Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1874-11-12
TELEGRAMS TO THE STAR.
THE EXECUTION OF WILLIAM Z. IDpEEl0eK.
Particulars of His Remarkable Cri1t.
The Murder of Goss.
Scenes at the Execution.
Scenes at the Execution.


Especial TO TIE StIr.I
WEST CFEeTER, Pa, November 1.-THE
/ execution OF " m. +. TdterzoOk, for the mu5-
der OF Winfield Scott GosS, took place here IL
/ the jail yard to day. Cdds rzock wss coDvi tea
! OF the crime which he has just eXpisted on thl
/ scaHod, on Sunday, November 2. Is. >. It Sa-
! ore cf the most remarkable on record, bei7g
| originally conspiracy to dcfraUd several lTa
/ Insurance companies cut " sums amounting RI
/ tie aggregate 10 $4,000, followed 10y a murI--
/ 10 keep the OTspiTacy tom coming 10 4frlf
ClIei Justice gD5w, OF tbc SupvgIue Coarr d
frnhsY YlSania ~.jH referring 10 tuc case sad h.
was "a continuation by two 10 cheat insurance
/ companies, and murder OF ONE by tae other %
| reap the fruit cf the fraud" a. i usual in
cases OF thls character, ciTcnmstsutiai entirely.
| there hAs been great diversity OF opinion IN
regard 10 the guilt OF the accused, but of which.
however, when all the links OF the well CON
| nected chain are taken together, there can be
! no possible well grounded doubt. Winfield Scott
Goss, the victim OF this crime, resided ia .lti-
more, was married. and Was S5 years of age.
| BY occupation be was glider, bat for a short
ume previous 10 his death he was engaged os-
tenslbly in the perfection of a substitute for
| India rubber, and for which ne was end savor-
| ing 10 secure patent. he was rather fine
| looking man and one calculated 10 fayOrably
| impress person upon meeting him. He was a
| man OF moderate meass, bat st the tine of his
death had lie policies in the Mutual, Cont mem
tai, and kDickerbOcker companies. OF New
York, aud Travellers of Hartford, Conn.
making SIS, eco in all. The premiums on these
policies amounted to over $500 per snuum a
sum larger than Goes annual earnings would
apparently justify him in carrying.
"A. Campbell GOss is a brother OF W. ). Goss
he was formerly life insurance agent, and II
IL believed IL was he who conceived of the plan
TO have his brothers life insured TO large
amount in several companies, TO then proclaim
his death by burning, and thus secure the
amounts Of his policies OF insurance. which were
TO have been divided among the parties engaged
in the conspiracy. He has be- n arrested for
| peiJuTy IN connection With the subsequent suits
Ns1'h@l the Insurance comp anies, and Lis tria
viii ST come Oh until December next. The
condemned man wrote him about a month since
saJlng lie o. vas entirely Innocent ia every
Particular.
Wm. + U6d6rzook, who was hanged to-day.
waS alOut - ytsIs c.d II stood s5.1t i've isrt
ttH inches high, was VtIy muscular, sandy hair
ana n0ustache, ana, taken a. together, Wa
Etthtr ftFuE udHt iooklEE. Bg trade ne an
edged tCCl maker lie u2s 2 n4tige Of Chester
county Ia, aHC UPON arriving at manhood
fought D unsHship for living. He served
u!ue oEtu- en- the Bal, more police force, an1
some time siace ran IL the 10th Iart OF Bait
more. UU the republican sEd teDpe rance ticket.
tCr thf state i legislature. he was strictly TEN
peTate man ia all CT his haUits and uF yer IA hi-
lie used liquor or tobacco IL Any form. During
the wal He served ID The army, in the Il req
fneLt OF Mary and volunteers. which WAS al-u
Known as the Eastern Shore volunteers. IL
participated il several battles. and was Vgr,
proud Ot Dls war record, ana during his imprjs-
CTmenJ wrote IL out tor Iuhl cation. This yys-
intended a. reply to a published statement b.
AdJutant General Bond, OF the state militia. To-
the effect that UddeTzOOk never served ia =
AarP land regiment, aad * hich 8as corrected bv
Bond when hc found he was IN error.
