The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1896-01-31

Angry Mob Afssr the Murderer ~ : chi-
cagO Artist.


cagO Artist.
ST. LOUIS, Jan % -Webster Groves n
wildly over tragedy Of Thursday night,
when Bcrtvam X. Atwater. a young Chi
cago artiss who had gone to the suburb to
visit his I've rothed, was waylaid by high
wayman and murdered. One of tho rob-
beers, John Schmidt, wounded to death by
the plucky Chicagoan, will probably die
the other thug Sam Foster, a colored ex-
convict who fired the fatal shot at Atwa-
ter, and Peter Schmidt, who arranged the
trap into which Atwater was lured and
then slain, are in custody. While the In
quest was being held the citizens of the
village became so enraged that IL was
with the greatest difficulty that cooler
heads could restrain the prevailing i'm
pulse to drag the captive highwaymen
from the officers and hang them.
Yesterday afternoon Sam Foster and
Peter Schmidt were taken under guard Of
Constable Fieldson and five deputies to
the office of Justice Prehmn, where an in
quest was held over the remains of At
water After hearing several witnesses
and the confession of Peter Schmidt, q
verdict was returned as follows: I'VE the
jury find that Bertram Allen Atwater
came to his death at the hands Of Sam
Foster and John Schmidt, and that Peter
Schmidt is made an accessory before the
fact" While the inquest was In progress
Foster made sensational attempt to es-
cape by jumping from a window of the
court room, which is I'm the second story of
the building.
Foster and Peter Schmidt were hand
cuffed together, and when the former
jumped he pulled Schmidt with him on
to low shed where they landed The
prisoners were quickly recaptured, but
their attempt to escape and the confession
OF Schmidt Infatuated the crowd that had
gathered. When the officers started to
take the two men to a place of safety the
mob closed in and attempted to lynch
them. After a struggle Constable Field
son succeeded in getting the party into
one-horse spring wagon, which he drove
towards Clayton with the intention of
taking his prisoners there for safe keeping.
He had not proceeded far when the mob
caught the horses head and compelled a
halt.
About twenty-five shots were fired, one
of which wounded Schmidt in the back.
The horses reared up and broke away
from the mob which numbered about
sixty-five men, none Of whom were
masked. Constable Fieldson drove to
Kirkwood, where he was compelled to
leave the rig and take to the woods for
fear of the mob catching him on the high
way For almost five hours he plunged
through the woods, sometimes in mud up
TO his knees, and finally, about midnight
arrived here with his badly frightened
prisoners who were landed safely in jail
at the Four Courts.
Both the Schmidts. who are cousins,
have confessed as to the part taken by
each in the crime Peter, who volun-
teered to carry Atwaters valise, admits
that he led the latter to his fate. At
waters body was shipped TO Chicago last
night. Mr.. Orion and his daughter Gene
We've accompanied the remains. Miss Or
ton is almost Frustrated with grief The
wedding is said to have been set for an
early date and the object of Atwater's
visit was TO talk over some of the prelim-
mary arrangements.