Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-12-09
TERRIBLE TRAGEDY.


Brandishing the Bleeding Head of Little
Girl, Invades Another House, Where He
Is Overpowered and Bound.
ST. LOUIS, Dec. 7.-Information of most
horrible triple murder, committed by an in
sane man this morning near Chester, H.,
was received here tonight. 1t appears that
young man, 26 years Of age, named Louis
Trockstein, living a short distance from
Chester, became insane few days ago, from
religious excitement. Yesterday he was
taken before court by a deputy sheriff,
adjudged insane, and placed in charge of six
guards to be taken to the asylum at Jackson
vile. The guards took the man to hotel in
the town, and remained with him all night.
About O'Clock this morning he called for
water to wash himself. One of the guards
brought him some in basin, which he took,
and Immediately flung it into the guards
face. He then dashed through the front
window of the room and ran down a road
leading out into the country, the blood
streaming from his face and hands from the
cuts made by the broken glass. About
quarter of mile from town was the house
of Thomas Ryan, an old man of 68 years,
with whom lived his widowed daughter, Mrs.
Smith, and her little girl of IL years, and
boy still younger. Arrived at this house,
Trockstein, who had
STRIPPED HIMSELF NAKED
on the road, rushed wildly in and ordered
the inmates to kneel down and pray, saying
they had but eleven minutes to live. They
all obeyed but the little boy, who escaped
from the house, run to a neighbours and gave
an alarm. When the friends arrived at
the scene, they found Ryan and Mrs. Smith
dead, with their skulls smashed in by an axe,
and the girl lying headless on the ground,
the maniac having chopped the child's head
completely off. Having finished his bloody
work at this place, he seized the bleeding
head of the innocent child by it's long flowing
hair, and swinging it over his own head, he
dashed down the road again. About a quar-
ter of mile beyond he stopped at the house
of DIR. Gordon. Entering, he found only
servant girl. He ordered her, as he had the
Ryan family, to kneel and pray, but the girl
screamed, which brought hired man from
the stable, and DR.. Gordon appearing at the
same time, after fierce struggle they over
powered and bound him with rope. He
was then taken to Chester, his wounds
dressed, clothes put on him, and placed in
the charge of persons who brought him to
East st. Louis to- night, and took him thence
to the Jacksonville asylum.
ANOTHER ACCOUNT.
ST. LOUIS, Dec. THE Republicans
special from Chester, Ills, gives the follow
ing account of the terrible murder COM
mitted there this forenoon. 1t appears that
Trockstein, after leaving the hotel, ran
about in an aimless way and finally brought
up at the residence of Thos. Ryan, situat-
ed at the northwestern edge of the town.
To use the Insane mans own words, he ran
around, fell into gully, hurt himself, saw
fire in Ryan's house and wanted to save
the family. Judging from appearances,
| however, he entered Ryan's house through a
window, kicking out one sash as he did at
the hotel. He had picked up an axe some
| where, at the house it is supposed, and it
| was with this deadly instrument he killed
the entire family except the little boy, who
| ran from the house and took refuge with q
negro family living near by. The bodies,
When found, were lying in the yard, about
| twenty, forty and fifty feet respectively from
! the house, and were in row and, as they
| had just risen from bed, were only partly
dressed. The heads of Mr.. Ryan and Mrs.
| Smith were
CHOPPED AND POUNDED
into shapeless mass of pulp. The head of
the little girl was entirely severed from her
body. The superstition is that Trockstein
| forced the unfortunate persons from the
house and compelled them to assume the at
titude of prayer, as he wanted every body to
pray, and while they were in this position
killed them. The axe was found beside one
of the corpses, covered with blood and hair.
Selling the girls head by its long, flowing
hair, the insane man ran along the outskirts
of the town to the residence of DR.. Gordon.
| In passing from the one house to the other,
| he had Invested himself of all his clothing,
scattering it piece by piece along the road.
| He dashed into DR.. Gordon's house in a per-
fectly nude state, brandishing the mutiIated
and
BLOOD EsMEARED HEAD,
presenting sight horrible in the extreme.
The cook, woman. was the only member
of the family out of bed when the maniac
| made his appearance, but her cries speedily
| brought DR.. Gordon and his hostler upon
the scene, and after desperate struggle
| they succeeded in securing the wild and
| frenzied man, and few minutes later he
| was taken in charge by officers. The guards
| who had Trockstein in charge at the hotel
| are greatly blamed for letting him escape
from them, and it seems strange that al
though they started in pursuit of him they
| could not find him. coroner's inquest
will be held to morrow, when it is hoped the
guards will be able to exonerate themselves.
THE INSANE MANS STORY.
ST. LOUIS, Dec.8.-Louis Frockstein, who
so literally butchered the Ryan family at
Chester, Illinois, yesterday was farmer liv-
ing near Chester and one of family of six
brothers and sisters. Louis had been q
strong Catholic, but of late had attended the
meetings of other denominations, and under
strong excitement occasioned thereby be-
came insane, but not violently, his mania
running mainly to asking persons to pray
with him. On Saturday last he made his
two sisters kneel and pray with him
in the streets, and expressed the
opinion that the world would come to
an end in few days. His story is that at
the hotel from which he escaped parties
| were trying to rob him and he run away.
That when he neared Ryan's house he dis
covered it to be on fire and rushed in and
| saved all the inmates with the exception of
the little boy, who he maintains persisted in
the flames. He says, while saving the Ryans
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