The Sun.
London, England, 1869-10-14 00:00:00

A CHAPTER OF HORRORS.

In a house at Parkvillo, Missouri, three skeletons
were found last summer under circumstances caus-
ing suspicion. The teeth of one had been filled with
gold filings, showing that the men were whites. On
the 13th Sept. a girl went to a closet to hang up
clothing, and on leaving turned round instead of
backing out as usual. On the wall for the first time
the following words, which had before escaped no-
tice, were seen :
"John Brink, California, Missouri. Should I not get
away with my life, will some one report me to Dr. M.
Cotter, California, Missouri. They are trying to murder
us.—Feb. 2, 1837."

The Learemi.orth Times thinks they were " Free
Statesmen," either on their way to, or kidnapped,
from Kansas in 1857, and killed by " border ruf-
fians." The proprietor of the house at the time is
still living in the county, and although suspicion
strongly points towards him, his character stands so
high that it is not believed that he could have lwen
guilty of any murder. At the date indicated, the
house was so isolated that the crime could easily
have been perpetrated without immediate detection.
1 he Dubuque Thrall tails the following story :

"A man named John Murphy, living on the outskirts
of Cedar City, lowa, was startled one night recently, just
as he was retiring, by loud cries of ' murder,' coining
from some man in the street near the bottie. Mr. Mur-
phy went to the door to ascertaiu the cause of the alarm.
The man rushed by him and into the house. He discovered
that his visitor was armed with a huge knife, which ho
was frantically flourishing, and at the same time pro-
claiming his ability to cut the throats of his pursuers, of
whom he evidently suspected Mr. Murphy as being one.
The man was almost entirely nude, having but a single
garment on his stalwart limbs. It needed but a glance to
show that he was a maniac of the most desperate sort.
By a movement of marvellous agility the maniac entrenched
himself behind a trunk and under the bed, and an oppor-
tunity was given Mr. Murphy for casting About for aid.
Fortunately, the nearest neighbour was up; staving had a
visit from the maniac still earlier in the evening. It
seems he had called, and in a quiet way, requested lodg-
ing, which was granted. Soon after the family retired
the paroxysm of insanity had seized him, and he
,had be-
gun a murderous assault upon innumerable imaginary
assailants with his large knife. When the proprietor en-
tered his room to ascertain the cause of the disturbance,
he made at him viciously, but was arrested by a knock-
down blow before doing any damage. During the
mele3 that followed the maniac succeeded in escaping
from the house, crying murder, and took refuge in Mr.
Murphy's house. The neighbour was called by Mr. M.,
and three men who were passing in a waggon. All
entered the house, and by various artifices sought to
dislod3e the visitor [torn his position under the bed, but
in vain. Once he made a sally out, seizing a loaded gun
which one of the men had rested against the side of the
room, but he seized it by the muzzle, and in the struggle
which followed was forced to release it. He then re-
treated under the bed again, and renewed his throat-
cutting upon imaginary enemies, occasionally turnin:
upon those in the room, as though wishing to try Lis
knife upon them. Mr. Murphy sent a boy for an officer,
and after some necessary delay he arrived. By stratagem
the maniac was surrounded, amid in a sudden rush of the
six men ho was overpowered and securely ironed. It was
discovered that ho was a tailor named Smith, who had
been drinking excessively for several months, and was
therefore suffering a violent attack of delirium tremans.
With much thfficulty he was conveyed to Cedar Falls and
lodged fn the calaboose for the remainder of the night.
In the morning, when taken out, he was still raving, and
during his imprisonment had beat his head against the
walls of the prison, until he presented a most sickening
sight. During the following night 110 drops of lauda-
num administered to him failed to reduce Lim to quiet-
ness."--A terrible tragedy occurred at Union Hill, near
Hoboken, New Jersey, about one o'clock in the morning
of Sept. 17. A,Gerinan named, Joseph PaschArdt, of in-
temperate habits, went to the bAI where his two sons,
aged respectively 23 and 21 years lay sleeping, and stabbed
them with a knife, inflicting wounds from which they are
not expected to recover. Ho then attempted to commit -
suicide by cutting his own throat, bat the injuries in-
flicted are not mortal.

