The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1865-07-28
TERRIBLE MURDER NEAR La
CROSSE.
An Enraged Lover : Attempts to
Kill His Mistress.
He Murders Another W0man--'
Wounds a Boy and Escapes.

The Lacrosse Democrat, Of Tuesday, gives.
the following account of a horrible murder
committed near that city on Monday: "a ~
A small country tavern known as airie
lakes. kept by German named Jacob, Bareh-
hard a sort of stopping place for teannsters to
water their horses and cattle and luench their
thirst with lager beer, was yesterday the scene
of terrible encounter in which the wife OF the
landlord was, instantly killed apd his son dan.
gerously wounded, by bohemian, named
John Rothbauer, who immcdhtely ned. oil
Previous to the war, German named John
Laukata aged fifty-three wears, married Ger
man girl, named Eve Williams, aged now
twenty.eight. The parties resided below the
Prairie House, fire miles from Lacrosse.
Laukata Joined the 9th Wisconsin regiment
and went to wano While he was away, this
man. the murderer Rothbauer, met his wife,
and an inti%sey spr,a;n ,, up between them ~, the
Just previous to the confinement of Eye
LaukatA her husband returned from tie army
and W. somewhat indignant ut what had taken
place;in his absence. Words, between the re-
tuned soldier and unfaithful wife ensued. She
told him plainly that he was too old for young
woman like her-that she was tired Of him,
and that there was no pleasure in being with
him, but that her mother, an old lady, would
be- Just the match for him. Tho mother
thought 80 to. Laukata fell in with the idea,
and short time since in company with Ewes,
mother, he left, some cay for Manitowoc, 9th.
eFs say for Ohio, as he said, never to return,
and telling his, wife to 60 with whoever she
liked and enjoy the attention he could not
Her paramour has since her domiciling with
Burchard and the woman murdered, been
anxious to be with her, bnt Mrs Burchard OBJ
iected. Matters went on this way, growing
worse daily till yesterday, when Rothbauer
came to the city and purchased pistol at the
store of Mr.. Patz, saying he wanted one to
was paid to the remark. After dinner, In COM
pany with . Norwegian, he started for Mormon
Coolie, and on the way loaded the pistol and
acted In such strange manner that the Nor
wegian waited by the road until overtaken by
q wagon, when he rode past the Prairie House,
where Rothbauer was standing in front of the
door Afs S the wago ,, pa passed Rothosue5
and wanted to see His mistress, short, dirty,
filthy looking woman ofthe lower order. Mrs.
Katrina Burchard ordered him ont of her house
and beat him with o broom stick severely, he
making no resistance. After she drove him
out of doors he said he wanted to see the child
he was the father of, which he had not seen,
and wanted his mistress to come down stairs
She would not, being deferred from fear Of one
or both parties. After few moments
she appeared on the porch when
he pointed pistol at her saying, here is
q ball for each of u.s. but did not fire at her.
The woman ran into the upper part of the
house out OF sight. Gregory Burchhsrd, aged
thirteen, son of the landload, then ran into
the barroom, grasped shot gun which had in
it load for pigeons and was placed there last
spring, ran out heiback door and around the
house near where Rothbauer was yet standing.
His mistress looked out of window just In
time to see Rothbauer shove pistol into the
face Of the boy, and fire. The boy fell. the
ball went into his cheek and lodged near the
ear. As the boy fell wounded, Rothbauer
snatched the gun and turned and fired at Mrs.
Burchhard, who was standing bareheaded and
with bare feet on the ground near the house,
blowing her brains out, blowing the entire face
and front part of her head to atoms, and spat-
tering the brains, pieces of skull and blood up.
on the fence, side Of the house, window and
root, to the distance of fifteen feet from where
the unfortunate woman stood.
DEATH WAS INSTANTANEOUS!
The entire head was blown away except the
lower jaw and piece Of the back skull on
which knot of hair was tied up with braid
and string. The muzzle of the gun could not
have been six inches from her head. The
charge entered the right side of her face, just
forward and below the left ear, where we saw
the burnt edges ofthe wound so close was the
gun, while the conclusion of air entirely de-
molished the head.
ARREST OF THE MURDERER.
Soon as the news came to the city, Sheriff
Selberg started in pursuit of Rothbauer, who
with the pistols and shot gun, fed for the
river bottoms. After severe driving he reach
ed farm house In Chipmunk CoOlie, where
Rothbauer had been working, and at O'Clock
at night arrested the murderer and brought
him to the jail in this city, incarccrating him