The Saint Paul globe., 1897-09-28
TRICK FOR DEFENSE
STAND BY ADoLPH LUET-
GERT'S PARTNER.
PURCHASE OF THE POTASH.

PURCHASE Of THE POTASH.
IT WAS MADE AP FHE SUGGESTION
OF THE WITNESS HIM.
SELF.
TALE NOT EASILY TO BE SHAKEN.
An Admission to This Eject Made
by the State-Crush of Specta-
tors Is Increasing.
CHICAGO, Sept 2z-The leading
event of the day in the trial of Luet-
CERT was the evidence of William
Charles, Luetgert's business PARTNER.
He explained why as he claimed, the.
cauStic potash, in which the body OF
Mrs. Louise Luetgert is alleged by the.
prosecution to have been dissolved,
was bought. According to Charles
story, the potash was purchased as
the principal ingredient of a quantity
of soft soap to be used in cleaning up
the big factory preparatory to its Safe
to an English syndicate. The witness
said he suggested this method of put
ting the factory in shape, and that
Luetgert, acting on the suggestion, or
dered barrel of cauStic potash weigh
ing 175 pounds sent to the factory IN
March last. This was about the time
the defense claims the negotiations
were pending between Luetgert and
Davey, the mysterious Englishman,
who is said to have represented the
syndicate and who borrowed something
like 5000 from Luetgert.
Charles also offered an explanation
of the apparently barricaded door to
the basement stairway by telling about
a chase for rats in which a small dog
was an active participant. He said the
factory had been infested by rats for
sometime, and that an effort had been
made to get rid of them. The evening
of April 80 he and Luetgert, with
others, were in the basement, when
terrier which belonged to the Witless
got after a rat. Charles, Luetgert and
the others moved boxes, barrels ard
other obstacles to aid the dog in his
chase. and the boxes and barrels were
hurled in pile against the door. The
barrieade OF the door was uninten-
tional, he said. It just happened that
the articles were thrown there without
thought of tne docr at all.
Charles said. besides the eaustic pot
ash, two or three barrels of tallow, a
quantity of grease and some Clipped
! bone, which was to be used in making
the soft soap, was delivered at the fac
/ fn1y Ea Ia oil God fcly nd
Levandowski, the two iabore,s employ
ed in the factory, to place some of the
stuff in the middle vat He also saw
Frank Bialk in the factory at the time.
The caustic potash was put in the vat,
and Luetgert said he would see to
turning on the steam and boiling the
stuff. Charles SAID he met LuetS Art
in a saloon opposite the factory on
the evening of the night Mrs. tuetgert
disappeared, and Luetgert said he was
going over to the factory and turn Cn
the steam. At 8 O'Clock the same night
Charles said he went to the basement
of the. factory and found Lustgert
there and the steam turned on The
naixtu uTe boiled over once or twice and
splashed upon the floor, he said. The
following day he visited the factory
basement and saw the mixture in tie
vat. The talloW was in one portion Of
the vat and the grease or lard had col
lected in another part of it by Itself.
/ Luetgert again turned on steam on the
mixture, the witness said.
STRONG STORY.
On cross-examination by States At
torney Deneen, Charles denied that he
had ''doctored" the books of the con-
Germ so as to show a yearly profit of
$4,000. This line of cross-examination
| was objected to by the defense but the
! court permitted it for a time the re-
sGlt beirg a compile te denial by Charlie s.
He acknowledged that it was he who
! introduced Promoter Davey, but he
T said he was deceived by the man SIS
| we'll as was Luetgert.
! Frank Ditto It'd Of seeing Mrs Luet-
| gert WriEg her hands and weep upon
one occasion. 1t was during the latter
part of April and the witness declared
Mrs. Luetgert said the business was
1 broken up, everything gone and that
! she was going away also. Later the
! witness said Mrs. Luetgert promised to
! attend the wedding of his daughter in
! June, ard make the prospective bride
{ a present.
I At the close of the afternoon session
! of court ex-Judge Vincent and Attor-
ney Phalen were much pleased over the
evidence OF Witness Charles. He told
a pretty fair story" acknowledged AS
sisstant States Attorney MeEwen at
the close of the trial 1T was one of
/ those stories upon which there is moth
ing left to cross-examina!ion. First, he
sought the opportunity. He says he
was in the basement of the factory
that night, and that Luetgert began
to make soap. He and Luetgert are
the only ones who really know the real
object for which that caustic potash
! was bought They are not going to tell
any other story than the one told by
Charles. So what is the use to cross
examine at length on that point. But
we have some other evidence on this
point that will show the complexion of
| Charles evidence " hen it is submit d. -
The crush around the criminal court
building today was something fearful.
/ A number of extra policemen had been
placed on duty to assist the court bail
ifs in keeping back the throng that
clamored for admission and they had
their hands full. 1t was only with the
/ greatest difficulty that those having
business in the court room could gain
admission, and many people who had
tickets emitting g them to enter the court
room were compelled to turn away
because of inability to force their way
through the crowd. This morning the
pressure on the states attorney for
tickets of admission was so great that
he and his assistant, Mr.. MeEwen, were
compelled to hide in the private office
of the states attorney in order to tran
sact their work prior to the opening
of court.
No criminal trial in Cook county has
! excited as much interest as the pres
ent case The anarchist ease was the
| record breaker until the trial of the