Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1912-11-13
WOMANS LOVE
MURDER MOTIVE
Believe Rittenbach's Death Due
to JeaIousy-Hunt
Pfaffendoff.

AOOHlAuuGu IOA
ceiyed no help at all from town Of
ficials. they say, but on the contrary
have been hampered in their investi-
CATION at every turn.
Block Investigation.
cit looks as though the people in
the town don't want this mystery
solved" said one of the detectives
early this afternoon. Everything
we've learned we had to drag out of
somebody by the roots. Nobody vol
unteered us any information and
we've been given a dozen bum steers
calculated to throw us off the scent,
Henry Rodenburg, president of the
North Arlington Board of Education,
and Mayor William Brandenburg, jr.,
seem to be showing more interest in
the crime than the other town Off
Gals. The former came to Pfaffen-
DORIS Hotel ats1 a. m. and relieved
Mrs. ~Pfaffendorf. who vas tending
bar there, remaining at his post until
4 o'clock, when he retired. Mayor
Brandenburg also went without sleep
until 4 a. m.
1no County utlOCtlNOS Bua1 Z bilC
scene of the crime all night, but
such visitors as the spot had were
merely the curious, and they ceased
to come early in the evening.
The investigators do not believe
that Rittenbach was murdered at the
place where his body was found.
The twigs and bushes on the spot
are broken for many feet around as
though the body had been dragged
from the roadway and deposited at
the place where it was found.
hot In Back
Examination of the body at Col
lins's morgue in Rutherford last night
showed that death had been caused
by a bullet which entered just below
the left shouldreblade and ploughed
through to the right breast. The ball
came within a quarter of an inch of
passing entirely through the body and
a hard lump beneath the skin marks
the spot where it was stopped.
According to County Physician
Samuel Armstrong the bullet was
fired from very close range. 1t is
the county physicians opinion that
the murderer crept up behind Rit-
tenbach and held the revolver not
more than three feet away when
he pulled the trigger. From the
course of the bullet it is inferred
that the murderer is a man of more
than medium height, for it would
have been very awkward for a
shorter man to have held the re-
volver sufficiently high to infiict a
wound of the sort that killed Rit-
tenbach.
The daughter accompanied the
mother to the hospital, as did w. r.
Cuthbert, of Lynchburg, who was a
passenger on the train but not in
the same car. He was travelling to
change cars at Trenton.
Cuthbert says he heard the shot
in the car and went into it to give
assistance, but claims to have no
acquaintance with the Myerses.
The body was identified by Joseph
H. Flanagan. of Elm street. Airing
ton, whom the police sought when
they found that the description of the
body that was found tailed with that
given them of the missing Rittenhach.
Accompanied by Attorney Irion and
Detective Courier, of Hackensack,
who were sent to the scene of the
murder by Prosecutor Wright, of Ber-
gen county, Mrs. Pfaffendorf, the wife
of the owner of the hotel neal which
the murder took place, was taken to
Collins's morgue to identify the dead
man.
Mrs. P~faffendorf refused to positive
~ identify the man as R%ittenbach
The dead man resembled the latter
somewhat, she said, but Rtttenbach,
she thought, was a trifle heavier.
Prosecutor Wright and his men are
uuartered at the hotel, from which
point they are working on the case.