William Moody, an old and respectable farmer
of Madison, Indiana, on Tuesday, Sept. 21, mur-•
dered his wife, dragged the body from the house,
and set fire to the dwelling and outbuildings, stand-
ing guard over them until they were consumed.
Ile then shot himself dead.—At Niagara Falls,
on the
.24th of September, a party consisting
of one gentleman and four ladies, all be-
longing to Providence, Rhode Island, stopped
there while on their way home from Buffalo,
and after viewing the sights on the Ameri-
can file, crossed the river to the Canadian side.
While their carriage was passing the curve op-
poeite the precipice in front of the Clifton lions
the horses became unmanageable, and as it was evi-
dent they would go over the bank, the driver and
Mr. Tillinghast, the Providence gentleman, jumped
off the seat, and escape I with slight injury ; the
hors- s and carriage, t rgether %jai the four ladies,
went down the bank, however, a distance of some
50 fie`. Mahala Smith, one of the party, was
horribly mangled and instantly killed, and Miss
Mary Ann Ballou was so dangerously injured that
she cannot possibly recover. Mrs. Tillinghast and
a Mrs. Fisher were badly bruised, but their wounds
are not dangerous. The body of Mrs. Smith was to
be forwarded to Rhode Island the next day, and the
injured parties will be cared for at the Spencer
House, on the American side. The accident hap-
pened while an inquest was being held on the body
of a man who committed suicide at the same place
a day or two previously. Imprisonment of Dr. Sim-
mons.—Dr. Simmons is a native of Ontario county,
New York State, where he was reared and educated.
When a young man he went to reside in Vicksburg,
where he became editor and proprietor of the Vicks-
burg Sentinel, and was afterwards elected a Senator
to the Mississippi State Legislature. In 1856 he
emigrated to Cuba, where he continued the practice
of the medical profession at Santiago. On the 19th
of August last Dr. Simmons had been called away
to Puerto Principe to attend a very sick patient.,
and while engaged in the performance of his duty
he was arrested by Spanish Volunteers, and led
away without further ceremony. Dr. Simmons
states that the charge on which he was captured and
imprisoned was wholly false, and that the only ob-
ject the soldiers had in arresting him was to obtain
his money, knowing that lie had a large sum in his
possession. This they took from him, besides a
large amount of gold which was afterwards taken
from his residence, leaving him almost penniless
when released. The Volunteers at that time were
receiving no pay from the Government, and relied
entirely upon plundering the wealthy Cuban citi-
zens. To procure money they would rob, murder,
sack, and burn, it is alleged, and after desolating a
homestead of all its wealth, in many instances the
men were murdered. Notwithstanding the ignorance
of the Volunteeers they are filled with a spirit of bra-
vado, and of ten indulge in threats, saying they would
annihilate the inhabitants of the whole island if
they did not succumb ; declaring their intention
to kill all, beginning with the fighting young men,
and ending with the old men and women. They
also boasted that in case the United States in-
terceded on behalf of Cuba, they would whip
them too. They often made the assertion that
li 10,000 Spanish soldiers would go in at New
York and out at New Orleans. Many horrible
murders are related which came under Mr. Sim-
mons's own notice. In one instance, some soldiers
went out to a plantation in the country and de-
manded the owner's money. Ile was very wealthy,
but refused to give them anything till they com-
pelled him, by pricking him with their bayonets, to
surrender. Under his bed was concealed $20,000
in gold. The soldiers took this, and before leav-
ing, raised the cry of rebel, and stabbed the aged
man to death with their bayonets. After the
amnesty proclamation of Captain-General Dulce
a considerable number of volunteers went over to
be pardoned. They cause -in squads each day,
and if their old companions in arms found
them out they were sure to be killed. In one
instance thirteen of these men were caught,
and twelve ef them were taken to the outskirts
of the town and shot, while the remaining one
was tried, and sentenced to ten years' imprisonment
and hard labour. lie was confined to the same
prison as Mr. Simmons, and was serving with the
chain gang when he left. As an example of the
honesty of Spanish officials, Mr. Simmons relat_s
that, after the earthquake in 1854, $lOO,OOO was
sent from Spain to be distributed among the suf-
ferers at Santiago. The agents intrusted with the
distribution of the funds went about and gave $5
to a person on condition that he would give a re-
ceipt for $5O. The receipt being given, the agent
paid out the $5, and put the remaining $45 into his
pocket. In June last Mr. Simmons, becoming so

impressed with the cruelties all over the island,
wrote a long account of them to President Grant,
giving the true state of affairs at that time, hoping
it would have the effect of causing the United
States to interfere. After many vicissitudes he
obtained Lis release, and is now in America, where
he has brought an action against the Spanish Go-
vernment.

