The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1888-07-12
THE MYSTERY SOLVED.

ed murder at kossuth has finally been
cleared up. The girl, Mary Wachel, was
led by peculiar circumstance to confess
that she had made the attempt upon her
own life Last week the officers had her
brought to the city. They were reason
ably confident she knew who fired the
shot, and their belief in Cenefeldt's guilt
was considerably lessened by the inves-
| LEGATIONS they had made. The revolver
which he had in his possession was y
caliber. The bullet taken from the girls
body was 81 caiber. 1t was thought
that Cenefeldt might be in possession of
another revolver and the body Of dog
which he had shot was brought to the
| city and in it were found two bullets,
each of % caliber. A revolver was found
| in Decker's house,-that in which the
girl hved,-of 80 caliber and with one
barrel discharged. Here the chain was
broken and the officers were baffied.-
Every means possible was employed to
make the girl confess. A priest tried his
persuasion, telling her of the slight pros
pect of her recovery and the wrong she
would do Cenefeldt if he was innocent
and she knew it. But she persisted in
her statement that she did not know who
shot her.
When she was brought to the city she
| showed some signs of alarm and was
always startled by the appearance of a
stranger. Mrs. Bolen was unusually
kind to her and she began to feel easier.
On Saturday the county officers at the
court house and county buildings decid-
ed to have their pictures taken in group
in the court house yard, and for back
| ground hung black cloth along the east
side of the court house. A number of
the books used in the several offices were
piled up and the officers were standing
around in groups The girl showed I'M
usual perturbation at these preparations.
1t finally flashed through her mind that
! Cenefeldt was to be executed for attempt
ing to kill her, and she threw herself on
the floor at Mrs. Bolen's feet and plead
ed in agony that the'execution be stopped
and she would confess all.
| Then the girl told her story. She had
been seduced the Sunday previous to the
shooting by her cousin, Joseph Decker,
a young man about 20 years of age. The
day following he left for Chicago and the
] l., IL c1,
solved to take her own life. She left the
house taking the revolver, and shot her
self after driving out Cenefeldt's COWS
from the field of her employer. She re-
turned the revolver to the place from
which she took it, after reaching the
house.
Saturday evening Under Sheriff Kru
ger started out to arrest Decker and
brought him to the city that night. He
found bail without difficulty. He denied
the girls story but made admissions
which practically were confession of
guilt. He concluded to settle the mat
ter and paid the girl $3.50, and made pro-
vision for a further payment of $3.50 in
case a child should be born, besides pay
ing the expense OF the proceedings against
him. He is a young man of good ap-
pearance, was student at the Oshkosh
Normal school and also attended school
in this city. He enjoys reputation in
the neighborhood in which he lives OF
being little fast. If he has conscience
he will suffer for blighting the life of SO
good girl as his cousin, Mary Wachel.
The girl is prepossessing in appearance
and has a good, honest face. That she is
virtuous at heart is shown by her deter
mination not to survive the loss of her
virtue She receipted for the $3.50 but
positively refused to accept it, stating 1t
was "sin-money" and she would have
nothing to do with it. The district at
torney deposited it in her name in a bank.
The girl cried uninterruptedly from
the time of her confession on Saturday
afternoon until Sunday night. 1t was
feared she would go insane. She is poor,
having no relatives In this country but
the Deckers. Her mother died insane in
Bohemia and Mary came to this country
alone to make her own living and help
the members OF the family who remained.
Cenefeldt was released some weeks ago,
he having furnished bail to the amount
of $4,000. He has been discharged since
the girls confession.