The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1905-07-28

pOiSOIieu ner III OTOer IndC ne hight
marry her sister, Mrs. Emile Fisch-
er. 1t was Mrs. Fischer who proved to
be Hoch's nemesis. His long career
of marital duplicity was halted by
| this German woman, who had accu-
mulated by years of frugaIity the
small fortune of $3.50 Mrs. Fischer
married Hoch in Joliet last January,
trusting in his words of promise, and
| kindness, eight days after her sister.
Mrs. F'ischer-Hoch, had died sud
den and mysterious death The day
after the wedding Hoch decamped
with all her savings.
The last Mrs. Hoch complained to
at once set on foot. Steps were TAX
en- to apprehend the fugitive should
he undertake to return to Germany.
The progress of the investigation de
veloped many startling discoveries
tending to connect Hoch with similar
| operations with many women. The
police declared that he had at least
fifteen wives within ten years, and
among that number it was said that
at least six of them died under cir
cumstances which were regarded as
suspicious. Three of the women died
| in Chicago, while the others disap-
peared mysteriously from Milwaukee,
St Louis and one or two other cit
ties where Hoch lived. Mrs. Mary Pee
ker-Hoch as said to have died mys-
teriously in ST. Louis in 1902. Mrs.
Mary Schultz-Hoch disappeared from
Argus, Ind. in 1900 and Mrs. Lea
ago. Hoch was positively Unidentified
as the husband of all of these women,
as well as of three or four whom
he married in Chicago. His purpose
appears to have been in all cases to
obtain the money which his wives had
saved, and in the case of Mrs. Mary
Steinbrecker, who died mysteriously
in Chicago a short time after her mar
riage to Hoch it is known that he OBJ
tanned at least $4,000.
Hochs methods with such of mis-
wives as he did not find it necessary
to otherwise dispose of was illustrat-
ed in the case of Mrs Anna Schmidt
| Hendrickson Hoch, one of the women
he deserted He married this woman
in Hammond, Ind, in 1908. Two days
later he fled with $500 which she had
saved. The day after the marriage he
went to her and told her he was heir
to an estate in Germany A few hours
later he hurried in with a fake cable
gram which read: Father is dead
Your brother William"
He told his wife that $4,000 was
coming to him from his fathers es-
tate, and that she must prepare 10
leave for Germany with him the next
night. He said he had no money for
the voyage and succeeded in obtain
| ing from her the $500 she had in bank
AS soon as he had secured the money
he left Hammond and his wife did
not see or hear of him again until his
arrest
/ Hoch's arrest was brought about
in an odd way. After his disappear
ance from Chicago the newspapers of
the country were flooded with his pic
lures and accounts of his alleged
crimes. Within a week woman call
ed at the police station in New York
City and told the officer in charge
that a man whom she believed from
the picture to be the missing Hoch
had engaged a room at her house.
| an officer accompanied her home and
at once recognized the fugitive. The
woman said that within two days of
his arrival Hoch had learned that she
had little money saved up and had
Immediately proposed marriage to
| her
Hoch was returned to Chicago
where he was later identified by a
half dozen of the women he had mar
ried and deserted. His trial on the
charge of numbering Mrs. Welker-
Hoch resulted in speedy conviction.
The dates of execution was several
times postponed by Governor Deneen
to give the man chance to obtain
another trial but the efforts in this