AMERICAN AFFAIRS.
(From the Anglo-American Times.)
NEW Yorn Sept. 25.

Another heated term marked the first days of the
week, yet the city is not only full of its own people
returned, but of strangers from the country. The
book sales have been going on, and were animated
on Saturday, satisfactory prices being obtained.
Among the London sellers were R. Reeve and Co.,
Ward, Lock, and Tyler, Provost and Co., and B.
Qiaritch. Spurgeon's sermons sold freely at 80
cents per volume. If I wished to point to an in-
stance which shows the necessity for an untiring
supervision of every human institution, I would
take the defalcation at the Methodist Book Concern.
It was founded in 1789, and continued to extend,
a bindery being added, till its business amounted
in the year 1868 to $69.1,000, with net profits of
$104,000. It has lately been conducted by clergy-
men, and as a mission enterprize, founded and
carried on for missionary purposes, no one ever
thought of verifying
.the reports of the one or
two good persons who handled the large sums in
which it dealt. There was a committee of fifteen
who assembled once a year, but as it was not com-
posed of business men, the general conference, as it
was called, really only tended to delude. Lately, de-
falcations were suspected, which on the appointment
of Dr. Lanahan, as agent, became a certainty. The
Rev. James Porter adopted a system of purchasing
all materials used in printing and binding through
brokers, to whom it yielded a profit of $lO,OOO per
annum without a shade of benefit to the institution
but considerably to the benefit of the sons of the
rev. gentleman, who were the brokers. Mr. Good-
, enough was superintendent of the printing depart-
ment and treasurer of the Sunday School Union.
He might, under other circumstances, have proved
good enough, but it appears he was in a place where
his price was reached, and the society, finding he
was not good enough for the place, permitted Lim to
resign two months ago; and Mr. Hoffman, in charge
of the book-bindery, followed him a month after.
What the result will be is as yet conjecture,
but there appears to be no inclination to shield
those who betrayed their trust, and a very search-
ing inquiry is anticipated, as the scandal created
has been considerable, as it is associated with the
greatest Church in our land, while the Concern is
perhaps the most extensive establishment of the kind
in any country. Considering the enormous opportu-
nities and temptation offered the wonder is that af-
fairs have so long gone on so well. Talking of paper
dealers, Mr. John Nichols, well known in that trade,
blewhis brains out last Monday with a pistol, owing
to some losses in business. Koopmanschap and
Co. have been doing business here. On Tuesday
they contracted with the Texas Land Company,
No. 29, Broadway, to supply them with 5,000
Chinese labourers or emigrants, to be employed
upon their lauds, which are situated along the line
of the Houston Central and Red River Railroad.
The company inteni to establish towns and set-
tlements along the track of the railroad, and they
will give to each Chinaman who will locate himself
permanently in Texas 20 acres of good tillable
land. Koopmanschap goes round by Memphis and
New Orleans home, and he expects by the time he
gets backs to San Francisco to have contracts for
many thousands, both for land companies and for
private individuals. With these in his pockets, he
will proceed to China, and ship Celestials as fast as
he can catch them. Reddy, the blacksmith, was
brought up for trial, but remanded in the absence
of a witness. The event of the week is the Great
