The victim in this instance was a tailor named Francis Lassaux, whose tombstone still may be found in that city's Graceland Cemetery. Creston's reputation was in the spotlight again that summer because James T. Burnett, accused of killing Brister a year earlier, had just escaped from the Mills County Jail at Glenwood where he had been awaiting trial.
I found the most detailed account of the second murder in The Muscatine Journal of June 25, 1875, as follows:
Creston, Iowa, June 24 --- M. F. Lassaux, a French tailor of this city, was killed last night by a burglar. Lassaux owned a store, the upper part of which he rented to a family. He lived but a few doors from his store, in which he was in the habit of leaving a lamp burning. About 10 o'clock last night, after he had closed the store and gone home, he heard a crash of glass in his store, and supposing it was the lamp chimney had broken, he went to see. He unlocked the front door, and as he stepped inside the store, a concealed robber struck him a terrible blow on the head. As he fell, Lassaux gave a loud cry which alarmed his tenants upstairs, who came running down and frightened the burglar away before he had time to rob Lassaux, who had $500 in his pockets. Lassaux then nailed up the window which the burglar had broken in order to get into the store went home, not supposing he was badly hurt, but he sank very rapidly, and a physician was called who found the man unconscious from a wound which had fractured the skull. Lassaux died at 10:30 this morning. There is no clue to the murderer, but Mayor Way has offered a reward of $500 for his arrest.
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A follow-up was published in newspapers across Iowa a few days later, this one from The Quad-City Times of June 30 under the headline, "Dramatic Death of a Murderer."
Creston, Iowa June 29 --- Yesterday afternoon, a stranger, name unknown, dropped a postal card in the post office addressed to the mayor of the city, containing the following: "I killed Lassaux. I had to knock him down to get out. Hunt me up, if you can." From a description of the man given by the postmaster, they were enabled to track him and overtook him several miles from town. He was lying on the prairie at the time. Upon being called upon to surrender, he said: "I suppose you think you have me now" and immediately cut his throat with a razor which he had in his possession. There is little doubt, although as yet no positive proof, that he is the murderer of Lassaux, whom, it will be remembered, was killed by a burglar in his store a few nights ago.
A few additional details were published in The Muscatine Weekly Journal of July 9:
An unknown man was pursued on the prairie near Creston, the other day, as the supposed murderer of the merchant Lassaux. being told to halt and throw up his hands, he did so with the remark, "Now you've got me," and pulling a razor from his pocket, he cut his throat from ear to ear. All that was found upon his person were three pennies, a knife, some cartridges, a small phial of chloroform, and the razor with which he killed himself. He was dressed in a dark coat and vest and a pair of pepper-and-salt pants. On his socks was found the word Snow. the affair is a profound mystery. The body was exposed at Creston for identification, but nobody knew the man.
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Both killings left loose ends that never have been resolved. Mr. Brister's accused murderer got away and, so far as I could determine, the remains of Mr. Lassaux's killer never were identified.
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