The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1898-12-08
HAVE NEW EVIDENCE
LAWYER SCHNEIDER WILL LlBER-
ATE H!LGENDORF.
CONFESSION OF CONVICT KELLY
A Companion of Fred Hartman Who Wa
Hanged at Paxton, Ill, Gives out
Written Confession, Convict
ing Hartman of the Deed.

cence of August Hilgendorf, who was
sent to Waupun for life from this city
in 1896, is again being literally dis
cussed and the Chicago and Milwaukee
papers have taken up the old story of
Fred Hartman, who is claimed con-
fessed that he murdered Mrs. Hilgen-
dorf, and from the way the stories are
told there seems TO be reason to believe
in the innocence of the old man.
Never since, smeared with the life
blood of bis wife, he was taken into
custody on that fourth of July, has he
ceased to protest his innocence of the
murder. When he was called up for
sentence, after conviction, and given
his last opportunity to speak in public
before donning convict garb. he said:
/" am Innocent, and some day you'll
find it out"
Still nobody, or at least very few
persons, about Kenosha, believe this,
His sons will do, or have done, nothing
for him. His friends will not go near
him. But the old man hopefully
passes his time in prison at task that
will be his life one unless men he never
saw, and who never saw him, succeed
in establishing his innocence and
securing his pardon. The work to
which the old man is assigned is that
of peeling potatoes in the prison kit
chen.
The old, old story of the crime and
supposed innocence of Hilgendorf, has
been told and related in Kenosha
papers, but new evidence has been
discovered which shows more conclu-
sive proof in favor of the old man now
wearing his life away behind the prison
bars at Waupun.
William Kelly, convict in Joliet,
has given out the following sworn
statement, which also points to the
innocence of the Kenosha man. His
statement is as follows:
Nov. 20, 1851 was an inmate of
the Ford county, Illinois, Jail, during a
part of January, all of February,
March, and part of April, 1897, during
which time was close friend of Fred
Hartman. About March Is and 10, a
date I recall on account of the arrest of
two men on st. Patrick's day, Hartman
stated to me that an old Dutch
farmer was doing life in Wisconsin for
job he and a man known as Baltimore
Shorty had done" He wanted to ask
the men arrested if they knew Shorty.
In coi6 tho Of no 1niTo Info
in Wisconsin was Hilgendorf, or Hig-
gendorf. Hartman said if his wife
1 knew where he was she knew enough
to hang him. He said his wife lived
in Wisconsin. Hartman was at that
time awaiting trial for the murder of a
women. He was afterwards hanged in
Paxton, H., on May IA, 1897. make
this statement of my own accord and
without promise of favor, reward or
assistance of any kind.
WILLIAM KELLY.
Witness:
r, W. MCCLAUGHY, Warden.
For long time the Wisconsin con-
vict refused to do anything in his own
behalf, but recently has written pit
liable letters to Mr. Schneider, on whom
alone be seems to rely for his freedom
before death. Hilgendorf was seen IN
the Waupun prison last Thursday, but
he could tell nothing that would clear
him Of the charge for which he is suf-
fering, He had heard, he said, that
Hartman, or Lang, had been seen near
his farm on the day his wife was muir
dered.
"My son Bernhard called here once
and told me that" he said. NV sons
do not help me because they have no
money. I sent the last $25 1 had to
mr.. Schneider, whom l hope will help
me. l did not kill my good old wife.
| went home and found her dead, and
told my sons when they came home. I
was not drunk and do not know who
did it,"
Hilgendorf shows all his years.
Warden Roberts said he is a good
prisoner, although at one time, when
allowed to work on the prison farm, he
was making arrangements to run
away.
William Hilgendorf, the son of the
old gentleman, who lives in Milwaukee,
works for the st. Paul road there. He
said he would make no effort to secure
his fathers release.
"Of course" he said, if the old
man is innocent l would like to have
him out, but if he is guilty the place
where he is now is too good for him. /
was not there at the time of the muir
der. The old man used to get drunk
and be very violent, and he was drunk
at the time of the murder. This man
Hartman was in the vicinity at the
time. but l do not know anything