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Liar, Fraud, Cheat

Liar, Fraud, Cheat image
Parent Issue
Day
28
Month
April
Year
1899
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

LIAR, FRAUD, CHEAT

 

Asher Charged with Murdering Valmore C. Nichols.

 

HE BOUGHT THE ARSENIC

 

He Confesses to Defrauding Nichols and Others.

 

He Was Arrested Once Before on Charge of Murder Under Similar Circumstances—Something of His Fake Medium Career.

 

The closing scenes of the second trial of Edward Ascher alias Robert Lang for the murder of Valmore C. Nichols, the Pittsfield farmer, at Belle Isle, on Aug. 10 last, are being enacted in Detroit. The evidence for the prosecution was the same as in the first trial, excepting that it was stronger as to the presence of arsenic in the stomach of the murdered man. The defense on the first trial put in no evidence. On this trial Ascher's father and mother and two other relatives testified that he was at home on the night of the murder from 6 to 8 o'clock.

 

Ascher himself was put upon the stand yesterday. Ascher told of his first acquaintance with Nichols, the murdered man. He said that he first met him in March of last year. At the time, he was advertising for spiritualistic business under the name of Harry Raeder. He explained the taking of the alias of "Robert Lang" as follows: "When I first started out, several year ago, I had to choose a name quick and the first one that carne into my head was Robert Lang, the name of an old friend of mine in Detroit. I stuck to that name. I didn't mean anything wrong when I took the name, but took it because it was the first one that carne to my mind. "

 

Ascher went on to state that he first began to correspond with Nichols some time in March of last year, and that he afterward gave Nichols sittings at $1 each. He wrote letters to Nichols telling him what time to come into town to see him.

 

"How much money did you get out of Nichols?" asked Mr. Navin.

 

"About 60 or 70.'"

 

"Did he always come to Detroit to have his sittings?"

 

"'No; he would sit at home (Pittsfield) and I would sit in Detroit. "

 

"About what time did you look for the spirits each evening?"

 

"It would generally be about 8 o'clock."

 

"When did you see Valmore C. Nichols last?"

 

"I saw him at the home of Mrs. Schultz, 124 Lafayette ave., on Aug. 10 about 2 o'clock in the afternoon. "

 

"Did you go to Belle Isle with him on that night?"

 

"No I was at home all the evening.''

 

Ascher then testified that he did not , now what he was arrested for on the night of Aug. 19 and that none of the officers told him. He thought, however, he had been arrested for being a fake medium, the same as Gillman, Donovan and others. He stated that he helped the Evening News expose Donovan and received therefor $50.

 

He was going to quit the business anyway and thought that he might as well get all the money out of it that he could. When he carne home from his 12 years travel his folks did not know him. He stated that he did not know Witness Whitmore and never saw him before the last trial.

 

"Were yon ever arrested before?'

 

"Yes."

 

"Where?"

 

"In Louisville. "

 

"What for?" 

 

Ascher then stated without hesitancy : "For murder."

 

He then stated that on the hearing on the charge of murder the judge stated that there was not any evidence to warrant a trial of the case.

 

He then stated that while in Louisville he was an organizer for a spiritualistic society. He freely admitted laving swindled John Kuprion out of 60, but said that he advised Kuprion to get a belt and some money to put in it. Kuprion got the belt and $60 in tolcL While Kuprion was out of the room Ascher changed the 12 $5 gold pieces for 12 nickles and stated farther that Kuprion had furnished the nickles earlier. Ascher said afterward that he was obliged to do this for he had to have $30 to get his trunk out of pawn. He concluded his testimony by stating again that he knew absolutely nothing of the disappearance of Nichols.

 

In reply to Mr. Frazer's first question, Ascher acknowledged that he purchased four ounces of arsenic from Drug Clerk Frank Mead, but denied Mead's statement that he had said he purchased it to send to a friend in Canada.

 

"What did you buy it for?" asked Frazer.

 

"To kill fleas on Mrs. Schultz's dog."

 

He denied ever having purchased any copper wire.

 

"Ascher," said Frazer, "what were you doing previous to 1894?"

 

"Working at my trade as upholsterer, and in the theatrical business."

 

"How long have yon been a fakir?"

 

"Since 1894."

 

"Then yon have been a fakir for the last five years."

 

"Yes, all except eight months."

 

"Well, that's because you've been locked up in jail and couldn't be."

 

Ascher laughed and said it was.

 

"When did you first work this medium business?"

 

"In Denver, I gave private or individual sittings."

 

"What is that graft?"

 

"Oh, you just answer the questions they ask. "

 

"The questions just come in sealed envelopes, do they not?"

