The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1917-04-20
Mankato Man Near By.

Z chris r. Marshall of North Man
kato, travelling salesman for the IL
linois Oil company, told Free Press
representative an eye witness story
OF the sensational love tragedy that
took place last Saturday afternoon AT
Sleepy Eye. Mr.. Marshall said:
1T was about 5:45 p. NJ, when |
was standing near the Northwestern
depot at Sleepy Eye that | heard sew
eral shots near me. | turned and
looked in the direction of the shots
and | saw the girl lying on the ce-
!, ment sidewalk. I saw the fellow start
to run. Several of the people who were
near the depot started to run after
him. / followed them . and soon
caught up with the crowd in a lum-
Der yard, about two books to the east
of the station. Lang had already been
caught.
Il was told that it was a man who
worked in the depot restaurant that
caught him. This young man joined in
the Chase with his white apron and
his white cap on. l learned that this
waiter caught up with Lang in the
lumber yarG Lang, dazed and excited,
pointed the stme gun with which he
. killed the girl, at the waiter The
waiter coolly wall ed up to him, talk
a. .g all the while and saying, Now
,.iou would not want to shoot me-
I'D such things as that. Then another
lllow seized Lang by the arm and
ne waiter also grabbed him and took
' ,way the gun. Whether the murderer
made any kind of struggle, l did
not learn.
Officers Afraid of Lynching.
! "The two captors then started to
+ lead the slayer of the girl towards
/, the city lookup. After they had gone
about two blocks they met a police
man who took charge of the prisoner.
All this time, the crowd was follow
ing, and there was a good deal of
talk about lynching. The officers
shortly afterwards got an automobile
and took the fellow to New Ulm,
where he was locked up in the coun-
ty Jail. The officers seemed very much
afraid the crowd would carry out the
threat of lynching
People told me that the fellow shot
that same girl two years ago at Es-
sig after dance. He shot her in the
shoulder they said. l heard that he
was just fined $40 for that.
81 heard that they were once en-
gagged to be married and that the
girl had turned him down.
81 remembered that | had seen that
man around Sleepy Eye during the
past two days at the Leona hotel. He
was farmer boy and was told that
he came to town just for the pur-
pose of looking for the girl. Some
said she was a farmer girl and some
said she lived in town She appeared
to be twenty years old and he was
twenty-three or twenty four as near
{ Iy as l can judge.
81 did not get close to the girl who
was shot. | was told that she died al
most instantly. BY the time | got back
from the lumber yard, she had been
taken to the doctors office She was
shot twice in the head and once in
the back"
incidentally Mr.. Marshall told that
a railroad detective at Sleepy Eve
had arrested three or four young fell
lows, who had been stealing from box
cars.
Admitted His Guilt.
1t is understood that Lang has
admitted his guilt He stated, so it is
reported that, that he had premedi-
tated the deed. He was in love with
the girl and was determined that if
he could not marry her no one else
should. He said the matter had preyed
on his mind.
little over wear ago Lang and
the girl attended a dance at Essig.
On that occasion Lang attempted to
shoot her. He was arrested and taken
before Justice of the peace who
placed him under $4,000 bond tn
keep the peace. Shortly afterward
the Lang family moved to Max. N. d,
About month ago the peace bond