The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1912-09-26
MRS. PETE WILSON
SHOT AND KILLED
Continued from page one).

ITOm BlrlnOOu. Sne was divorced
from former husband, Dwight So
pher, by whom she had two children
and for whom the surviving boy is
named.
Coroner e. NJ. Cheesman and Sher-
if l. M. Reed were summoned. Mr.
Cheesman made as much of an in
vestigation as was possible during
the night and an inquest was held
later in the effort to get at the evi.
dence concerning the identity of the
murderer. Sheriff Reed and the Off
GERS believed the evidence against
Wilson to be of character warrant
ing effort to discover his whereabouts
and to that end they began work.
He is well known locally and in neigh
boring cities. He is about thirty
years of age, rather heavy set, was
generally well dressed and he was in
clined to be good mixer" He had
quite following of friends among
whom he was more or less popular.
Those who heard the shots state
that they were fired rapidly. Screams
ioho"Cu thO lCpoll anu IuCh lOui
more shots were fired about as rapid.
ly as a gun could be discharged. The
revolver with which the work was
done is said to have belonged to the
dead woman. The murderer left it
lying on the floor of the room. Mr.
Harris, who was within ten feet of
the victim when she was killed, stat
ed that the murderer walked back and
forth across the room several times
following the shooting and that he
seemed deliberate and took his time
He moved around other rooms of the
downstairs department and then all
was quiet just before the coming of
the police and the man had evidently
made his escape by the rear door of
the building.
According to the stories of the
roomers, about quarter of one some
one came to the back door and start
cd to kick the door in. Mrs. Wilson
came running up to one of the mems
rooms and cried Here Comes Pete.
What shall l do?" She was advised
to get the police and on going down
stairs she met the man and very
shortly after the shots we're fired
which ended her life. She had told
her boarders several times that Pete
would kill her some time.
Patrick Hughes, who owns the prop.
erty in which the shooting occurred,
lives in apartments at the rear Of a
business room ON the same lot with
the boarding house. stated to a Her.
aid representative that Wilson was a
troublesome lot and he had told Mrs.
Wilson that he CWilson) could not
come about the place. He spoke in
the highest terms of the dead woman,
saying that she had run a boarding
house in the building since June, 1911,
and that she was hard worker, hon.
est and thrifty. She had been the
best renter he had had in his property
in years Wilson has been about the
house as a boarder at various times
and had caused his tenant trouble.
She had been compelled to seek po-
lice protection, causing Wilson to pay
a fine of fifty dollars and costs. Lat
er they were married in Ottumwa.
Coroner's Inquest.
Coroner Il. NJ Cheesman appointed
t. A. Darnell, l. w. Cook and Frank
Chord as jury to hear the evidence in
the case and held an inquest at ten
o'clock at the court house.
n. l.. Harris, who has a room on
the first floor west of that in which
the murder was committed, stated
that he started to retire early. Mrs.
Wilson requested him not to do so,
as she was afraid. Along some time
in the night he was awakened by
succession of quick taps on his door
which he had closed and locked upon
going to bed. He wanted to know
what was the trouble. Mrs. Wilson
answered him, "Oh. what shall | do.
Pete Is trying to break into the house
and | am afraid he will kill me-" She
asked him to get up and call the po-
lice. He answered that II was no
fuss Of his and he did not intend to
get into ii. He told the woman to go
out the front OF the house and notify
the officers himself. He did not get
out OF bed and after hearing the door
close and some conversation in the
room adjoining his, he dropped off TO
sleep. He was suddenly awakened
again by the sound OF the shooting.
All was then still except for some
one walking around. After about fif-
teen or twenty minutes the officers
came.
Fred Swearingen told of the cir
cumstances substantially the same as
related above. He thinks the shoot
ing occurred about twenty minutes of
ono o'clock.
Testimony given by Lon Wells of
Los Angeles, the young man who was
SO badly frightened, by James Wiser
of Leighton, by Clarence Gregory, all
boarders of the place, and Officer Ray
Myers of the police force was sub
stantially the same as that given
above.
Wilson Escapes.
Wilson has thus far eluded arrest
City and county officers have been
busy all day in the effort to head off
the fugitive.