Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-10-19
FRAME CARVED
To RIBBONS
WIZ. vOLKER AND HENRY WILL
IAMs FOUGHT "A BATTLE
TO THE DEATH.
QUARRELED OVER
A MONEY MATTER,
Volker Is at the Hospital With Slim
Chances for His Re-
covery.

the death On the second floor of the
Butte hotel last night-fought until the
walls We're splashed crimson and the
floor was rendered slippery with their
life fluid. When they ceased their san
culinary combat the scene resambled a
corner of a slaughter house.
One man. William Volker, now lies
wounded unto death on a cot in ST.
Paul's hospital, with his frame almost
arved to ribbons. During the bloody
struggle he received 16 knife wounds.
Henry Williams, who inflicted the in
juries which may prove fatal, is now
confined in the county jail. with a charge
of assault to murdec placed against his
name. 1t is probable that before many
hours pass away the charge will be
changed to murder.
How Volker ESCAPED instant death is
a mystery to the physicians. The Weapon
with which HIS wounds were intiicte l
was a short, heavy carpet knife, and 1t
is plainly apparent that Williams must
have driven the knife into it's sheath of
human flesh with all his strength at
every thrust. DR.. Sheeran, who attend
ed Volker. says that he has a bare
chance 1o- his life. and hat is all.
Williams, vino was arrested shortly
after the fierce combat by Captain Ley
den, Sergeant MrGrath and Detective
Murphy, declared that he had acted in
self-defense. He made no attempt to
escape. He was transferred to the
county Jail shortly after his name had
been registered on the books at the city
prison.
The two men had been employed at
the Butte hotel in cleaning carpets and
were. to all appearances, the best of
fr;op5c CNbo,rtlv t,trto ~ 3 p'cnOrk yx.no on -
was about time to quit work, they quar-
relied over a deb of $3.50. Volker de-
clared that Williams owed him this sum
and was told to go to the housekeeper
and collect the money from the wages
due his companion.
Warm words followed. and the men
came to blows. Few of the guests at the
hotel saw the struggle. ami then wit
messed it only i'm the latter stages. The
men struggled for several minutes be-
fore tGhey We're separated by other em-
ployes of the hotel, and when the strug-
gle ended, VOlker was NO weak from loss
of blood THAT he could hardly stand. Will
liams had a Slight bruise on the face and
a cut on the hand.
Volker was rushed to st. Paul's hospi-
tai and his wounds were dressed by DR..
Sheeran. More than an hour was re-
quired to treat all his ounds
There We're seven stabs in his back.
three on the chest, one on the left ann.
one on tine right shoulder and one on the
right thigh. The most dangerous is the
wound en- the right shoulder, which is
four and one-half inches long and pene-
trated the chest. Another cut is six inch
es in length. The wounded man is al
present resting quietly, but his condition
is critical in the extreme.
Al the hospital Volker asserted that
Williams had attacked him without reas-
onable p~rovocation. He said that his as
sailan. had done a man to death with
a knife in Missouri when he was but 16
years of age, and had been sent to a re-
form school. from which he had escaped.
Volker is 81 years of age. Williams is
much younger.
Shortly after his arrest Williams made
a statement at police headquarters. He
said that VoAker attacke'd him first with
his fists, nnd then with the carpet knife.
While he was trying to take the knife
away, he claims, Volker kept trying to
throw him over the RAILING of the rotun-
da. and upon securing possession of the
knife, he used it to defend himself from
Volker's attacks.
During the struggle Volker must have
caught hold of the blade of the knife, as
his hand is badly cut. He was a member
of the First Montana regiment and is
game" to the core.
Go right ahead, DOCTOR" he said, while
DR.. Sheeran was dressing mis- wounds. u
have had tougher experiences than this
and guess I'll pull through