The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1897-12-03
STORY OF THORN.
Gives His Version of Murder of
William Guldensuppe.

He Was Not Present When Murder
Was Committed.
New York, Nov. "a statement pur-
porting to be signed by Martin Thorn
has been made public. 1t u.s. in part, as
follows:
Augusta Mack planned and accom-
plished the murder of William Gulden-
suppe. When l got to the Woodside cot
tage that Saturday morning she met me
at the door and said: II have got Gulden-
6uppe up stairs He is dead Che had
shot him in the face and stabbed him
in the breast she said. 1 was not even
in the house at the time, but in the door
way, and she was out of sight of the peo-
pie on the street at the time, half way to
the stairway.
81 knew nothing of her purpose that
day. She had asked me to come to Wood
side. 1 went there and when L arrived
she told me that she had killed Gulden-
suppe and that all her trouble was over.
For a long time 1 hardly knew what to
do. Mrs. Mack asked me to help cut the
body up. l hesitated, but could not
make up my mind.
"'You have got to help me get rid OF
It, she said, or both of us will get into
trouble. All you have to do is to help.
Eat last I helped her to carry the body
to the bathtub. 1t was very heavy.
Guldensuppe was dead. He was not
breathing when we put him in the bath
tub. Mrs. Mack did the cutting while
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 good thing she knew some
thing about surgery, or else it would be
impossible to get rid of the body prop
erly.
Before she cut the body up the clothes
were taken off. Afterwards the body
was rolled up in the oilcloth that Mrs.
Mack bought at Mrs. Rigers'. Then we
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 the money to hire the surrey.
she wanted to run baby farm, too
80 she could make lots of money. After
we threw the head in the river and dis
posed of pieces of the body, as the pa
pers have stated, she took Gudensuppe's
clothes and burned them in stove 1t
was nothing but my love for Mrs. Mack
that got me into all this trouble
helped her get rid of the dead body to
shield her and to save her from being ar
rested. Everybody has lied about me
In this case, principally because have
not talked or explained.
"They say 1 told Gotha that I killed
Guldensuppe. 1t is a lie. told him Mrs.
Mack killed him, because I thought he
was my friend, and my only friend-the
only one in the world 1 could go to and
talk to. He betrayed me and swore
falsely against me. I don't know what
for, unless he was paid for it. He con-
fessey that he got 5000 or $500 from the
DISTRICT attorney on the stand
They say, too, that I threatened to
murder Guldensuppe. Yes. did say I
would kill him before l would let him
Kill me. He almost murdered me once
and threatened my life every time he |
mentioned my name to Mrs. Mack.
Augusta told me so, and told me to
look out and have a pistol to shoot him,
but not to do it in her house. She would
get into trouble, she said I thought
she told me that because she loved me.
now know she feared Guldensuppe
and wanted to have me kill him, so she
would not suffer.
Mrs. Mack told the jury that I COM
mitted the murder in just the way she
actually did it herself. She turned ev-
erything around. She reversed the
whole story, accusing me of just what
she did.
This statement can do me no good
now The jurymen will never see it. 1t
cannot influence them, but it may HELM
the public to understand that | could
not kill an unarmed man by shooting
him in the back"
Murder In First Degree
New York, Dec. 1ICounsel finished
their pleas early, and Judge Maddox did
not deliver very lengthy charge. The
ease was given to the jury, and after
a short deliberation that body returned
L verdict of murder in the first degree.
Notice of a motion for a new trial was
given.