The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-03-06

lions to defeat 1t. Through the locked
door at the top of the fight of stairs
leading to his room he had, by repeated
shots, drilled a good-sized hole, and
when he heard footsteps on the stairs
began blazing away through the hole
with revolver. The police soon de-
cfded that rear attack was quite as
hazardous as frontal one and beat a
retreat
1t having now become evident that
the mad count could not be secured
without further loss of life, it was de-
cided that he should be killed. With
this object in view, police superin-
tendent entered the house opposite
from the rear, and having taken the
precaution of putting out all the lights
assembled stealthily to the first floor
front room and through the window
fired at the count in the balcony across
the street.
Unfortunately for the police super
intendent he missed, and the maniac
speedily demonstrated that he was the
better marksman Of the two, for firing
Immediately where he had seen the
flash Of his opponents weapon he
wounded him seriously in the shoulder
and the left hand. At 5 o'clock In the
morning the mailman still held posses
sion of the balcony and no mans life
was safe who showed himself in the
street within range of his deadly rifle.
Couldn't Get Near Enough.
Then a chemist suggested that the
count might be suffocated by formaline
or sufficiently stupefied to make his
capture safe. It was tried but failed
for the same reason that the fire hose
failed-the impossibility of getting near
enough to apply it effectively without
running the risk of getting shot.
Seven o'clock came and the mailman
still held the balcony, and with broad
daylight to aid him in taking aim was
a greater menace to human life than
ever. The police were at their wits
end. For nearly eight hours the mad
count had held them at bay and his
list of victims was an appaIlingly large
one. Before taking the extreme meas
ure of summoning the military to their
aid they announced that anybody who
succeeded in wounding or killing the
count would be held guiltless.
Armed with this authority Mr..
Kempinski determined to risk a duel
with the mailman. With a sporting
rifle he entered the same house from
which the police superintendent had
made an unsuccessful attempt to shoot
the count, with such painful conse-
quences to himself, and hiding behind
a curtain at a front window in the third
StOry awaited an opportunity IOr al
effective shot.
1t soon came. The mailman was I'M
aware that he was thus being stalked,
and least of all, apparently, did he ex-
pect that anybody would shoot at him
from above. Kenpinski fired twice
and the count fell seriously wounded
before he could return the fire. Then
the police rushed into the house and
secured him. The irresponsible homi-
II 49, 1,oo ya,-,cs-
on in the Rue Dluga.
AS soon as the Rue Zlota was again
declared open an immense throng gath
cred around the house and many were
the suggestions made as to the ease
with which the police could have Sc
cured the mailman hours before he
was brought down if they had only
possessed the brains, daring and inge-
nuity of the amateur critics. But the
tragic episode certainly does not re-
fleet much credit on the Warsaw po-
lice.