The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-08-24
TRIAL OF A. LUETGERT
RICH SAUSAGE MAKER WHO is
CHARGED WITH WIFE MURDER.
Alleged to Have Destroyed Evidence
of His Crime by Boiling the Body
in Vat OF Potash.

CHICAGO, Aug. 23-After two prelimi-
nary hearings and three months confine-
ment in the county Jail Adolph Luetgert
the rich sausage maker. was put on trial
before Judge Tuthill in the Criminal Court
to-day, charged with the murder of his
wife. The big sausage maker has declared
to his attorneys ex-Judge VIM. A. Vincent
and Albert Phalen. that he desired no fur
Their delay Both the State and defense
prophesy that one thousand veniremen will
be examined, and that week will pass be-
fore twelve men who are acceptable to both
sides are found. Then the trial will begin
in earnest.
Long before the case was called for trial
the corridors of the Criminal Court build
ing were packed with people anxious to get
into the court ROOM and a special detail of
police was necessary to keep them in order.
When the case was called the court room
was filled to suffocation, a remarkable fea-
ture being the number OF women present.
Luetgert himself sat close to his attorneys,
unusually pale. The camness which has
characterized the sausage maker ever since
his arrest deserted him. and he showed I'M
mistakable signs of nervousness. He was
dressed neatly in black. Immediately after
the court was called to order States Attor-
ney Deneen arose and announced that the
trial. The attorneys for the defense made
q similar announcement, no application for
a change of venue being made. A contro-
Versy then arose as to the manner of draw
ing the jury, the prosecution contending it
should be drawn under the new jury COM
mission law. After some discussion this
was agreed to, Attorney Vincent for the
defense however, noting an objection for
the purpose of test to the CONSTITUTIONAL
lty OF the law. Court then adjourned until
tomorrow.
The story of the alleged crime is still
fresh in the minds of people who read eur
rent news. The theory of the state is that
Luetgert induced his wife to accompany
him to his sleeping apartment in the fac
tory office and there Strangled her. Then
he is thought to have taken her body to
the basement and to have immersed it in a
vat filled with a solution of caustic potash
heated to the boiling point What remained
of the body after this process, 1t is alleged,
was gathered together and thrown into the
fire had been kept up under one of the
boilers upon express orders given by Luet-
CERT to his Waterman, Frank Bialk.
The state has made several experiments
in support of this theory. Luetgert's attor-
neys will also experiment with crude pot
ash, and with the results they hope success
fully to combat the testimony to be intro
duced by the state regarding the disin-
tegraton of cadaVer in % solution similar
to that found in the vat in the sausage fac
tory in which Mrs. Luetgert's remains are
alleged TO have been destroyed. The cada-
yer used by tho state, say the attorneys for
the Defense was several days old In it
there was not the resisting power of nerves
ana muscles Wnlcn a D0Qy from winch HE
has just pasesd would offer to the solution.
Acting on this belief the defense has en-
ployed experts to conduct experiments with
a fresh body, and the defense processes the
utmost confidence that the results will sIts
terly disprove the theory of the prosecu-
ton While the trial is in progress detec4
tives all over this country and Germany
will be searching for Mrs Luetgert, who is
reported to have been seen in various
places since her husbands arrest All of
these have been run down by the police,
who claimed to have proved they had little
foundation. Nevertheless, it is said the de-
Tense hopes by the reiteration of such
stories TO raise the question of doubt in the
minds of the jurymen.