Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1897-11-28
MARTIN THORN's VERSION OF THE
MURDER OF GULDENsUPPE.
coNFEssEs TO COMPLETELY,
SAYS, HOWEVER, THAT MRS. MACK
PLANNED AND EXECUTED I.
Declares Tha His Part in the Crime
Was Prompted Solely by His
Love for His ParnmOur-
Mrs. Mack to he
Tried SOOn.

-
when I go to the stand Monday MORN
ing l will tell the true and complete story
of the crime for which l am now being
tried for my life. My lawyer has advised
ne to conceal nothing. and, with the help
OF God, l will not.
Martin Thorn is just a man with vices
and virtues like any other, and with the
love Of life just as strong within him as
in any of those who say he sinned because
he loved an unworthy woman; loved and
trusted and shielded her until he. was IN
the very shadow of the electric chair; loved
her until she Swore away his existence TO
save her own, to save herself from the
consequences of her own act-the killing
OF the man whom she said she feared be-
cause of his knowledge of other crimes.
Augusta Mack planned and accomplished
tic murder of William Guldensuppe.
when l got to the Woodside cottage
that Saturday morning she met me at tins
door and said: L nave got Guldensuppe
upstairs. He is dead
"She had shot him in the face and
stabbed him in the breast, she said. I was
cot even in the house at the time. but
in the doorway, and she was out of sight
of the people on the street at the time.
half way upstairs. l knew nothing Of her
purpose that day. She had asked me 10
come to Woodside. I went there. and
when 1 arrived she told me that She had
killed Guldensuppe. and that ali her
trouble was over.
For a long time I hardly knew what to
do. Mrs. Mack asked me to help her cut
the body up. 1 hesitated, but could not
make up my mind what to do.
"'You have got to help me to get rid
| of it, she said, or both of US will get into
trouble. All you have got to do Is to help
At last I helped her to carry the body to
| the bath tub. 1t was heavy. Guldensuppe
| was dead. He was not breathing Wnen we
| put him in the bathtub. Mrs. Mack did
| the cutting, while 1 held the body. First
| she cut the head off.
.'Then she took the saw and sawed the
| trunk in two and then the legs. She was
afraid the saw would go through the wrong
| place in the body. but she finally got the
| right place. She mentioned at the time
| that it was a good thing she knew some
thing about surgery, or else 1t would be
impossible to get rid Of the body properly.
Before she cut the body up, the clothes
were taken of. Afterwards the body was
rolled up in the oilcloth bought at Mrs.
Rigers. Then w talked over the plans
to get rid of the body. She arranged for
the surrey drive and the throwing away of
the pieces. She gave me the money to hire
the surrey.
.She gave me the money to hire the
Woodside cottage. where she said she was
to start a place to treat women who were
in trouble and who wanted 1t kept quiet.
AFTER we threw the head into the river
and disposed of pieces of the body, as the
papers nave stated, she took Guldensuppe's
clothes and burned them in a stove.
at was nothing but my love for Mrs.
Mack that got me into all this trouble. I
helped her to get rid of the dead body
to shield her and to save her from being
arrested.
Everybody has lied about me in this
case, principally because I have not talked
or explained. They said I told Gotha that
I killed G%uldensuppe. 1t is a lie. I told
him that Mrs. Mack killed him. They say
I offered to confess to Captain O'Brien so
I could get free. That is another lie. I
told Captain O'Brien something of a pri-
vate nature that did not concern the case
Immediately. give him permission to
speak now. He will clear me.
They say. too, that I threatened to MUIR
der William G~uldensuppe. Yes, I said I
almost killed m and threatened my life
every time he mentioned my name to Mrs.
Mack. Augusta told me SO. and told me
f TIN look bnt o not ana an do na y "a q b pistol 1or to sh SCOT
would get into trouble, she said. I thought
she told me that because she loved me. I
now know she feared GuldenSuppe and
wanted to nave him killed so she would not
suffer.
Mrs. Mack told the jury that I commit
ted the murder in Just the way she actually
around. She reversed the whole story, ac-
cusing me OF Just what she did She is
afraid to go on the stand. Her lawyers
will not let her go on the stand and testify
against me. because they know that I can
prove her a liar-can prove that she herself
killed Guldensuppe because he knew of 9TH
er crimes she had committed, and because
she was afraid that Guldensuppe would kill
her for having had anything to do with
me.
IT can ask the woman questions that she
cannot answer without showing conclusive
~ that she has sworn to lies, and, what
is more. I have witnesses to corroborate
me-"
There is every possibility that. the case
of Thorn for the murder of Guldensuppe
will go to the jury not later than Wednes-
lam F. Howe, his lawyer. has promised to
finish his side of the case on Monday. Thorn
VIII testify in his own behalf and accuse
Mrs. Mack of killing Guldensuppe. It is un-
Mrs. Mack will be called by the prosecution
on rebuttal to repeat her confession accus-
ing Thorn of the murder.
District Attorney Youngs did not want
made an unfavorable impression on the jury
ut the first trial as she related the details
of the horrible crime. If Mrs. Mack is
called again as a witness for the state, it
compelled to take this course to offset the
statement of Thorn when he charges her
with the killing.
When Thorn's fate has been decided Mrs
supposed that she will be allowed to plead
guilty to either murder in the second de.
gree, or manslaughter IN the first degree
FOR murder in the second degree she would
receive a sentence of Imprisonment for life
and for manslaughter in the first degree
the extreme penalty is twenty years,