Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1893-07-21
A North Dakota Tragedy.

The story of the murder of a Pennsylva-
MIA family by "a Pennsylvania in North
Dakota few days ago attracted the atsen-
ton of the nation. The bodies of the mur-
dered members OF the family were sent 10
their former home near Elizabetntown,
Lancaster county, and were buried on
Wednesday of last week. The murderer
is in Jail at Fargo. He narrowly ESCAPED
lynchiug.
Mr.. and Mrs. Kreider vent west fifteen
vars ago from Lancaster county, and Bonn
berger ran away from his home in Camp
bell.town Lebanon county, over SIX years
ago. After q wild life in West and South
west where he was both farmer, laborer
and cowboy, he went to live with the
Kreiders. This was ten months ago. The
night before the tragedy he played croquet
with several of his victims.
None of the eastern papers have yetpub-
lished full account of the awful tragedy,
and the following details, by the eldest
surviving child Of Mr.. Kreider, Annie, a
| girl of Is wears, shows what horrible
crime Bomberger committed A motive
| for the deed may be found in the fact that
Annie's father and mother, as well as her
| self, were opposed to his attentions to the
girl.
Shortly after Mrs. Kreider arose on Fri
day morning, her husband being still abed,
| and while she was in the kitchen peeline
potatoes, she was suddenly startled by the
crack of gun in her bedroom on the hrs'
| floor. Running to the door to learn the
cause, she was met by Albert BomDerger,
who held a gun. With it he had shot and
| 4 la gl
berger, a powerful young man, caught hold
OF the woman and dragged her into the
kitten en-, she pleading piteously all the
| time for her life. Then he shot her tc
DEATH the body dropping to the kitchen
floor. The noise of the firing, the weapon
used being a breechloading shot gun, which
Bomberger reloaded as fast as he fired,
aroused the children, who were sleeping
upstairs, and all but the youngest boy
came rushing down to learn what had hap
pened Before them appeared the wretch
who had slaughtered their parents, an
with brutal blows and vile oaths he drove
them back upstairs whittier he followed.
There the slaughter was renewed, Murbey
r.. aged IL years, Mary R., aged . years
and David R., aged 4 years, being butch
cred He shot them all, but the two
Youngest not being killed outright, he I'M
| lsheQ MS WOrk Win hulic'
| Burnice R., l3 years old, hid herself un-
| der the bed while these scenes were Delne
| enacted. and as soon as Bomberger left
the room the child leaped frem the second
story window, and fastened to a field
where a pony was kept Many time had
the children ridden the animal without
saddle or bride, but in an evil moment
| she stopped long enough to procure a bri-
die. intending to ride off for assistance and
before she could mount the murder had
overtaken and made her prisoner. "Where
| is father asked the terrified child. Hes
gone to a better land, was the reply.
When the girl said she wanted to see him
the william even took her to where her par
ent Law weltering in his blood, and after
gazing upon him in horror, she next asked
| for her mother. You shall see her, too,
replied the miscreant to her; there she
| lies like dead cat" and after showing the
| bleeding corpse of her mother the murder
er cody turned his gun upon the little one
| and shot her down. AS she did not instant
| " expire he dispatched her by cutting hei
| throat from ear to ear.
Three more children yet remained-An-
ME. 10 years of age; Aaron, aged years.
! and baby Henry, 2 years of age. These
were spared; Annie because OF her plteouS
pleadirgs, and, doubtless, because of the
| affection he felt for her. Why he left the
other two children live is a mystery. AfteI
all was over Bomberger compelled Annie to
show him where her father kept his money
and he secured $50 and two watches. Some
money that was kept in another place,
which she did not know was in the house,
escaped his clutches. Then the wretch
compelled the girl, almost insane as she
was through terror and grief, to prepare
him some breakfast, and while waiting foi
it he drew out his watch and looked at il
then cody remarking: "Iti only took
| twenty minutes to do the whole business.
After eating he dragged the girl to the
stable. where she fully expected to be
murd cred. He bound her hand and foot tc
a post in the stable, and, after beating hei
| terribly with the end of a rope, he rode
away on the pony that poor little Burnice
intended using.
| After he was gone the oldest surviving
boy, Aaron, crept to the stable and finally
succeeded in untying the ropes that bound
| his sister. Leaving the two children or
| the scene OF the tragedy, Annie hasteneC
to Cando. Here she burst in upon FRIEND
of the family, Samuel Brightbill, a mer
ohant. and a former resident of Lancaster
county, and to whom she told her story
| Without loss OF time he summoned tel
men to his assistance, all mounted. ana TO-
| gether they repaired to the krelder nome
| stead. There party of men took the
trail of the murderer, the story OF whose
capture has already been published.
A sad feature of the tragedy is the fact
that Mrs. Kreider was to have again be
come q mother in month.