Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1921-03-25
GRUDGE CASE
ENDS IN DEATH
Rusk County Farmer Kills For
mer Friend in Mil
Waukee
USED HOMEMADE GUN;
VICTIM DIED INSTANTLY
Staying One of the Strangest "Grudge"
Cases Ever Revealed.-CiimaX
TO Joke

Robert SOmOl. farmer. whose hOmt
is five miles south Of LadySmith start
ed for Chicago last Friday night and
shortly after arriving in Milwaukee
Saturday morning entered the office
of Charles Jilan. secretary of the BO-
hemian Loan & Building Association
in the Bohemian Turn hall. and shot
Jiran dead.
The deed was the elimination of l.
years Of brOOding over a lodge joke
perpetrated by Jiran. fellow member
Of Il Bohemian lodge in Milwaukee
Unable to endure the "kiddipG and
s'.idiculc Of Jiran and his associates
Somol. who is an expert ma achiniSt
came TO Rusil county four years ago to
get away from his tormentOrs and to
establish new home in the woods.
He settled with his family on land Il
short distance west of the Deer Tail
bridge. on the Gates road. Here he
worked and here with his family he
lived the life of the pioneer settler.
NuESed GruGgG
All these years he has been brOOJin9
over the wrong. real or fancicd. and
nursing Il grudgc against his former
friend. Last Friday he prepared for his
trip to Milwaukee and before leaving
home he told his family tnat, he was
going over to call on Lukas, Il distant
neighbOr. and would return the follow
ing day. The next day one of the fam
lily found the fathers shotgun, over
coat and mittens on the back forty of
the farm. Their suspicious that some
possible tragedy was near were
aroused and they Immediately began
search for the father. The son, Carl,
went over TO the neighb0rs but they
l,ad not seen the father. They searched
elsewhere but with no better result.
II. J. Gavin. near neighbour came 10
IadySmith to see if he could find trace
Of S0in0l here. In LadySmith Gavin
learned the facts about the tragedy
enacted i'm Milwaukee, and he telc-
Made Gun.
1t seems that Somol had been work
ing for some time on revolver which
no fashioned out Of Il piece Of gas pipl
which was secured to a butt made
from piece of wood native to the
farm. 1t accommodated a shotgun shell
and the shell used in Milwaukee was
loaded With buckshot.
The following comment on the trag
pdy is taken from Sundays issue of tht
Wisconsin News
=" 4 worked long hours over that gun
he told the police. hut it was wOlI
of pleasure. Every hour that spent OF
it was an hour nearer the death of my
tnrmpntOr
Armed with the crudely cQnStructe,
weapon, SOmOl came to Milwaukee Sat
urday morning. In his pockets wer,
three II guagc shotgun shells, all bear
ing IN especially loaded charge Of bucl
shot and small segment Of raZo
blade He went directly to Jiran's of
flee and fired one charge into the vic
TINS back while the latter sat at hi
desk. The force of the charge tore hol
as large as a teacup. and literally rid
died the heart and lungs.
Dies Instantly.
",Iiran died instantly. His body wa
taken 10 Emergency hospital and thel
to the county m0rguc.
After the shooting Somol stepped
from the building and got not NOR
than fifty feet from the scene of tn
crime when arrested by Detective
Shcnar and Napierala, of the Yves
Side police station. Agnes Benes.
Sten0grapher for Jiran. and Otto Cha
lowpki. office boy, who were in an ad
ijDining room. were the only Witnesse
to the killing.
The story of the shooting. relate
by Somol. will be the basis of tn
states case according TO Dist. Att,
label. RumorS of Il political quarre
between the assassin and his victil
are taken by the police as only inciden
III factors in the case.
Leading Politician.
'',Iiran was one of the most Widel
known and influential citizens of IL
Milwaukee, Bohemian settlement, an
for many years has been considered
leading political light Aside from h
position as secretary of the Bohemia
Loan & Building association, he W.
interested in similar business vel
lures at Racine and KenOSha.
"SOmOl is IS years old and ii
father Of seven children. four of who
lived with him on his farm at Lad
smith In that section he was conside
cd industrious and to a certain degr
prosperous. Small eccentricities whi'