Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-04-11
4 TERRIBLE TRAGEDY.
A MURDERoUs TARTAR RUNS AMUcK IN
TIE STREET.
Two Citizens Shot Down Yesterday with
out Cause or Provocation-one Is
Mortally wounded.

Two CltlZeuS SQOL DOWN. 1estSA0As "4sA
out Cause or Provocation-one Is
Mortally wounded.
About 4:30 P. NJ yesterday the lower busi-
ness portion of the city was thrown into
state of extraordinary excitement by tragic
occurrence happening upon the public street.
Tie excitement arose from the statement
that James Lansing, prominent and re-
spected citizen, lad been shot down upon the
street and killed. The streets in The vicinity
of Third, Fourth, K and L were i'm
mediately thro1ged with excited citizens, and
it was with great difficulty that the officers
of the Law secured the would-be murderer,
forced him into hack and conveyed him
to the city prison.
THE FACTS.
Silaon Raten is native of West Siberia, is
an employe at the railroad shops has been In
this State six months. He has been drinking
considerably of late. On Sunday he became
involved in an alteration with a man by the
name OF Andrew Erickson. He followed
Erickson around the greater part of the day
trying to provoke fight. Finally Erickson
| " as lOECSu W dDu gave leaeCh 49,
s3uad drubbing. Yesterday morning. fred with
liquor and smarting under the humiliation
of the sound hoggiug he had evidently justly
received from Erickson, he procured pistol
and went out hunting for the latter, deter
mined on revenge. Az half-past four, Raten.
while walking down street, met the object CT
his search coming up along the south side OF
| X street, between Third and Fourth str cts.
Raten Immediately drew pistol and fired.
Erickson, seeing the assassin approach,
lodged as the pistol was fred and escaped
| the intended bullet A young man
named John j. Livingston, who was walk
| ing behind Erickson, received the shos
in his right hand. The shot attracted imme-
date attention. The assassin turned at once
| back toward Fourth street from just in front
of the office door of the international Hotel,
and began to run. As he came to the cor
ner of the street Richard Leslie attempted to
intercept him, but he pointed the pistol at
him and turned down Fourth street toward
| L. By this time crowd was In pursuit of
him. AS he came to the alley between K and
J. he turned into it and ran toward Third
| street.
JAMES LANSING,
Who was in the back yard of his prem
ises 1.-THE International Hotell which open
upon the alley, hearing the noise made
by the people pursuing the assassin, and
the cries of the officers, opened his gate and
step2ed into the alley just as Raten passed
the gate. Lansing ran after the man few
feet, when the latter turned with his pistol in
his hand. Lansing stopped short and threw
up his hands, and some say he cried out,
Don't shoot" Raten was then about
four feet from lansing. He paid 10
heed to Lansing's protest, and fired.
Lansing staggered back and re-entered his
yard, and had strength sufficient to walk to
the hotel, when he was assisted TO his room.
Raten stood few seconds with his pistol
pointed toward bis pursuers, and then lrned
and ran on to Third street. He turned down
Third toward l., and near l. ceased running,
and walked. Charles Heinrich, grocer,
met him there ard asked him what was the
matter. Rateu replied, II don't kno what
street and began to run. A few seconds
later his pursuers were on him, and midway
of the block he was oyertaken, throYn, and
made prisoner.
BOYS STATEMENT.
Jacob Goldstein, aged Is, rewsboy, says
he was in the alley when Raten entered it.
He SEW Mr.. Lansing open his gate, and saw
him put up his hands, as it to stop the man.
Lansing. seeing the man with pistol, cried
out, "Don't shoot" bat the man thrust the
pistol close to Lansing's body and fired.
Lansing reeled and staggered and "acted
wildly" as the boy puts it, and cried out
am shot" Raten then threw his pistol over
fence and ran toward Third street. The
boy followed with the crowd in pursuit OF
Rateo, who was overtaken on l. street, near
the middle of the roadway, and about half
way between Third and Fourth. The boy
says Thomas Stevens and William Doian
were the first to seize the man, who resisted
and had to be thrown to the ground. p.
Brannigan, officer Campbell, and other off,
GERS were almost simultaneously on the spot,
and to them the prisoner was turned over.
RATEN RESISTED
Violently, and fought the officers all the way
along the street until the vicinity Of the
RECoRD-UNIoN Office was reached, when
Chief Karcher called hack, and the prisoner,
by main force. was thrust in and held down,
and thus driven to the Ssation-house. An
immense crowd filed Third street by this
time, and cries of Hang him y " Kill him !"
were loud and frequent. The people were
greatly excited, and single move by de-
termined leader would probably have re.
suited in an attempt to take the prisoner
from the officers. But large number OF
police were present and drove the crowd
back and cleared the walk ways.
LrvlNGsroN's STATEMENT.
The young man, Livingston, was taken
into the international Hotel, and sat bravely
up during the surgical operation of removing
a bullet from his wrist. The bali entered the
right side Of the palm of his right hand,
passed up the hand toward and through the
wrist between the small bones, and lodged be-
meath the skin on the upper side of the wrist
and just back OF the wrist joint. Livingston
said | work in the railroad shops. l came
here December u, 1881. Ia company with
| 81 Il, 7 Boot sc +ba T.,
| transitional Hotel to go up K street. We
had walked but few steps when saw a
dark.visagsd man with shade over his eyes
coming toward US. Before | had fairly oh.
served him he drew pistol can't say from
where-at least l saw it in his hand. He
fred toward me, and | received the shot in
my wrist just as was lifting my hand. l
never saw the man before. AS soon as he
shot he turned and ran toward Fourth street,
az | thought in pursuit of another man. l
never had airy difficulty with the man, and
did not know him at all.
ERIRcKsoN's STATEMENT
NV name is Andrew Erickson live at
the Helvetia House. Know Raten had an
alteration with him Sunday; l whipped
him he hsd been following me up to fight !;
was forced Into it; have known Rsten at
the railroad shops several months; he works
in the copper shops. To-day Monday, at
! 4;30, | met him in front of the International.
saw he was going to shoot A.; l lodged the
ballet gr4zsd my face; felt its wind; the
powder of the cartridge felt on my face;
ran away ~ X street. clear to the Helvetia
! House, on Fifth stree; l though. the man
was still after me, and [ was uparmsd.
Pm Woodson, q. Graves, w. Dolan, L.
Stevens and many others saw the shooting of
Mr.. Lansing, and all tell the same story,
with but slight variation in detail. Ole
man, however, tells story that is false in
every particular. He told it loudly on the
street to the officers, to crowds of citizens,
at the station-hOuse and elsewhere, and
amazed reporters, newspaper men and
| officers by the Warehouses; Of his state
ments, to such an extent that collection is
being taken to give him a chrome as the
champion. He says his name is David
Curl, aad he lives at Eighteenth and 0
streets. He saw Lansing aud the assassin
! talking in front of the hotel Lansing was
dunning Raten for board bill. Suddenly
| R,ten drew pistol and cried, "Fll not
pay you a id cent" and immediately
! fired. The assassin then ran and Curl pur-
sued the officers were careful to keep behind
! him (Curil, aud urged him on to the front.
| He sau, ansing shot in the alley where he