The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1904-04-22
NEIDERME|ER
TRIES SUICIDE
Leader Of Chicago Car Barn Bandits
Tries TO Cheat Hangman.
Oct ERMINED TO END OWN LIFE
lie Ate the Heads al Matches ana
Opened Arteries In tit~ Arm. he-
opening the Wounds ht~r
They Mere Dressed.

Chicago. April l9-Peter NiedcT.
meier. the leader 81 the car barn ban
dts. made VIC desperate attempts at
suicide His condition as result, IS
SO precariors that il Is feared he will
not survive Should he stun be alive
next Friday he will be carried 10 the
gallows and executed
Was Carefully Planned.
Niedermeier planned his attempted
suicide carefully First he masticated
and swallowed the heads Of IS or 100
sulphur matches While the phospho-
rus was burning his stomach. he sawed
at the radial artery Of his left wrist
with sharp-pointed lead pencil.
Striking bone in the wrist he gave
up trying TO sever the artery and
turned his weapon 10 the large veins
on the outer side Of his left forearm
and with jabs and a see-saw motion,
he lacerated the flesh and muscles Of
the arm and tore open the veins leay-
ing a large. jagged wound exposed
through which the blood gushed in
streams. dyeing his bed clothing and
running down over the cell floor in
pools His second attempt came after
the wound had been dressed and closed
by the county physician
second Attenirt.
Niedermeier was lying apparently
uncon scious in the hospital under
guards care His right arm and hand
were hidden by the bed clothing and
with hardly a discernhle motion h.
slipped the bandages of his left arm
and with his sharp finger nails tore
away the threads In the wound. and
inserting his forehnger into the ragged
hole. ne worked again al the veins
and sought 20 reach an artery. Tie
UNIONS ciously uttered a groan and
made a convulsiye movement which at
trac,ed the attention Of the physicians
nurses and the guard and on throw
ing back the coverlids. the attendants
saw with horror that Niedermeier had
torn away the bandages and reOpened
the wound Niedermeier opened his
eyes and with a leering. wan smile
explained. Let me died Doc Go away
and let ne die You were almost too
late the first time. Now why do ycu
Try to save my life?"
His Condition serious.
Niedemeier lost a large quantity Of
blood. and was almost pulseless for
a time The most danger. however. is
that the poisonous phosphorus has
burned him SO severely hat his life
can not be saved for lis final snufllnG
out Oh the gallows.
Niedermeier says he got his idea OF
swallowing phosphorus when a pris-
oner in the jail committed suicide liz
thai manner while Nieiermeier was
awaiting trial For the last two weeks
Niedermeier has been saving the
matches he was able 10 fitch and beg
He even gave up smoking 10 some ex
tent so he could hoard them. In get
ting at the veins and arteries in his
arm he first sawed three long gashes
Then he pushed the sharp end OF the
pencil into one so il would pass under
the veins. Then he twisted the pencil
around and around until the veins were
twisted and burst In doing this the
pencil broke into several pieces
Niedermeier's first attempt at suicide
was nearly successful.
Letter Found I'm His Cot.
A letter written by Niedermeer
prior 10 the attempt at suicide was
found concealed in his cot In the let
ter the writer incidentally expresses
repentance Of his career. and he re-
grets leaving the few who have loved
him. but chiefly the letter is a morbid
Of the writer's courage and |
his loyalty to his kind In contrast with !
associate. Gustav Marx.
The letter says There are four rea-
sons why / should take my own life |
First. because Of the public boast that
can not commit suicide while I am |
so closely guarded Second. and that |
I can not cheat the scaffold Third. /
that they can not say they executed me
and made me pay for a crime Fourth /
70 have another mystery for the igno-
ront police TO solve"
The letter concludes as follows
1T seems very pleasant TO have this
everlasting enjoyment Of rest am
an atheist and do not believe in any
lsignedl
"pE-TEp N-TEpr-r2 NfI-rr-nn