Burnham/Wayne Killings

Arthur J. Burnham.

A. Burnham & Family

Henry & Blanche Wayne

Blanche Wayne

September 21, 1911

Colorado Springs Gazette, Colorado Springs, Colorado

SIX KILLED IN WHOLESALE MURDER
MAN, TWO WOMEN, THREE CHILDREN MEET DEATH AT HANDS OF FIEND WITH AX
Two Whole Families Almost Completely Annihilated; Henry F. Wayne, Wife and Infant; Mrs. Alice Burnham and Two Babes the Victims; A.J. Burnham, the Surviving Husband, Taken Into Custody.
    The most fiendish murderer this city has ever known stalked red-handed in Colorado Springs Sunday night, and all his victims, six in number, were killed as they slept, their heads crushed with an ax.
    The dead:
    Henry F. Wayne, aged 30 years; his wife, Blanche McGinnis Wayne, aged 26, and their baby daughter, Blanch, 2 years old, 743 Harrison place.
    Mrs. Alice May Burnham, 25 years, wife of Arthur J. Burnham, a yardman at the Modern Woodmen sanatorium, and her two children, Alice, 6 years, and John, 3 years old, of 321 West Dale street, but a few steps from the Wayne house.
    Little Alice Burnham, judging from the position in which her body was found, was awakened and tried to escape. But the murderer struck her down and she fell partly across the body of her mother. With the exception of the little girl, all the victims were evidently killed either before they awoke or before they had a chance to move.
    Burnham was brought to Colorado Springs from the sanatorium an hour after the wholesale murder was discovered, shortly before 2 o'clock yesterday afternoon, and is being held at the county jail.
    He is not charged directly with having committed the brutal crime, but the authorities are working on clews that may make it extremely difficult for him to disprove their theories.
    At the county jail last night Burnham declared to newspaper men:
     "You will have to look elsewhere for the murderer."
    In the absence of any clews Burnham will be called upon to tell where he was between 7:30 o'clock last Sunday evening and 5 o'clock the following Monday morning.
    The crime, committed Sunday night, as nearly as can be determined, was not discovered until about 2 o'clock yesterday afternoon. Mrs. Nettie Ruth, 931 South Sierra Madre Street, a sister of Mrs. Burnham, and Miss Anna Merritt, 730 North Pine street, were the first to find the bodies in the Burnham home.
    An odor of decayed flesh greeted them as they opened the back door of Burnham's house with a key secured at the home of Miss Merritt, half a block away.
    "Oh, suppose we find May and her babies dead in the house," exclaimed Mrs. Ruth as she and Miss Merritt neared the Burnham home. "It would be terrible, terrible!"
    Together the two women unlocked the door in the rear of the house. The lock caught and it was a minute or two before they could turn the key. On a table in the little rear room, used jointly as a kitchen, dining room and bedroom, were the remains of Sunday evening's supper, "just the same," Mrs. Ruth declared last night, "as when I left my sister's house Sunday night about a quarter after 9."
    The bed in the rear room had not been disturbed. The women pushed open the door leading to the front bedroom half expecting to see some signs of a tragedy, but little suspecting the shocking sight that confronted them.
    Over on the bed there appeared to be a pile of bed clothing, but Mrs. Ruth declared she did not at once see the dead forms upon it. She first ---- the great splotches of blood on the wall and then the body of her little niece, lying on the edge of the bed with her skull crushed.
    The women did not look further, both ran screaming from the house. Two men who were passing the house went in while the women waited. - moment later they rushed out and the story of the triple murder spread like wild fire.
AUTHORITIES NOTIFIED
    The coroner, police and sheriff's office were notified by telephone and officers were rushed to the house of death -- automobiles. Almost immediately after the arrival of Coroner Jackson at the scene, neighbors remarked that no one had seen about the Wayne house, just a few steps from the Burnham's back door, since Sunday last.
    Assistant Police Chief Springer and --her officers forced an entrance into the house and found Wayne, his wife and baby lying dead in the same bed. Their skulls, as was the cause in the house next door, had been beaten in with some heavy instrument. A blood-stained ax was found at Wayne's backdoor. It had been borrowed from Mrs. J.R. Evans, a neighbor, by Wayne, a few days ago to chop wood. Hundred flocked to the scene of the wholesale murder. Men cursed and swore and threatened lynching if the murderer could be found, women and children with faces white and tear stained formed in groups and talked in whispers of the terrible tragedy.
    Inside the houses of death the corner, the police, the sheriff and his --des and Deputy Attorney Burns of the district attorney's office and his assistants were searching for clews and probable motives of the crime.
ROBBERY NOT OBJECT
    That robbery was not in the mind of the murderer was shown in this-old bracelets were upon the arms of Mrs. Wayne; a gold watch lay on a dresser in the Burnham home. Nothing was molested in either house, the midnight intruder was content when he saw the bodies of his six victims stretched out before him.
    The doors of both houses were locked with keys, showing the murderer, for reasons not yet brought out, made his exit in each instance from a window. The authorities have arrived -- the conclusion that at Wayne's home the rear door was opened with a skeleton key made of twisted wire. This was close to the door sill. A part of the screen door, sufficiently large to allow the murderer to reach through and raise the hook that fastened it, had been cut away. The murderer left the house, it is believed, by a window.
    At Burnham's home entrance was made through a window on the east side of the house. A bottle of ink, standing on the sill, was overturned, some of it spilling on the floor, and an attempt had been made to wipe it away.
    Where is Burnham? was the question that at once suggested itself to the officers. Where is the only survivor of two families?
BURNHAM IN CUSTODY

