Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1874-05-08
Confession Of a Murderer.

/ The murderer of the Hamnet family at
Homestead, Pa, Ernst Mintzing, alias Love,
was arrested in Allegheny City on the I'd.
Intense excitement prevailed, and 1t required
the strongest efforts of the local police force
to keep him from the hands Of the enraged
crowd and place him safely in the lookup.
Mintzing soon after his Incarceration made
the following confession: 81 left Hamnets
house just after supper on the evening of the
murder and went directly to Homestead.
called at a saloon and drank two glasses of
beer. That was all had that night. After
leaving the saloon | went to a grocery
store, kept by German, and pur-
chased some cigars and five cents worth of
candy for the children. l don't know the
namG of tho storo- lsoopor, but had been there
several times. | think / was at the store
about o'clock in the evening. just as was
leaving it came into my head that l must
have Hamnet's money. l thought he had
great deal Of money in the house, and as l felt
so queer all at once in my head thought l
must get it. l went directly TO the house, but
don't know how l got there. l suppose
must have been out of my mind. After get
ting into the house l found MIR. and Mrs.
Hamnet had not como home. 1t occurred to
me that to get the money l must kill the
children. found an ak in the kitchen, and
taking that with me went up into the room
over the kitchen where Robert Smith and
myself slept. The bed was in corner Of the
room, aud l saw that Robert was sleeping
soundly, with his face toward me. took a
position at the front of the bed and with
one blow killed the boy. He never moved. l
can't say how IL was that the boys throat was
cut l may have struck him twice, but he
never groaned. After the boy was dead l
went into the adjoining room, where Ida and
little Emmie were sleeping. There were two
beds in the room-one in the corner, and the
other, the one occupied by the children, near
the center Roth of tho little girls were
sleeping. / struck Ida and she never moved.
/ then raised the ak and struck at Emmie.
She uttered a cry and hit her a second time.
She did not groan again. After this l went
down stairs and took position just inside the
door Of the room adjoining the kitchen, and
waited for Mr.. and Mrs. Hamnet to
come home. They came between ten
and eleven o'clock. Mr.. Hamnet came
into the room first. l was standing so
that he could not see me, and struck him
| from behind, using the same ak. He fell to
! the floor. Mrs. Hamnet then came rushing
! into the room, and as she passed through the
door l struck her, but did not kill her. She
shrieked once or twice, 'Oh, God, John!' and
then l struck a second blow, which killed her
instantly Mrs. Hamnet and the baby were
the only ones l hit twice. The others were
killed with one blow. l used the AK all the
time.
al committed the deed to get Mr.. Hamnet's
money. / searched Mr.. Hamnet's pockets and
obtained his pocket-book. 1t contained only
SIS IN paper money. l found Mrs. Hamnet's
pockst-book on the sewing machine. There was
only fifty cents in it. looked over the house
| but all the money got was SIS The silver
money / spent on yesterday | brought with
me from Germany. did not get it from the
house.
"My only motive for doing this deed was tc
! get money. l never had any ill-feelng toward
any of the Hamnets. l always liked the lit
tie children, and always bought them candy
when | went to Homestead. The boy
Smith and were good friends, and l Away:
liked Mr.. and Mrs. Hamnet.
az did not fire the house, and 1t was not {
part of plan to cover up the murder. Wher
searching the house l put an oil lamp in the
sitting room, and when rushing away from
the building it was overturned. l thought Il
would go out; l did not think the house
would burn"