Democratic Sentinel, Volume 14, Number 28, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 August 1890 — SAYS HE KILLED HIM. [ARTICLE]

SAYS HE KILLED HIM.

FIREMAN ROODHOUSE MAKES A CONFESSION. He Tells How He Killed Engineer Tandevander with a Hammer—The Locomotive Tragedy at Tan Wert, Ohio, the Result of a QuarrelVan Wert (Ohio; special: The mystery surrounding the horrible murder of Engineer Madison Vandevander has at last been cleared up by a confession from Fireman Samuel Roadhouse at the coroner’s inquest The evidence was so strong against Roadhouse that when he heard of it he concluded to make a full confession. He was still confined to his bed and after a few moments’ deliberation said: “Sheriff, I want to tell yen something. I killed Vandevander.” While he was speaking his throat clogged and he uttered the three last words in a husky voice. “I did it,” he continued, “in selfdefense. He accused mq of informing the superintendent that he was drunff at Devil’s Lake last week, and, although I offered to prove to him that I had not reported him, he refused to believe me, and had been abusing me more or less since then. Last Friday, while we were at Franklin getting ready to go out on our run, we had a quarrel and came near exchanging blows. “WhenVe reached Enterprise he commenced on me again and said: ‘D you, I'll fix you.’ Van was powerful and desperate, and, to tell the facts of the case, I was afraid of him. After leaving Enterprise he repeated the threat, and I walked back to the toolbox when he wasn’t looking and fixed the hammer they found with the handle sticking out so I could grasp it. I then started back to my seat in the cab. Just before I reached it Van reached out his left arm and dealt me a terrible blow on the left side of the head,” pointing to the gash on that side of his head. “I was staggered for a moment, and just as 1 was about recovered he raised his right hand from the throttle and gave me another terrible blow on the right side of the head. “I jumped back, grabbed the hammer, and catching it with both hands raised it, and, throwing all my weight on it, brought it down on Van’s head with all the force I could muster. The first blow did not appear to stun him and I showered several more blows —I don’t remember how many—and did not quit until he lay still. I then picked him up and sat him on the seat on his side of the engine, where he was found. I hardly realized what I had done until it was over with. At first I did not know what to do, and I lay down on the floor of the engine and in the few minutes which elapsed It came to me to fix up the story I told Dr. Woods. Just as we had passed Van Wert Van raised his head, and I again picked up the hammer and dealt him another blow which opened his head. I felt the blood and brains spatter on my face. That was all. You Know the rest.” The fact of Roadhouse’s confession was kept quiet until he could be placed in the county jail, as it was feared that should the news get out there would be an attempt to lynch him, coming so soon after the funeral of the murdered man. After he had been placed safely behind the bars it became noised about that he had iqade a full confession, and the news passed from lip to lip like lightning, and in a few minutes a large crowd had gathered about the jail, which is such a weak and poorly-con-structed building that it would not take more than half a dozen determined, men to break into it. Lynching is freely talked of, and as there are a large number of railroad men in town who came to attend Vandevander’s funeral it would not be surprising if there would be trouble.