He then left the office, and in a few minutes returned with some money, which he tendered me, saying they would be glad to have me stay at their expense. I replied that I would not take the money, but having other work to attend to, I would call from day to day, and if I was put to much expense or loss of time, I would ask them to pay me, otherwise no charge would be made, explaining further that Pitezel was indebted to me, and if the claim was a genuine one I would be willing to devote some time to it in order that I could collect my money, which I had no doubt his wife would pay.
That afternoon I saw our attorney, he and Alice having arrived in the interim. I told him of my interview, and he at once said, “We shan’t collect a dollar. They have either substituted a body for the one you used, or your choice was so poor it had not deceived them.” He was in favor of abandoning the case and returning to St. Louis.
Finally it was decided that he should see the company the next day, but he insisted, as he said, for his own safety, that if we met at the company’s office he should not have it appear he had ever seen me before. The next day, about half an hour after I called at the insurance office, the president of the company, who I had met the day before, and our attorney entered the room where I was seated, and the following conversation took place:
Mr. -----, the president, then introduced me to our attorney, saying:
“This is Mr. Holmes, of Chicago, who carries insurance in our company, and who formerly was well acquainted with Mrs. Pitezel.”
Upon our shaking hands, he said, “I am glad to know you, sir.”
After some general conversation, I said, “The officers of the company inform me that you have certain letters and other papers in Mrs. Pitezel’s handwriting, and I think, if agreeable to you, I can identify them if belonging to him.”
Our attorney then turned to the president, saying, “Who is this man? Before I show any papers or have anything more to do with one who is apparently an outsider, I wish to know more about him.”
The president then said in a conciliatory manner, “Oh! I think you can depend upon Mr. Holmes acting independently and for the interest of all in the case. He is a man formerly in business in Chicago, and for whom Mr. Pitezel worked for a long time, and if any one is able to give an accurate description of him, Mr. Holmes should be able to do so.”
“My inquiry was a precautionary one,” said our attorney, “I am willing under those circumstances that Mr. Holmes should examine the papers and aid us if he can.”
During that afternoon our attorney entered into an agreement in writing with the company, stipulating, that in order to establish his claim, certain marks of identification should be found upon the body, which it had been arranged to have disinterred the next day. Among these marks should appear a large wart, or mole, upon the back of the neck, jet black hair, a cowlick upon the forehead, a peculiarly decayed condition of the teeth, a bruised thumb nail and a scar upon tone of the lower extremities.
That evening, quite late, our attorney came to me freshly terrified, and again ready to abandon the case. He had met a man named Smith, who, in conversation with him, had stated that while in Pitezel’s place of business he had seen a man come in and hold some conversation with him, who he had understood was a friend then living in the city. Smith had stated that the friend had not come forward at the time of his death and he thought it strange, and also remarked that if he ever saw the man again he would know him.
Mr. Smith was to be at the Coroner’s office next day, and was also to be present at the time the body was viewed. I told him that from what I remembered of the man Smith, I did not think he was a very close observer or overburdened with general intelligence, and I would take the chances of his recognizing me, rather than give up the case at that stage of it. Next morning we all met at the Coroner’s office. My judgment had been correct in regard to Smith. He noticed me only as he would have done any stranger, and upon being introduced to him, and being in his company and holding a general conversation with him, I met with the same result.
It was decided at the meeting at the Coroner’s office that later in the day those interested should go to the cemetery where the body would be exhumed for identification. This was done, there being in the party the president and two others representing the insurance company, a physician and a Deputy Coroner representing the city; our attorney, Alice Pitezel and myself, besides Mr. Smith before referred to.
Upon reaching the cemetery we were told that the body had already been placed in a small house and was ready to be seen.
I felt, that there being two other physicians present, it was not necessary for me to take part in the identification, unless called upon to do so; and had, upon first arriving together with Mr. Perry, taken the daughter to a distant quarter of the enclosure. The physician made the examination of the body, which lay in a well-lighted room; and, after taking abundant time for this purpose, came out of the building and announced that all marks of identification were wanting. After some further conversation, the president said to our attorney that they were satisfied before they came there that such would be the case, and a general movement was made preparatory to leaving the place.
The attorney asked me what I thought should be done, and upon my answering him, he told the president that he would like to have me examine the body as well. I asked the doctor if he would object, and he said “No,” but that I would not find it a pleasant task.
I entered the building, and hardly had passed the door before I was positive that the doctor had been mistaken in the color of the hair. Upon a close examination, all the marks were easily found; the wart upon the neck, equal in diameter to that of a lead pencil, and projecting fully a quarter of an inch from the surface; the cowlick, the bruised nail, the teeth decayed exactly as had been described; and lastly, the scar an inch and a half in length upon the foot.
I could do no less than call the doctor in, and one by one he grudgingly admitted their presence; and that there should be no further question as to the identity of the man, I asked him to remove the wart for microscopical examination, some of the hair, the nail and the scar. He said he had no implement with him and that he cared to use for this purpose. I had only a very small lancet, but I removed the necessary portions, and later turned them over to the Coroner’s representative.
