Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1890-07-10
A SONS DILEMMA.
Awful Alternative Presented a
7'heologie al Student.
NARROWING DOMESTIC TRAGEDY.

VIM. Rittamel shoots His Wife in the
Head and During a Fearful Struggle
to Finish His Dreadful Work His Son
Finds 1t Necessary to shoot His Father
to Save His Mother Both Victims
Fatally Wounded.
German carpenter residing at SOP North
Ashland avenue, shot his wife through
the head yesterday. His son, 81 years old,
and just completing an eight-year course
of study for the Lutheran Evangelical
ministry, heard the shot, and, entering
the room, encountered the father, who
held the weapon still in his hand. A ter
rible struggle followed, and the son was
finally forced to shoot his father to save
his mother from the would-be murderer.
The bloody double tragedy was enacted in
the kitchen of the third fiat at the loca-
tion mentioned, between 2 and o'clock p.
m. The police arrested and detained young
Rittamel, as both husband and wife are so
dangerously wounded that little hope is
entertained of the recovery of either.
The Sons Thrilling Story.
Young Rittamel was seen by a reporter
last night and gave the following account
of the tragedy:
81 was sitting in the dining room, and
the door to the kitchen was closed.
heard no unusual sound until heard the
shot. knew my mother was in the kitch-
en- at work. | was engaged in reading
and at first did not think the shot was
ga. IN i fatb
out and was not expecting him to return.
Then concluded to investigate When
reached the kitchen father was standing
near the rear door. He did not appear
disconnected in the least, but l first no
ticed my mother staggering about in the
pantry. Here face and hands were COW
cred with blood. The revolver was in
fathers hand, but did not notice it until
l stepped close to him.
Closing with a Madman.
"When came face to face with him he
leveled the weapon at my head. 1 was
only few feet from him, and realizing
| that he should be disarmed at once and at
any cost moved toward him. Fear did
not feel. l was too greatly agitated for
that. had barely time TO reach him and
strike his arm so that the bullet from his
revolver went over my head"
did he attempt TO shoot you a second
timer"
"No-that il, took the one chance left
me after striking his arm up, and Crap
pied with him. But the revolver was
| cooked. and had to be very careful.
Desperate Struggle for Life.
"Then came the most trying time of the
| whole awful affair. My mother had sue
ceeded in getting upon her feet, and threw
herself between father and myself. / knew
that il father ever got possession of the re-
volver again he would shoot mother sec
ond time. In the struggle we staggered
toward the pantry, and all three of us fell
| upon the floor inside, my mother under
| meath. | then managed to secure the
weapon. Father had grasped mother
about the throat, and held on with a wise
like grasp. He was slowly but surely
strangling her. l did not want to shoot
him. but l was unable to rescue her from
his grasp. l struck at him with the butt
of the revolver, but he avoided the blow,
and mother received it. / was becoming
weak, and could not have held out much
longer.
An Awful Resolution Taken.
"Then resolved to shoot my father and
| injure him so that he would be forced to
desist. placed the muzzle of the revolver
close to his left side. | had sufficient
presence of mind to keep it away from his
| heart. and prayed when Ipulled the trig-
ger that the shot would not kill him As
pressed the trigger fathers grasp on moth
er's throat relaxed, and he exclaimed:
You have shot me through the heart ;
Mother reached the kitchen door and
| started down stairs and followed her
| did not know how badly my father was
wounded or whether he had other weapons
| convenient, and as a measure of safety
| locked him in the kitchen and put the key
| in my pocket i then hurried out to the
nearest drug store to summon a physi-
| clan"
The Father Slightly Insane.
There was absolutely no cause for the
| fathers deed. While not exactly ma
MAC, his mind has been affected with
| slight touches of insanity during the last
year. He was never violent and never
| considered sufficiently demented to be
| taken before a court of inquiry. He
| had been quarrelsome and expressed
fear of his own family = more
| especially of his elder SON But
this had no foundation except in his
own brain. The neighbors knew he was
the object of his entire family sdeepest so
licitude despite his quarrelsome and ugly
disposition. The husband and wife are
natives of Germany. They were married
in Chicago about thirty years ago, and
have resided here constantly since.
| The Educators Convention.
/ Ill. 4 4