"Find Burnham," was the order, and deputies and detectives shot away in an automobile toward the Woodmen sanatorium, 12 miles away, where the man is employed as a yardman.
    Burnham already was on his way to town, having been notified by telephone that his wife and children had been murdered, and the officers met him a few miles north of the city. He was riding in a laundry wagon.
    "My God!" he exclaimed, "how did it happen? Did they get killed in a railroad accident?"
    He joked and talked with the officers about other matters on the remainder of the trip back to the city, the party reaching his home about 3 o'clock. With police on each side, he was taken into the house and up to the bed where his wife and babies were killed.
    If the officers and newspaper men present expected to see the man break down at the sight, they were disappointed. Burnham to all appearances, was the least affected of any of those who stood in the little room. If his face blanched at the sight, it was not detected. If a tear dropped from his eye, it fell unnoticed, if his hand trembled or an eyelid twitched, no one saw it.
APPEARS UNMOVED
    Burnham was unmoved, outwardly, at least, and he betrayed no sign.
    He moved about the room, making a clucking sound with his mouth, and occasionally murmuring "It's terrible, it's terrible."
    "Nothing's torn up around here," he remarked as he glanced about the room.
    "This is where one of the little babies lay." said Deputy Attorney Burns, pointing to a crimson spot on the bed.
    "God, but it's awful," said Burnham, scarcely above a whisper.
    "I don't see how a man could commit such a crime and sleep over it." one of the officers remarked, to which Burnham shook his head from side to side and made the clucking noise with his tongue.
    Asked if he wanted to see "them," Burnham replied that he wanted to see his "children."
    Stepping into the other bedroom, which had not been occupied Sunday night, Burnham noticed a little pile of ashes in front of a stove.
    "How did that get there?" he asked
    The officers said that they did not know.
    Burnham's demeanor was the same when he was taken to the Wayne house, and he did not display any unusual interest when shown the ax with which the six murders had been committed.
SEES WIFE AND CHILDREN
    From the two houses Burnham was taken to the morgue, where the bodies lay. Here, too, those who may have expected to see the man break down or give way to emotion were disappointed. The few words that he spoke in answer to questions were in a voice that had no tremor; his face was its natural color and his eyes were dry.

Burnham Cottage, 321 West Dale St. Tragedy took place in the front bedroom, the window which shows behind the hammock

The Wayne Home, 742 Harrison Place
The family were killed in the front bed room, show to the left of the picture

    As he was led up to the bodies in the morgue, he said:
    "That isn't my little child. My girl's got lighter hair than that." Afterward, however, he recognized his child. He made no comment as he stood looking at the body of his wife. While he was still at the morgue, Burnham declared that he had done nothing.
    "Don't waste time with me." he said to the officers, "but get busy with someone else. Whoever did this must have been an enemy of hers (Mrs. Burnham) -it couldn't have been of mine."
    He made no protest, showed no sign of concern or alarm, when officers and Deputy Attorney Burns informed him that he would be held for further investigation.
    At the county jail, where he was taken from the morgue about 5 o'clock, Burnham again declared that the authorities would have to seek elsewhere to find the murderer.
    Today Coroner Jackson will swear a jury over the bodies. The inquest will be held this afternoon, probably at 2 o'clock.
TRIED TO FIRE BURNHAM HOME
    That the murderer tried to set fire to the Burnham home with a view to burning the bodies of three of his victims is a feature of the case brought out yesterday afternoon.
    Officers found part of a Sunday newspaper, crumpled and partly burned, lying close to a window curtain in Burnham's home. The bottom of the curtain was charred, and the theory is that the murderer, after crushing out the life of his last victim, sought to fire the house.
    With the exception of Burnham, no arrests have been made in connection with the crime. No one, so far as police hase been able to learn thus far, saw anybody enter or leave either the Wayne or Burnham home Sunday night.
    So far as been discovered, Mrs. Ruth, a sister of Mrs. Burnham, was the last, with the exception of the murderer, to see the members of the little family alive. This was after 9 o'clock Sunday night.
    From the condition of the bodies, as well as from the opinion of physicians and the statements of neighbors, the authorities are proceeding on the theory that the murder was committed last Sunday night or very early Monday morning.
BOY CALLS AT HOUSE
    A grocer's boy, whose name is not known to the police, called at the Burnham home Monday morning to collect a bill. He rapped on the door a number of times, but received no answer. He supposed that the family was asleep and returned to the house again Tuesday morning. Again he received no reply and for the third time, yesterday morning, the boy went to the house. He attached no significance to the fact that the house was closed and had been so far two days, supposing that the family was away.
    Relatives and friends of Burnham were united last night in expressing the belief that he is innocent of any connection with the crime. His sister in law, Mrs. Ruth said that the man had always been on the best of terms with his family and that here were no enemies known to her. His thoughts, she declared, were always of his two little children, and the day, twice a month when he had a holiday at the Woodmen sanatorium was always spent with his family. His day off heretofore has been on Sunday; last week he changed to Wednesday, and that day, Mrs. Ruth declared, he was at home with his wife and babies.
    Burnham and his wife had been married for seven years and there were only two children. It was learned at the examination of the morgue yesterday that Mrs. Burnham was in a delicate condition.
WELL KNOWN HERE
    Burnham, his sister in law says, is about 40 years old. He has been a resident of Colorado Springs for about 16 years, and is known to many here. He has been employed at the Woodmen sanatorium for the last two years, and for five years was a cook and a baker at Tucker's restaurant. Before that time he conducted a candy store at different times in various localities in the downtown district. He was a member of the Colorado Springs camp of the Modern Woodmen of America.
    Mrs. Ruth, nearly prostrated with grief, said last night that there had been no family discords. She was unable to throw any light as to the probable cause leading up to the crime or why the murders had been committed.
NO LATE DEVELOPMENTS
    Early this (Thursday) morning there were no special developments in the case.
    But little is known here about the Wayne family, except that they had lived on Harrison Place for about a month. Wayne, who was a Modern Woodman, lived at the sanatorium north of Colorado Springs for several weeks as a patient. Recently he brought his wife and baby here from Indiana. The couple were married August 29, 1908.
    Burnham and Wayne were acquainted and apparently both men and their families were on friendly terms. Burnham, it is said, told Wayne of the vacant house near his own home a short time ago and Wayne subsequently rented the place.
    An examination of Wayne's personal effects disclosed the fact that he had deposited $55 in the Colorado Savings bank, August 31, soon after his arrival in Colorado Springs from Indiana. This money, Mrs. Wayne is said to have told neighbors, was received from the sale of furniture at their home in the east.
    The police are convinced that robbery was not the motive in the murder of either family. Jealously or revenge, perhaps both, forms the theory on which the investigation hinges at present.
    It was long after midnight when the investigations of a crime which for cold-bloodedness and brutality has never been equaled here.

