THE CHINA MAIL, MONDAY, APRIL 6, 1935
BRUNO HAUPTMANN, ENIGMA
SOLDIER, ROBBER AND
STOWAWAY
"BAD BOY" OF HIS HOME TOWN
CONVICTED of one of the most heinous of
modern crimes and executed last Saturday, Bruno Richard Hauptmann remained an enigma to the last.
His typical Teutonic stolidness, called sullenness by many, masked his feelings all through the trial as at all times since his arrest on September 20, 1934 He showed little emotion at hearing the sentence of death when it was first pronounced on February 13, 1935.
A carpenter by trade, just over 37 years old when he was executed, an alien who entered America illegally, he was known as a "bad boy" in his home town of Kamenz, Germany, and had been convicted of burglary, highway robbery and gaol-breaking. But to his neighbours in the Bronx section of New York City he was a steady and reliable workman, though taciturn, un- communicative and a man of strange moods and contrasts.
CHRONOLOGY OF CRIME
Steps In Lindbergh Kidnapping Case
INVESTIGATIONS OVER
THREE YEARS
When the soldiers of the Saxoni village of Kamenz, some 30 miles from Dresden. marched away to the war in August 1914 a boy of 14 stood in the village street watching them pass.
That boy was Brano Richard
Hauptmann. He was too young
to don the field-grey uniform, but two years later, when the Father- land was calling youths to the
colours, he tuxs posted to a machine-gun company and fought unscathed through the war.
No other modéra crime 30 After this honourable start shocked the civilised world as the young Hauptmann, then 19. came kidnapping and murder of baby back to his native village and Charles A. Lindbergh, Jr.. far rapidly became the village's “bad which Bruno Hauptmann was ex-boy." Something seemed to have! ecuted to-day at Trenton. New shattered his morals, and with a Jersey.
youngster named Fritz Petzold he
The son and namesake of the seemed to have started on a career famous trans-Atlantic dier. infos crime.
line for a portion of the wealth
A Criminal
(First picture) It was on May 12 1932, that the world learned the fate of the Lindbergh baby. His body was found a few miles from his home by Orville Wilson, and William Allen, seen, bere pointing to the spot. (Second) A new sensation in the case was the dramatic suicide of Violet Sharp, maid in the Morrow home. She took poison va June 10. 1932, when the authorities arrived to question her again. (Third) The first ransom bills had been passed and detectives were trying to trace each one to its source. Their map showed that many had been spent in the Bronx and the Yorkville section of New York (Fourth) On September 19, 1934, they arrested Brane Richard Hauptmann, on whose person a 320 ransom bill was found. The tip that led to Hauptmann's arrest came from (Fifth) Walter Lyle, service station attendant. wha jotted down Hauptmann's automobile license number when Hauptmann tendered a $10 gold note on purchasing, gasoline.
(Firat picture) In the garage of Hauptmann's Bronx home police searchers found nearly $14.000 of Lindbergh ransom bills that had been hidden by the carpenter. (Second) The "blood money" was found secreted in a'jar and concealed in a beam of the garage. Hauptmann protested that the money had been left in his care by- (Third) Isador Fisch, who died of tuberculosis in Germany on March 22, 1934. (Fourth) Farther damaging evidence against Hauptmann was the comparison of his writ- ing with that of the ransom notes. He was indicted for extortion and when New Jersey indicted him for murder- (Fifth) Hapatman fought for extradition but was ordered to New Jersey to stand trial for the death of Charles A. Lindbergh, Jr.
"of his maternal grandmother, the The story of Hauptmann's life) He started to serve his sentence 20-month old infant was often re- of crime.opens on the night of in the Bautzen Prison, and was ferred to as the most famous baby March 15-16, 1919, when he and released on parole in March 1923. in the world.
