The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-10-21
TRIED THE CRIME OF CAIN.
Peter Nelson Attempts Unsuccess-
fully to- NilI His Brother.

II have shot my brother. You can
lock me up, shoot me or hang me; 1
don't care which. I want to die"
With these words Peter E. Nelson
stepped into police headquarters last
night. The man was acting strangely
and at first but little attention was
paid to he muttered statements. After
some inquiry, Assistant Superintendent
of Police SHORTENING learned that Mel
son had attempted to kill his brother.
An officer was called and Nelson was
escorted to the central station where
he was locked up and charged with as
Sault with a dangerous weapon.
The victim of the assault is Andrew
H. Nelson, one of the proprietors of the
Crown Iron works. He lives at 2232
Lincoln street northeast, at the rear
of which the shooting occurred.
1t seems almost miracle that An
drew Nelson was not killed outright.
He received but a flesh wound in the
right arm below the elbow.
Had Peter Nelson accomplished his
avoWed purpose, he would have muir
dered his brother and then taken his
own life.
Andrew Nelson, who is well-known
resident of New Boston, reached home
shortly before Z o'clock last night. He
unhitched his horse, put him in the
fed him. Then he went outside to draw
in the buggy. After this had been done
he turned to leave the stable. The
barn was very dark and he did not
notice the presence of his brother. The
first intimation he had of anything
wrong was when he felt something
touching his hat. He raised his right
arm and was almost paralyzed to feel
the cold muzzle of big revolver,
h1 OF
He frantically pushed it aside and as
he did so, the trigger was pulled. The
bullet pierced the appraised arm and
came out under the elbow, inficting
merely flesh wound
Il told you l would shoot you. ard that
at last cried out Peter Nelson.
The wounded man. quick as lightning, Crap
pied with his brother and wrenched away the
weapon. He was at the barn door and called
for help. Two men were standing at the
corner of Twenty-th;rd avenue and Lincoln
street, but did not go to the aid of the
wounded man, evidently being frightened
The members of the family in the house
rushed out and in the meantime the assailant
disappeared and the wounded man retained
officer John vanrickley soon arrived on
the scene and took Nelson to DR.. Bachman's
office, where the wound was dressed. The
officer then began the search for the would
be murdered, but it proved of no avail. Peter
Nelson walked down Central avenue, and
when he arrived at the city hall gave him
self up. He said that he had loitered in the
vicinity of the barn and then came down
town.
There is little doubt that the prisoner at
the central station is mentally incompetent
His incoherent statements and his general
actions prove this beyond a doubt. Deputy
Coroner Nelson, who had a talk with Nelson,
said he thought the man was out of his
mind and fit for the asylum. His acquaint-
ances say that he has acted in a queer
manner for long time and, although he is
known to have threatened his brother, was
never considered dangerous.
Eyes, 1 shot my brother. I don't know If
I killed him., said the prisoner to a reporter.
He had cheated me out of a large sum Of
money; has abused me shamefully and l
do with me. 1 want to die. I intended to
kill my brother and If he had fallen, then
1 would have turned the revolver on myself
and put an end to my suffering. My life
has been one Of sorrow and suffering Now
l am destitute and my brother won't help
me. Why should I live? My brother has
been my enemy for fifteen years. 1 have
served him and helped him and he took my
money"
The story, as told by a friend of the wound
ed man, is that Peter has been more or less
mentally unbalanced for a long time and
for twenty years has threatened to kill his
brother. The trouble is said to have arisen
over a matter of finances. Peter loaned An
drew some money. Peter owned a piece of
land in Wisconsin on which there was a
mortgage. Peter asked for the return of the
loaned sum, which Andrew was unable to
advance at the time. Before he could return
what he had borrowed the mortgage was
forecloSed and Peter lost his real estate. 1t
for this loss and has imagined that he had
been cheated. This, the friends say, is the
only trouble the two brothers have ever
had.