TERRIBLE TRAGEDY A MYSTERY TO ALL
Close Friends and Relatives Talk Details of the Discovery. Dr. Rutledge of M.W.A. Sanatorium Believes Burnham to Be Innocent. Wild Rumors Are Circulated.
    It was at the suggestion of her murdered sister that Mrs. Nettie Ruth, 931 South Sierra Madre street, gathered a few of her sewing articles and started for the Burnham home yesterday afternoon.
    The story leading up to the occasion of the visit and of her discovery, which gave residents of Colorado Springs the first inkling of the worst murder in the history of the city, is best told by Mrs. Ruth.
    "I was over at sister's house Sunday evening," Mrs. Ruth said between sobs, as she sat on the porch of an adjoining house, amid a throng of sympathetic and curious women. The sister referred to was Mrs. Burnham. "We had a good time talking with each other.
    "I was just getting ready to go home when she told me that she had a lot of sewing to do. That I told her I was in the same fix.
    "Then, why can't you come over Monday afternoon and we'll work and talk together?" she asked. "I had other work to do on Monday and Tuesday, but said that I could come over Wednesday afternoon."
    The two sisters agreed upon the time, Mrs. Ruth said, Very little preparation was necessary on her part to carry out the engagement.
BLINDS WERE DRAWN
    "I wasn't in any particular hurry," Mrs. Ruth continued, "knowing that we had all afternoon to sit and talk and sew. But I never felt that anything was wrong when I tried the door and found it was locked. I started around the house to try the other door, when I noticed that the window blinds were drawn.
    "She's gone over to Anna's, was the first thought that entered my mind. So I started over there to find her."
    The Anna referred to is Miss Anna Merritt, 730 North Pine street, who was a particular friend of Mrs. Burnham, and who was with Mrs. Ruth when the murder was discovered.
    At the Merritt home, Miss Merritt had not heard of nr seen Mrs. Burnham for several days. Then it was that a suspicion entered the mind of the sister and friend, Miss Merritt, that something was wrong.
    But before going further, Mrs. Ruth called the Modern Woodman sanatorium over the telephone and asked for Mr. Burnham. He had not been to town since the preceding Wednesday, he said, and could give them no information as to his wife's whereabouts. But there was a note of worry and anxiety in his tone, ending with the query if anything else was wrong.
OPEN DOOR WITH ANOTHER KEY
    It was with a rush that the two women found a key-it was Miss Merritt's house key, and started for the Burnham home, hoping against conviction that there was a note of explanation in the house that would allay all fears. It was Miss Merritt who turned the key in the door and started in.
    At this point Mrs. Ruth broke out anew, and found refuge for her sobs and troubles on the shoulder of her friend Miss Merritt.
    She had reached the point in her story where the two women pushed through the door, and were met with a stench that almost overcame them although they were in the kitchen. With but little hope left, but bound to know the worst, they advanced to the half open door and led into the combined bedroom and sitting room, Miss Merritt leading the way.
    "We first saw the red blotches on the wall," Mrs. Ruth managed to life her head up and say, "and then and then we saw a form on the bed. It must have been little May."
    Mrs. Ruth was unable to proceed. Her grief was uncontrollable. It was Miss Merritt who hinted, through glances, for the questioner to leave.
MISS MERRITT'S STORY
    The statement from Miss Anna Merritt, 730 North Pine Street, corroborates in full that by Mrs. Ruth concerning the discovery. Although completely unnerved and forced to find refuge in bed from the nervous shock and grief, she was able through a friend to go further and explain how the news was spread.
    Miss Merritt and Mrs. Burnham were friends for years. It was at the home of Miss Merritt that the murdered woman and two children stayed in the latter part of last winter and during the the early part of spring, while Burnham was working at the sanatorium. So firm was her friendship with Mr. and Mrs. Burnham and the children, that Miss Merritt was almost considered one of the family.
    "I was naturally worried about Mrs. Burnham from the first," Miss Merritt gave out. "We were always intimate and I thought it rather strange that she had not been over to see me. It just happened, I guess, that I didn't go over to see her. But I just naturally concluded that she was off, visiting with some of her folks or out at the sanatorium.
SURPRISE BY MRS. RUTH
    "I was greatly surprised when her sister came and asked me where she was. It was then that I got the key and went with her to the house.
    "I didn't want to think of it, but I could not help but feel that something awful had happened, when I first entered the house," Miss Merritt continued. "I nerved myself, and had hold of Mrs. Ruth's hand. I was certain that we would find something in the other room that would be awful, but we couldn't help but keep right on.
    "The room was dark, owing to the window blinds being down, and we could not see very much in the bedroom. The first thing I noticed was the blood on the wall. We got to the door and saw the form of one of the children lying on the bed. We didn't wait to see any more, but went right out."
    Across the street at the Collins grocery store, two telephone calls were made by Mrs. Ruth and Miss Merritt. One was to the police and the other was to the coroner. This was about 2 o'clock in the afternoon.
AT THE WAYNE HOUSE
    News of the murder spread like wild fire, but not until several minutes after Mrs. Ruth and Miss Merritt told of what they had seen in the Burnham home, and some of the officers had arrived on the scene, was their attention called to the Wayne cottage, a few yards away.
    But more than one neighbor had wondered during the last day or two prior to the discovery of the murder, why the house was so silent? Why were the window blinds drawn? Why the strange disappearance of the girlish looking wife, the happy father and the laughing little baby?
    Almost all were of the same mind-would they find, upon investigation, another scene just like the one that confronted the officers when they entered the Burnham home?
