The Savannah morning news., 1901-09-25
A CRANK CONFESSES
SEEKER AFTER NoTORIETY TELLS
OF ANARCHIST PLOT.
EDWARD SAFTIG'S WILD STORY
CLAIMS To HAVE BEEN IN LEAGUE
WITH CZOLGOsZ.

Man Arrested in ST. Louis for Petty
Larceny Tells n Detailed story OF
the Plot to Assassinate President
Mckinley and of His Completely I'm
the Crime-Snftig's Brain Thought
to Have Been Affected by a Fali
From "A Train, and Witnesses State
That They Saw Him i'm st. Louis ON
the Day of the Crime.
St. Louis. Sept. 24.-The Post-Dis-
patch to-day says: Edward Saftig.
arrested Monday afternoon, suspected
of petit larceny, told Grief of Detec-
tives Desmond to-day that he was one
of three men who conspired to assassi-
nate President Mckinley at Buffalo on
Sept. 6. and that be- Saftig, tied
around Czolgosz' hand the handker-
chief that concealed the weapon with
which he shot the President.
Saftig was arrested Monday after
noon on suspicion of having stolen ar
ticles valued at 81 from de-
partment store at Broadway and Nor
gan street. This morning Saftig told
Chief Desmond that he would tell all
he knew regarding the plot to kill the
President.
1T was on the Monday before the
President was killed that l first knew
that anything was to happen in an
archist circles" said Saftig. ION that
date Frank Harrigan, an anarchist,
that l had known in New York and
other Eastern cities. located me and
made an appointment for me to meet
him at the Michelob saloon in this city.
fol- hA f0d
me to go to Buffalo with him. He said
that there was a man to be killed, a
prominent man. / asked him who II
was. He told me to wait and / would
| see.
Il finally consented to go with him.
We left here on Tuesday and got into
| Buffalo on Wednesday evening late
Harrigan gave me $50 and paid my
way there and gave me a return ticket
| to st. Louis.
Had known CzOIgosz Before.
when we got to Buffalo we went
to a boarding house. do
not remember the name of
the proprietor nor the street
where 1t was located. The man was
arrested after the President was shot.
When we got into the boarding house
we saw Czolgosz. l knew him, having
met him in Chicago several years be-
fore. .Czolgosz told me that he intend
ed killing the President He said he
| had gone to Niagara Falls with that
| in view but had failed. He was to
make another attempt soon. Harrigan
was present at that time. Harrigan
| told Czolgosz that he had better post
pone 1t until the President left Buffalo.
He said that there were so many peo-
pie present that 1T was sure thing
| that he would be caught. Czolgosz
said he didn't care If he was caught.
He said he would shoot the President
| Che called him Mack) where all people
would know why he was killed.
"Harrigan told him to go ahead. II
money could save him he would be
saved. Next day, Friday / got up
about 10 o'clock Czolgosz told me this
was the day that the killing was to
take place. He asked me to tie hand
| kerchief around his hand ] did so,
and he placed a revolver in his hand
under the handkerchief. He asked me
if could see that there was weapon
in his hand. l said that | could not.
Then he told me that / was to go
| to the Temple of Music. Twas to nix
| up my hand the same as | had fixed
his. If the guards allowed me to get
by he would have no trouble in getting
by. But If they stopped me he would
not try 1t.
saftig Says He weakened.
THAT afternoon we went out as he
suggested l tied the handkerchief
about his hand. Mine was fixed up the
same way Harrigan was to meet us
at the grounds and he was to be i'm
mediately back of Czolgosz to prevent
any interference.
"At the gate / weakened. told
Czolgosz that / would go back and
get Harrigan to do what had been
laid out for me. left Czolgosz then
and never saw him any more. AT the
boarding house l met Harrigan. He
told me that he had not been on the
grounds when the murder took place.
He gave me 500 as l was going home
l feared to take a train for St. Louis
for fear of being detained. l tramped
1t part of the way and beat my way
on trains. 1t took four days to get
| back"
A waiter named Petit, who is en-
ployed at SOB Market street, where SAT-
| tig boarded, told the Post-Dispatch
that Saftig was In st. Louis on the
day President Mckinley was shot, and
that the two read the news of the
tragedy in front OF the newspaper Of
flee. He said that Saftig was seeker
after notoriety.
Henry Schneider, proprietor of the
restaurant at SOB Market street, where
Petit was employed as a waiter, cor
roborated the statement made by Pet
tit that Saftig was in st. Louis on
Sept g.
The story of the confession is gen
orally discredited, the impression pre-
vailing that Saftig's brain has been
affected by a fall from a railroad train
in August, from which he suffered in
ternal injuries.