The Topeka state journal., 1905-07-28

| Hoch's lawyer, arrived at the states
attorneys office in short time, and
showed a bank check for $500. The
states attorney insisted that he ought
| to have the money but promised that
with that amount of cash he would
| recommend to the governor that re-
thereupon departed with the intention
| of cashing the check and himself call
| ing upon the governor to save time.
He Never Lost Hope.
Chicago, July 28.-Three hours be-
fore the time set for his execution,
! "BIuebeard' Johann Hoch, the wife
murderer, had not given up hope of
clemency. Although there seemed lit
| tie proba bility for interference by the
| state as the result of the action of
| Governor Depeen and the board of
pardons in refusing his further re-
| prieve, Hoch believed he had yet a
| chance for life.
Hoch slept soundly during the night,
retiring about 10 O'Clock. He awoke
only once, in the morning about 8
| o'clock, and complained of having a
feeling of nausea. After he had been
| relieved he retired again and soon fell
asleep. He arose at his usual hour
and declined the comparatively sumpt-
uous meal given all prisoners in the
| Jail here. He said coffee and rolls
| were good enough for him, and this
| was given to the condemned man.
| Hoch, at this time, appeared CHEEKY
as possible under the circumstances
and ehatted pleasantly with the death
watch.
Hoch has been a model prisoner and
| the jailers have been friendly to him.
| After breakfast today they presented
him with a bouquet of flowers Several
| bouquets were sent to him from out
siders but Jailer Whitman and Sheriff
Barrett refused to allow them to be
sent to his cell, not wishing 20 risk the
possibility of poison being concealed
| in them.
1t was raining hard and as Hoch
heard the patter he bemoaned the
gloomy day 81 fear that it is going
against me-" he told the jaiier.
| To Assistant Jailer O'Neal he said
he felt fine. One of the night guards
who has been watching over him took
leave of the condemned man. AS the
guard bid him goodbye Hoch said:
1 Whats the matter, I'm not going yet.
| If they hang me today they will muir
der an innocent man. Let them go
| ahead"
Hoch then changed his clothes, put
! ting on a black suit and black scarf.
He packed his few belongings, saying
he might be able to use them yet. He
gave Guard Sullivan a photograph of
himself and wife, Mrs. Emelia Fisch-
| er-Hoch, sister of the woman for
whose murder he was to hang.
| Among the few callers admitted to
| see him were Rev. Auguste Schleche,
| his spiritual adviser, who aided him
| in his futile effort to raise funds to
| and Rev Haertel, pastor of the Evan
| gelical Lutheran church, and his at
torney.
| To his ministers he spoke of his re-
| gret that the necessary funds could
/ not be obtained. AS the time for the
| hanging approached Hoch grew some
what less buoyant in spirit than he had
/ been several hours previous and be-
gan slowly to lose the slight hope he
had held out. He reiterated that he
was innocent Of murder and would adj
init only the charge of bigamy against
him.
Maintains Innocence.
Late last night Hoch consented to
| versation he Stoutly insisted that he
was an innocent man. He was calm;
in fact, about the calmest man in the
room at the time. When compIi-
mented on the nerve he was showing,
Hoch replied:
t'Why should I be disturbed? I am
innocent, and, what is more, 1 am
manly. I will take this crisis in d
manly way. The whole thing is in
justice, and goes to show that the man
without money cannot expect a fair
deal and that he might get one if he
could bring money to bear. Look at
| money and see how long he has been
in the courts. The law in my case
has taken its course, but I think it
has taken wrong course"
WHEN asked II ne naQ any COn1eS-
sion to make or whether he would
reveal his identity before he died,
Hoch replied:
CAS- to confessing anything, I have
nothing to confess except bigany, and
that [ have already confessed. My
identity will not reveal. I will keep
that secret like a man and carry it
to the grave with me-
Johann Hoch, convicted murderer
and confessed bigamiSt, who was con-
demned to die today for killing one
of his wives, was in some respects a
most remarkable criminal.
The exact number of women he mar
ried probably will never be known but
he is reported to have had more than
a score of wives in the last ten years.
Mrs. Marie Welcker-H -Hoch, for whose
murder Hoch is sentenced to hang to-
day, died of arsenical poisoning after a
short illness, December 10 last. Pre-
cedtng her death, he had obtained from
the woman all her money, as he had
done in most of his previous marriages.
Five days after her death he married
her sister, Mrs. Emelia Fischer, his last
wife as far as the record now shows,
and the day following the wedding he
obtained from her $3.50 to be used, he
said, in paying the mortgage on the
furniture and house where he lived. A
day or two later he disappeared and
Mrs Fischer-Hoch told the police.
Search Was Begun.
i A search for Hoch extending to Mil
Waukee, Cincinnati, Pittsburg and New
York was then begun. He was arrest
ed in New York January 80 on infor-
nation given by a woman at whose
home he was boarding and to whom he
is said to have proposed marriage after
an acquaintance of scarcely "a hours.
Meanwhile Hoch's alleged marriages
and crimes received wide publicity and
in various parts of the country women
were reported as having been his vic
TINS. The bigamous practice of Hoch
started in Germany 1T is said, where
he was known as Jacob Schmidt, and
1t is supposed that was his real name.
His first wife was deserted by him in
Vienna. The list of wives as compiled
by the police after his arrest numbers
twenty-seven. Hoch was brought back
to Chicago.