The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-01-01

/ herds when Vacher came behind them
/ and cut their threats.
/ The crimes of Joseph Vacher have
surpassed in number and atrocity those of
the Whitechapel murderer known as
Jack the Ripper" His homicidal mania
| first broke out in 1894 He claimed after
his arrest that as every action has an
object and as his motive was neither theft
or vengeance, his innocence was estab-
ished. Physiologically, physicians have
regarded the case as interesting. tt was
shown that Vacher had been confined in
an asylum for the insane and that while
doing military duty a love affair caused
him to attempt self destruction by shoot
ing.
The victims Of Vacher were shepherds
and shepherdesses and was particularly
directed against young girls. He first cut
the threats of his victims with knife
and afterward mutilated them with
razor. He was arrested last year after
the police had searched for him for a long
time in vain.
In defense Of Vacher it was pointed out
that when a youth he was bitten by a
uldu uOg anu LlldI Lis N4lldSt uSIDdIlSl
gave him some medicine, after drinking
which he ebcame irritable and brutal,
whereas he mad previously been quiet and
inoffensive. It also appears from these
statements that from time to time he had
developed a passion for human blood. Re
ferring to his crimrs Vacher is quoted as
saying:
MY victims never suffered, for while
throttled them with one hand, 1 simply
took their lives with a sharp instrument
in the other
Il am an anarchist, and I am opposed
to society. no matter what the form of
government may be-"
This desperate criminal was VIGOROUSLY
vain and fancied himself a hero. He re-
fused to speak about his crimes except on
two conditions: One that the full story
of his murders be published in the leading
French papers, and the other that he
should be tried separately for each crime
in the district where it was committed.
The exact number of Vachers victims
viii never be known, but il is said that
twenty-three ASA sinationS had been
brought home to him, up to October last,
and the number was added to as time
wore on. In fact, it is doubtful whether
the murderer himself knew the real num-
Der of his victims. He nonchalantly told
the story of some fresh tragedy from time
to time to the examining magistrate as
the details came abck to his mind, and in
each case the investigation has furnished
fun confederation of Vacher's narrative. |
The bodies in each case were found in the |
III.
in unused wells. He seems to have killed |
merely for the sake Of killing.
Born near Lyons, Vacher served his |
term in a company of zouaves, |
and showed himself to be a good soldier, |
SO much so that he was made a non-com-
missioned officer, although there were |
complaints against him Of being brutally |
severe to recruits.
A recruit, a member of a we'll known
French family, told how Vacher once
abused him so terribly on the drill ground |
that he lost his temper and sprang at
yacher. Happily for the recruit, he was
seized by his comanions before he sue
9eeded in striking Vacher, otherwise the
youn gman would most likely have been
to death by court martial
IL NdS SHUT taiNtA oAltl itAL t4At
service that he became i'll, owing 10 disap-
Dointment in love affair. and attempted
% blow out his brains with a revolver
The bullet was never extracted from his
skull and. according to one report, the
wound produced insanity and caused him
20 be confined in an asylum for the in
sane.
Since that time and un-1 his arrest,
Vacher appears to have wandered through
he country districts of France commit
ing murders. He was Undecided and I'M
suspected UNTIL by mere accident. he was
caught, almost red-handed, near Lyons
1t the beginning of October
In every case Nacher seems to have
,een seized with a frenzy after attack
ng his victims. as he cut and slashed I
hem horribly ana often dismembered
hem
one day Vacher told the magistrate
hat he considered himself TO be a sc7u-ge
sent ny Providence to affiict humanity.
Eacher killed one of his victims. he
laimed. because he wore a white shirt,
which the murderer coveted. and he adj
ntte5 that be sometimes murdered pe5-
'le because ne needed money and food
one of the remarkable feature Of this
extraordinary ease was the clever manner
n which Nacher succeeded in shifting
usp.cion from himself About two years
Co he murdered "a shepherd BOY on
ountry road a few miles from Lyons.
lacked the body almost t0 pieces and then
.ontnUed Or his way. The murder was
discovered witaiu few m.nu.es after.
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