    There is a probability though that the murder in the Wayne home would still be undiscovered, had not Mrs. F.E. Campbell, 315 West Monument street, told of her fears.
    It was to F.H. Springer, assistant to Acting Police Chief Himebaugli(?), that she first told of her feelings that there was a horrible solution to the quiet that had reigned about the Wayne home for so long. Other neighbors gave voice to the same misgivings.
FEARS CORROBORATED
    It took just a minute for Springer to act. He rushed to the front door of the Wayne home and almost broke the door down in entering. He was followed by other officers and authorities, and the fears of the neighbors were corroborated at the first glance.
    Everything was in plain sight. The bed on which were found the almost nude and hardly recognizable bodies of Mr. and Mrs. Wayne and their little baby was but a step or two from the door. The light from the open door was sufficient for the officers to take in all the details of the horrible scene. Little variation from the manner in which the Burnham murder took place, was found at the Wayne home. There were the bodies of father and mother, with their faces and heads crushed, and there was the form of the little baby, with gashes, cuts and bruises over its facial features and head.
    "I don't believe that I felt any different than any other of my neighbors," Mrs. Campbell said last evening. "I just couldn't help but think that something was wrong, when I found out what had happened at the Burnham home. I was hoping, but what was the use? But why did they want to kill that poor baby?"
    The finding of the bodies in the separate homes followed in quick succession. In fact, almost as soon as it was generally known that there was a murder at the Burnham home, the second wholesale killing became public.
NEAR NEIGHBOR TALKS
    No one was more surprised at the murder than Mrs. C.L. Brown, colored, living at 317 West Dale Street. She was the closes neighbor to the two families.
    A narrow street, almost like an alley, separates the Brown and Burnham homes. South on the street, about 40 feet, is the Wayne home. Mrs. Brown was probably the only one in a position to hear a noise, if there had been any at either home.
    "We were never over neighborly," was the statement made by Mrs. Brown, "but the Burnhams and the Waynes were always nice to me, especially the Burnhams. I did not know the Waynes very well. They came here only a week or two ago.
    "I never had an idea that anything was wrong. I know that Mrs. Burnham and Mrs. Wayne visited each other quite often and they seemed friends and nice to each other.
    "I left home Sunday afternoon-went to church. I remember seeing someone on the back porch of the Burnham home when I left, but I never paid any particular attention, other than to know that it was one of the members of the family. I was gone until late, returning about 5 or 6 o'clock in the evening.
RECALLS NO NOISES
    "I went out again after supper, but returned home about 8 or 8:30 o'clock. I didn't pay any attention to either one of the two homes, and do not recall if there was anyone around the places, or if there were any lights. I was home the rest of the evening and not recall any unnecessary noises during the whole night.
    "I noticed that the blinds were drawn at the Burnham and Wayne homes on Monday, and I thought they were away on a visit. I never gave it a second thought until today, and even then I did not have a suspicion that a crime had been committed."
    None of the roomers at the Brown home recall any noises or cries at the Burnham or Wayne homes on the night the murder is supposed to have been perpetrated.
LAST SEEN SUNDAY
    One of the last persons who saw the victims alive was Grant Collins, who runs a grocery store diagonally across the street, east from the Burnham home. This was on Sunday afternoon, when every member of the two families but Burnham was at the store.
    "Wayne was a friends sort of fellow, and I liked him very much, although we had only been acquainted a little more than a week." Mr. Collins said. "They all came in here Sunday afternoon about 2 o'clock. I was loafing and we went in the back part of the store and stayed until about 4:30 o'clock."
    "We talked on several things and were getting well acquainted. Wayne told several good stories, and I was sorry when he told me that he had to go home. I thought it was kind of funny that I did not get to see him either Monday or Tuesday. It was the same way with the Burnham family. Someone from one of the two houses was in the habit of visiting the store and buying something almost every day."
NEWS SPREADS QUICKLY
    With almost the same breath, seemingly, that broke the news to the police and county authorities, the public in general was told the fearful facts. As if it had been carried by the wind, the crime was the talk in almost every home and store in the city, within a short time after it became known.
    People were talking about it on the streets. Business men would stop each other, and ask: "Have you heard of the awful crime?" Even in Colorado City and Manitou it soon became a matter of general conversation and many were the telephone calls made to The Gazette, police headquarters and sheriff's office, asking for further information. There was no cessation during the day of inquiries made by persons wishing to follow the advance of the authorities in their efforts to obtain some clew that would lead to a motive for the crime. And late last night and at an early hour this (Thursday) morning, calls kept coming in at The Gazette office, asking for the latest news.
    It would be hard to describe the scene on West Dale street in front of the Burnham home, and at the Wayne home. People in automobiles, buggies, motorcycles and bicycles began arriving almost simultaneously with the officers. Later they were followed by persons afoot, and the street car company did a good business hauling men, women and children on the Tejon and Spruce street lines to Dale street.
CROWDS TO RUSH TO SCENE
    In the crowd could be found some kindly, sympathetic friends of the murdered families, but the majority was composed of what one officer termed "the morbid curious." Two hours from the time when the crime became known the street in the 300 block on West Dale street was filled with automobiles, vehicles of every description and pedestrians.