I then endeavored to have a decision reached at once in order to save the necessity of the daughter seeing the body, feeling it to be cruel to have her do so, and if possible to prevent it. The president would not agree to this, but it was finally arranged that she should see only the teeth. All other portions of the body were therefore excluded from view, and I led the child into the building.
It was a terribly hard thing that I had to do, for she was but a delicate child of perhaps fourteen or fifteen years, yet she was courageous and very willing to do what she could.
Upon reaching the body she said, “Yes, those are papa’s teeth. I am sure of it.” I at once led her away, but I found the impression left upon her tender mind would remain as long as she lived, and have always felt it to have been a wholly unnecessary requirement upon the part of the company.
Without regard to what the reasons were, the doctor’s report was destined to cost me dearly, as will later be seen in this history. This ended the examination at the grave-yard, and we were all returned to the city.
Even at that time the officers of the company would not express themselves as willing to allow the claim, but later in the day they reluctantly admitted that they were satisfied with the identification. Upon reaching the Coroner’s office again, the Coroner very kindly offered to take my testimony the next morning, which was Sunday, in order that I could leave the city without further loss of time. After making this arrangement, I went to the insurance company’s office where I was reweighed, remeasured and in other ways readjusted my own insurance and later went to an undertaker’s office, and made every arrangement to have the body properly buried in a good locality, well satisfied to be able to perform t
his final act for my friend.
The next day at 4.30 P. M., having previously gone to the Coroner’s office, I left Philadelphia, taking Alice Pitezel with me. I had not heard from Miss Williams as I felt sure I should do, informing me of her expected arrival in New York, and thus not hearing, I addressed her there, asking both she and Hatch to come to Cincinnati as soon as they conveniently could, stating my reasons for asking them to do so.
Alice did not like to return to St. Louis on account of having told every one she knew before leaving that she was going away for the winter, although she would have been very glad to have seen her mother; and upon reaching Indianapolis I told her she could choose between returning to St. Louis or remaining there for the few intervening days while I went to St. Louis and returned with some of the rest of the family upon our way to Cincinnati, it having previously been arranged with Mrs. Pitezel that this move should be made at once to save commencing another month in St. Louis, where she was paying rent.
Alice having decided to remain in Indianapolis, I took her to Stubbin’s Hotel and left her there in charge of those whom I had become acquainted with during my previous stay in that city. The next day I received a telegram from the attorney, stating that the company had paid him the insurance, after deducting several hundred dollars for expenses, which, I think, was wholly unjust towards Mrs. Pitezel, the whole amount, if any, being due her.
I then returned to St. Louis, where, owing to my absence, my own case had again been postponed, and I therefore decided to return to Cincinnati. Taking the two children, Nellie and Howard, I started for that city via Indianapolis, telegraphing to the hotel to have some one accompany Alice to the train in the morning to join us. This was done, and at about 8 A. M. we reached the Cincinnati station where Hatch met us. It was the first I had seen of him since early in December of the previous year.
Miss Williams had remained in New York, being unwilling to go to Cincinnati where she had previously played, and therefore was known to some people.
Being in haste to commence my work among the real estate men, I gave the children into Hatch’s charge, and he took them to a small hotel near the station. But not liking the surroundings, I returned to the Hotel Bristol. I spent a very busy day, but was not successful in finding property to exchange for Chicago property, and at last I thought it safer to rent a house for a time and then, by advertising my property, find something more suitable for the children’s wants. I therefore hired a house, paying one month’s rent and six months’ water tax. I also made arrangements for its being comfortably furnished.
Miss Williams not having come, I looked around for some trustworthy person to care for the children until their mother could reach them. Mrs. Pitezel having a desire to visit her parents before going elsewhere, did so.
Not finding such a person as I wished, and not liking to leave the children without proper attention, I decided to take them with me to Indianapolis, where I expected to be engaged in some real estate work for the following two weeks. This I did. Hatch accompanying us, and then going on to Chicago from whence he returned in a few days.
We reached Indianapolis about October 1st; the children stayed one day at English’s Hotel, and then I engaged permanent board for them at the Circle House, my wife and myself being at another hotel near by, so that I could visit the children each day and know they were properly cared for. This form of life was new to the children, and they thoroughly enjoyed it, going about the city either by themselves, Hatch’s or my own company.
I shortly afterwards returned to St. Louis, and, upon entering the attorney’s office, he said, “Well, I am glad you have come; my partner had been wishing that you would return.” I said, “Why?” He replied, “Because he wants to get this matter settled up and get our fee out of it. You know how close work it was to get the company to believe the claim was straight, and something may occur to make them change their minds.” But, I said “Why has he to be considered, even in that event?” He replied, “Because, in a case as big as this, he will have to be considered; besides, if it had not been for his letter of introduction to Superintendent Linden in Philadelphia, the money would not have been paid.” I then told him that I had not yet seen Mrs. Pitezel, but we would arrange the settlement when I did so, and I would have her come in and sign the necessary papers later. “Well,” said he, “what do you think we should receive?” I said, “I have no idea; you must set your price, not I.”