Petzold broke the window of a
Stowed Away
For nearly three years the crime room in the home of a citizen off He stowed away at Hamburg in
Here it is)
in chronological form:
Bernbruch, seda jemmy to get a liner, but was discovered before
and the far-flung investigation farther into the house, and stole he could land in the United States, had been a household topic
300 marks (515) and a America and abroad.
silver and was brought back to Germany. watch. The watch was the proHe promised the captain of the perty of the local mayor.
liner that he would stow away March 1, 1932-Child stolen On the following night Harp again at the earliest opportunity. from his crib in the nursery of mann and his accomplice carried A second attempt to stow away the new, isolated Lindbergh home out another burglary, this time in
was discovered before the liner near Hopewell, N. J., -
their own village of Kamenz They sailed. Persistence had its re- April 2-$50,000 ransom paid stole 200 marks (£10), a quantity ward, however, in his third at- to a mysterious "Johr" in response of 'postage stamps and another
tempt. He stole a landing card, to a series of 14 notes ia the watch and chain.
reached the United States safely,
a dreworks in
WANTED
INFORMATION AS TO THE WHEREABOUTS OF
for a Xew
CHAS. A. LINDBERGH, JR
He made friends in the German- speaking colony of New York, and
a few years after his arrival he
darkness at St. Raymond's ceme- A third robbery at Rackelwitz, and went ashore to work tery in the Bronx section of New in which they used a crowbar to time, in York City.
enter a house and steal 400 marks Jersey- April 3-Col. Lindbergh few to (20) and a third watch and Martha's Vineyard, Mass., in a chain, was traced to the pair. vain search for a boat on which) Highway Robbery the ransom receiver had said the After this the two young bur-was married to Anna Schoeffer, a child was alive and well.
glars became more daring. and waitress in a Bronx bakery. He April 9-List of the serial num-their fourth crime was a highway appeared to work steadily at his bers of the ransom bills published robbery. They held up two wo-trade of a carpenter until the de- and thousands of persons serumen who were pushing perambula-pression arrived. tinise all currency passing through tors on the road between Wiesa their hands.
land Nebelschutz.
"Wall Street" Gains
47
In March 1932, a few days May 5-Gaston B Means, But now the police were inter-after the crime. Hauptmann gave] former Department of Justice ested, and on March 26. 1919. only ap his work as a carpenter, and operative, arrested for collecting 10 days after they had started on to those with whom he passed $104,000 from Mr. Edward Mc-their career of crime, Hauptmant more than the word "hello," he let Lean of Washington. D.C., and Petzold were arrested in it be known that he was "making having persuaded her he could re-Kamenz
reward for the kidnapper.
con-
First Conviction
good in Wall Street." One zeigh-
cover the child. He was later While he and Petzold were bebour told of his boasting of "win- sent to prison for 15 years.
ing transferred to a safer prisonning $25,000 in the market." May 12-Body of the child at Bautzen, the chief town of the At the original trial Hauptmann found in a thicket within Sve district, in April 1919. Haupt- asserted that his money Came miles of the Lindbergh estate, mann slipped out of the prison from business dealings with the State of New Jersey offers $25,000 van. He was recaptured by the late Isadore
Fisch. a furrier. Kamenz police when he returned When he was arrested Haupt- May 17-John Hughes Curtiss, to his home village.
grey checked suit was Norfolk, Va., boat builder.
shabby. his blue-patterned tie fesses that his "negotiations". On June 3. 1919; - Hauptmann (stringy, his brown shoes run down; i with the idnapper were a hoax, was brought before the first court yet his clothes were obviously of He was later convicted -of ob-to set eyes upon him the dis-good quality. structing justice, but sentence trict court of Bautzen. He was One outstanding trait all his was suspended.
convicted on three charges of rob-closer acquaintances remarked was June 10-Violet Sharpe, maidibery, one charge of theft, and as his passion for hunting, and every in the home of Mrs. Dwight w.a receiver of stolen property, and year be went on hunting and Morrow, mother of Mrs. Lind-sentenced to two years, six months fishing trips. Detectives searching: bergh, committed suicide when and one week's imprisonment his home found a double-barrelled told that the police planned
At a further trial in Bautzen he 12-bore shotgun such *A question ber a fourth time.