    Seemingly, the greatest delight of those called to the scene through curiosity, was to follow the coroner, policemen and officers from the sheriff's office as they went about their work, looking for clews. They gathered at the windows and it was difficult to keep the crowd back, when a door leading to one of the homes was opened.
    Mrs. Ruth and Miss Merritt came next in serving to appease the curiosity of the visitors.
    Then came the men and women who had stories to tell of incidents touching upon the lives of member so the two murdered families. One man could not recall whether it was last Saturday, or a week ago last Saturday, that he had seen Wayne standing in the doorway of his little home, but the story served its purpose. He was the center of a group of men, women and children, who were anxious to gather any kind of gossip that might pertain to the crime. Darkness alone dispersed the throngs. Then they apparently moved their headquarters to a place in front of the morgue, where the bodies are held. There was a big crowd in front of the place until late last night.
SAYS BURNHAM INNOCENT
    "The idea is preposterous," is the comment made by Dr. J.A. Rutledge, superintendent of the Modern Woodman sanatorium in regard to the theory held by some that Burnham is responsible for the six murders.
    "When it first became known that Burnham was suspected," Dr. Rutledge continued, "I started an investigation, and so far as I have found, there is no possible way to connect him, although the investigation was made with a view to spare no one. Wayne is a Modern Woodman as well as Burnham, and we are deeply interested in trying to find out the guilty person or persons.
    "Inmates and workers at the sanatorium are in the habit of getting one day in every two weeks for themselves. Burnham is a laborer and Sunday was his regular day off. He made arrangements so that he could get away Wednesday last week. This he did, but he was back at work Thursday morning.
CAN ACCOUNT FOR MOVEMENTS
    "I can account for him from his co-workers for every minute of every other day up to the present time. Sunday, on which evening the murder is supposed to have happened, he was at work in the kitchen as usual. He peeled from 200 to 250 pounds of potatoes during the day. He quit work about 7 o'clock.
    "I have the word of J.C. Shriver, the man who occupies the same cottage with him, as to his whereabouts Sunday evening. One or two other men were at the house. Although Burnham works here, he is a sick man, and they tell me that they heard him coughing and working about his part of the cottage until after 10 o'clock. At different times during the night Shriver says he heard him, and he was up at the usual hour Monday morning. He always is one of the first ones up at the sanatorium.
    "Then we must take in consideration the distance between the sanatorium and Colorado Springs. It is almost 12 miles. I am positive that a man in his condition could not walk the distance and be back the same night. Inmates say that he is not strong enough to walk from the kitchen to the barn without stopping every few feet to get his breath.
CITES OTHER POINTS
    "I have accounted for every horse, buggy and vehicle of every description on the place Sunday evening. There was no chance for him to catch a ride at the road. The probability is small that he could have hired an automobile and had it meet him near the grounds for a ride into the city. There is a night watchman, and he would have heard the noise of a man leaving the grounds at any time of the night. Furthermore, I doubt if Burnham has the strength to life an ax and perpetrate the crimes that were committed.
    "Then they remark about his actions, appearances and apparent indifference after the sheriff arrived, and when he was taken into the house. The man was in a dazed condition, and I doubt yet if he realizes in full the crime that has deprived him of his wife and children."
    "Burnham and Wayne were friends for weeks prior to the murder. They first became acquainted when Wayne arrived in Colorado Springs from Indiana several weeks ago and entered the hospital as a patient. When Burnham went off on his vacation Wayne took his place in the kitchen.
    Friends of Burnham at the sanatorium say that it was the accused man who got Wayne to take up his home near the Burnham residence on West Dale street. The two men were friends ever since, they say.
RUMORS THICK AND FAST
    Stories, some with merit and others without any foundation, were flying thick and fast yesterday regarding the murder. A man would whisper some theory, or repeat a rumor in the ear of a neighbor, and almost in an instant it would sweep over the crowd gathered in front of the homes, and revert back to the man highly magnified. And if the same man, after telling the tale, would start for the city, he would be met with the same story, going from mouth to mouth on the streets.
    It was evidently from such a wild source that it became rumored that there was a former husband of the late Mrs. Burnham, and that he had been arrested for the crime. Before the story stopped, rumors had it that the alleged former husband had confessed to the crime. Then, when the report had been told to persons who were in a position to know the real facts, it was found that there was no former husband, other than Mr. Burnham, now under arrest.
    The police had a hard time dodging those anxious to advance theories. Then there were other men who had heard of certain rumors, accepted them as facts, and were willing to give the police the "full benefit of their knowledge."
LETTER FOR WAYNE
    There is a letter in the postoffice addressed to Henry Wayne, sent from Rensselaer, Ind. It arrived Sunday.
    "I went to the Wayne home Monday morning with a letter and a paper," said M.E. Butts, letter carrier No. 23(?) who delivers mail at the Burnham and Wayne homes. "I left the paper and took the letter back to the postoffice, after finding that the door was locked and that no one answered the knock. I took the letter back Tuesday and this morning and found the paper there. I asked Mrs. Brown what had become of them and she said that she thought they were visiting. I have --- had -- mail for the Burnham home for some time. I think they must have ------ at the postoffce or at the -----."

