The Minneapolis journal., 1903-03-31
TANKE SPEAKS OUT
His ''That's Lie in the Courtroom
Made the Judge Rap for
Order. s....
Witness Jos. Wild Interrupted Ey.
.s -idence as to Tanke's Being
in New Ulm. II


Special to The Journal. .t se8r 4
St. James, Mimi. March s1.-The cross
examination of Joseph Wild In the Tanke
ness told Of attending a dance at the w ell
ner barn In nOctober, 1898. Tanke was there,
said the witness, and danced a good
share Of the time with Mrs. Wellner.
1'That's a lie.'' spokesu the defendant
loud enough to be beard the
court had to call for order. s,+.$s ..,sj.
The witness afterwards said he was
quite positive that Tanke was there, al
though he could not swear to it. ssaa$
Fred stolz, formerly baggage master
at the Minneapolis & st. Louis railroad
station at New Ulm. said he, saw the de-
1sndant get off an incoming train on
the evening Of the crime ataS:55 o'clock.
Tanke was standing between the COM
bination and baggage, cars when first he
saw him.
Wv" W.":Willmert then told Of seeing
Tanke ride by him on horseback at about
1920 p. m. that evening. Tanke rode by
the witness at slow gallop, dismounted
when near Klossner station, turned the
horse loose and boarded a train, depart
ing for New Ulm. The witness saw Tanke
at saloon In Kossner ON Good Friday
in 1899. He showed a. dice-box over to
the defendant saying as he did SO, shoot
to which Tanke replied, II haven't got
oily I1AAll6 " 5IAoOLs I'LL CIV ~ away.
Afterwards Willrnert hired out at the
Wellner farm: Tanke was there on one
occasion and they talked about the Well
ner murder and Tanke said, according to
the witness, that he (Willmert) ought to
try to find out who did the shooting be-
cause, he said, there were large rewards
offered.
When the witness informed Tanke that
he say the man on horseback on the night
of the crime the defendant turned pale
and hung his head.
Will Danheim was the stand this
afternoon and testified to hearing two
shots fired in the vicinity Of the Wellner
farm about .. m.
WiId's Discoveries.
The principal witness for the state yes
terday afternoon was Joseph Wild Of Ar
lington, Mimi, formerly neighbor of
John Wellner, and the adrninistra tor of
the Wellner estate. He was the first per-
son to arrive on the scene of the crime on
the following m morning, who made an in
Vestlgation of the premises with view
of finding traces of the guilty persons.
He soon discovered. he stated, tracks of
| a No. 9 oVershoe, starting from the sill
of the barn door, leading up to the porch,
|, and thence out into the meadow. He
then lost trace, Of them.
The following day he found a pair OF
/ overshoes Of the identical size Of these
prints, under the lounge in the Wellner
house
Continuing. Mr. Wild told of the posi-
ton Of the body, which was frozen stiff,
except the fingers of the right hand, which
was stretched out at right angles with the
body. A lantern, which the fingers held.
and which was still dinly burning, had
prevented them from freezing.
A Stick Under the Body
The father of Mrs. Tanke, Gottlieb
Bieudagen, told of his daughters coming
| to his house at 4:30 on the morning of
the crime and telling the story, Of the rob-
| bers visiting the Wellner home that night,
| how -Wellner@ heard a. noise at fhe barn,
! got up, partly dressed and went out, how
| she heard a shot and went out to investi-
Der who, with a revolver. compelled her
| to re-enter the house. The robber was
joined by another, and the two tied Mrs.
| Wellner's hands, and she exhibited her
bound hands to her father in proof of
| the statement
| Bieudgel, with neighbor, Carl Fischer,
returned to the Wellner farm with her.
and, searching the premises. found the
| body of Weliner at the southeast corner
! Of the barn, dead and stiff. Fischer cor
roborated the statements Of Bieudagel and
added that he found a stick under the
| body of Wellner. ::->'..
This point is in favor of the defense.
as in Mrs. Tanke's last confession she
states that Wellner started to strike her
with club and she fred the second shot.