Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-03-09
IT IS MURDER.
Violence at Waterbury Breaks
Out in Worst Form.
Car Attacked and Special Officer
Mendesohn Shot Through Heart.
Conductor and Motornan Severely In
observation-disclosures Escape.

| Waterbury, Conn.,, March 9.-Vio-
lcnce in it's worst form has broken out
anew in Waterbury as the result of the
, high feeling i'll connection with the
strike of motormen and conductors OF
the Connecticut Railway and Lighting
Co. This time it is murder and Super
numerary Policeman Paul Mendlesohn
| is the victim. John w. Chambers, a
mont union motorman, is shot, and his
conductor, George Weberndorfer, was
pounded almost into insensibility. 1t
was just 9.52' Sunday evening, when
| the first shot was fired and the struggle
did rot last 10 minutes.
| The scene of the crime was at Forest
Park, the terminus of the North Main
street line. The spot is an isolated one
and when the car reached the end of
| The line the crew made preparations for
the return trip Immediately after the
conductor turned the trolley and the
motornan reversed his levers, eight
masked men sprang from the bushes by
the roadside, entered the car ana dis
charged their revolvers, each man be-
| ing armed.
Officer Mendlesohn fell on the first
report, and, as later examination
! ms clipped off the top of his heart The
motorman was also hit and leaped from
| his car With a cry Of pain. Some of
the men followed him, while the re-
mainder turned their attention to the
conductor. He was thrown to the floor
of the car and pounded and kicked I'M
| til he was almost unconscious.
The men then left him and joined
! their companion outside. From this
point in the attack their actions are
wrapped in mystery and are causing
considerable apprehension. Webern-
| lorfer saw his motorman leap from the
car when he was shot and he also saw
| him followed by the murderers.
The conductor gained his feet with
difficulty and went to the side of the
wounded officer to render whatever as
| sistancc might be necessary. A brief
| examination showed that the officer
| was dead and Weberndorfer suffering
| from the severe beating he received.
and hardly able to stand, went to the
| controller and started the car back to-
ward the city with the dead officer. On
| the way he met another car, the crew
Of which relieved the injured man and
hurried to the city for assistance. The
| body of the dead officer was carried in
| to police headquarters and Wcbern-
Idorfer was also taken there. DIR.
Graves attended the man and found
| him badly used up.
| An alarm was Immediately sent around
| the city by the police and in a few mo-
| mcnts the entire detective department &C
| companicd by IL policemen went to the
| scene Of the murder. A thorough search
was made for Chambers but at midnight
| he had not been found. Despite the dill
gent search of the policemen and detec-
| tives not a clue could be found as to the
| perpetrators of the cold-blooded murder.
| At the time of the shooting the streets
| were practically deserted because of the
| heavy downpour of rain which had been
| falling all evening, but the news spread
rapidly and half an hour after the car
| carrying its unfortunate victim had reach
| ed the center of the city there were at
| least 800 persons in the vicinity of police
| headquarters where the body had been
| taken and public feeling is running high
| Mayor T<ilduff and Chief of Police Egan
| hurried to headquarters and were soon
| busy directing policemen to different parts
of the city in an effort to capture the MUIR
derers Both officials in an interview said
that they felt positive that the mordcr
was the work of Waterbury men.
| Shortly after midnight the searching Of
ficers came upon Motorman Chambers.
| who is a Young fellow not over 20 years of
age. His head was covered with blood.
but it was found that he had not been
struck with a bullet but had been pounded