He then said, “Well, usually in these insurance cases the attorneys get fifty per cent of the claim. I have asked three disinterested lawyers about it, and they say I ought to have that much, they not knowing it as a fraudulent claim, which makes it all the worse.”
My answer was, “Well, if it comes to taking $5,000, which, from your own statement to me, is more money than you ever before earned in your life, you will have the opportunity to keep the balance as well.” After some further conversation, he offered to choose an attorney if I would choose one, and leave the fee to their decision, and with this understanding I went away to return the next morning. When I returned he met me with the announcement that his partner would not agree to his proposition. I then said, “I wish to see him if he is the principal.” At that time I had never been introduced to him. He left his office in a few minutes and returned and conducted me into his partner’s private office. He was seated at his desk, apparently much too busy to leave his work for so small a matter as the settlement of a $5,000 fee.
Finally he turned upon me and, in an overbearing, bull-dozing manner, said, “What is all this trouble about? Don’t you expect to pay your attorney after you have hired him?” I was angry at his insolent manner, and at once told him that I would have no words with him. If they wished to receive $500 for their services (reminding him that had it not been for my presence in Philadelphia they would not have collected the claim, as he had shown so very little tact in treating with the company—so much so that they had been twice upon the point of ordering him from their offices) then that amount could be deducted, but no more.
He then said, “I will allow no man to come into my office and dictate to me in regard to a fee after the work has been done for him, and as for $500 it is an insult to offer it.” I then reminded him that I was not making it as an offer to him, one of the most prominent lawyers of St. Louis, but to his partner, a recent law graduate, to whom a $500 fee would be a large one, inasmuch as his expenses upon the trip had been elaborately provided for.
He said, “Well, we will take $3000 for this work and nothing less.” I replied, “It cannot be paid.”
He said, “Then there is no further use for us to discuss the matter.” Turning to his partner, he then said, “Go to the bank and get a New York draft for what you have left; I am going to return the money.” I said, “Very well, sir, nothing could be more to my advantage than this, and upon Mrs. Pitezel receiving the money direct from the company I shall tender to you your fee of $500.”
He replied, “You will never have a chance to do this; when the money is sent back I shall at the same time write a letter to my old friend, Captain Linden of the Philadelphia Police Department, stating that since my return we have found out that the claim is crooked and cannot handle such money, and that we think it our duty to aid him by placing him in immediate possession of all the facts pertaining to the matter; moreover, you are wanted in Fort Worth, Texas, and I shall at once cause your arrest before you can leave the city.”
I replied, “You could only cause me trouble in regard to the insurance matter at the cost of your partner’s disgrace.” He said, “It is not so; it would be the word of our firm, which is well known throughout the country, against your single statement, and you a man that has already been under arrest once and will be again inside of an hour.” This so angered me that I said, “You can send back the money, you can arrest me, but you cannot intimidate or browbeat me. I will spend ten years in the penitentiary before giving in to you now.”
Upon this I left the office. Mrs. Pi
tezel was seated in the outer room, having come in the meantime. I asked her to come at once to Judge Harvey’s office, and upon her hesitating to do so, when he asked her to remain a moment, I told her to make no settlement that involved a greater reduction than $500 from the amount the company had paid. Upon my doing this I left the office, and waited a long time for Mrs. Pitezel; and when she met me she was in tears and said that they would not let her leave the office until she allowed them to deduct $2,500 from the insurance money, and that she had also signed a long typewritten agreement of some kind. She then had the remainder of the money, about $6,000, with her, the lawyers having previously paid some bills upon her giving them a written order to do so.
Some days previous to this I had made arrangements that the amount of money to be used at Fort Worth should be paid at a bank at St. Louis in exchange for a note her husband had executed while there. *[5] Mrs. Pitezel went to the bank and lifted this note, and of the balance gave me $225 for my expenses, as she supposed. As a matter of fact, the $5,000 thus paid upon the note came to me, I having months before had to satisfy the claim by the use of other property. That afternoon, some time later, I left St. Louis, intending to return to Cincinnati and complete the arrangements there for the home of the Pitezel family. Before leaving St. Louis, however, I arranged that Mrs. Pitezel and the two other children should go to Galva, Ill., upon their intended visit to Mrs. Pitezel’s mother, and also made private arrangements to be informed of any movements that should be made by the attorneys detrimental to my interests.
Upon my returning to Indianapolis I found that both the children were apparently enjoying themselves. Hatch had received a letter from Miss Williams (to whom he claimed he was married) asking that we both meet her in Detroit. This meeting was delayed, as I had some more real estate work to do in Indianapolis which had been neglected, owing to the insurance work. While attending to this work I received word that the attorneys were intending to make trouble for me, and almost at the same time word came from Chicago that some Fort Worth detectives were again there, and had heard of my being in Cincinnati, Indianapolis and St. Louis.
Confessions of the Serial Killer H.H. Holmes (Illustrated) Page 9
