Show Q MAXWELL SWINGS Brief Statement of the Murder Mur-der of Preller A DOUBLE HANGING BEE Broke Their Kecks Maxwell in Bus Last Statement Alleges Bis Innocence In-nocence Yellow Fever Maxwell Hanged ST LOUIS August 10 Henry Land graf who murdered his sweetheart was hanged with Maxwell The crime for which Hugh M Brooks alias Maxwell paid the extreme penalty of the law this morning was the murder of Charles Arthur Preller at the Southern Hotel tD this city on April G 1885 The ac Ijmtance between the two men began y 1D Liverpool England when both were on their way to this country Arriving Arriv-ing on this side they separated at Boson Bos-on Brooks coming to tit Louis and registering as Walter Horace Lennox Mt ax well A few days later Preller arrived ar-rived and the two were thereafter almost al-most constantly together Preller was last seen alive on Sunday afternoon April 6th in Maxwells room by the bell boy Twice that day Maxwell purchased pur-chased a large quantity of chloro form at a drug store near by telling the druggist he was using it in an expeimient The next day Maxwell Max-well made a number of purchases at various places spending money very reels although before he had not ap u jcaicu iu unve uu auuuuauuc ui cash Among his purchases was a ticket to can Fraiidico He left 90 that night over ne bt Louis S San Francisco road Nothing was thought of his sudden departure de-parture until the 14th of April For everal doss prior to that date chambermaids chamber-maids noticed au tiupleaaaut odor omtug from room 144 and connected It with Maxwells trunk On the 14th the smell became so pronounced that the trunks were remollPrl tn tnm door and opened A body teas found which proved to be PreMer On thereat the-reat bt the body was a cross cut and on the outside ot the trunK a card bore ne inscription So perish all traitors oth great cause It was an easy mutter to trace Maxwell In San Francisco he rep tsented himself as T S jDauguire 8J a trench army officer On Sunday April 12tn he sailed for New Zealand ou the steamer Sydney DetectIves had been close on ins track and when the steamer arrived at Aucklaud Do was nested and returned to bt Louis The defence made at the trial was that the death of Preller was accidental he having administered chloroform pre imiujinary to an operation he was about to perform Hi fled because he presumed he would not be permitted to stify in his own behalf The most damaging testimony against him was I that of Detective Dingfeluer who became be-came his cellmate and confident and I secured a confession of the crime Maxwell was found guilty and sentenced tenced to hang The history of the many subsequent efforts to secure anew a-new trial or commutation of sentence are still fresh in the public mind Maxwells attorneys waited till the I lest in the hope of receiving a dispatch from the British government govern-ment which would induce a further stay of proceedings Maxwell received the news ot a two hours postponement from 7 to 9 oclock calmly though an expression of great relief w < is plainly visible on his features Landgrof paid no attention to it in any way The crowds on the housetops surrounding the jail yard where the execution was to take place remained patiently in elevated ele-vated positions from 5 am until the hour of the execution The view was clear and unobstructed from the roof of dozens of buildings in the vicinity and hundreds of people took advantage of the same The number of spectators ito i-to the jail was unusually small For the first time in the history of St Louis Four Courts telegraph instruments struments were placed in the building by the Associated Press for the prompt transmission of news to the public unusual un-usual interest being manifested in the execution i 5 The crime for which Henry Landgraf suffered the death penalty wes committed com-mitted on the night f March 5 1885 The victim was his sweetheart Aunie Fisch a beautiful girl of less than 18 years Jealousy prompted the deed Tho postponement of the execution for two hours was made by the sheriff at the request of Maxwells attorneys who hoped against hope for British interference terference The announcement was made to Maxwell and Landgraf at 6 oclock Maxwell was nervous pallid and ill at ease in his last hours He ate sparingly of breakfast and shortly after 5 oclock having dressed himself in an entire new suit and partook of the holy communion Landgraf remained cool and collected throughout the night He ate a hearty breakfast and received the sacrament soon after Brooks had done so At 8 oclock a telegram was received from Jefferson City saying the Governor Gov-ernor had received another dispatch from British Minister West m Brooks behalf but declined to change his decision de-cision At 840 the sheriff entered the cell where Maxwell and Landgraf had been placed together and read the death warrant Maxwell paled pfrceptibly He showed evidence of increasing I weakness and as his arms were being pinioned lie bit his lips and gulped several times Landgraf remained stolid The procession to the scaffold formed with the sheriff and deputies in front followed by the condemned men With a priest between them then the police then the reporters and witnesses As they moved slowly Maxwell was a piteous sight with an ashen pallor on his face pinched and drawn eyes swollen and lip twitching Landgraf moved like a log with half a smile half sneer on his face The priest read prayers The men signified they had nothing to say Black caps were drawn down as an awful look of despair passed over Maxwells face and his knees trembled The nooses were adjusted ad-justed and at 8 56 the drop fell Land graf never moved a muscle thereafter Not so with Maxwell When he fell his breast heaved convulsively con-vulsively and his limbs were drawn upward while the spectators were shocked by a stream of blood pouring down the right breast of his coat which was afterwards found to have been caused by a cut of the noose inflicted in-flicted by the rope Landgraf was pronounced pro-nounced dead in eleven and a hal minutes Maxwells struggles con y = tinued fourteen minutes Landgraf was cut down at 913 and Maxwell at 915 The bodies were removed to the morgue office and photographed after which the post mortem commenced It is stated by the physicians that the neck of each was broken |