The sun., 1891-03-18
WAS IT A DOUBLE SUICIDEi
TIE POLICE SAY CARL RUT77NGER
MAY HAVE KILLED HIMsELE

TIE POLICE SAY Carl RUT77NGEH
MAY HAVE KILLED HIMsELE
Tho Insurance Company satisaeA that He
Was Murdered. but It Does Not Thinh
wright Killed Him More Evidence
Tending 70 Prove that Evans, the Astor
House Suicide. Was william Wright.
William Wright did not murder his friend
Carl Ruttlnger in order to secure for his sister,
Ruttinesr's wife, the $4,000 insurance Rut-
finger had on his life. and the theory that the
Tottenvills mystery was q scheme to swindlo
insurance companies. and that the body Of the
murdered man found OF Tottenville WAS not
the body Of Ruttinger at all. was oficially sat
upon By the Equitable Life Assurance Society
yesterday.
The Equitable carries $4,000 Of the $50, 900
insurance on Ruttinger's life. Manager John
son OF the death claim department. explained
yesterday that the man who had translated the
policy issued from the Berlin once Of the
company had made mistake in tho name Of
the beneficiary named In the policy. and that
1t was not Ruttineers wife but his mother that
would benefit By his death.
RuttinRsr and his wife had been estrsnRed
for some timo and she intended getting Q d.
vorce from him. The theory that Wright might
have murdered his friend for his sisters bene-
at was based entirely on the statement of the
company that the policy Was msde out In favor
OF Mrs. Ruttinger. the wife. Manager johnson
also made this statement:
Tho description Of RuttinRer IN the insur-
ance papers issued BY our company to him has
been carefully compared with the descrip-
tion Of the body found of Tottenvllle, with
the result that the company is satisfied
that tho body ia that Of Ruttinger. The
company has Information from Ruttingers
family In London that Ruttin9er was fast
man. fond OF women. and that not infreQuently
he carried with him large sums of money.
Tho Equitable believes that Carl Ruttinger
was murdered. but they do not think It likely
that Wright murdered him. The company is
now making q careful investigation into all
the facts"
Mr.. johnson declined to say whether the
company would dispute the policy on Ruttin-
Rer's life. He said that the statement that
Wright's life was heavily insured In his COM
pany was not true. The company had on its
books the name Of only ono William Wright
He was an Australian and his description
Tailed In no way with the description Of Rut-
tingers brother-in.law.
This statement Of the Equitable Society
serves further to oomplicate the already very
complicated mystery. The theory that the
affair was an attempt to swindle insurance
companies had been regarded as very likely
one.
District Attorney Fitzgerald Of Richmond
Ssoly sss sc2 Goass s
At tho end md Of the day hs was so sure he was
Rumsd il would be ideSt tiled positively as as that
With csn s Ns% " Sf tSe ssen snS ai
ss1s ss:,ss st s gsS gss, b. q Me-: p
eS%sd .Pa Pal.s 5.Ssash g. e R shs If
o. II DUANE e ss pqSe Sos
e. the eiotnins idid and other effects OF the Assor
@ S.I n q aGas So,D IL eSnes 9s
es
g; q S sss
SolS :l:ey: buttons. in%SnNss N Ss:idss I Is.
;;ssss ss1a ss:t
at issss statsn 1sana mud. !'S L Sas @os; sus Or
liza saS 5ss hs
si%. Ths so boots We. xs1s ;a ;sssaansa ssr.'siIy
hS S ss S: Ss sS
ssss aSTp as hdus e hey % a
been stamped In the leather. In the other boot
snsf da III. snyhae ns sHssd sss s s
the Captain:. They would not brook The idea
he STYLE % Of "a last t used IN the m
.ds ss 81 fGss !ss Hp 1SF ens hf
iss %ss hs to s0ss
thought best to send for Mr.. Neu. Mr.; Neu was
not at home Mrs Ne9 sent word down that
Two Of the handkerehiefs found in tho bun
%ss es shs Bsot spe
Atornsy dsodSS they Msr: FL Of German
TSs ss,ais sss q sS h2sas ssSr.d
wsn one III the oce
Es ha hsy 81 re % tn
ney. he and Capt. Blake were made custodians
of the clothing. and they had them carted
MI! Nj: Fitzgerald went, to TottenyI!e in tho
He. found whom he got there that the whole
e9' theoFs tha and
Mright I'D agreed tS eommi. suicide together.
Wright went to Tottenyille with Kuttinger
10 aid him in killing himself. and
,ut his throat. prefHsrrinG that method
might make this theory u reasonab bic ono. The
insurance policies on luttnger,'s life were not
D on 30 contestabla and would mot become SO for
TWO years. II he committed suicide before
they baeams contestab his mother could not
benefit by them. Ruttingsr and Wright might
lavo resolved 10 commit suicide and Ruttln-
ger might have had Wright fix up HIS body 10
q would appear that he had been murdered.
II he we're murdered then tho policiss would
would not lis,en to the police theory. He got
no an argument with Sergeant Drummond OF
Wright had surely murdered Nuttnger and he
lad overcome him by dosing him with morphine
nlI1uor. As soon as Ruttingsr was uneonscioIs
hroat aud strangled him; He said first that
Dr.. Hubbard. an old army surgeon, " ho liste ened
o the argument said 1t was Impossible to
While It was being done. r, Then TIE poison was
'ail the fye.cent piece Of 1891 that was found
With Evsns's money was an important piece
II evidence. because on Feb. 2. the day Rnt-
niger was murdered and the day Evans COM
nitf.d auioidA th0 El n an Talanl Raptd Trn alt