Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1897-08-25
FARMERS KILL A THIEF.
Speedy Punishment for a Man Who
Attacked a DefenceleSS
Woman.

Woman.
Chicago, H., Aug. 20.-Lyrch law
wreaked its unrestrained vengeance with
in the borders of Cook county yesterday.
Thirty farmers hunted a robber through
their cOrntelds and shot him down al
most within sight of the courthouse. The
man hunt continued for more than two
hours within five miles of the limits of
the city of Chicago. 1t only ended after
the exchange of many shots, one of
which brought the fugitive to the ground
and did not leave him a long enough
lease of life to tell his name. The man
hunters then notified the coroner and
quietly resumed their work of threshing
oats.
An unknown man entered the cabin of
Karl Fenske, near Schiller park, beat
Mrs. Fenske into insensibility, ransacked
the humble home for plumber without sue
cess and then fled to the tall and rustling
corn near by. Mrs. Fenske, on regaining
consciousness, seized her baby and stag
gered to the neighboring farm of John
Hanson where party of sixteen men
and boys was busy threshing. out great
stacks of yellow oats. Pointing to the
fleeing robber, she said he had tried to kill
her, and she fell in her tracks as she said
it.
The farmers waited for no more before
giving chase. From one cOrnfield TO an
other they doggedly followed the fugitive.
When they approached near enough to be
heard they commanded the robber to sur
render. His answer was a fusilade from
two revolvers, one in each hand. The
pursuers kept at a safe distance, but
chung to the trail. The fugitive was seen
to dive into a pocket and fill the cham
bers of his revOlvers with new bullets.
The farmers sent some Of their party to
neighbOring farmhouseS for firearms and
patiently continued the game of hide
and seek until several shotguns and re-
yolvers were brought to them.
The threshers were joined in the pur
suit by other farmers until their party
numbered about thirty. The hunted man.
apparently thinking his life was the for
felt of the game, lodged from one field
of corn TO another, doubled on his tracks
and frequently crouched on the ground
until the shouts of his relentless pursuers
spurred him to make another dash for
liberty. When he came out into the open
he opened his battery on the pursuers.
and they returned the fire. This duel
was repeated 4 dozen times amid shouts
and yells and UNDECIDED commands to
surrender.
Many neighbors f1ocked to the scene of
excitement, and from the Dutch wind
mill of Henry Bruckman one party
looked down on the tragic scene with
noisy interest. Charles Benton, perched
on lofty telegraph pole. was able to
follow the movements of the fugitive
in the tasseled corn and yelled direc-
lions and warnings to the mob of pur-
suers. The rObber recognized the i'm
pOrtance Of this spy and opened fire on
him. The crowd below saw Benton shift
quickly from side to side to keep the
pole between himself and the flying bull
lets. and paused long enough to shout
back laughing warnings.
The man hunt continued from II 30
o'clock in the morning until in the after
noon. The pursuit was back and forth
over a stretch of farm country a mile
long by half a mile wide. The dinner
horn at Farmer Hanson's was unheeded.
The farmers only feared the robber might
elude them until darkness should enable
him to escape. They sought to capture
him alive, but when he fired they shot
back. Finally, after longer disappear
ance than usual it dawned upon the pur-
suerS that a charge fired at random into
the corn had laid the fugitive low. They
entered. after cautious accommodating. and
found him gasping his last few breaths.
A load of shot had apparently struck the
rObber in the face and he died a few min
utes after being found.
The awed farmers examined the cloth
ing Of the dead man, but found no clue TO
his identity. In his pockets were five
purses, 81 gold watch, two chains and S34
in money. These in connection with the
fact that he had two revolvers, strength
end the belief that he was professional
thief The robber was dressed in black
and wore a blue flannel shirt. The
hands were soft and white, but the body
was unclean.
The threshers bore the corpse TO the
home of Mrs. Fenske, while Il farmer
went to Dunning to telephone the coroner
Mrs. Fenske identified the corpse as that
of her asSailant, and two of the threshers
took it to Franklin Park, where it was
placed in the village Jail to await the ar
rival Of the coroner this morning. Dep
uty Sheriff Peters started for the scene
of the tragedy at o'clock, but made no
arrests. The threshers continued their
work until o'clock, had supper and
spent the early hours of the evening
quietly discussing the tragedy, with 10
apparent concern about the consequences
to themselves. None of them would
venture an opinion as to who had fired
the fatal shot.
Mrs. Fenske was attended by MIS-.
Hanson and taken to her home. She was
seriously, but not dangerously wounded,
the thief having beaten her with one of
his reyOlverS