The Mysterious Murder of Pearl Bryan, or: the Headless Horror. Unknown
as one of the family and in no sense as a lover. He was treated rather as a favorite brother by Miss Pearl, who made a confidant of him. Wood's father who was a good old Minister lived only a half mile distant from the Bryan's, and Will spent much of his time at Pearl's home, and was in her company a great deal. Nothing was thought of this, at the time, although evil tongues wagged rapidly afterwards, and many were ready to lay at the door of Will Wood in less than a year thereafter, direct connection and complicity with a crime unparallelled in the criminal history of the Nineteenth Century.
Along in the latter part of 1894, Scott Jackson with his mother moved to Greencastle, Ind., from Jersey City, N. J. One of Mrs. Jackson's daughters, the wife of Dr. Edwin Post, of Depauw University, had lived at Greencastle for many years, and Mrs. Jackson moved there to get near her daughter. Scott Jackson belonged to a good family, his father being Commodore Jackson, who commanded many vessels and who stood high in social circles in New Jersey. Scott cut quite a prominent figure in both the social and business world. He went to Jersey City with splendid recommendations. His career there was considerably checkered however, and he only escaped a long sentence to the penitentiary, which his partner Alexander Letts is now serving, by turning State's evidence in a case of embezzlement in which Jackson and Letts had embezzled a large amount, said to have been $32,000 from the Pennsylvania Railroad Company.
Jackson and Letts, it appears, obtained employment of the Pennsylvania Railroad company, in the Jersey City offices. One of Jackson's duties was to receive and open the mails.
BIG EMBEZZLEMENTS.
After a few months extensive robberies in the railroad office were discovered. They were said to amount to nearly $32,000. They were traced to Jackson and Letts. It was found, according to testimony during the two trials that followed, that Jackson abstracted checks from the mail, and that Letts, to whom he handed them, had them cashed.
Meanwhile the saloon which they kept had become notorious. They were acknowledged high flyers in sporting circles. Both had become "plungers" on the race tracks. It was reported that they made much money, owing to their lavish expenditures. They "entertained" liberally in their own particular way, and for a time were looked upon as "good fellows" among the sporting fraternity, who sought the privilege of their acquaintance. Jackson was a prominent member of the Entre Nous, an exclusive social club.
Suddenly, the Pennsylvania Railroad officials discovered that these two young men were "sporting" at the expense of the company. Their arrest followed. At the first trial the jury disagreed.
HE TURNED STATE'S EVIDENCE.
Before the second trial took place the railroad company discovered such proof of Jackson's guilt that he found it healthy to turn state's evidence against Letts. The latter was sentenced to a long term in the State Prison. Jackson went free and also went away from Jersey.
News of this escapade and his career in Jersey City never reached Greencastle and his family there ranking among the best. He was at once given an entree into society which might well be envied by any young man. Will Wood, who lived a near neighbor to Mrs. Jackson, and who as stated was a particular favorite with Pearl Bryan, took a great liking to Scott Jackson. They were very intimate, in fact became chums.
Jackson entered the dental college at Indianapolis, and Wood being of a rather reckless disposition would go to Indianapolis to see Jackson, and together they would have a big time in the city. Both being fond of ladies' company, they spent much of their time together in the company of women of loose moral character and were in several very unsavory escapades, escaping notoriety however under assumed names, which prevented their families and friends at Greencastle from hearing of them. With no knowledge of his former career and ignorant of his escapades while at college at Indianapolis, it is no wonder that he was a favorite in society when at home. Belonging to an exellent family, he was outwardly a man whom any father would be proud to have his daughter associate with. With dimples on his chin and cheeks, a childish smile on his lips, frank, beautiful, pale violet-blue eyes, he had a most winsome countenance. But behind the angelic front was hidden a very demon. Jackson was a monstrosity if you will, a whited sepulchre, and one of the unaccountable freaks of nature. To those not knowing his habits, a handsome, affable, pleasing man of fine form and features; to those who knew him truly, a villain of the deepest dye, a very demon in human shape.
Notwithstanding Will Wood knew him as he did, and that Pearl Bryan was Wood's second cousin the same blood coursing through their veins, Wood introduced Jackson into the Bryan family in the spring of 1895. It was a case of love at first sight. From the first meeting between Scott Jackson and Pearl Bryan, at the colonial mansion of the Bryans on the hill, Pearl showed that she was most favorably impressed with him. She who had refused to listen to the wooing whispers of men in high rank and station in life by the scores, fell at once a victim to the darts from cupid's shafts sent from Jackson's lips, for after occurrences proved conclusively that the honeyed words and winsome smiles, which won their way so easily into the heart of Pearl Bryan, came only from the lips and never from the heart of him who lent his every effort to win the heart of the belle of Putnam County, as Pearl Bryan was known, but with no manly or honorable purpose. Scott Jackson was void of moral principle and honor, and never did anything with a manly purpose, he was incapable of such action.
THE RESULT OF AN EXAMINATION OF JACKSON, BY THE BERTILLION SYSTEM, AFTER HIS ARREST FOR THE MURDER OF PEARL BRYAN.
After the arrest of Jackson for the crime, he was turned over to Sergeant Kiffmeyer, of the Cincinnati police force, who has charge of the Bertillion system of measuring and identifying criminals for the local Police Department, and who is recognized as an authority on criminals.
After he had completed the measurement of Jackson he said, "Every man's head tells its own story. Jackson is another H. H. Holmes.
"Jackson has the cunning to plot and plan, and to conceal.
"Jackson is a mind far beyond the ordinary. He has a head such as Napoleon would have.
PICKED OUT OF A THOUSAND.
"Jackson knew fully and realized what lay before him in the murder of Pearl Bryan.
"Jackson is absolutely incapable of any expression of remorse.
"The only appeal that can be made to Jackson is through his fear of punishment.
"Jackson's skull is abnormal, and unusually long in proportion to its breadth. It is abnormally developed on the right side in front and on the left side in the rear of the head.
"Jackson is a natural monster, or monstrosity, which ever you will. Look at his portrait," and the Sergeant held up his photograph. "Is that the face of a criminal?
"Jackson has other peculiarities. His fingers are disproportionately long to his height.
"Jackson has all the characteristics of a criminal by nature."
WAS IT FATE OR WAS IT DESTINE?
Was it cruel fate which led pure, beautiful, innocent and attractive Pearl Bryan into the toils of such a fiend in human shape? Or was it the blind Goddess of Justice that led Jackson to meet Miss Pearl and sacrifice her life that the demon Jackson might be exposed to the world, his deeds of evil and misdoings brought to light, and he expatiate the many crimes which he had committed on the gallows or by serving a life sentence in the penitentiary?
Be that as it may they met through the intimate acquaintance and friendship of each with Will Wood, who little thought when he brought this pure spotless virgin in contact with the hypocrite and demon, Jackson, that he was committing a sin, which he would regret to his dying day, and which would bring disgrace, dishonor and ruin on two highly respected families and also upon his own head and that of his aged respected and christian father,