The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-09-15
TENNESSEE SOLDIERS CRIME
MURDERER RoSsER COMES
FROM A GOOD FAMILY.
A University Graduate and Medical
Student-Has No Recollection of
the Shooting-Tried to Escape.

san Francisco. Sept. 14-When Wal
Ter Rosser. the Tennessee volunteer
who murdered Henry Hildebrand,
clerk in the Spreckels market, during
a drunken spree, was booked at the
city prison, he began to sober up he
handed in a lady's gold watch and 500
in coin and asked that the valuapies
be cared for Then he wept and said
he realized his deep disgrace, but
claimed not to recollect anything about
the shooting.
MY father and mother are alive"
he said and are living in Stevenson,
Ala. Ny father is superintendent of
the Nashville, Chattanooga & St Louis
railroad.
Il am n member of the Sigma NJ
fraternity and a graduate of the Van
derbilt university, and am entitled TO
the degree of NJ. d. When the war
broke out l was a student in classics,
but left school and enlisted in the Ten
nessee regiment at Memphis. My
knowledge of medicine gained me the
position of steward of company IL,
which position l still hold.
Il have telegraphed my father and
expect him to come to this city at
once
Later in the evening. Judge j. H.
Query of Georgia, who has lately come
to this state to practice law, called on
the prisoner and rendered his services
as a friend of the family, and he was
accepted He will appear in court when
leosser is arraigned.
Eye-witnesses of the affair state that
Rosser fired the fatal shot without
provocation He fought against arrest
and almost succeeded in escaping in
the excitement having slipped one
hand through the steel handouts.
While waiting for the patrol wagon he
is said to have pushed the dead body
of his victim with the toe of his shoe.
Colonel Smith of the Tennessee regi-
ment deeply regrets the odium which
the crime has cast upon his command.
He viii compel all the men to sur
render their weapons and may re-
strict their liberty in future. The regi-
ment has achieved an unenviable rep
utation since its arrival here, some of
its members having been concerned in
a recent brutal assault on a negro
I been arrested for various offenses.
! Colonel Smith, however, declares that
most of his men are members of south
ern families of good social standing,
/ but a bad element got in during the
/ hasty recruiting necessary to Increase
/ its companies from "a to los men,
Last nights murder caused General
Z
guards to arrest drunken soldiers and
return them to camp, and this work
/ was continued until an early hour this
morning. The appearance of the armed
/ guards on the prominent streets caused
considerable excitement. Albert S. En-
NETT. q private Of the Twentieth Kan
sas regiment resisted the attempt of
| the provost guard to take him from a
! saloon and struck the captain of the
1 guard a blow that knocked him down.
Emmett was arrested. -t
A private of the Tennessee regiment
who gave his name as James Johnson
was arrested for discharging pistol.
Corporal Conley of the Seventh Califor-
MIA was jabbed by a bayonet in the
! hands of Washington soldier for at
tempting to prevent an arrest. There
were several other encounters, but no
| one was seriously hurt
Walter Rosser was brought up here
before Judge Joaminon for preliminary
/ examination. On motion of his attor-
ney, George r. Curtis of Maryland, ex-
/ law librarian of congress, and Judge
James H. Query of Georgia. the exam
ination was postponed until after the
inquest. Both his attorneys are men,
bers of the Sigma NJ Greek letter fra
ternities. of which society the murderer
! is q member.