The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-08-28
WAS THE MAN DRUGGED?
INVESTIGAIION INTO THE DEATH
or BUCKRATH.
Carl Krieger's Strange story-He, Too.
Was Druggcd and Robbed at the
volksfest in Schuetzen Park = The
Coroner's Inquest.

Coroner Brackner held an inquest last
evening on the case of Charles Buckrath,
the man whose body was found in
Scnuetzen Park the morning after the
Plattdeutsche Volksfest. The Coroner's
office was crowded.
Twelve intelligent Union Hill citizens.
faced him and looked wise and nodded
their heads from time to time when the
evidence seemed to promise interesting
developments.
The first witness called was James Earl
the Chief of the Schuetzen Park police,
Earl said that on the morning after the
Fest he, with Policeman Dayitt, was
watching the stands 1t was about five
o'clock.
Herman Tangeman, lad who has
charge of the boats, ran up and told him
that dead man was lying back of Was
stand. When Earl saw the man he was
lying on his face in the grass.
He noticed a scratch over his eye and
also that his right trousers pocket had
been turned out. He noticed the two
benches placed together. He saw no
woman in white; and knew of no gang
being in the park. The dead man was
lying on the left side of the bench--as
though he had rolled off
THE BLOOD-STAINED HANDKERCHIEF.
Policeman Davitt was next called, and
corroborated Earl's evidence.
Il found the pocket handkerchief"
said he, stained with blood and marked
A. o. l noticed pool of blood under it.
The blood was clotted.
"The left hand trousers pocket of the
dead man was turned out. There ap-
peared to have been a tussle where the
handkerchief was found, but the ground
was only in the condition of hundred
other places in the Park"
One of the jurors in questioning Davitt
made some bitter remarks about entrust-
ing the care of 10000 people to sixteen
policemen, but he finally quieted down.
ExCol oner John Gschwind was next
called.
He had seen the body as it lay. and de-
scribed the circumstances much as the
others had done.
He at once called attention to the fact
that the man had been robbed. There
were no marks on the mans throat.
"Yes,o said he in answer to a question,
81 have seen bodies of men who died from
both smothering and sJrangulation.
There is more evidence towards the
smothering than the strangulation
theory"
THE WOMAN IN WHITE.
Mrs Waas, the wife of Freeholder Waas,
who kept the stand behind which Buck
rath was found, testified that she had seen
Il man lying on the ground about twenty
feet back of the stand at eleven o'clock
that night.
A woman was bending over him, trying
to lift him up. He appeared to be very
drunk. The woman was dressed in
white, wore a black belt and sailor hat,
trimmed with white.
She was rather slim and of medium
l. 49,, ,tt.rr 1RxrA NIja
waters said nothing to Mrs. Waas about
finding the body until the next morn
ing.
Policeman B. F. Stamford did special
duty at the park during the Fest. He told
rambling story about woman coming
to him on the grand platform and asking
him to help her young man, whom gang
had robbed.
Stamford found the man leaning
against a tree The man told him three
men had taken IS from him, but, strange
to say, had left him a gold and silver
watch and the rest of ms money The
man was smooth-faced German and had
evidently been drinking.
The woman came to Stamford about
forty-five minutes after, and said that the
men had come back. This time the young
German was very drunk, but rs the
woman said she would take care of him,
Stamford lett him in her charge. She
was dressed in black, and was short and
ayes" said he, 'ft was strange that
she left him to look for help without
screaming. The men who robbed ran
through the bushes. l didn't follow, as /
was alone / saw the man and woman
sitting on the grass together near the
spot where the body was found"
THE SHOOTING STORY.
Sergeant George Stamford said :-"I
know nothing about the case. | did not
show Gsehwind q hat with hole in it.
He was so excited he did, not know what
he was doing"
Poll iceman Patrick Knight is the man
who is reported to have started the rumor
that Buckrath had been shot. He was
next called to the stand.
81 found hat" said he, Gin the park.
gave it to.Goshwind. | said the hole in
it looked like d bullet hole"
John Waller, the partner of Freeholder
Was saw the woman in white trying to
lift the man behind his stand.
He saw Zweicke and Dempf, the two
boys, go toward the clump of bushes
where the body was found with candle
He saw them come back again, but
they said nothing to aim about finding
Buckrath until the next morning.
"They said they were looking for
money" said he. II do not know if they
found any,"
Constable Duyal knew nothing of the
case. w. H. Tangemann, the boy who
found the body, gave some interesting
testimony.
81 went to the Park about half-past
four Thursday morning" he said, 81 was
| looking for money.
II saw the manlying in the grass.
| tried to wake him, but then saw that his
| face was black, and when / felt his pulse
| could not feel it beat. The right and left
| pockets of his sack coat were turned out.
81 could not see whether his trousers
| pockets were turned out or not. i did not
| touch his pockets. l. was SO fright ened
| that | ran at once for Jim Earl. | have
| been in the habit of going to the park
after picnics to look for money for the
! last ten years"
This closed the testimony for last even
ing, and Coroner Brackner adjourned the
inquest until next Friday evening at half
past seven. The testimony OF DR.. Con-
verse, the County Physician, and of the
walters Zwecke and Stempf, is still to be
heard.
The opinion seems to be growing
stronger that Buckrath was drugged, and
| then robbed.
| WAS DRUGGING DONE By WHOLESALE?
! l met Carl Krieger, a saloon keeper OF
| Hudson street and Park avenue, last even
| ing, and he had a strange story to tell.
| He went to the Volksfest on Thursday
and met very affable young man, who
| induced him to have glass of beer
| When he drank it he noticed u bitter taste
and did not want to finish it, but his com
| panioh insisted.
II -. D ~ I