Omaha daily bee., 1914-07-24
CAR NEAR MURDER SCENE
Automobile Passed Crossing Forty
Minutes After Tragedy.
CHIEF DUNN EXPLAINS BELIEF
Reasons for Relieving Three MEN
shot Each other Include KnOwI-
edRe OF Personal Character
istics OF the victims.

At 1920 o'clock on the night OF the
triple murder. John Gard, who lives in
the neighborhood of Twenty-fourth and
Pacific streets. was told by Mrs Gard Of
the shooting He had just completed car
ing for his two horses for the night, u
task consuming ten minutes perhaps. A
few moments previous TO that he had
stepped from a south. bound Crosstown
car.
The car crossed the junction OF Twen.
ty-fourth and Pacific streets at about II
o'clock, he said.
As 1t neared the crossing he saw Il
big seven-passenger touring car standing
on the west side OF the street, heading
southwark. The engine was throbbipg,
he said. but the lights we're out. A man
was at the wheel He was in his shirt
! sleeves As he looked. another man came
running from the east side of the street
I and jumped Into the car, which immedi-
| ately turned around and sped northward
the headlights flashing on at the same
| time. The second man In the auto had
dark trousers, a light shirt and stiff
| straw hat.
John Gard. who has told neighbors of
! the auto incident since the shooting, was
located yesterday morning by Detectives
| Pszanowsli and Rich and the foregoing
I is his story,
Heard Man In BacE Yard.
A woman living on the east side OF
| Twenty-fourth street. the second house
north OF Pacific, told the detectives that
I she heard a man run through her back
yard and stumble against a fire fence,
J trying to get out on Twenty fourth
I oh n
The incident, magnifed as 1t passed
| from mouth to mouth is minimized today
by the police. The shooting occurred,
according to most of the witnesses about
1920 o'clock. The auto incident occurred
| about II o'clock
! II don't think the incident Is worth
considering at ALL" declared Chief Dunn.
! III the men IN the auto were The muir
derers. they wouldn't wait around for
forty minutes. Besides the auto could
not have been on the spot more than
few minutes, because witnesses who
passed Twenty fourth and Pacific streets
at the time Of the shooting or soon
after. say they saw no auto"
Despite this. Detectives Rich and
Pszanowski are trying to locate the
machine and its occupants
II have found nothing to cause me TO
change my opinion about the affir,' de-
Glared Chief Dunn. In reiterating this
opinion ! do not do so stubbornly; on the
contrary. / would be glad to find myself
in error II n doing so 1 could learn
anything about the affair that would lead
to the solution OF the conundrum. Thus
far, however, 10 my mind, nothing has
developed t. cause me 10 honestly be-
lieve otherwise than that the three men
killed each other.
The three men were brought up In
that neighborhood, and from childhood
knew that I'm time Of trouble quiet
tongue Ia the best remedy. Unusual
things are happening in that neighbor'
hood always At the inquest half 9
dozen witnesses were careful to announce
: that they didn't see certain things be
cause they were tending strictly to theii
own business.
In my opinion the Schroeders quar-
: relied with Rapp. The latter shot th'
brothers and they wrested the gun from
him and shot him. After being wounded
: the Schroeders walked several blocks
so l am safe in presuming they haC
sufficient strength left to take the gun
away from Rapp and shoot him. Mayb'
: after the shooting they all realized th'
seriousness Of the affair Maybe ther,
was a. brief whispered promise to settl,
the affair among themselves and keel
1 out OF the clutches OF the law Here
perhaps the Italian story was framed
Each OF the trio expected 20 live
Each expected the others 10 die Woul'
. they. with their lifelong experience will
tho rough side Of life, confess they wer
= In the shooting and risk being hum
when they recovered? I don't think SO
That this IL the case Il corroborated b,
our experience IN other mysteries In tina
neighborhood. People there, in the main
= are unlike people OF the west Farnan
~ district They don't want the authorize
= Ia mix in their sffSirs because they ar
Il all hard working, people who haven
y the money TO hire expensive lawyer
II when once they get into the courts. =
a in most cases they just settle their At
fairs among themselves and suffer mos