The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-02-01
81 Am n Wicked Woman,
THE BATTLE
How the Fugitives Were Hunted
Down and Captured.
W0Sy York Sun .S.,aeEaS So.wsrs~


nsw York Sun SoecEaI So-vxss.
Butler, Pa, Feb. John and Edward
Blddle. the murderers under sentence of
death, who escaped from the Jail in Pitts
burg Thursday morning last, and Mrs
Kate Deitrick Sofrel, wife of Warden Peter
Soffel, who assisted in their escape and
| fled with them, were, captured yesterday
near Prospect, nine miles west of here,
after bloody conflict, by Detectives
Charles McGo van, John Roach and Albert
H. Swinehart. All three prisoners were
| shot and may die of their wounds.
Mrs. Soffel Slot herself during the bat
tle She placed a revolver to her left
! breast and drove the ball clear to. the
| back. The detectives are uninjured
| About thirty shots were exchanged. The
| capture was completed about 112 miles
| from Prospect
! The three remained hidden in ALLIE
| gheny and left the first evening, walking
on the plank road towards Butler. Late
at night they stole horse and sleigh from
| a farmer living near Perrysburg.
| The fact : sleigh had been stolen
| was telphons0 80 Pihtsburg and the off,
GERS were thus put on theirrtrack. Yes
| that a sleigh containing two men and
woman, the latter half frozen, had passed
| along the road near Prospect. Detectives
John Roach, Albert Swinehart and Charles
| McGovern were ordered out from Pitts
| burg to Butler. Here they got tele
| phone message, saying that the party Of
! fugitives had been at Coopertown, twelve
miles from Butler. The detectives took
| a two-horse sleigh driven by James Sny
| der and started out on the road toward the
Newcastle pike, and at farmhouse they
| learned in an hour that the sleigh con-
! tanning the men and woman had passed.
| They got the same information at grist
mill farther on. At Mount Chestnut they
| learned that the sleigh had gonethrough
the town. Here they received a telephone
! message that the party had taken dinner
! at hotel and were hitching up to de-
part. The detectives hurried on, and were
| joined by a sleigh containing number Of
Butler citizens, among them the chief of
police of Butler. Half way between
Mount Chestnut and Prospect the de-
| tectives saw their quarry on little rise
| in the road, coming toward them.
The Biddles and the woman drove on
ahead of the two-horse sleigh that was
ahead Of them, while McGovern and Roach
| got their rifles ready and Swinhart pulled
| his revolver. McGovern recognized the
! Biddles when the two sleighs were 100
! yards apart, and at the same moment the
desperate fugitives saw that they were
| cornered, and prepared for battle to the
| death.
The detectives sprang from their sleigh
| Edward Biddle rose in his seat, and TAX
ing careful and deliberate aim with his
shotgun, fired at McGovern, but the load
scattered harmlessly on the road, alongside
the detective. McGOvern and Roach fired
at the men who sat together, while Mrs.
Soffel sat one side. Jack Blddle
sprang to an upright position and fired
three shots at the detectives, but Swine
hart. steadying himself and aiming, fired
a bullet from revolver that disabled
| Jacks arm.
McGovern rushed forward and literally
shot the two men out of the sleigh. I'D
| Riddle stumbled out on the road, and
lack who had been trying to protect the
woman, interposing his body between her
/ and the rain Of bullets from the officers
guns. fell on top of his brother. Their
weapons fell alongside of them.
When Mrs. soffel saw Ed fall she
! pressed a revolver against her breast and
fred. She then collapsed IN the sleigh.
/ The horse started to run away, but 1T was
| caught by the men in the other sleigh OF
pursuers who had come up at the last
moment in time to fire volley at the
Biddles that went wild.
The detectives approached the wounded
men cautiously. Roach saw Ed Biddle
reach into his coat pocket, where re-
volver was afterward found and the de-
| tective shot him again. Then Detective
McGovern ran up within five feet and fired
his rifle at the brot hers. The Biddles
yielded, and the detectives, Handwriting
), them and Stacking their legs, brought
to the hospital here. None Of the detec-
|tives was hurt The shotgun which Jack
Biddle had was stolen from the hotel at
4 which the party had eaten dinner.
u When the wounded Biddle boys were
brought into the jail it was thought Ed
was dying He asked for priest and
| Father Welsh was summoned. Before
talking privately to the priest Ed spoke
to the detectives:
I have been accused Of great many
serious crimes. l admit that could have
committed many. The opportunities OTTER
presented themselves. I want to say nov
that I did not kill Detective Fitzgerald MOI
I did I shoot Thomas Kahney, nor was my
brother implicated in the affair. Mrs. Sof-
fel aided us in getting out Of the county
Jail. Had it not been for her we would have
made our escape to-day She gave up every
u thing for us and was bound to back her
did not shoot her. She shot herself
..Oh. father he exclaimed to, the
4 priest, ..bless me and tell me that my sins
are forgiven" He continued:
i Although I have been pictured to you as q
desperate man, ! still have some heart and
gratitude for the woman who helped us to
1 escape. She merely did it out of good feel
Il ing for us. I persuaded her to do it. tolt,
4 her was guiltless of the crime for which /
was about TO be executed, and she vas i'm
Il pressed and yielded to my suggestion. ]
II planned it all.