Was convicted of the highway commonly used by hunters.
the two June 23, 1933-Col. and Mrs. robbery on
women andį additional Lindbergh turn
over their home sentenced to an of unhappy memories to a corpor-years and six months -- making ation for use as a child health a total of five years and one week centre in memory of their
born
20
·
two
VERDICTS
(Contnued from Page 1)
Athletic's Big Chance
is
OF HOPEWELL, N. 3.
Alone in his cell in the Trefton State Penitentiary, awaiting the last marceli, many scenes and people must have fashed through the mind of Bruno Richard Hauptmamm. There was Walter Lyle, who spotted him as the passer of ransom the Lindbergh maid; the fatal ladder; Lindbergh, cold and remorseless; the ransom-note symbols; Isidore Fisch; "Jafsie" Condon, the money; Betty Gów, "Doktor his own entrance into the Trenton Penitentiary; and the fatal words that decreed his death--* long` procession that was with him motil the switch was thrown.
nrstider.
Feb. 13. 1935-Convicted of Sept. 20, 1934-Bruno Haupt-murder in the first degree and sen- South China "B" suffered one of was again the Gosano brothers day. Hall has shown tremendous Navy juniors remarkable goal mann, alien carpenter, arrested, intenced to-be electrocuted.
their worst setbacks in the race who came to the rescue of the Por-improvement and will be a serious average of 112 goals for and 24 the Bronx, in his pocket a $20 Jan. 16, 1936- Respite of 30 for the runners-up position on tuguese side, "A. V." beading out contender for the Army goalkeep-jagainst! Lindbergh ransom note and in his days granted by Governor Hoff-Saturday, when they were forced an almost certain goal from Sell ing position next season. garage $14,590 additional... man of New Jersey.
¡to admit defeat at the hands of the Sept. 26-Hauptmann indicted
Feb. 16-Respite of 30 days ex-Navy at Causeway Bay and it now for extortion, held on $100,000 pires; re-sentenced two days later, looks very much as if the Athletic bail.
-Feb. 29-Dramatic announce are assured of the runners-up! Oct. 8-Hautpmann indicted for ment by Attorney Leibowitz, berth. murder by Hunterdon county juzy(strongly indicating he believes
A
+ *
A Serious Contender
Gardner gave a very sound dîs-
#
·
A Revival
Aimless Kicking
The Chinese Police staged a re- vival in the Third: Division, when they beat the Rifes, who threw away the majority of their open=" Eastern were decided'y unluckyjings as a result of aimless kicking, Sappers In Deadly Mood
to lose against South China in the Bulpin was their most dangerous Iplay for Stonecutters," and withị The Sappers were in deadly (Second Division on Saturday as forward; while Godney should ja little more local experience form in the Second Division on they had most of the play territori: bave netted on several occasions, in New Jersey, extradited Oct. 19. Hamptmann guilty, considered to Again The Gosano Bros.!
should" make a worthy successor Saturday, when, despite being led ally, but it was their opponents but was slow in snapping up the Nov. 26-Hauptmann observes have, virtually, blasted his hopes Recreio, who seem to be getting Interpart full-back, while Hall's came back with a vengeance and issue, the South China attack giv- and Chan Wing-kan combined well to Allen, the former Artillery and at one time by a solitary goal, they forward line which decided the openings offered Mak Tut-fat his 36th birthday in gaolers of escaping electric chair."Date of weaker and weaker, only just
Jan 2, 1935-Hauptmann goes exsention set for March 31 managed to secure the points from display between the sticks will beat Recreio by the overwhelming ing their first real exhibition this on the Police left-wing and were on trial at Flemington for mur- April Execution carried out. Stonecutters on Saturday, and the mainland for many a long be long before they approach the and shooting."
rank as one of the finest seen on score of 12 goals to 3! It will not season of ball control; combination their most dangerous attacking
ipair.