The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-02-01
BIDDLEs AND MRS. sOFFEL CAP
TURED IN SENSATIONAL
PITCHED BATTLE
DETECTIVES SHOT TO KILL
All Three Badly wounded, One %
the Men Fatally, i'm Their
Last Fight for
Liberty.
WOMAN ATTEMPTS SUICIDE

PITTsBURG, Pa. Jan. s1-A telegram
from Butler at $3.50 p. M says:
Edward Biddle in jail dying; John Bid
die, riddfed with buckshot and in q pre-
carlous condition. and Mrs Peter *
Soffel lying in the hospital with self
inflicted bullet wound in the breast, is
the sequel of the sensational escape OF
the Biddle brothers from the Allegheny
county jail, aided by Mrs. Soffel the wife
of the jail warden, on Thursday morning
The story of the close of the BIddle
tragedy, which came at 5:45 this after
noon, is a thrilling one.
The scene was a snow covered road two
miles east of Prospect, Butler county,
near Mount Chestnut, and the exact
place was at McClure's barn, where two
double team sleighs filed with eight Of
ficers, three Of them Pittsburg detectives,
John Roach, Albert Swinehart and
Charles McGoyern, met the two Biddles
in P one-horse sleigh, stolen at Perrys-
vile, and at once opened fire on the trio.
the Biddles returning the fire after jump
ing out of the sleigh. Mrs. Soffel was
shot through the breast.
Edward Biddle was shot in the left
arm, in the breast and in one leg.
John Biddle was riddled with buckshot
in the breast and head.
The Pittsburg officers We're met at But
Ter this afternoon by Deputy Sherifrs
Rainey and Hoon and Officers Frank
Holiday and Aaron Thompson, the lat
ter under command of Chief of Police
Robert York, and Worthington NJ
Jacobs, Rutherford, N. j.. and Sheriff
Hay, of Butler
The officers were certain that they were
on the right trail. 1t was only question
of time when they would catch up to
the escaping condemned murderers ana
their guilty. companion.
Close on the Trail.
The Biddles and Mrs soffel ate dinner
at ]. J. Stebbins, at Mount Chestnut, five
miles east Of Butler. They had made a
detour of the town of Butler and after
going several miles east turned north and
then west. The Pittsburg officers, only
few miles in the rear, took the wrong
road for about eight miles. but when they
found their mistake they made up for
lost time by telegraphing an telephoning
ahead Tor fresh horses.
They reached Mount Chestr It not less
than half an hour after the y ddles and
Mrs Soffel. At this point William Wat
son, storekeeper, had fresh horses await
ing them, and the chase began anew.
The two sleighs with the eight officers
aboard, started westward and met the
fugitives at McClure's barn, two miles
from fGount Prospect, the Biddles having
taken and taking what they considered
the only chance they had, drove east
ward and met their doom.
Detectives Shot to XIII.
The Pittsburg and other officers were
armed with Winchester rifles and revolv-
ers of large caliber. They shot to kill
and their aim was perfect. The Biddles
tried to kill to the last of their string,
but not one of the officers had a wound
as result of the battle.
When the detectives got within about
sixty yards of the fugitives they opened
fire The Biddles promptly answered with
shotguns and revolvers. Mrs. Soffel, too,
stood up in the sleigh with revolver in
each hand and blazed away at her pur-
suers. When Ed Biddle fell, and she
saw she was about to be e. aCtured, she
fired a bullet into her breast. An exam
ination by physicians shows that she
Continued on Third Page.