Evening journal., 1891-03-17
OF MYSTERIES.
Remarkable Revelations in the
Ruttinger Tragedy.
WRIGHTwAs suIoIpEFREDRYANs
identified by Numerous People as the
Young Man who killed Himself at the
Astor House in New york-Did Rut-
finger KIN wrightg


finger KIN wrightg
NRw YORK March l7.-Another chapter
equally fun OF mystery and speculation,
was added yesterday 20 the Staten Island |
tragedy when the body Of Fired Evans, |
the young Englishman who committed |
suicide IN the Astor House on the nigat Of
Feb 2, was identified as William Wright,
the missing brother-in-law cf Carl Rut-
finger The probable identification Of
Evans as Wright is made by Gustav
Nen and Daniel Hamilton, who both knew
young Wright, and by Undertaken Duffy
and others who believe that the young
man whose body was found on the morn.
ing Of Feb In his room in the Astor
House is none other than the companion
Of the murdered man.
An examination of Evans" clothing
and personal effects will today probably
establish or destroy the identity beyond
doubt
A Most Mysterious Crime.
Not since the famous Maxwell -Preller
trunk-murder mystery Of ST. Louis or the
more recent Birchall. Benwell trngedy at
Niagara Falls have we had a murder SO
difficult TO comprehend as that OF Carl
Rnttinger, whose lifcless body, bound and
gagged, was found in the water near Tot.
tenville, S. l., last Wednesday.
Was the Dead Many a Dummy
Although the police have labored dill
gently IN every direction for 1--WE days they
are practically no nearer a solution Of the
mystery than they were on the day when
the body was identified But right here
arises the possible doubt as 60 whether,
after all, Carl Ruttinger is the dead man
II, as has been suggested, a new grave
yard insurance swindle is about 70 be un.
earthed, then ilsis possible that the pass.
ports and other means OF Identification
We're carefully slowed away upon o dummy
and that Ruttinper and his hrother-in-law
Wright, an ia hiding until the Insurance
is paid
An Extraordinary Tangie.
This theory, which the police generally
concede Is the explanation Of Perrin II
Summers varied and frantic Identification
OF the mythical James H. Edgar, II weak
| IN the fact that IN an Of Ruttingers insur-
| unce policies his wife is made the benefi.
ciary. Now IondoH correspondent has
| discovered that Ruttinger and his wife
have been on unhappy terms and finally
/ separated last SUMMER. u Is scarcely
likely, therefore, in view Of these ruptured
relations that any insurance swindie Is Ia
progress, unless the plot be indeed deep
laid one.
An IneHpilcabie Situation.
n, then, il is fair to presume that the
body found of the Staten Island shore Is
really that OF Carl Ruttinger, there is i'm.
mediately presented the most extraorli-
nary tangle Of inexplicable facts which
have enshrouded any murder mystery for
many years. AT the very threshold of the
| investigation the detectives aTe brought to
a standstili by something which no plausi-
/ BILE hypothesis can explain. This is the
undoubted fact that Ruttinger's body had
been IN the water only few days, although
he disappeared some six weeks before il
was found
And it is shown by Gustav Neu. the
4 Fifty-eighth street boarding house keeper.
that the body wore the same linen collar
1 that Ruthnger wore when he went away
on Feb 2 Now, where was Ruttinger
/ during all those weeks between Feb. and
the time his body was thrown into the
water2 That lie was not alive and about
is evidenced by the fact that his collar was
the same as the one worn on the day Of his
disappearance. Besides this, Ruttinger
is traced by the tickets found ia his pocket
60 point near where the body was found,
and he certainly could not have lived in
concealment for any length Of time in the
vicinity.
The District Attorney Satisfied.
District Attorney Fitzgerald Il himself
furly convinced that the FIRED Evansr
who registered at the Astor House at 1880
a. m. Feb. 3 Is identical with William
Wright, the companion Of Ruttnger
Wright was supposed "a have left his
boarding house in this city for Boston
Feb. /. Ruttinger remained behind. and
on the following day went out In the morn
ing, as was his custom.
That same evening, about $50 O'Clock.
according to the ferry coupons found ia his
pockets after death, he must have been in
Tottenvifle in company with some other
person. II was just five hours later that
the young man now supposed 20 be identi-
fed as Wright entered the Astor House
and registered as Fred Evans The district
attorney said that he believed Wright went
to Tottenville with Ruttinger, committed
or assisted in committing the murder, and
then went to the Astor House and took bis
own life in iit of remorse.
The Telltalc Photograph.
The negatives OF a number Of amateur
photographs found among RuttinQer's
effects were what first suggested to the
district attorney the alea that Wright and
Fred Evans were one and the same person.
In his investigation yesterday the district
attorney had a photograph in which
Wright was one Of family group. Ii
was full length picture showing, the full
front face
The district attorney looked up the his |
tory Of the Astor House suicide in the |
newspapers and was surprised to find how |
nearly the description coincided with that |
Of Wright furnished by his boarding house /
keeper for the police. The police descrip /
tion of Ruttinger's companion is:
Name, William Wright, age . years, English 4
man, about Q feet inches tan, weight 100 l
pounds, light hair, blue eyes, bright mustache /
slight figure. When last seen wore dark clothes /
pearl oolored overcoat and black Derby hat
The official description of the Astor
House suicide at the morgue is:
Unknown Englishman feet inches tan |
twenty three years old. blonde hair curly: biue
eyes, small blonde mustache red cheeks Ro /
man nose, slim build weight To pounds, small /
hands, small feet, gray merino drawers, gray
socks, drab overcoat and black derby hat
A Remarkable Resemblance.
The district attorney went with his /
group photograph Of Wright to Under
taker Duffy's warerooms in Greenwich |
street and found two attendants in charge /
who had seen the Astor House suicide fire
quently after death He asked them tc
examine the photograph and see If they
could pick out Wright The picture was
shown to them separatcly The first |