to us. That, is, all I
\u25a0 know i of the affair. , But you can: rest
Continued oa Fate S, Middle Column 1
PRICE FIVE CENTS.
Evidence Secured
Is Complete in
All Details
Men who control San
Francisco's public service
corporations and who coun
tenanced the theft of fran
chises from the city by the
bribery of Ru'ef, Schmitz,
Gallagher and the Super
visors are to be the special
subject of investigation by
the J&rand Jury when it re
convenes today.
Langdon and Heney, cer
tain of the conviction of the
middlemen who passed the
bribes to Ruef and Gal
lagher, are ready to turn
their attention to the men
who made the giving of
those bribes possible.
Both Langdon and Heney
declare that the ultimate ob
ject of the investigation is
the conviction of these men.
What is much more siff
nificent is the authorized
declaration, that evidence
has been secured by Special
Agent William Burns which
makes the conviction of
these men just as certain as
th« conviction of their retainers who
passed the boodle that debauched the
Supervisor*.
EVTDEXCE IS COXCI.TJSIYE
Night visions of more than one bl?
Industrial chief in San Francisco wouM
be troubled if he knew the conclusive
nature of the evidence In the posses-*
sion of Burns.
It Is evidence which proves that the
officials of all the public service corpo
rations knew that the'special privileges
; they were seeking were obtained by
the* Irregular use of money and makes
them amenable to I section 31 of the
penal code of California.
This section will figure prominently
in tho points to be raised In court by
Langdon and Heney. It reads:
"AH persons concerned In the com
mission of a crime, whether it be fel^
ony or misdemeanor, and whether th«y
directly commit the act constituting' tho
offense or aid or abet in its commission,
or, not being: present, have advised and
encouraged its commission • • • are
principals in any crime so committed.**
corvvicriox is ckrtai:v
Langdon and Heney are naturally ad
verse to giving: publicity to the exact
nature of the evidence in their posses
sion, but this much can be announced
at this time:
The conTiction of both Ruef -and
Schmitz is assured. .
Four of the biggest Industrial chiefs
in San Francisco nill be indicted as
bribe- glTers. (
.^Sufficient eridencft. is in possession
of the prosecutors to send the middle
men who passed the" bribes to the
penlteutlar y.
Gallagher and his fellow JSojmx^