Morris tribune., 1881-02-17
CASUALTY OR MURDER?
Examination Of Tobias Ochsner and Annie
Stackeihouse, Charged with Murder at Au-
dubOn.

Examination Of Tobias Ochsner and Annie
StackeIhouse, Charged with Murder at Au-
dubOn.
On the night of February |, the house of
Tobias Ochsner at Audubon, Becker county,
was burned, and his wife and two children de
stroyed in the flames. There are some myste-
rious features about the calamity, and the fact
| that Ochsnet and an attractive girl employed as
servant in the family escaped, while his wife
and children perished, gave rise to suspicious
that the husbands part in the casualty was not
wholly that of passive, sufferer. These sus-
picions were intensified by rumors of improper
relations between OchsnerF and the servant girl,
Annie Stackelhouse. The coroner's jury which
sa upon the bodies of Mrs Ochsner and the
children, after hearing the evidence of Ochsner,
the girl and the neighbors, brought in the fol-
lowing verdict:
We, the jury, find that Clara Ochsner Willie
Ochsner and Lewis Ochsner came to their death
by being burned, and the fire, in our opinion,
| was caused by the explosion of the lamp which
was left lighted, or the accidental upsetting of
said lamp.
This verdict did not give satisfaction, and the
excitement increasing, and at a suggestion from
| the governor, Sheriff Phinney arrested Ochsner
| and Annie Stackelhouse and carried them to
| Detroit for safe keeping. Ochsner is twenty
| five years old, thick-set, with dark complexion,
| five feet eight inches high and weighs about
1Ic PouIuo. lo 10 Aoo oil Ht-loohlNS Aldii.
| The girl is not remarkably attractive, but is
| merely healthy looking Swede.
The examination began at Detroit, on Thurs
| day before Judge ROssman and Associate JUS
tice Bemis Of Lake Park. The prosecution was
conducted by Q L: Larson, county attorney,
assisted by s. B. Pinney of Fargo The defense
was conducted by W. Drew. Olof Larson, the
principal witness before the eoroner's jury was
on the stand for a long time, but his testimony
did not criminate the accused. When hereached
the house on the night of the fire he found
Ochsner standing outside crying; said his wife
| and children were burning and he could not
| save them; the witness after trying to get into
| the burning house, told Ochsner and the girl to
| go to some of the neighbors, not to stand there
and freeze; but it does not appear that they left
| at that time. Miss Stacklehouse was but par
| TALLY dressed, holding her shoes in her hand
could not tell whether she had dress on or
| not; the only article saved from the house was
trunk. Some bed clothing and sheep skin
| robe had been taken out; the prisoners went
home with him and remained about an hour;
from there they went to the house of Ochsn err e
| brother; Ocshner and the girl both cried while
| at his house, and seemed in great distress,
Ochsner sitting with his head in his hands
| weeping and groaning; in the morning before
| the inquest he saw Ochsner, and noticed that
| his hair had been considerably burned; saw nc
marks of the kind on the girl; Jacob Kohler,
who removed the dead bodies from the ruins,
| testified as to the position and appearance of
| the bodies. He saw no marks of violence upon
unburned portions. The examination was moi
concluded, but from the weakness of the evi-
dence against them, it is presumed that the &C.
| cused will be discharged.