Crisis in Wall-street, which has swallowed up all
other interests for the last few d Sys. What it is
all about none of us know ; but that there is a tre-
mendous flurry, and that the city is filled with men
rushing about ha'f demented ; indeed, last night,
it was i npossible to discriminate between men in a
state of intoxication an 1 gold bulls. As I have
nothing to lose I can look on with complacency if
with ignorance, and wonder what it is that makes
this stir. The rumour was that Spain had declared
war against us, backed by France and Austria ; that
everybo ly had " bust up," an 1 that the nvublic
itself had run off the track, and was found to be so
heavy that it could not be got on again. New York
Central came tumbling down on the head 3 of
the bulls, and gold went flying up till a col'apse
suddenly occurred in consequence of an order from
the Secretary of the Treasury to sell, and then
the cry was that the Gold Exchange B Ink had
smashed. At any rate the scene in New York ii
considered by older men than myself to have been
unequalled since the panic of 1856, and I therefore
suppose you will hear a great deal about it. In the
wild hubbub an event which would otherwise have
attracted attention passed without notice. Mr.
Headley, a member of the firm of Vanderwenter and
Co., walked off with what he could get, leaving the
house to take care of itself, and as they could not
ascertain the state of their affairs, the books being
apparently as unsettled as their balances, they
stopped payment for the moment, telegraphing to
Mr. Vanderwenter, who was at St. Louis. Mr.
Headley resided at the St. Nicholas Hotel, and on
discovering that the bank balance, which accord-
ing to thee, books ought to have been $21,000.
in their favour, was heavily against them, he
was looked for at the hotel, and was pursued to
Philadelphia, where he had gone with his wife, but
no trace of bin could be discovered. It was sail, by
hi , friendsthat he could not have done any thing dis-
honourable, a delusion from which many of us awake
with a start. About what happened to Charles
M. Simonson, however, there can be no doubt.. He
was passing Twenty-fourth-street, near Third-
avenue, with $9,000 of greenbacks in hand, when,
on reaching a butcher's cart,fuur ruffians, who there
lay in wait, rushed at him, and this in broad day-
light. He was struck in the face with an iron-
gloved fist, his arms grasped, and, for the moment,
gagged. His eyes were battered, his nose broken,
and his head a mass of blood. Why the scoun-
drels should thus have treated him, having secured
his satchel, unless it be to show their contempt for
the society which can permit such action to occur with
impunity in a crowded street, I know not. Three
of the brutes jumped into a waggon and drove off
at a gallop ; but the fourth, named Hart, was cap-
tured by the police. Mr. Anthony J, Drexel, the
great Philadelphia banker, returned in the Scotia
on Wednesday morning, after an absence of a few
months in Europe. His health has much improved,
which his many friends will be glad to learn ; in the
same steamer was Mrs. Scott Siddons. The Ville
(le Paris and Sinidt arrived next day filled with pas-
sengers ; indeed every favourite boat now returning
is thronged. There has been another suicide in the
Central Park. It was Mr. Charles Muret of 150, West
Thirty-ninth-street, who must have been insane,
for he appears to have mistaken himself fur a rat,
and to have given himself a dose of arsenic, await-
ing the result in a thicket. Poor fellow ! business
troubles, as usual here, was at the bottom of it, and
I fear next week may witness many such cases.