 

"Yes. I had to tear the envelope open and read the questions, and I would then slip the questions into another envelope and the sitter would not know that the envelope had been opened. "

 

"You must have been all right to do all of that while the sitter was looking at you."

 

"Oh, that was easy. I would do it behind the elates that I held up. '"

 

"And the 'sucker' would sit right in front of you all the time?"

 

"Yes."

 

He declared that he did not steal a piano in St. Louis, as has been stated, but merely rented it and left it for the people in the house to return. He said that he bought slates for 10 cents a pair and sold them to Nichols for $3, the other $7 which appeared on the express receipt he said was for the seven sittings Nichols had held by himself in his own home.

 

"Do you mean to tell me that you charged him a dollar every time he sat in his own home?" asked Frazer.

 

"Yes." 

 

"Well, how much did you charge him for living?"

 

This made Ascher smile.

 

"You have robbed Nichols ever since you have known him, haven't you?"

 

"Well, no, I can't call it robbing. He was satisfied. He paid me for my advice and services."

 

"Then you don't think you were doing wrong in cheating him?" 

 

"Well, I didn't put my hand in his pocket and take his money."

 

Ascher acknowledged that he had advised Nichols to wear the gold belt, telling him it would exercise a good spiritual influence. He said that he sent Nichols the belt at the same time he sent the slates.

 

"You have lied to Nichols, cheated and defrauded him out and out, haven't you?"

 

"Yes, I have."

 

"You told him the more gold he put in the belt, the better influence it would exercise?"

 

"Yes, sir. "

 

"You just told him to put in enough to go around hits waist, but you didn't tell him what size gold pieces to use?"

 

"No, sir."

 

Presently Ascher contradicted his previous statement that he had told Nichols the more gold he put in the better.

 

Mr. Frazer had the stenographer read it over, and then Ascher said he must have said that, but that he didn't mean it.

 

"You were lying then?"

 

"Well, I was humoring you. You ask the questions so rapidly. "

 

"Would you lie to humor me?' asked Frazer.

 

"Yes, sir. "

 

Witness then told how Nichols had written him that the belt was not Doing him any good, and that he was going to another medium. He had written Nichols telling him that no other medium could do any more for him than he was doing and that if the belt did not work, it was probably because there was not enough gold in it. He also said he did not charge Nichols for this advice. He told Frazer that he had never asked Nichols how much money was in the belt or what denomination it was, and that he never knew.

 

Witness admitted selling a belt filled with brick dust to Zibold, the insurance agent, and admitted also that he told him to wear also a gold belt.

 

"You just deliberately swindled him?"

 

"Yes, I suppose that is what you would call it. "

 

"Cheating, defrauding, lying and swindling were your principal business, were they not?"

 

"Yes."

 

Ascher said Nichols had given him $25 on the Saturday before he went away, and that part of that he invested in a pair of shoes, and a part to go to Island Lake. He also borrowed $18 from his mother that day, when he had $75 in his clothes.

 

Then Frazer got back to the dog and the arsenic, and Ascher told how he had purchased the drug, but afterwards threw it away, as be remembered that his brother Louis, who was a dog fancier, had used tobacco stems soaked in water to kill fleas.

 

Then the story of the peculiar death of Mrs. Sabre Gates, the old lady of 60 years of age, down in Louisville, was brought in. Ascher told his version of it in an easy manner. It ran this way :

 

Mrs. Gates went to him for sittings, and he swindled her out of two or three dollars. He was called in when she was taken ill, found her in a dying condition, and advised sending for a doctor. Dr. Robert M. Pffeiffer, her family physician was sent for. Ascher denied ever giving Mrs. Gates magnetized water, and putting cocaine into water. He stated that Dr. Pffeiffer had told him he had been treating Mrs. Gates for kidney trouble.

 

The surprise witness of the day was Dr. Robert Pffeiffer, of Louisville, who was brought up by the prosecution to testify about the Gates death. Ascher started when the name was called, and appeared very ill at ease all the time the doctor was on the stand.

 

Dr. Pffeiffer contradicted Ascher's story in many points. He denied having said that he was treating Mrs. Gates for kidney trouble. The case struck him as being very strange, and as a result he was instrumental in having "Lang" arrested. He said that Ascher had denied knowing anything about Mrs. Gates' watch, but that the pawn ticket was taken from him at the Louisville police station when he was arrested. The doctor attended the postmortem, and expressed his opinion from the analysis made of her stomach, lungs and brain, that she had died of cocaine poisoning. He testified that Urs. Gates' son Rufus, had told him that "Lang" had been giving his mother "magnetized water," and that 'Lang," in the presence of reporters in Louisville, said that he had magnetized waters, but that no one could do it but people in his business.

 

The arguments began this morning.