The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1875-12-03
The Denver Butchery-..A Horrible Con-
fessi0n.

fessiOn.
The Denver Ne,cS saws: Giovanni
Cont, alias Filomeno Gallotti, the chief
carver at the recent Italian butchery,
made a partial confession Yesterday.
This wretch. who planned the massacre,
and. with his own little knife, cut the
throats of all four victims, has refused
10 talk with officers, reporters, or any
body about the affair, except TO say that
he had taken no hand in the murder.
While the others, in the same cell with
him. have told their stories, freeingthe
consciences by telling every thing. Con-
ii. A. conscienceleSs as a rock, has heard
al without evincing the slightest emo
ton. lie has evidently been fixing up
his defense, and yesterday he >ignified
his desire 10 make a clean breast Of the
matter. and tell the whole truth.
He saws he %inaugurated the carving
exercises. at the c~ard-table, by quietly
cutting the old Italians throat, holding
him by the hair and saving the dirk
across hi windpipe till he was quite
dead. The other butchers, who were
cutting and slashing at the boy, falling
in dispatching him as easily a. they had
hoped, he left the old man and went to
their assistance. and gave the boy n
stab that took his breath away from
him. With this, he SAYS, he put up his
knife and took no further part, except
To look on. from the front room, while
Arata. Baliette and Giuseppe cut the
throats of the other two boys rs they en-
tered by the back door. He a Y that
thevtook from a belt. and also a pocket
book. on the old mans body, the sum
Of $500 in gold and 1917 in currency.
4 good part of this, he claims. was d0led
out. in sums varying from $50 to $40,
to all the parties concerned in the crime,
and he denies having buried any pOr-
ton Of the spoils. but says his share,
except the amount found upon him
when arrested, vas spent in reaching
New Mexico. Cont acknowledges that
he got the others TO join him in the
! murder. Deodata, whose preyariCa-
tons are both amazing and anus
ing, was the first man spoken To
on the subject. He agreed to go
"snooks" with him in the murder.
Then, on the last day Of the Territorial
Fair, Fernandez, the Mexican, was
asked to join, and cheerfully consented,
saying he could guide them out Of the
country safs'y. Arata, the boy whose
confession has carried much weight
with Il, when spoken 70, refused to take
part, but afterward consented. One by
one the whole gang were appraised and
enlisted in the undertaking.
Conti's reason for killing the old MAJ
is this Years ago he was following
his trade Of tinker in New Orleans. lie
was very much liked by all his Italian,
French and Spanish acquaintance, and
the confidence in him was so strong that
several Of them deposited their earnings
with him for safe keeping. In time
those private deposits rolled up into the
sum Of $4,000. He thought he might
a. well reap some benefit from the funds,
and accordingly loaned the money to
an Italian fruit-dealer, who came up to
Memphis and never returned. Cont
followed him, in time, and ascertained
that the fruit-vcnder had been induced
TO nm cvay with the money by an Old
Italian named Joe, a musician, who had
gone North. He started out, says Con
Il, 10 Oyertake the thief, visiting Mobile,
Louisville, St. Louis, Kansas CITY, Oma-
Ia, and Cheyenne, and being unable 10
reimburse hi, New Orleans depositors,
concluded TO settle down IN Denver and
resume his honest trade Of tinker. lie
had been here but a short time hen.
AT the invitation Of Les-andri, the harp
ist, he called az the house of old Joe,
on Lawrence Street, whom he had new
er seen before. While there Joe asked
him u write q letter for him. He wrote
the letter, which was 10 a woman IN
italy. and, to his great surprise, added,
~ direction. the signature az the iden-
tical man who had got the fruit-dealer
to rum OF with $1,000 belonging - biz
friends. lie satisfied himself after
writing any number Of letters, that he
had struck the right man, and then he
determined e. Kin him, and gradually
disclosed bis purpose % his cOnlidants.