Waterbury evening Democrat., 1903-10-01

IuSltaQ6 or plStOl ShOtS, Wn1cn faiTly riddled the body of Mir Hallenbeck. Mrs Hallenbeck, the wife, ran into the Kitchen, where the affray was in prog ress, and the brothers shot at her, but failed to hit her. Her husband ordered her to flee, and she did so, running up stairs whither the older woman had preceded her and the two trembling women barricaded themselves in the attic until long after the dead silence below assured them that the desperate deed had been finished.
 Mir Hallenbeck, a man of notable physical vigor, although mortally wounded, broke away from his assail- ants and went to the landing of the stairs leading up to the second floor, where he kept a loaded shot gun. Through the smoke which filled the room the assailants saw him get the gun and they then fled. The old man fell to the floor and died.
 The four young men were soon after arrested, betrayed by their footprints in the snow around the house, and be- cause they were known to have har- bored bitter feelings and to have made threats against their uncle. Moreover, their reputation in the community was of the worst. They had terrorized the entire neighborhood by their depreda- tions upon poultry yards and by other lawless acts of which they boasted. with threats to do mischief to anyone who might interfere with them.
 They were brought to trial before an extraordinary term of the supreme court, appointed by Governor Odell and presided over by Judge Allen rsI.z q A Yyo
 Harvey Bruce turned states evil dence, and it was to large extent upon his testimony that the convic- ton of the yanWormer brothers was secured He swore that upon the ride back from the scene of the crime, one of the brothers boasted of having made "Czolgosz shot" into his un- cle's stomach, another of having shot him in the back while the third de- clared that the old man had not es- capped without getting the contents of his revolver.
 It was shown that the bitterness which the brothers felt toward their uncle was due chiefly to his having foreclosed a mortgage upon the prop erty in Greendale owned by their stepmother the loss of which com pelled their removal to Kinderhook. Upon April IS all three were found guilty and sentenced to be put to death on the week ending May 30, 1902. Their appeal to the court of ap- peals acted as stay, and the case went over to the present year pend ing the decision of the highest court upon the exceptions taken by their counsel to the proceedings before Justice Chester
 The grounds of appeal were in the main that the lower court erred in per mitting their conviction upon the evil dence of their footprints in the snow, the accused mems counsel, Judge Ga dy's contention being that when their shoes were taken from them at the jail for the purpose of comparison. they were in effect compelled to give testimony against themselves. It was also contended to be an error that Bruce, who was Jointly indicted with them, was permitted to testify against them. Upon all these questions. to- gether with others of a technical na- ture. the court of appeals ruled unan- imously in dismissing the appeal and affirming the judgment of conviction. Judge O'Brien in writing the unani- nous opinion of the court, pronounced incredible the main plea of the de- fense.. that the expedition of the four to Hallenbeck's house was in the na- ture of young mems pranks, the fatal outcome of which had not been a part Of the plan.
 The court fixed upon the week of July 6 for the carrying out of the death sentence. but the VanWormer's have twice been respited by Governor Odell, to whom Judge Cady appealed for a communication of sentence to life imprisonment.
 Except for this visit. for the efforts of Judge Cady in their behalf, and for the futile attempt of Mrs Van Wormer the stepmother of the condemned men to appeal to Governor Odell. no voice has been raised in their behalf. No letter has been received by the governor endorsing their appeal for mercy.
 IT is known that Governor Odell
 would have welcomed any plausible ground upon which to commute the sentence. as he esaA that nittie good