The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1923-09-20

between the front and rear WIlSelS.
AS Neimeister handed him the match
case, and just as he was about to
step back, the horse suddenly
plunged forward. The rear wheel
struck the vagabond, who immedi-
ately began to curse soundly the two
men in the buggy, which was moving
on down the road Then he picked
up rock and threw it after the
vehicle.
That was too much for the fiery
tempered Neimeister. He got out
of the buggy and started back at a
run toward the Italian. The man
was waiting to meet him, and for a
moment there was terrific struggle.
Heidemann, watching from beside
the buggy where he stood with the
bride reins in his hand, saw the
Italians knife flash. But Neimeister
had seen it too. He stepped back,
drew a revolver and fired three times.
The vagabond fell and lay very still,
Neimeister knelt and put his hand
over his heart.
Heidemann could not leave the
horse, which had been frightened by
the shots Neimeister ran to the
buggy.
us he dead?" Heidemann asked.
yes Neimeister replied; Get
in; let's beat it. I'm in for it now
They drove back to Yonkers. After
returning the horse and buggy to the
livery stable they went to their room.
Three hours later, as they sat near
their open window playing pinochle,
they were startled by the shout Of a
newsboy passing on the sidewalk be-
low: Extra! Extra! Big murder
on the highway"
Both rushed down together and
bought a paper-it was the ,Yonkers
Herald. In great headlines the news
boys cry was confirmed. Below, in
the story, there was as much detail
as the newspaper had been able to
collect. OF Importance was the item
in the story that two men in a buggy
, had been seen driving away from the
scene a short time before the body
was discovered.
Neimeister was very much fright
.ened.
1--WE got to get out of this" he
said.
They took the next train together,
and that night they were in Philadel-
phia. From there they went to At
lantic City. They went to Young's
Hotel and were assigned a room into
which we had installed photographs.
The holdup on the highway had
been hoax, of course. The Italian
the vagabond-was one of our own
detectives. The meeting on the road,
the fight and the murder had been
prearranged. The cartridges in Mel
meister's revolver had been blanks.
The newsboy had been another Of
our men. The papers he carried were
the only twelve ever printed with
the story of '"The, Big Murder on the
Highway" It was through the kind
ness of Frank Xavier, owner of the
Yonkers Herald, that this important
detail of our hoax was perpetrated.
The second day Heidemann and
Neimeister were in Atlantic City the
operative received a letter on the sta
tionery of one of the large steamship
companies in New York. The con-
tent of the letter was that his request
for passage to Germany and money
to cover it had been received and
that he had been assigned stateroom
No. Sc B.
Heidemann saw the envelope and
it excited his suspicious, but he kept
his silence.
The next day Neimeister men
toned going to Germany, saying cas-
ually that he thought it would be
safer to go out of the country, and
that if he did go his younger
brother, who had got into trouble out
in the West, would probably go with
him Heidemann agreed it might be
best to go abroad and signified his
willingness to go along.
Two days after that Neimeister
Received another letter on the sta
I tionery of the steamship company,
this one inclosing a folder on which
were listed vessels and their sailing
dates, and in which the sailing date
of the vessel on which he had booked
passage was set forward day.
A few days after that came pass
ports. incidentally, L sent him the
letters and the passports:
Heidemann had noticed all this
mail coming in and his suspicion be-
gan to grow that his companion was
planning to desert him.
One afternoon these two sat in
their room playing pinochle.
According to arrangement, Mel
meister arose from the card table af-
ter while and excused himself from
the room on pretext. But before he
left he removed his coat and slung
it across the back of his chair. From
where Heidemann sat the printing
on the steamship folder could be
clearly seen. After Neimeister had
got fairly out of the room, Heide-
mann did exactly what was expected
of him. He went into the pocket
OF the coat, withdrew the steamship
company letters and read them. He