•--
WASHINGTON, Sept. 24.

'Washington continues to fill. Besides the Pre-
sident and the Cabinet a considerable number of
leading people have returned. Among them, CLief
Justice Chase, preparatory to the meeting of the
United States Supreme Court next month. Gen.
Howard arrived to open the Howard University,
within which it is impossible to accommodate all the
coloured applicants for adinL•sion. Ex-Secretary
St inton's family have come, but not Mr. Stanton
himself who remains with Mr. Hooper in Co nit,
Cape Cod, and wid not be here for some ten days,
though his health is better, though still suffering from
asthma. By the way, Secretary Robeson has re-
covered from a sharp attack of illness. Among the
lh presentatives in the city arc Ingersoll of Illinois,
Hopkins of Wisconsin, O'Neill and Myers of Penn-
sylvania, and Bowen of South Carolina. Governor
Walker was installed in the presence of General
Canby, receiving over the office, in the mansion
at Richmond, from Governor Wells. He to9k the

iron-clad and other oaths of office, and immediately
appointed Col. Wm. E. Cameron of the Petersburg
Index his Private Secretary, an officer formerly is
the Confederate service, and a firm supporter of the
Walker ticket in the late catnpaign. So you see
" robs" are getting into office in the South, a good
sign, for we shall never have real peace and union
until they do, if then. The alternations in th'3,
weather, varying from hot to cold, and from 01"
to hot, have again been marked during the last
few days, the thermometer ranging from SO t°
90 in the shade. The persistent way in which the
whisky distillers have been pursued is beginning t:
bear an unexpected fruit; some having discevere'
and intimated to the Revenue Office, that they cl
make most by working according to law, provide"
that all are compelled to comply with it, they pro-
pose to form associations to aid in detecting the
law-breakers, and cease themselves to incur the
penalties resulting from detection. A strong lobby
will, it is anticipated, endeavour to raise the t-a- °TI
whisky. Tlii4 will be resisted both by Sccretarl
Boutwell and Commissioner Delano, to whom We-
rience has shown the wisdom of the present duty'
Congress reduced the rate to enable the revenue
officers to collect the tax, and the result has P.ls'
tified the calculations. If increased, the whisky
ring will be strengthened—the higher the incress,
;
the stronger being the ring. All the secretarie
are bard at work on their annual report%
that of the Treasury being looked for wito
most interest. Perry Fuller and Waddy ThomPse.
have been arrested at St. Louis, and will b°
arraigned in New Orleans before the United States
e
Commissioner charged with defrauding the revens
Waddy Thompson was released on a writ of babe
corpus in Memphis while on his way to New Orleans
as a prisoner, but was rearrested on the affidavitef
Mr Thomas J. Kinsella, and bound over in $1
0,000
to appear on the Ist of October. The affidavit states
Kinsella to be a special agent of the TreasurY Pet;
partment, engaged in investigating the alleged
frauds in New Orleans, and accuses Fuller an
e
Thompson with unlawfully combining to roved
warehoused goods without paying duty. rerhig
Fuller has been held to bail in $20,000 for 1,
appearance on trial in November ; his deputy vija
lector, Gray, seeing the turn affairs had taken, 0,
a- fond but rapid adieu to the United States. &ti'
ther suit has been brought against a distinguis"ol
officer, General Steadman, to recover upwar3,B,„e.
$600,000, alleged to be due by him as tax -coal
tor. Ido not know what has been done to-dged
the Cabinet meeting, but Cuba was to be discessof
as well as a new Minister to China. The coursed
our Minister at Madrid has rivetted attention,
called forth the comments of the press. It is e;og
dent from telegrams there has been much darlcell'o,
of counsel by words without knowledge in the Iti,a
don press on the relations between Atnerica
Spain, attributing vacillation where there was neat,
but a straightforward attempt to get rid of a cl3le
:6'b to
oils question, and one very embarrassing bnintit,
this country and to Spain, on peaceful and h°l3; of
able terms. What I have told you as to the f°Poclit
our Cabinet you will find to be the case, althitt
there has been some disagreement, the more arVco,
desiring quicker action. No one disputes the g
ral sympathy of Americans for the cause of the
flied
surgents, and any Spanish excitement, accerePso to
with defiance, is more likely to increase thiloity
quench that feeling. The progress of negro rclii of
may in a small way be gathered from a gsnie
t."-tocl
base-ball played here between the White ClOl-%050
the Coloured Club last Monday. Maly P,,ertho
were attracted to the ground, but thous nor
coloured gentlemen were satisfied with the 11.°0 bat
and the progress the event marked, they m3(1,030
a poor struggle, being beaten by 56 to 4. '3 the