The aged mother OF UdGeFZo0k was unceasiug
III her attentions to her doomed son darinz his
Imprisonment. Daily she visited him in his cell
since ana bt 70 bis trial, and daily did she per
form some little act 70 make TIE rem aiming daYs
Of her doomed son as tranquil a. possible. She
stopped with DE. Warren, Just opposite the IaI3
where she spent the greater portion Of the cays.
hers has indeed been a sad hfe. Family sorrow
II Z f.
then called to mourn the death of her thTe.
sons, killed while lighting for the L mon, auo
then doomed TO see the remaining ore sun r q
feion's death. Ii is net probable, however, tha.
she will live long, as this last il too much !ol
her, considering her age.
With the above preface. give tn story OF
the CRIME, relying IL some degree on SratCmeD Mt
published about the time It WAS discovered
On the "a Of February, 1872, q frame tenem Ii
on the \ ork road, IN the suburbs OF Baltimore
was bui ned 10 the gTOund. II was occupied b
W. =. GOss, WHO WAS engs g6d in making his In
dia rubber substitute. William + CdieTzJDE.
who was hanged to-day, was partner ia the
enterprise. That GOss was in the building 4
short time before the flames burst forth there l.
ample proof. UdderZOok and one OF the neiEh-
bors, GOtielb Engle, had left there but few
minutes before, and GOss had been seen BIZ
these living in the neighborhood standing in the
open doorway, with light in his hand; more
over, the remains Of a man charred ana burned
almost beyond recognition were taken from the
ruins.
Goss left widow, who presented her claims
TO the four insurance companies tor 81 900, the
aggregate amount of the four policies on her
husbands life. UddeTzOOk was very active iu
prosecuting them. be first policy for IS ,00J
WAS taken out four years before the IRE, the Sec
ond more recently, and the last one flor so, 90"
IN the Travellers or Accidental company
short time before the alleged death Of GOss. The
insurance companies, believing that all was not
fair, refused to pay the policies, and Mrs. Cos.
Court in Baltimore in May, 1872, one month
alter the IRE. Judge Bond presided. on the
trial which ensued VIM. L. Undertook testified
that he was intimate with the Goss family, aud
that on the night OF the disaster he bad called
there with a friend and found Goss nxipg
lamp, for which he wanted a chimney. He and
his friend went after the chimney, leaving Goss
IN his shop working at the lamp. While they
were gone he supposed the lamp was upset and
the building hred, for when they returned the
shop WAS in names, nearly destroyed, and GOss
missing. Goss was not heard OF again, but
charred human remains we're found among the
ruins and he believed they were those OF Goss.
Decomposition and the flames had, however.
lett little by which to establish identity. It was
shown on the trial that GOss had had especially
beautItu al teeth, and this was very strong point
OF the defense. They were such rne teeth as ~
attract the admiration Of a prominent dentist OF
Baltimore, " no made Overtures to obtain a cast
OF them. The teeth in the remains found were
detective and decayed. The widow recovered
the full amount Of the policy against the Mutual
company. The cults against the other cOmpa-
MES are still pending, but will never be tried
During the trial A. Z. Goss came forward and
presented watch, bearing the look OF having
undergone some fiery ordeal, and swore that he
found 1t in the ashes OF the burned building
and also testified 10 its identity OF being the one
carried by his deceased brother.
The insurance companies had by this time
put several competent detectives st work Oh
the case, and they maintained that Guss was
still in the land of the living, their theory be-
ing that a corpse had been placed in the build
ing by Goss aud Udderz0ok, and that Goss
when LETT alone, having secured proof OF his
presence at the time, had set fire to the tene-
ment, and made good his escape with the aid of
his brother, A. q. GOss, who is alleged to have
had vehicle at hand for that purpose. In cor
roboration OF this theory is the fact that man
was seen to run down the lane at the time the
fire broke out, and the strange behavior Of I'd
derxook, who, upon the nre, returned to the
spot, but did not mention to the bystand ers that
Goss was in the building until it was entirely
consumed.
The agents Of the insurance companies in
sisted that the watch and other articles belong
ing to Goss should be found. Search had been
made the day after the IRE and on other occa-
soDs, without finding those articles, and it WAS
reserved, IS before stated, for Mr.. A. O. Goss to
npd the watch, two chains, bundle of KEYS. a
tape-line case and single-barreied pocket pis
tol, week or ten days Afterwards. There were
extraoroinAry phen0menA connected with these
articles; the silver case on tho watch had par
tally melted, while the brass of the tape line
had not, although it is more fusble.
In Charging that a c0nspiraev e.isfs1 IN "a