St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-05-21
Arrest of Frenohman in the Streets of
New York While Carrying a
Corpse in Sack.
The Body Proves to be That Of a Once
Pretty Woman Strong Evidence
of Murder.
The Story of Kidnapping by a Ship
Captain at New Orleans
Confirmed.
Raggart, the Companion of the BrooA-
lyn Bridge Suicide, Under Arrest
--Crime Notes.
Murder of a woman.

NEW YORK. MAY 2O.-At 3 o'clock this
morning Frenchman, who proved to be
Iouis Francis of 3O7 Tenth avenue, was
arrested while on his way to North river,
hearing on his body the mutilated corpse OF
a woman who had been murdered. The
officer was attracted by the mysterious
movements of Francis, as he was weighted
down by his ghastly burden, and he was
stopped to see what the bag contained. Inc
Frenchman refused to give any information
and ATTEMPTED to move on, but the police
man insisted on being informed OF the con-
tents of the sack and took Francis i'll Gus
tody. The policeman seized Francis by
the arm. whereupon he dropped the bag
and its contents upon the sidewalk. 1t fell
with a swaShing sound to the sidewalk, and
the officer on opening the sack, TO his sur
prise and horror, found that it contained the
mutilated body of woman. The body
was doubled up and almost nude. The
policeman. on closer examination, found
unmistakable evidence of the fact that the
woman
HAD BEEN MURDERED.
There were CHASTITY wounds upon the
face and the trunk from which the blood
had flowed and coagulated. In reply to
the officers questions, Francis declared that
the corpse was that of his wife, and that
She had died a natural death. Being With
out means necessary for funeral, he had
resolved to carry the corpse to the river and
throw it in The officer refused to accept
the explanation. Francis again shouldered
the bag and bore the mutilated corpse to
the police station. tie was placed unoer
arrest and steps taken to investigate the
supposed mysterious crime. Francis is
a.; ne
no attempt at an explanation when closely
questioned. other than to reply that his
wife had died at their home on Tenth
avenue. and that he was about to throw the
CORPSE into the river on account OF his IN
ability to give it
CHRISTIAN BURIAL.
Iouis Francis tells the following story:
ssYesterday found valuable dog, which
nv wife afterwards lost. [ reproached my
wife for losing him, and she swore at me.
At 7:3O O'Clock last night she sent
me out for beer, and when [ came back
found a man named William Welsh in the
room with her. Welsh worked in the same
shop with me- She sat on my lap and
kissed me. and then she threw a glass at
me and then can. She then went out.
Then Welsh and | walked out half a block,
and then | left him to come home. When
/ came back she was lying on the Hoor
dead. l waited an hour, thinking she
would revive. but she did not. l don't
know what caused her death. She told me
before she died that she did not care for me,
but she liked the man who put up the vine
for her. He is Leopold SaconVllle, and he
lives with Mrs. Lynch, on Broadway.
After / found my wife dead took 10 cents,
and went out and got drink. In half an
hour came back and put her IN the Dag TO
throw her into the river"
The woman is not Francis wife. She is
Selma Fehst. So years old, with son Is
wears old. who lives in Boston. Francis,
who is a year younger than his paramount,
has worked some time in a French polishing
yard. Three months ago the couple moved
into the apartments where the
CRIME WAS COMMITTED.
Francis lived on the ground floor in the rear
structure His three rooms were comfort
ably furnished and neatly kept. Both were
persons in appearance above the average OF
the neighborhood, but both drank freely of
beer, the man to excess. They quarreled
frequently. Two weeks ago, while in one
of his convivial moods, he beat and kicked
her. telling her to the floor. Upon picking
her up he was heard by tenants in the build
ing to say: II guess I've finished her this
time" As the body lay in the police station
this morning it had the appearance of once
having been pretty woman, dissipation
not aiding to dispel this impression. She
was of delicate complexion, large, express
sive, blue eyes, thick, wavy, brown hair,
and petite in figure, weighing about one
hundred pounds. On the corpse were
scrupulousIy clean underwear, a black skirt
and embroidered nightdress. About the
throat were lines of discoloration and marks
of finger nails. 1t was evident that the
woman had been strangled to death by
twisting the handkerchief around her neck.
The autopsy shows that Selma Francois,
when the body was being borne to the river
by her husband, was strangled. The hus-
band is in jail.