Fisher, in the Criminal Court, has overrule' 0330,
motion to instruct the jury to acquit Schurefrop
charged with abstracting unsigned currencY 600
the Treasury, on the ground that certain allegs the
in the indictment had not been proved. Amnago to
arrivals is Major James Haggerty, who has ena
ref
complain of the English Government, which re will
his exequatar as Consul to Glasgow, and hei the
, have an interview both with Secretary Fish
President. A great number of Congressmen hive
also returned, the President and the Cabinet 5 a 1
ing brought back politicians and office-s3ekeroo'
well as men of note. Among the latter are been'
tors Cameron, Drake, and Sawyer, and g,'Prciip,
t i
atives Clarke (Kansas), Potter (New York), 00011
kins (Wisconsin), Cessna (Pennsylvania), Ingc,o3'
(Illinois), Bowen (South Carolina), arid of
naugh (Montana) ; General Gorham, Sccretltt,
the Senate, end Colonel Ordway, Sergest"epi
Arms of the House. A meeting was held Yes_ity
evening to consider the proposed Internatioveov
hibition at Washington in 1871—Henry D'iised,
in the chair. A resolution was unanimouslY 1,1
teo of
enabling him to appoint an executive conitn;ac tbe
fifteen, and to frame a plan of organization Ras'
ir
consideration of the general committee. "tej to
sian Secretary of Legation not only conserro btg
serve, but promised every aid and assistance I
sboakt
Government. It was suggested that the profits loot,
be devoted to complete the Washington recdlat that
andform a national Polytechnic College, fin
gad
subscriptions to the stock of the Exhibition :0 An
be opened in all the States. KoopmanschuPtleh be
interview with Secretary Boutwell, after W"oer
left for Memphis to attend the Louisville Cn ret
Trea'
cial Convention, with the assurance that this etnii
sury department would not interfere with n fig.
gration schemes unless he violated the 13
grieve to say that Paul Bagley has also tuNiiore to
notwithstanding his oath never to return %d
the United States, except with the liherst corle
nians. The President told him to leave his Coe;
spondmce at the State Department. I\,,:fre.sidel
tts i
stautiue Catacazy was introduced to the ibre
to-day as Russian Minister. He delivered t tog
appropriate sentiments, describing the gresfieocl'
the two nations, and the intimacy of their
t_e fro.:
ship, the correctness of which descriptio eto ogitlP
sident acknowledged. The White Hou
besieged. A General Press Despatch says' st,te 9/,
" A commission to select the site for the new a the
.41
partment, consisting of the Secretary cf State ntlia soveve,
terior, and the Architect of the Capitol, haVo is
meetings of late. The plan of Architect Clark Wit'oa tenetoi
coolish the present War and Navy Departraent%d pit/c,
a new building on the same square, to be OcellPigocrt°oo
'by the 'Par, Navy, and State Departments. '''ot 01300,0,
Fish, however, argued that the State Deparitile,.i, etly
be by itself, and the others finally agreed to P,,titeeatlw
The site selected is an oblong space, inclosed by of 1,(1
street, Vermont-avenue, and K-st. The Phloare,
building contemplates a structure covering the sfssioo,,3
three stories high. The report of the Conirtbler 01"
quires the approval of Congress before any fu
arc taken." Otce
the 0110
Commissioner Delano is going to ge-4.
rove to
decided on by his committee for cancellingria
stamps. Fractional currency is at last Pean,og a,' of
the Treasury, a sum of nearly $200,000
.10:ixrial
00
received from the bank-note printers. Tneetittro
Tennessee has adopted a resolution for a her, If le,
Louisville on the 17th of next Novee3l be 11. it,
General Eli Parker will deliver a eulogy o roicloP
character, and services of its lamented r
the late General Rawlins. eject
cola" nest
It is said that the Empress EllgCl3le a, state ° „io'
by the Prince Imperial, will visit the 110itetdtor',0
protoo7o, /4115-051
year with a suite of 30 persons. She will
delphia, Boston, Newport, New York,"Sara coo ° 00°
Falls, and perhaps Clalifornia. "lt has ben ~,od
dreams to visit America," says the BrnPren,
year I shall see New York and Niagara Falls'
ire,
E nt zeA nwni
fse—o Of stool'sli
BIRTHS.
of a daub lace,
th
NUGENT - On the 13th inst., at 10, Eatop;P:
Of Edmund C. Nugent, Esq., of a dangig Clof
nuothloenlelthEdinwsat.:dast, Ness Stritn.
.100
AftIRRIAGES. tootle e,CIIIIO
BRAITHWAITE—KAY—On the 12th inst.7;_„oo;_,,;
nett, youngest son of the late Garnett_.!szl;o`ll,,
of Plumtree Hall, Westmorland, to Inilaverbr
a lain,
eof
E cito eldestvn Satin.lelil2Btyh,Ft De°3(oster'
daughter of
TER—On
ti
Farmer Ecroyd, 01 Spring Goof Georg°
to Anna Maria, ela.:Ot daughter
-eler
-,,asting!'clar°
itbden, Lancashire. -,8 134 A
BURGES —On the
Caroline
s inane, the DrOTalel
LANE—On the 13th ins.; rat Kwg
51
12th
Newton Lane, Esq., ages c 9•
vc,10,01 jo.
t"toor, 10110
London: Printed and Published by s
of No. 112, Strand, Printer, at TUE
oVirt; or .
in the Precinct of the Savoy, in the e
Thursday, Octopi 11., 184'0.