The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-07-28
THE PIETzEL MURDERER.
Extraordinary Career of Holmes, "a
Professional Criminal.
From the Springfield Republican.

From the Springfield Republican.
The career Of II. II. Holmes, alias Mud
gett, alias Howard, when it has been com
pletely revealed will be found to be I'M
surpassed in the annals of crime. Pub
lie attention has just been turned upon
him anew by the discovery of the bodies
of the Pietzel children buried in a cellar
in Toronto, ont. These children Holmes
is alleged to have murdered and other
crimes equally black will probably be
fastened upon him. At present Holmes
is in jail in Philadelphia.
Holmes was born in New Hampshire,
sort distance from the town of Loudon,
where he passed his early youth as a far
mer's boy. He developed a notable thirst
for knowledge, and by the practice Of
severe economies acquired the rudimen-
tary education that the local facilities
afforded During this time he was not
known to have developed any criminal
tendencies, but he was regarded as rather
wild His passion for study, however,
seemed to condone all his slight offenses,
and his reputation in the lite community
was excellent. At the age of 16 he Sc
cured. employment as a schoolmaster in
the town of Gilmartin.
For time he worked hard and saved
all he earned. Then he married a local
beauty, and for a year let his ambition
rest. At the end of that time his old
aspirations returned, ana he began
course at Burlington, VT Later ne en-
tered the University of Michigan at Ann
Arbor. While at Ann Arbor he was des-
perately pushed for means to continue
his educational course, and, having, even
at that early day, no moral fastenings
to speak of, began to look about for
methods to raise money. His chum, also
a medical student was equally embar
raised for funds, and to exc out their
scanty means they went together to work
on a farm. While thus employed, the
chum called Holmes attention to an ac-
count of a swindle perpetrated on a life
insurance corporation by the substitu-
tion of a dead body for a living policy
holder. The two students talked this over
for a long time, and finally decided that
they were clever enough to work such
a scheme without fear of detection, par
ticularly as their knowledge of surgery
would materially aid them in carrying out
the details. The result was that the two
worthless got money enough to carry them
to Chicago and pay the premium on a
policy on the chums life in Holmes IA
Vor.
1t took them a year to do this, but at
length a policy for $4,000 was issued.
Later, a body resembling the chum was
found and taken to Connecticut; the chum
having gone into temporary retirement
and there found again by persons VINO
had no collision with the scheme. Holmes
was notified of the find, identified the
body as that of his friend, and in due
time collected the face of the policy. Az
ter lapse of safe time the conspira-
tors came together at Ann Arber and fin
ished their studies there, each having
about $1,000 of the insurance company
money in his pocket. Holmes secured a
position in a Norristown hospital and
from there went into a drug store in
Philadelphia. Not meeting with success
there, he went back to Chicago, where ne
met his old friend, and the two success
fully carried through $4,000 life insur-
ance swindle precisely on the lines Of
their original venture. Holmes first vine
left him and went to her home in New
Hampshire and then he married again,
this time in Chicago.
From this time on he was a professional
criminal. and a uniformly successful onn,
so that he was soon worth at least S20-
000. His next move was made on Cali
fornia, but his stay was not ENCOURAGED
by the police, so he drifted back to Chi
cago. There he started a bogus trading
corporation and employed a young wou1-
an named Minnie r. Williams as his type-
writer. Miss Williams soon became infat-
uated with him, and let it be understood
that she was married to Holmes, though
it was a mere pretense. A sister of the
Williams girl was living in Texas and
the two had a joint inheritance of S5G,-
0O0 so Holmes made it his business 10
get the Texas sister to Chicago. Before.
story, killed her sister in a moment of
Jealous fury and he put the body in a
trunk and sunk it in the lake.
After a varying career of crime Holmes
appeared in Terre Haute, Ind, where ne
went to Jail and formed the acquaint-
arce of a criminal named B. F. Pietzel.
and made contract with him, one of the
terms of which was that Pietzel was to
be taken from Jail on straw bail The
two worked several successful criminal
schemes together in Chicago. St Louis
and other western cities. Finally came
the plan which led to Holmes arrest Pet
Zel's death or sequestration, and the dis
appearance of the Pietzel children. In
Philadelphia he and Pietzel played The
last card. Pietzel was insured in the
Philadelphia Mutual for $4,000. On Sept.
his supposed body was found in the
house at 1916 Callowhill street. Pietzel's
wife and children identified the body as
Petzers, and 81. 500 of the insurance money
was paid over. Then Train Robber
Hedgespeth gave the whole case away TO
Chief of Police Harrison. Holmes was
traced to Toronto. Burlington and Boston
and in the latter city was arrested. Mean
while the Pictzel children had disap-
peared, the boy being traced to Indian
apols and the two girls to Toronto
A Financial Suggestion.-"1t's easy"
said the populist financier to make sill
yer the money metal"
But" said the man who works for
living, you can't make 80 cents worth
OF silver equal 20 a dollar, can your"
mo. All you've got 10 DO Is 10 put a
Anllar-e .rnrth Of aIIrar In Tho nnLn b