Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1891-07-09
MURDER AT HAZLETON.
The Elite Society of That Aristocratic
Town Hold Another Big Time.

Hazleton couldn't let the "Glorious
Fourth pass without adding another
horrible murder to the constantly in
creasing list of crimes committed in that
place. In the following the Stdaddrd
tells of the bloodthirsty doings among
the people over there:
Joseph Cortes, a young Italian, on
Saturday evening attempted to murder a
Hungarian, Andrew Petrick, and him
self fell victim to his own deadly
weapon. Adam, Andrew and Mike
Petrick, brothers, were on their way
home in the evening when they
stopped in saloon and met Joseph
Cortes and Frank Petro. The men were
acquainted and indulged in dance
after which they started home. When
the party reached the new road the
Hungarians wanted to continue the
old road, but the Italians persuaded
them to go via the new road. They had
proceeded but q short distance when
Joseph Cortes asked the time of Andrew
Petrick. The latter took out his watch
and told Cortes the hour.
When Petrick returned the time piece
to his pocket Cortes took it and returned
his own. Petrick objected to the ex-
change and a wrangle ensued. He in
sisted upon receiving his own watch
Cortes took the watch and handed it
toward Petrick. When the latter reach
ed for it Cortes plunged stiletto into
his left side. Petrick then fell to the
ground and one of his brothers grappled
with Cortes and wrested the weapon
from him. The other then struck Cortes
with stone and feled him. While
down Cortes was stabbed twice with his
own weapon, once in the left arm, and
once right through the lung and into the
heart. When the Italian Petro saw the
tigh he fed and did not know of the
terrible fate of the other.
One of the Petericks notified Officer
Matthews who proceeded to the scene
and found the two men dying on the
ground bleeding profusery, one of the
Petericks standing over Cortes with a
stone fearing he would make another
attack Peterick was taken to the hos
pital and Cortes to the lookup, but was
subsequently taken to the hospital where
he died a short time after Adam Pete
rick, the one who stood over Cortes with
the stone when the officer arrived, was
arrested as a witness. He was locked
up for the night and on Sunday accom-
panied Officer Polgrain to the scene of
the affray and showed him where the
stiletto was hidden. The weapon was
found. 1t is n murderous looking thing
with blade seven inches long, the
whole blade having penetrated the body
of Cortes.
Coroner Buckley came over on Monday
and empanelled jury of inquest. The
jury viewed the remains and heard the
evidence of the man Peterick held as a
witness, and the one who came to town
for the officer Adam admitted taking
the knife from Cortes, but said he did
not do the stabbing, which was done by
Andrew in self-defense. Mike, the other
brother, said he could not tell who stab
bed Cortes as he came for an officer as
soon as he saw Andrew was stabbed.
The coroner's jury met again Tuesday to
hear the evidence of Drs. Keller and
Dancer, who made the post mortem
examination, and of Frank Petro, the
Italian, who was with Cortes. The latter
has not yet been found. The physicians
found that Cortes came to his death
from the wounds inflicted by the sti-
letto; that otherwise the man was per-
feet in every organ. Following is the
verdict of the coroner's jury
"We find that Joseph Cortes came to
his death from wound in the left side
penetrating the lung and heart, inflicted
by stiletto in the hands of some person
or persons unknown to the jury. That
from the evidence produced, Andrew
and Adam Peterick and Frank Petro
were accessories to the fact and the jury
asks that they be held to await the action
of the grand jury"