THE MURDER AT ST. LOUIS.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1535, 22 July 1886, Page 1

THE MURDER AT ST. LOUIS.

The detect ire’s evidence at the Brooks trial at St. Louia has excited a great gensntiou. He stated that he bad com* mitted a pretended forgery in February last, and been arrested and lodged in gaol with Brooks for the purpose of ganiog his confidence and securing his true con* Cession, The plan worked perfectly. About ten days after arriving in the gaol Brooks told him the whole story. They were frequently thrown together, and the detective gained his confidence by pretending to be an expert forger. Brooks began by saying that if be could secure two witnesses to testify right, he would be able to escape. He wanted them to testify that they had seen him have in Boston before going to St. Louis seven or eight hundred dollars. That would account for the money he had alter the murder. The detective promised to got two of his gang of forgers to testify to this. He then asked Brooks to tell the whole story of the murder. ; This he did as fol'own—“ I first met. Prefer in Liver-,-.

pool, ami afterwards on the steamer bound for Boston. We passed some weeks together in Boston, and subsequently we both arrived at St., Louis. There we bad a talk about ( ;going to Auckland I was anxious to accompany Preller, and desired bim to pay tbe expenses. Treller said be bad oply enough money to pay his own. ( I then determined to fix bim for bis meanness. He occasionally bad pains in the stomach. One Sunday afternoon we went to my room, aid be whs attacked by a pain in the abdomen. 1 told him I had a remedy, and asked him to try it. Ha naked wbat it was, and I told him it was hypodermic injection of morphia. He said, “ I will try it if it will do me good," I took a syringe and gave him a good dose in the arm. He went to sleep. I then got chloroform and held it under his nose till it was ail gone. He was still breathing, and so I went out and got some more chloroform and held a saturated cloth under his nose until he was dead. I got 700dol. from him, threw my things nut of my trunk, and put the bedy in. Next morning I bought t>o trunks, placed my things, and skipped.” When Brooks saw th® detective appear in the witness-box be started from his seat, bis face blanched with terror. He then sank, cowed and trembling, into his chair, hut soon recovered httneelf.