September 22, 1911
Colorado Springs Gazette, Colorado Springs Colorado

SECOND MURDER SUSPECT IN JAIL AWAITS INVESTIGATION
Authorities Believe Capture May Solve Mysterious Crime.
Tony Donatel, the Prisoner, on Friendly Terms With Late Mrs. Burnham Other Clews
WAS FORMERLY EXAMINED AS TO HIS SANITY
Supposed Blood Found on Burnham's Shirt, Which He Wore Sunday Night, Will Be Analyzed, Although Case Against Surviving Husband Appears Weak-Probably Use Bertillon System in Tracing Identity of Ink Stains on Ax and Washtub Ignition of Lace Curtain at Burnham Home Explained Day's Developments.
    Tony Donatel, an Italian laborer who rooms at 309 Cameron avenue, is the second suspect arrested in connection with Sunday night's murder of the Wayne and Burnham families.
    Donatel was taken in charge by the authorities yesterday afternoon at 1 o'clock after a number of other clews had been run out, and it is believed he may be able to throw some light on the wholesale crime. He is in the county jail and will be held pending a close checking up of his whereabouts between the hours of late Sunday evening and early Monday morning.
    Donatel is about 40 years old and, it is claimed by the authorities, there is unquestioned information that he was on too friendly terms with Mrs. Alice May Burnham, one of the six victims of Sunday night's brutal crime. He has known the Burnhams for years.
    Arthur J. Burnham, husband of the slain woman, made sufficient admissions to the authorities yesterday to give rise to the theory that the capture of Donatel is important, and one that may lead to some startling developments.
    That he returned home unexpectedly one afternoon and found Donatel and Mrs. Burnham in a questionable attitude was the statement Burnham made yesterday when questioned about the relations of the two. Donatel, he said, tried to explain away his alleged actions by declaring that Mrs. Burnham had been hurt by a barbed wire fence and he was endeavoring to relieve the pain.
    The theory that the murders may have been committed by a maniac dove-tails in to some extent, the authoritives believe, with Donatel's case.
    About a year ago the district attorney's office, through M.W. Purcell, caused Donatel to be investigated as to his sanity. His actions at that time were sufficient, it was claimed, to question his sanity. The man was examined by County Physician E.L. McKinnie, but his mind was not considered sufficiently unbalanced to warrant sending him away for treatment.
    Other clews pointing the finger of suspicion at Donatel were run down yesterday.
    C. Marshall, a workman at the Golden Cyole mill, and who passes by the Wayne and Burnham home to and from work, saw a man shortly after midnight Sunday acting in a suspicious manner near the houses where the six murders were committed.
    Marshall says the man was about as tall as Burnham and that he wore a light, soft hat. Donatel is about the same height as Burnham. Donatel wore a light, soft hat when he was taken into custody yesterday; Burnham too, wears a light colored hat.
SPOTS ON CLOTHING
    There were two or three places on Donatel's hat yesterday that showed evidence of having been cleared recently, but whether this was done to removed traces of ink or blood has not been determined. Two spots, which the officers say may later prove to be ink stains, were found on Donatel's trousers, and an analysis of the fluid responsible for the marks is being made by the city chemist.
    Where was Donatel Sunday night between 9 o'clock and the time Marshall declares he saw a man wearing a light colored hat and loitering about the homes of Wayne and Burnham? Can the man prove an alibi?
    Will he be able to disprove the positive assertions of the authorities and show that there was nothing out of the ordinary so far as his acquaintance with Mrs. Burnham was concerned?
    If medical experts decide upon another investigation as to his sanity, can Donatel show that his mind is sound and that he is free from attacks of mental laxity?
    Can he show that he is not the man?
    These and scores of others, probably, are some of the questions that Donatel will be asked to answer in the examination to which he will be subjected.
    One by one, the dozens of theories that have been entertained or suggested as to a solution of the murder mystery are being dropped by the police.
    The criminal of Sunday night not only worked quickly and silently, but the covered his tracks so completely that detectives and deputies thus far have been unable to pick up a clew that looks tangible, unless the right man is in custody.
    That jealousy and revenge are features that ultimately will play a conspicuous part in the solution of the sextuple murder now is generally believed by those working on the case.
BURNHAM APPEARS GUILTLESS
    Each day's development seems to clear whatever suspicion may have been entertained that Burnham had anything to do with the case. Statements of the resident physician at the Woodmen home, where Burnham lived in a tent, are to the effect that it would have been almost impossible for the man to have come to Colorado Springs Sunday night unless conveyed here. "The man's physical condition is such," Dr. Rutledge declares, "that he could not have made the trip to and from the city."
