Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1916-09-04
CEDAR RAPIDS MAN WHO KILLED
NJ BRIDE IN CHICAGO CAPTURED
NEAR DETROIT, MICH.
TRIES TO KILL SELF
IN JUMP FROM TRAIN
Petit Seriously Injured and May Not
Survive-Poliee Chief Believes Petit
4 Fanatic - Confession Secured IN
Which Petit Declares Wife Is Not
AItho He Killed Her.

Chicago, Sept. 4-John Maurice Pet
+ tit, confessed slayer Of his girl bride
attempted to escape from Chicago
detective yesterday in a spectacular
y headlong leap from a passenger train
speeding mile a minute.
He made his plunge at a point a
/, mile and a half east of Michigan City,
Ind, while he was being brought back
to Chicago on a limited train Of the
Michigan Central railroad by Detective
Sergeant Theodore Breternitz. He had
been caught near Detroit, where he
fled after, the. murder.
He broke from his captor and dove
z head foremost thru the open WINDOW
of a Mushroom Of the rear coach. The
train was brought to a stop and Petit
found a mile in the rear of the train,
preparing to walk away.
His escape from instant death IS
probably due to the fact that he landed
on a sandy stretch alongside the road
bed. 1t was his second attempt of the
day to escape. Earlier he tried TO es-
cape in Detroit.
Friends Mourn Victim.
At the same hour. his girl bride,
Katheryn Keiser Petit, whose throat
he cut last Thursday in fit OF rellg-
ious mania, was lying in a North Clark
street undertaking parlor here, and
chums and Schoolmates of the slain
girl wept disconsolately during funeral
services.
Petit is now under guard at the
bridewell hospital. He was found to
have punctured lung, broken ribs and
an injured jaw, but he has a chance to
recover.
Chief Of Detectives Charles Il. Lar
kin obtained a confession when he
talked to Petit at the hospital
81 killed her to save her purity, but
she is not dead. I killed her materially,
but spiritually she still lives" Petit
said.
"She never fell when I cut her. I
sshad my arm around her neck when
4 ] did it I just laid her down on the
floor"
"Other men called and talked TO her.
I was jealous Of them. / was wrong
in that" he said at another point
Petit said that he put his arm
around his young wife's neck and told
her what be intended to do.
Il was insanely Jealous of her" he
declared. Il wanted her to enter the
spiritual life, but not on this plane I
alone am to blame. Her mother was
very good"
Believes Petit a Fanatic.
IS. Chief Larkin would not hazard ar
opinion as to whether Petit Is hope
1essly insane. He is sure the man
has been a religious fanatic.
From what I could understand OF
his remarkable confession" he said
"Pettit believed he could not keep his
wife pure on this earth-that his only
chance Of doing so was to kill her and
let her soul be pure in the far be-
yond.
''He has read a lot Of religious lit
erature and was very studious re-
garding mathematics
Michigan Central train No. 10, on
which Petit arrived here yesterday,
discharged a crowd. of curious passen
gers eager to catch another glimpse of
Petit They had seen him first when
the train stopped near Michigan City
" after his plunge.
From Michigan City, to Chicago Pet
tit rode in a baggage car with mem
bers of the train crew, Detective Bret
ernitz and Emma Jackson, a colored
girl the detective brought back from
Detroit with Petit.
s Women and children crowded around
che steps as Petit was led from the
Il baggage car to a day coach and thence
to the platform under the train shed
of the Park row depot at 3:40 p. NJ
yesterday. The train crew was explain
ing how Pettits leap had made the
train ten minutes late.