River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1880-10-07
TRACING 4 MURDERER.

was a man Of very ordinary appear
ancc. of ordinary size, of ordinary
complexion. with an ordinary face, and
especially with an ordinary eye. lie
stood with his hands idly down in the
pockets of Il long, loose coat as though
thev had dropped there themselves,
ana he had not taken the trouble to
pull them out, and he seemed to be
neither thinking Of, nor carving about,
nor looking at anything.
boy messenger came tripping ont
of the telegraph office, taking two or
three steps ut once, rs has been hand
>omely expressed, and happening to
see the uninterested man whom he
had seen before, he stopped short, and
said
.'Oh, here's one for you; suppose !
might rs well give it to you here.
You're Mr.. Black
The man did not say that he was or
that he was not, but quietly reached
for the dispatch, which the boy handed
him and hurried on.
Then Mr. Black with a deliberation
that would have been fairly agonizing
70 any one looking over his shoulder,
unfolded the paper and read:
MARYsvLLE. June 26, IS. To Mr.. William
Black Police Department Sacramento An
atrocious murder has just been discovered here.
\ woman named Mrs. Wolf, was the victim. Her
husband Is suspected and in custody, but no evi-
dence against Hasten to us by the first boat
while all is fresh. l.. MoRroN
Sheriff Of ! uba County
William Black was a Sacramento de
tective, and ut that time undoubtedly
the most sagacious IN California. The
boat was to leave in little over an hour
Mr. Black entered the telegraph office
and dispatched to the sheriff of Guba
county the words All right
That evening Il man with a red shirt
on-a man of very ordinary appear
ance-landed in Marysville. He was Il
miner, of course, if one may always
Judge from Indications; but he had Il
lazy look, as if weighed down by n
woful lack of energy: and person
might have wondered if ever such a
person did pluck up courage
enough to climb the mountains.
The same lazy-looking man later in
the evening was in secret eomnunica-
ton with the sheriff and several other
officials
AT what hour was the murder dis
covered?' he asked.
Nine o'clock this morning exact
~"
In what way"
The news came through her hus-
band. He rushed excitedly into II
saloon, on the edge of the town, saying
that his wife was dead and somebody
had killed her. They had come lately
from the mines. and were living in u
tent of their own, a quarter of Il mile
out of the town We will conduct YOU
to it by and 10y"
"a physician has made an examina-
tom
.N-cs; skilled one He says it is
clear that the woman was murdered ~
stranglcd by pair of coarse hands,
the marks of which he found on her
throat
Did he say how long she had been
dcad?'
Yes, many hours"
.sWhat does Wolf saw
"That ne did not sleep ut home
He says he was drunk last night, which
have found to be true, and that being
unable to reach home, he lay down
under a tree, between here and his
home and slept soundly. When he
awoke. according to his story, it was
near nine o'clock Then he got up,
FASTENED to his tent and found his wife
dead, and we have some fear that an
attempt will be made to lynch him. In
fact. there is little doubt of his guilt,
but there il no positive proof, and the
ease needs working up
"What makes you think he did it,
Various suspicious circumstances,
His unlikely story of having slept out
all night, when within 4 few yards of
his temporary home, and not waking
before nine"
.IIad they quarreled.
cit is not known that they had, but
we'll, they were man and wife, and
we might safely presume they had. "
"Were there not traces Of a struggle
Ieft2'
No"
Not thread a shirt-button a
hair.
No
Tracks,
NO. The ground is 50 hard and dry.
You know"
Has any stranger been seen lurking
in that neighhorhood?'
No"
HAS any stranger been in town"
well We have miners down here
from the mountain every day-hut 1t
was none of them.
Detective Black who wore a red
shirt. was conducted To the scene of the
murder He saw the body at the office
of the coroner. He saw the physician;
he saw everybody in Marysville, he saw
and talked with Wolf three quarters of
an hour. Then he said to the sheriff:
lie didn't do it.
The sheriff was thunderstruck'
But said William Black, keep
him in custody till you hear from me.
Don't let the people get hold of him,
though; for | suppose they would lynch
him at a venture.
We'll take care of him.
..You might arrest and detain any
suspicious looking person found in the
neighborhoud ALWAYS remembering
that he's innocent"
Il will =
The conference thus ended
The next morning a fresh miner
made his appearance ut Pine Camp,
abou, fifteen miles north Of MaryS-
vile. lie was lazy looking man. He
louugrd abou, from point to point,
talking with the miners. hothering them
~ their work Some thought that he
was :. half idiot He stopped and
talked with groups here and there and
asktdsthem questions about the best
place to locate ON. lie was green
Then he told them a piece of terrible
newS-a woman had been foully muir
dercd i'm Marysville. Her name was
Wolf. Her husband had done it, it was
thought in fact there was no doubt
Of it. The simpleton. That was no
news. II had been the talk of the
camp for twenty-f,1ur hours,
.Oh then YOU knowed it yesterday? =
lie Went from claim to claim; spoke
To everybody; asked particularly about
the mining prospects; spoke about the
murder
That fellow won't do much. He's
too lazy looking, was remarked more
than once
The afternoon was wearing away.
The lGan If m>ound mind stopped for
the twentieth time and talked to Il
group If four who were working a
claim. He sat ON a large stone: he
spoke of the murder, actually informed
them rs news.
..Whv old fellow. said one. you've
u. l. y. a.