The Portland daily press., 1876-01-31
NEW YORK.
A HORRIBLE MURDER.


The Victim Dissected and Packed i'm n
Trunk.
NEW YORK, Jan. 29.-The head of a man
named Simmons of Derhs, Conn, was found
at Williamsburg n. Y, to day. The rest of
his body was not found. He had been missing
siuce Thursday.
NEW YORK, Jan. 3O-Detectives were work.
ing briskly to-day on the Green Point murder
case, in which the head of VIM. W. Simmons
was was found in the shpyard of John Eng.
fish on Milton street. From the proximity of
the head to the river it was thought the body
had been thrown into the water. inquiries
were made at places where Simmons was in
the habit of visiting, but no person acknowl-
edged having seen him since saturday night.
Victor KretZ an intimate friend OF the de-
ceased appeared to be uneasy under the ques-
tioning Of the police, and told the detectives of
Simmons being in the habit of visiting some
female friends In Green Point, but on making
inquiries this was found to be untrue. He was
detained in the police Office two or three hours.
The detectives did not think Kretz was the
murderer and he was allowed to 90 home. The
watchmen on the docks were interviewed One
was found who said he saw a man answering
the description of Kretz down near the dock on
saturday morning and was quite positive of
bis identity. The detectives' then supposed
that If Kretz was not the gully man he knew
something about the murder and they arrested
him. On his way to the station house he pur.
posely cut his hand. 1t bled freely and he kept
rubbing it on mis- pants. When this was OBJ
made which revealed a large spot of dried
blood on bis pants
The detectives then visited the house again
and found his trunk locked and nailed together
SO tight that it was opened with great difficulty.
In this they found packed the legs and arms of
the murdered victim, and in the boiler they
found the trunk of the body skinned and cut
up. The eDtrails had been removed and quick
lime put inside so as to cause speedy decompo-
sition. There had been pool of blood on the
floor. but efforts had been made to obliterate it
BY scrapng until the boards were almost white.
Upon the dress of Mrs. Kretz, which had just
been washed, were stains of blood. She said
she scraped the floor at the request of her hus-
band, that Simmons called at the house on
Saturday night and they all had drink togeth-
er, Simmons drinks being made stronger than
the Others, and that when he was stupefied with
liquor Kretz took Ratchet and chopped his
head off, the act being witnessed by his little
daughter. Mrs. Kretz said she herself was
then up stairs.
When Kretz heard the body was discovered he
aamitted his guilt and said he had done it be-
cause he had found the victim in criminal in
tercourse with bis wife, but this Mrs. Kretz
denies. The murder was no doubt committed
for robbery, as Simmons was always known to
have money on his person. The prisoner was
also found in possession of Simmons watch.
and the little girl says her father took So and
some cents from the pockets of the murdered
man. Mrs. Kretz was taken from the station
house and confined in a separate cell. The
prisoner, who says bis real name is Kretz, is an
Alsatian by birth, and speaks both French and
German. He is about 40 years of age
What Judge Van Colt Has to Say.
NEW YORK. Jan. 29-Judgs Van Colt, who
has returned from Washington, said last night
that he did not intent to make any response 70
Mr.. Beecher. He said that if minister of the
Gospel was inclined to make "Holy Bully
of himself, and be guilty of so beasty a speech
as Beecher had made in replying to his letter to
his client, he ivan Cott) would decline to pre-
sent any rejoinder, for the reason it was be.
meath his notice.