    Yesterday, as on the day previous, Burnham steadfastly maintained that the authorities would have to seek elsewhere to find the murderer of his wife and babies and the family of Henry Wayne.
    "I have no idea who committed the crime or why." Burnham declared in answer to inquiries. "I wish to God I did. But I don't know-I don't know."
    A thumb print etched in ink on the handle of the ax the Dale street murderer wielded will go a long way toward proving or disproving, as the case may be, the theories that link Burnham and Donatel with Sunday night's tragedy.
    On the smooth handle of the weapon the police have found the imprint of a thumb, its outline traced in black hairlines, and the aid of the Bertillion system may be invoked by the police to determine whether imprints of the suspects thumbs correspond.
    Three inky finger prints were also found on a metallic washtub that hunt outside the window at the Burnham home from which the murderer made his exit. In raising the sash a bottle of ink was spilled on the floor and efforts made by the intruder to wipe it up.
    His fingers were stained black and the imprints on ax and tub, compared with similar marks made by the prisoners' fingers and thumbs, will play an important part in connecting them in any way with the crime.
MAY GET BERTILLON EXPERT
    A Bertillon expert, it is said, cannot be reached any nearer than Leavenworth, Kan., and it is probable, that authorities said last night, that one will be brought to Colorado Springs to make the tests.
    A shirt belonging to Burnham and one which he is said to have worn last Sunday, is in the possession of the officers working on the murder.
    Red spots found upon it are now being analyzed by the city chemist to determine whether they are caused from blood and also whether from human blood. Burnham, when asked about their presence, replied that he did not know they were there.
    No great importance, however, is attached to the presence of the supposed blood stains, for it is pointed out that they may have been caused by a hemorrhage.
    Relatives and friends of Burnham are working hard to secure his liberty at an early day, and it is not considered improbable that he will be released from the county jail soon.
    Telegrams and letters have been sent out by Mrs. Nettie Ruth, a sister of Mrs. Burnham telling of the triple tragedy that occurred in the Burnham home Sunday last.
    John A. Hill, Mrs. Burnham's father, and who is doing railroad construction work in Sonora, Mex., has been telegraphed to and asked to come to Colorado Springs at once. Mrs. Burnham was his favorite daughter, and it is believed by the family that the plea will be answered.
    An uncle of Burnham, E.E. Hartwig, of Detroit, Mich., also has been advised of the murder. He is reputed to be wealthy, and it is said has frequently sent money to Burnham. The message read:
TELEGRAMS ARE SENT
    "Your nephew, A.J. Burnham, under arrest in connection with murder of wife, children and three others. Believe he is innocent. He needs your help. June Ruth"
    A cousin, Elbridge Horton, 1830 Grant avenue, Denver was advised of the crime in the following telegram: "Burnham under arrest. Come at once. June Ruth."
    Still another wire was sent to an aunt, Mrs. Suerland, 1651 Summitt street, Kansas City, Mo. The message read: "Your nephew, A.J. Burnham, charged with murder of wife, children and three others. Believe he is innocent. June Ruth."
    The theory that either the home of the Waynes or the Burnhams was entered Sunday night with a view of robbery has been discarded by the police. Nothing was taken so far as closer examinations disclosed yesterday. Two small diamonds, one a ring and the other a pin, were found in a dresser drawer, as well as other articles of lesser value. Wayne's gold watch also failed to attract to the attention of the murderer.
    Another theory that after the Burnham family had been killed an attempt was made to fire the house, was exploded yesterday, although a charred newspaper and partly burned curtain gave rise to the belief that a hurried attempt had been made to burn the building.
    The curtain was accidentally set afire by a photographer when he put off a flashlight. Owing to the darkness of the room, a greater amount of powder than usual was used, and a tongue of fire reached to the curtain.
BURNHAM WELL THOUGHT OF
    Leavenworth, Kan. Sept. 21-Arthur J. Burnham, held in connection with the murder of six people at Colorado Springs, was a resident of Leavenworth 12 years ago. At that time he was unmarried, and resided with his grandmother and a cousin.
    He was employed in different capacities during the residence here, and for a few months was driver of a mail wagon for the post office. He left for Kansas City, and shortly afterward went to Colorado Springs. It was known that he was a sufferer from asthma, and desired to remove to a climate in which his health might be benefited. He bore a good reputation while here.

