Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1910-03-31
AWFUL CRIME IN
GOTHAM APARTMENT
RUTH WHEELER, IS YEARS OLD,
,sTRANeLED AND BURNED
TO DEATH.
BODY HACKED WITH KNIFE, PUT
IN GuNNYsAcK AND
THROWN OUTSIDE.
MURDERER, A PALLlD, UNNATuR.
AL YOUTH, ARRESTED THE
NEXT DAY.

Ruth Wheeler, a 15-year-old girl grad
uate of a business college, who was
lured from her widowed mother
Thursday last by decoy o1er of en-
ployment, was found yesterday after
noon, in a gunnysack, on fire es-
cape outside of the apartment Of Al
bert Wolter, the man charged with
her abduction She had been stran-
gled with the short end of three
eighths rope, hacked with knife,
burned beyond recognition and
thrust carelessly outdoors like so
much rubbish.
Identification on:y was possible by
shreds of clothing and fragments OF
jewelry, but there was abundant evi-
dence of how the murder was done.
Around the neck were charred flbers
of manila burnt into the flesh. The
apartment reeked with the odor OF
the kerosene. There were oil stains
in front of a newly painted fireboard
that had an open CRATE. Fully
dressed, the girls clothing and hair
had been saturated with kerosene, the
fire board had been removed and tae
body thrust up the chimney standing.
When the match was touched to lner,
she burned like torch.
Probably the murderer hoped for an
opportunity to remove the body un-
der cover of night, but when the
girls disappearance raised such an
uproar, he, began to suspect he was
Swallowed, he packed up and fed in
terror.
Yesterday afternoon a neighDor
living on the same floor of an adj
joining house noticed a lumpy bundle
outside his window and thinking it
refuse, he poked it off the fire escape
into the back yard with a broom. The
bundle moved obstinately and fell
with crash. His curiosity aroused,
the neighbor investigated and called
tine police.
The girl had been carefully brought
up and failure to come home in "a
hours caused her two elder sisters to
visit the college the next morning,
where they learned the following
postcard had been turned over to
Ruth:
Dear Madam:-Please call in ref.
,erence to position as stenograpner at
the residence of secretary.
(Signed) "a Wolter, 1872 East 18th
St."
Investigation at the address given
showed that Wolter, whom the land
lady described as a sickly, white
faced youth of twenty with fiasny
clothes and curled hair, had left the
apartment, where he lived with his
wife, earlier the same day
Later Wolter was arrested in the
vicinity, and at first denied, but ia
ter he admitted writing postcards 70
business colleges. Before the Ragls-
trate he had nothing to say.
The discovery of the body yester-
day Immediately brought a secono
search Of VOTERS vacated apart
ments. In the ashes of the fireplace
were found tie charred bones of nu-
man toes, a portion of an arm bone,
woman's garter and bundle con-
tanning mans nightshirt on which
was embroidered the initial wv.
The parents of Wolter last night told
in voluble but broken English of the
difficulties the son had brought upon
them.
The mother of young Wolter said
last night that her son set up house
keeping with woman to whom me
was not married. Friday the woman
came to her with the news that Al
bert was arrested, and the mother ac-
companied her to court. When Al
bert was held on $4,000 bail on a
charge of abduction, and the case
put over, Mrs. VOTERS asked the girl
if she was going back to the apart
ment Albert had vacated for her be-
long.ngs.
mo, nc" she says the girl re-
piled; Il am never going back. 1t n
too CHASTITY
Meantime the woman disappeared
entirely. When her companion was
arrested the police had no suspicion
of murder and did not feel they had
sufficient evidence to hold her as an
accomplice in what they supposed
was simple abduction.
Detectives who searched VOTERS
rooms said last night they believe he
is a procurer. Among his effects was