The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-06-13
K0HLER REMEMBERS
NOTHING OF THE
MURDER
Nv
Says His Mind Was a Blank
Through Excessive Drink
on the Night He Commit
ted the Crime = Other
Witnesses Tell the Story
of the killing.

murder of John Kaar, who was shot
and killed on Front street, near Gaul-
tler, on the night Of May 5, went on
the witness stand in his own defense
yesterday afternoon, and declared that
his mind was blank the night of the
shooting, and that he remembered
nothing Whatever that transpired from
$3.50 the evening Of the shooting until
ne aWoke in the central police station
the following morning. Excessive
drink, Kohler said, was what caused
his mind to become blank.
The prisoner was subjected to a
rigid cross examination by County At
torney Kane, who had not finished with
the witness when court adjourned for
the day. In answer to questions put
10 MN by the county attorney, Kohler
SAID he was thirty-one years old, a
plumber by trade, and that he had re-
sided IN st. Paul twenty three years.
We're you working on the day of
May 81" asked Mr.. Kane.
es, sir; was working on the Ma
gee building at Fourth and Robert
Streets
What time did you quit work, and
where did you go afterwards"
Il quit work at o'clock, and in
company withsGeorge Schiller, another
plumber, l went: over to a saloon on
Third street. IN e.
How many drinks did you have in
this saloon?" 5ra Z
Hads Many Drinks.
81 had five; Shfller bought twice and
the bartender three times; l didn't
have any money!.
Where did youtgo from there?"
I'VE went to catch car, but there
was none in sight, so we walked up to
Guy Gordon's saloon, and had one
fhnrp EfYgQ11 ~
saloon at Fifth and Jackson, and had
two more drinks. I took beer each
time.' Tf-p "
night?" l'C
yes, SIR; q great many more. We
went to Carriers saloon, and finally
reached Lieha's place about 7:30 in
the evening. When / went into
Licha's 1 shook dice for the drinks;
there were some other fellows in
there, and we remained there and
drank for some time.''
Where did you go when you left
Lfchas saloon?"
81 don't remember; the last thing
recollect clearly is being in Licha's
saloon about 8 O'clock in the evening"
do you not remember borrowing
L1cha's gun before starting homer
No, sir;I had borrowed it once be-
fore because | was told that someone
was going to get me- but T don't re-
| member getting it, that night
po you remember meeting Kaal
| and his companions about II o'cloch
that night?n- 9d' sc7e ~
II have no recollection Of SEEING
! them at ALL" h~1---
iKohler stuck to his story all the
way through that he did not remem-
Der anything that transpired after 8
o'clock that night, and declared the
first he knew-of the shooting was
when he was told Of it at the central
! police station the following morning
Ten Witnesses Testify
Of the ten witnesses called. by the
| state, a number gave some very dam
aging evidence against Kohler.
After County Surveyor Irvine had
been called for the. purpose of identi-
| flying the plat drawn of the streets in
the vicinity of where the shooting oc-
! CURED, Charles Aitkin, one of the
young men who was with Kaar at the
time of the shooting, was called to
the stand.
Aitkin told his story in straightfor-
ward manner, and his evidence was
not shaken by cross eXamination.
I'VE were all coming down Front
street ogether-Yunghaus, O'TooIe
Kaar and myself-when we passed
Kohler. l spoke TO him and called him
by name, but he did not answer. When
We were about five feet in front OF
him he fired and Kaar fell. I called
to him and told him to run away before
they got him; that he had killed Kaar.
He called me. a name, and, pointing
his revolver at me, fired again. The
bullet missed 9fneg and Kohler walked
away. He did not Stagger when he
walked away, although he was stag
gering when we approached him.
Wenzel Yunghaus and Philip
O'Toole related practically the same
testified to giving. Kohler his gun that
night, and also testified to the fact that
Kohler had been drinking. He did not
think Kohler was so drunk that he
could not know what he was doing.
Prosecution Rests.
Coroner Miller, Alexander Kaar and
two or three other witnesses were
| called, and at 4 o'clock the state rest
ed it's case.
Kohler in giving his testimony, said
ne had never known Kaar, and denied
that he had ever had trouble with him
He admitted that he had had some
trouble with five or six members of
the Jolly Twelve club some months
before, but he was not aware that
Kaar was member of the club.
Kohler gave his testimony in a cool,
OAopc1ooAOhnIC 1IIdEuGT, anu always mao
an answer ready for the questions of
the county attorney.
The criminal court room was crowd
ed to the doors, every seat down stairs
and in the gallery being occupied.
Among the spectators was the aged
mother of the murdered man, and the
grief-stricken wife of the defendant.
Both broke down when the gun with
which the shooting was done was in
troduced in evidence. The case will
be resumed Monday morning, at which
time Kohler will again be placed on
the stand. 1t is thought the case will
go to the jury by Monday night, which
will make it one of the shortest muir