Mr. and Mrs. Ruth
Sister and Bro-in-law to Mrs. Burnham

Mrs. Emma Hill
Mother of Mrs. Burnham

RELATIVES BELIEVE HIM INNOCENT
Detroit, Sept. 21-A.J. Burnham, under at arrest at Colorado Springs in connection with the murder of his wife and five others, is a cousin of E.E. and J.W. Hartwig of Detroit, and both of his relatives have strong faith in his innocence.
J.W. Hartwing says he recently received a letter from Burnham in which the latter spoke endearingly of his wife and family. Hartwig, like officers of the sanatorium where Burnham was employed, believes that Burnham's frail strength, sapped by tuberculosis and bronchial troubles, would not have sufficient to enable him to wield an ax with enough force to inflict such injuries as disfigured the six victims.

DONATEL PROBED FOR FOUR HOURS
Closely Questioned As To Recent Actions
Statements of Murder Suspect Will Be Checked Up by Officers
     It was a serious crowd that gathered in the office of Sheriff Birdsall yesterday afternoon shortly after 1 o'clock when Donatel was picked up at his home, 309 Cameron avenue, by Deputies Burno and Compton. Furthermore, it was a very secret one. Only the ones inside the private office, with the possible exception of one or two others, knew what was going on.
     All the clerk and one or two visitors could tell was that Sheriff Birdsall, accompanied by other officers and an unknown man, entered the main office, passed through the door and into the interior office. There was scarcely a glance to either side by any of the men, only the usual hint, "we want to talk a while," was given before the door to the sheriff's private office was closed.
     While only a few hints were given out as to what was going on, they were sufficient to indicate that the man Donatel was going through a severe gruelling and "a supreme test." The sheriff, after it was over, called it a "mere investigation."
VERIFYING DONATEL'S STORY
     There was no room for an outsider. Once or twice during the afternoon a man would leave the private room, rush through the outer office, down the steps and away, never to be seen again during the afternoon. It was hinted that they were trying to "see if Donatel was handing them the right dope."
     Only those on the inside are in a position to tell what was said and done. They will give out nothing only after everything was over. Sheriff Birdsall was asked:
     "Will you state positively that you did not find out anything that would tend to incriminate Donatel with the Burnham and Wayne murders?"
     "No, I would not say that," came the reply. Then after a pause, in which it seemed that he was through talking, the sheriff added, "Neither will I say that we did find anything."
     But one thing that the officers seem to think important is an admission by Donatel during the investigation that last Friday afternoon he was engaged within half a block of the Burnham home in excavating for sewer work. He said he did not know where the Burnhams lived, but that he knew that the home was somewhere in the vicinity.
     "I don't know a thing about the murder," is about the first comment offered by Donatel, following his arrest. He seemed indifferent, an officer said.
DISPLAYS SHREWDNESS
     Not only did he have a ready alibi, but the man was shrewd in answering the questions of the investigators, the officers say, withal his apparent willingness to tell everything. He admitted that he had been very friendly with Mrs. Burnham, both before and after her marriage.
     "I am not in a position to tell." Bonatel said, "the last time I met her and we were together. It has been a long time, though. I did not even know where they were living. I was told that it was somewhere in the vicinity of where I was working last Friday, but I never investigated."
     Donatel said that he was home all day Sunday and Sunday night. He retired about 9 o'clock, he said, and never left his bed. The officers are trying to prove and disprove his alibi, and are questioning neighbors.
     It was not until after 5 o'clock last evening that the officers were through with their work for the day, and Donatel was taken to the county jail for the night. The events of today probably will prove whether the officers discovered anything having any particular bearing on the case.
HIS PECULIAR ACTIONS
     Mr. and Mrs. C. Rohrback, 340 Portland boulevard, admitted last night their close friendship for Donatel and talked freely about the man.
     "Tony's wife left him 18 years ago, and ran away with another man," said Mrs. Rohrback. "They were then living in Manitou, and from what Tony has told us I understand that he obtained a divorce on the ground of desertion. He has said that he never would marry again."
     Donatel's former wife according to the Rohrbachs, is living somewhere in Colorado, presumably having married again. There is a son 18 years old, who is with his mother.
     "Yes, Tony went out sometimes with girls and even older women," said Mrs. Rohrbach. "He would take them to the theater and other places of amusement.
     "Tony was at our house Sunday night and remained as late as 9:30. He was at our house again Monday and had supper with us. He came on Tuesday also and sat on our porch during the afternoon. He never mentioned the Burnhams during these visits, although I remember his telling, probably a year ago, of having known Mrs. Burnham since she was a child."
      Donatel, according to his neighbors, is a peculiar character. They tell of his acting strangely, although they regard him as harmless. Interviews with his neighbors brought out some of his peculiarities. For example, it is said, he imagined at times that he was being followed by witches and that they had mutilated his property. Although he lives alone in a shack, he collects rent from cottages he owns. According to the neighbors, he often scrubs the outside of his dwellings in places, explaining that he is obliterating the marks left by the witches.

NO INQUEST YET; BURNHAM AT FUNERAL OF FAMILY
     Hundreds crowded in and around the morgue yesterday afternoon, where the funeral of Mrs. Alice Burnham and two children, was held. The Rev. I.H. Kohler conducted the service, and interment was in Evergreen cemetery.
     Arthur Burnham attended the funeral of his little family under guard of Jailer Charles Birdsall, and then returned to his cell in the county prison wifeless and childless.
     As the pallbearers were carrying out their burdens, Mrs. Hill, mother of the murdered woman, threw her arms about Burnham's neck and sobbed.
     "He's innocent! Oh, I know he's innocent!"
     Burnham was greatly affected and his eyes filled with tears. He did not ride with his relatives on the way to the cemetery, but was taken out in an automobile by Birdsall.
     There were two caskets, the bodies of the children being place in a single white coffin. Burnham did not ask to attend the funeral, and when it was first suggested t him he said he would not go. Later, however, he expressed a desire to go. It is believed that his grief the last two days has been such that it has dazed him.
     The bodies of Mr. and Mrs. Wayne and their baby were taken to Medaryville, Ind., last night. The coroner's jury sworn in over the bodies yesterday morning, is composed of the following: C.C. Hoyt, general ticket agent of the Santa Fe; B.G. Robbins, clothier; L.G. Howard, George F. Dayton, former undersheriff; A.P. Martin, real estate man, and L. Hiner, real estate man and former police magistrate.
     Coroner Jackson said last night that the inquest will not begin until tomorrow afternoon or Monday morning. This delay is caused by the desire of the officers to run down all possible clews first.

MILKMAN SAW BICYCLIST NEAR SCENE OF TRAGEDY
Bearing out the new theory of the possible connection of Tony Donatel with the Burnham and Wayen murders, local authorities are working upon a story told by a milkman, who claims to have seen a suspicious looking character in the vicinity of the Burnham home Monday morning about 2 o'clock. He says that the man was upon a bicycle, and acting in a strange manner. The story connects, in a way, with the assertion made by an employee of the Golden Cycle mill, that he saw Donatel on the streets on the streets at an hour later than the time mentioned by him as to when he retired.