The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1897-09-09
THE LUETGERT MURDER TRIAL
SEVERAL POLICE OFFICERS TES-
Titled AT THE TRIAL
YESTERDAY.
TESTIMONY AGAINST THE DEFENDANT
Hts Indifference After His Wife's
Disappearance Was the Prin-
cipal Feature Their Testi-
mOny Brought Out.

Chicago. Sept. 2.-The Indifference eff
Luetgert after his wife had disappeared
was the principal fact brought out
| against him in the trial. today. 1t was
| shown by the testimony of Police Cap
| tain Schuettler that Luetgert did not
show any concern regarding his wife and
| never took the trouble to ask the police
| whether they had found any trace of her
| or not. On one occasion he called at
! the police station to protest against an
article in daily paper saying that his
| first wife had not died Il natural death.
| The police at this time were dragging
the river, poking into clay holes and
| patroling the lake shore. in the hope of
| finding some trace of the missing woman.
| but Luetgert, after he had complained of
| the paper, left the station house without
even asking if the police had found any
trace of his wife.
| When the police first became aware of
the disappearance of Mrs. Luetgert.
| through her brother. they asked Luetgert
what theory he had regarding her dis
appearance and he said that in his
| opinion she had become insane and wan
dered away from home. and said he had
not reported her going. away either to
| the police or his neighbors because, he
said, it was disgrace to have an in
| sane wife and he did not want people to
| know anything about it. Capt. Schuett
| Ter said that in all the work the police
| did on the case before the arrest of Luet-
| CERT they never received any help or sug
| gestiOns from the husband. and he never
| seemed TO care whether they found her
! or not.
| Lnetgert announced today that he in
| tended to take the stand and testify in
his own behalf. He said he had talked
the matter over with his attorneys and
that they had consented that he should
| do so. He said he would tell about her
actions Oh the night preceding the dis
appearance of his wife and would con-
vince the jury that he had done Ioth:ng
| wrong.
| The attendance increases every day.
| and this morning it was almost an inn
| possibility for the court officers and the
| attorneys to force their way through the
crowd that blocked the Railways outside
of the court room.
The feature of today's session was the
testimony of Police Captain Herman
! Schuettler. Before the captain was
called to the witness chair the state
! proved the purchase of Il barrel of caus-
| tic potash bought by Luetgert in March
last at the store of Lord, Owen K Co..
and Officer Klinger detailed the con-
| vcrsation between Luctgert and Watch
man Bialk in the latter's house, on May
I
Il bed. This was simply Il corrobora-
ton of the testimony of Bialk.
| Capt. Schuetter said he was first in
formed of the disappearance of Mrs
Luetgert on May Z by Diedrich Bick-
ness, her brother, and Fred Miller. They
gave him description of the missing
lady. That night the captain said he
detailed Officer George Smith to make
| inquiries in the neghborhood of The fac
tory regarding Mrs. Luetgert The next
day Officers Dean and Quiley We're de-
tailed to investigate the case. Shortly
| after that the captain said that he and
| Lieut.. Hutchinson visited Luetgert at
his home. The witness told the sausage
maker that they had heard of the dis
| appearance of his wife and had called 10
see what they could do for him. Luet-
| CERT was asked to tell his theory of his
wife's disappearance and he told the Off
| GERS he believed she was insane and
had wandered away. The witness
asked Luetgert why he had not notified
| the police of it instead of keeping silent.
| Luetgert said he felt it was disgrace to
| him and his children that his wife had
become insane and he did not like to tell
| about it. He said he had last seen his
| wife shortly after 10 o'clock the night
| of her disappearance before he went to
| the factory for the night. Capt
Schuettler said Luetgert gave him names
| of friends of the missing woman and he
sent officers to visit all Of them and to
make inquiries. Search was made for
| Mrs. Harrison. Cleveland avenue. who
was found, and visits were made 10
Wheaton, Elgin, Kankakee and other
places. The police dragged the river
and searched the clay holes in the
vicinity of the factory. Luetgert. the
witness said, took no part in any of these
attempts to find his wife and never
IL, ,b,%I Go, aud
| ing her had been found. He called at
| the Sheffield avenue police station to com
| plain of a newspaper article intimating
| that his first wife had not died natural
| death. but while at the station he did not
| inquire whether the police had found any
trace of his wife, who was missing.
The witness then told of the visit him
| self. Inspector Setback and number of
officers to the sausage factory, the eXami-
! nation of the smoke-housc and watts and
| the finding of the rings in the middle vat.
| The witness said the rings were found by
Officer Dean, who was in the vat examin-
| ing the bottom. Both the rings were COW
cred with the reddish substance which was
| in the vat. The rings, one plain, golden,
wedding ring and the other a guard ring,
were nut in evidence.
Attorney Phalen began the cross-exami-
nation of Capt. Schuettler and asked him
to tell the jury all the police had done to
ascertain whether Mrs. Luetgert was alive
or dead. The witness again detailed the
various steps he had taken in the inves.
tigation. Mr.. Phalen asked if he had not
heard that Mrs. Luetgert had been seen at
Kenosha. or in the neighborhood. The
captain said the police had received let
tiers. most of them anonymous, stating that
Mrs. Luetgert had been seen wandering
near Kenosha, and he sent two officers
there to investigate. The officers discov-
cred no trace of Mrs. Luetgert. Attor-
ney Phean pressed the witness further
about the trips which he himself had taken
| in the Luetgert case, and the captain said
ne had gone to New York to investigate
a rumor that Mrs. Luetgert had been seen
there on May 8. Chief of Police Ripley
The witness said. had received a message
from the New York police that a man
whose name was Crafty had met Mrs
Luetgert before her marriage to the saus-
nd had