The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-09-21
Murderous Assault Made On Him BY
W0uld-be RObber.
BEATEN WITH A HAMMER
ASSAILANT ALSO LYING AT
POINT OF DEATH.
Farmer Who Interfered and Attempt
ed to Save the Life of the Banker
Is Also Seriously Injured-Afair
Took Place at Palatine, Little
Town Near Chicago.

Chicago. Sept. 20.-Frederick ]. Fill
bert, the aged cashier of the Palatine
bank, in Palatine. Ills. twenty-six miles
north of Chicago, is lying close to death
as the result of an attack made upon
him today by young man who gives
the name of Walter Lawton. The lat
ter, who is unknown to anybody in Pa
lathe, and apparently of good educa-
ton, is in the county jail suffering from
a bullet wound in the abdomen, which
viii probably prove fatal. Henry
Plagge, 20 years old, a farmer whose
intervention at critical moment pre-
vented the outright murder of the CASH
Ter, is at his home, west of the village,
cut and bruised and disabled as a re-
suit of his struggle, with Lawton, whose
motive for the assault according to his
repeated statements, was net robbery.
The attack upon Hilbert was made
With tack hammer, and the cashier
was struck at least a dozen times be-
fore Plagge interfered. The attack oc-
CURED at 3, o'clock in the afternoon.
Cashier Hilbert was alone in the bank
when LSlwton, whom he recognized as
a.visitqr of last Friday, who had sought
a loan on q, supposed farm. entered.
Lawton called Filbert into the outer
Office TO consult a map which hung on
the wall, and started quarrel. Fill
bert is small and feeble and could offer
little resistance to- Lawton, who
pounded him savagely on the head with
a small tack hammer.
Farmer to the Rescue.
Repeated blows from the sharp ham
mer sent the old man to the floor, hut
his cries attracted Farmer Plagge. AS
the latter entered he was met by Law
ton, who said:
hilbert is in the back room, and 1
guess there is something the matter
with him"
Plagge pushed open the door, and as
he stopped over the PROSTATE cashier.
Lawton struck him three times on the
back of the head with the hammer. The
old farmer turned ON his knees and
grasped his assailant about the legs.
Both fell on the floor and struggled for
possession of the hammer.
Each in turn received blows with it,
until Lawton drew his revolver. The
men fought for the weapon. and in the
scuffie for it it was discharged, the ball
striking Lawton, in the abdomen.
Plagge said he had no idea of how the
revolver was discharged.
The wound weakened Lawton so
much that, although he still fought,
Plagge had little trouble in throwing
MIN 10 lne lOOT anu nOlulD& MIN suHlli
assistance arrived.
The crowd which gathered rapidly af-
ter the pistol shot. separated the two
and took the supposed robber to the vii
lage lookup. He was too severely
wounded to offer any resistance. and
this fact was all that saved him from
violence at the hands of the excited
crowd that followed him to Jail.
Taken to Chicago.
Lawton was brought to Chicago on a
late train tonight, and placed in the
county jail. Although it was manifest
that the name of Lawton was assumed,
he having taken the precaution to cut
all initials from his linen before at
lacking the cashier as the best avoid
ance of Identification, he insisted that
he had given his actual name.
He denied that he had entered the
bank for the purpose of robbery, and
claimed that the alienation of his wife's
affections by Hilbert took place five
years ago at the Fifth avenue hotel, in
New York City. Filbert declared that
he has not been III New York for TWEEN
ty wears.
Late tonight it was announced that
both Filbert and Lawton viii die Tie
formers skull is fractured in two
places, and the latter cannot survive
the wound in his abdomen.
The police have no doubt that the
looting of the bank was Lawton's de-
sign. The cash balance of the institu-
ton was 100000, all Of which was in
the vaults at the time the assault was
made.