Evening Republican, Volume 15, Number 204, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 August 1911 — BOY TIRES OF WORK [ARTICLE]

BOY TIRES OF WORK

Seeks to Palm Off Murder Story, But It Fails to Convince. Didn't Want to Mind Baby, Get Evening Meal and Do Sundry Other Odd Jobe So Hatched Up Horrible Tale. New York.—The last-straw burden was placed on the shoulders of thir-teen-year-old Andrew Gussig when his big, married brother John augmented the Gussig household in the basement bf No. 829 East One Hundred and Sixty-seventh street with Ablenona Gussig, an infant daughter. Before her coming Andrew had no time for play. The front door had to be polished, the hallways of the house, of which his father is janitor, must be cleaned and the vacant flats shown to prospective tenants. Andrew, Jr., had had to assist his father in all there tasks.

But after the coming of the baby, while Andrew’s father, mother, brother and brother’s wife were out at day’s work In the neighborhood, the boy had the additional taßk of minding Ablenona and preparing the evening meal. "And there were a lot of fellowß had a tent in a lot," said Andy, after it was all over, "and they said I could go out and play with them and one of them had a gun and they was playing Wild West But I, didn’t have any time.

“So today when they left me all alone 1 saw a chance to get even. I put the baby outside with some little girls and I went in the house. I had a lasso and I tied it around my feet. I turned on the gas in the kitchen and then I cut a little bit from the lasso. I lay down on the kitchen floor, tied a piece of my mother's dress around my mouth, made a noose around my hands and turnedthem until it was tight “Then I waited on the floor for my father and mother to come home. I thought they'd believe somebody’d tried to murder me and they'd let me play outside and not leave me alone in the basement to mind the baby and mind the house. "John, the bakery boy, came into

the kitchen to leave the bread. The door was open. You'd ought to seen John! He ran out yelling.” John went to Frank Klein, Janitor at No. 825, and told what he had seen. Klein ran back to the Oussig kitchen and cut the ropes from Andrew’s feet and hands. “A big nan came through that window," said Andrew, "and tied me down and turned on the gas.” Patrolman Wolf was called. Acting Captain Place of the Morrisania station came with detectives. Captain Brennan of the Tremont station did likewise, after word had reached Captain Price of the Bronx detective bureau that murder had been attempted The block was surrounded, men went to roofs and others questioned' dwellers in the neighborhood. While an ambulance surgeon was working over the boy his mother ran in. ”My poor boy!” she wailed. "I left you all alone to mind the baby.” Andrew was equal to the occasion. "It’s better for me to play outside

with the other boys,” he said. “Then no big men will come In and try to murder me." His mother agreed fervently. But Detective Mcllhardy became susplclous. "Where did you say that big man came in?” he asked. The boy indicated a window, close to which stood a feather bed in such a position that one entering by the window would have had to crawl over the bed. But there wasn’t a mark on it The detective took the boy Into another room and there made him confess. “I tied myself up," said Andrew. “I didn’t want to stay in here. I wanted to go out in the field and play detective and Wild West” When the detective informed the parents they cried: "Take him away to jail! He’s a bad boy.” So Andrew, Jr., was taken to the Children’s society rooms and will be arraigned in the children’s court, charged with attempted suicide and Juvenile delinquency. “Gees it looks like I’d never get a chance to play/’ he said.