The herald., 1897-12-11
MANY WIVES .
All Well Insured Before
Their Death
NO SUSPICION WAS AROUSED
UNTIL THE FIFTH CLAIM WAS
PRESENTED
A New York Graveyard Insurance
Man at Last Runs Foul Of
the Law
UNTIL THE FIFTH CLAIM WAS
PRESENTED
Associated Press Special Wire.

Associated Press Special Wire.
NEW YORK Dec. 10.-Charles x. Zan-
oil, alias Charles Braunen, alias Charles
Summer, is under arrest at police head
quarters, accused Of having swindled
the Metropolitan Insurance Company
out of 1886 on policy issued by that
company to Willie Schmidt, who died
July 13, 1896, in this city. The prisoner.
it is said, secured the money by falsely
swearing that he was Schmidt's brother
in-Iaw~ and the guardian of the dead
mans seven year-old son. The charge
is grand larceny.
Within the past few years several Of
Zanoli's wives have died and as their
lives were insured the prisoner got much
money from the insurance companies
He has also since 1884 collected insur-
ance on the lives Of the children who
have died and also for several Of his
deceased mothers -in-law, all of whom
were insured. Zanoli made a confess
sion; he admitted having become rich
by collecting the insurance on his sew
eral wives, mothers-in-law and chill
dren, but insisted that he was In no
instance guilty of murder and thus far
no evidence has been adduoed to prove
that his contentious In that direction
are untrue.
The prisoner says he was born in Wies-
baden, Germany, fifty-six years ago and
came to this country in 1878. The life
insurance companies from which Zan-
oil admits having collected policies vary
ing in amounts from $3.50 to $780, are the
Metropolitan and the Prudential COM
panies and the Knights and Ladies Of
Honor. He says that he Is ignorant
Of the antecedents Of his four wives, all
Of whom died, he claims, from natural
causes. The collections from the in
surance compaoies will reach $1,000. Zan-
| oil told the detectives that he wished
he had shot himself before being arrest
ed.
During the day the police accumulated
q good deal Of testimony against Zanoli,
which they consider important. Capt.
McClusky, the chief Of detectives, stated
that he had discovered barber who
had seen Zanoli giving his wife No. a
dose Of medicine. The woman died the
next day Of cerebral hemorrhange. He
also stated that Zanoli moved a short
time ago to another locality In this city
with the intention Of getting married
again. The woman that Zanoli intended
to make his wife advertised in the papers
for a husband and had an appointment
with Zanoli at his store yesterday even
ing. She kept the appointment and found
Zanoli in Jail. The police also claim
that Zanoli tried to marry another wo-
man recently.
Zanoli told the police today that his
child, Lottie, on whose life he collected
insurance, died from an injury on the
head, resulting from blow given to
her by his second wife while in fit of
anger. Zanoli stated that his second
wife grieved so much over Lottie's death
that he believed it caused her own.
Zanoli has continued to cry ever since
he has been locked up.
| Several Of the physicians who attend
ed the wives of Zanoli made statements
to Police Captain McClusky tonight.
DR.. ]. w. Lyman, who attended Zanoli's
third wife at the time of her death, told
Sergeant Morris that he was puzzled by
some Of the symptoms Of the case, and
that he considered Zanoli's conduct Pc
culiar at the time.
DR.. Lyman said he thought the woman
died from apoplexy, but he never felt
positive about the matter. DR.. c. e.
Barton, one Of the attending physicians
on Jennie Summer. the fourth wife. who
died August 8th. this year, said that he
examined the woman Just previous to
her initiation into the order of United
Friends. Zanoli wanted a policy of
$4,000 on his wife and another policy
of $4,000 on the life of his fourth wife.
On account Of their apparent poverty
the doctor refused to pass Zanoli for
that amount, but agreed to allow both
Of these persons to take out a policy
for $1,000. DR.. Barton considered some Of
the symptoms attendant upon the ILL
ness of Mrs. Zanoli, or Summer as she
was known, as suspicious. DR.. e. j.
Sheehan, who attended Lena Zanoli, the
second wife, who died November 25,
1895, said that he gave a certificate
that death was caused by apoplexy.
He noticed nothing peculir about the
case. The bodies of several of the per-
sons whose lives were insured in Zan-