The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1889-12-19
FIENDIsH ToRTUREs.
Horrible Practices of a st. Louis Father That
Resulted in His Murder by His Son.

ST. LOUIS, Dec. 1S.-A horrible tale Of the
alleged barbarous cruelty of George A.
Guentheg. the aged and defenseless old man
who was slain by his sixteen-year-old son
yesterday morning. was related to the
police to-day by Cbas. Guenther. an elder
brother of the murderer. The sons story
brands the dead man as q savage tiend in
carnate.
Il have not lived at home for five years"
began Charles Guenther. IN 1884 | left
the place ON Franklin avenue because 1
could not stand the way / was treated by
my father. Since then l have had but lit
tie conversation with the family at home,
but | am convinced by what / heard from
those who knew of what was going on there
that his savage cruelty toward my sisters
and Emile has been kept mp. Before / left
home my father was guilty of the most
horrible treatment of his children that can
be imagined. / left the place after one
period of slow torture that made me des-
perate. 1t was in 1884 when l had done
somethinSthat my father did not like. In
fact. 1t Was rarely that any of us could do
anything he did like. He made me go up
stairs with him to a room in the back part
of the house. which was seldom used. He
showed ne in, and came in himself and
locked the door behind him. Then he
brought out some chains that he had bidder
some where. and when l caught sight of
them / set up an cutlery. My father shouted
to Ine to stop that Internal noise, and when
he found he conld not brighten me he
jumped at me, and we had a regular tight.
] bit and hit about me. and struggled to
throw him off. but he was the more power
full. and finally got the better of me. and by
threading to do me even greater violence,
compelled me to keep quiet.
Then he brought out those chains n
began to bind me with them. He put them
on my hands. and bound my feet with them.
l thought he had finished then, but taking
up another one he fastened it around my
neck, and fixed it SO that / could hardly
move my head. Then he left me. / suffered
fiendish fortunes then, but ] was compelled
to submit to more, however. After the
lapse of a few hours | heard him coming up
the stairs again. He opened the door. and
when he stepped inside l noticed he had q
bottle of whisky in his hand. He released
me from the chains. and compelled me to
strip from head to foot. until l stood nude
before him. Then he chained me up and
took a good-sized pin and began pricking
me with it from head to foot, until | was
bottle and held it for awhile. leaving me
to surmise what ne intended doing. and l..
aTeasing my anguish doubly by the
anticipation of h torture to
which was to. be subjected.
lHtu lily ldIHcl WCb HIS huSCx III II
bottle and rubbed over what seemed to INT
every sore he had made on my body. He
did not rub it all over my body at once.
but would rub over a small space until all
the stuff had been rubbed in, when he
would wet his finger again and begin on
another place. The pain was too terrible
and excruciating. l must have tainted
from it. / think. for 1 remained in that
room all night, chained up, and did not
know anything until the mex morning.
when my father came up and released me.
After that l ran away"
The boy, Emile. who IS held for beating
his father to death, acts like an imbecile,
and it is believed that he has been driven
insane by the cruelty of his father and the
tragedy of yesterday. To-day he failed to
recognize his own brother. and when he
was appealed to almost supplicatingly for
the murderer's mouth, but nothing to in-
dictate that he was any more than an
idiotic creature.