The Wyandot pioneer. (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1853-1868, 1853-09-29
rhe bloody Murder in Pennsylvania.

The Bloody Murder in Pennsylvania.
We stated yesterday, with few of the
leading circumstances. that the house of
VIM. Secrist, at PerrycIlis, 10 miles from
brownsville, Pa, was entered by robbers
on the night of the 9Th inst, and his wife
murdered, himself so badly wounded as to
leave but little hopes of his recovery, and
the house plundered and burned with his
wife. We now learn from the Brownsville.
Clipper that two young men, named Geo
Ward and Malcon Gibson, charged with the.
terrible crime, have been arrested and
committed to jail. A phial of cinnamon.
drops, which, it is said, they purchased in
the vicinity the day before the murder, was
found in the yard of the house where they
were arrested, beside which blood was dis
covered on one Of their shirts, and $50 in
money found secreted in the garden of
WARD, which Mr. SEcRIsT has identified
as portion of 5000 which wastaken from
his mouse on the night of the murder.
1t appears atwhen they were breaking
into Mr.. SIS house, he sprang from his
bed, caught up large billet of wood, and
proceeded to oppose their entrance, just as
the door fell in, when the two rufiansrush-
ed upon him, one of them discharging two
barrels of revolver at him, the balls from
both wounding him dangerously in the
head, while the other knocked him down
with the mattock, stamped. violently upon
his head and breast, and left him for dead.
Mrs. Secrist, seeing the situation of her
husband, sprang to the fireplace, and
seizing poker, commenced vigorous
attack upon the villains when amurderous
blow from the mattock felled her to the
floor, upon which the iends beat and
stamped her until she was dead.
They then proceeded to rob the house,
after which they set it on fire in several
places and decamped. During these ter
rible proceedings, Notwithstanding his ex-
crusiating torture from his frightful
wounds, and from seeing his wife murder-
ed before his eyes, without the possibility
Of saving her. and with the certainty of los
ing his own also had he attempted it, Mr..
Secrist had the wonderful fortitude and
presence of mind to feign he was dead, by
lying perfectly motionless till they hadleft,
when, climbing out at back window and
proceeding a few rods from the burning
house, he fell and tainted. He remained
for some time in state of insensibilitv,
and the dwelling was nearly consumed on
his coming to his senses. He was, how
ever, so weak from the loss of blood, and
the heel of one foot having been horribly
cleft by stroke from a mattock, he found
himself entirely unable to stand or walk:
still, by an almost superhuman effort, he
ontinued TO drag himself along upon his
hands and knees, over an exceedingly
rough and uneven surface, distance of
three-quarters of a mile, until he reached
the house of Cook & Sweitzer, at the Stave
Works, where he arrived in his night
clothes only, and completely exhausted
about two O'Clock in the morning. Having
given the alarm, and received every pos
sible attention that his dreadful condition
demanded, company was Immediately
collected and repaired to the scene of the
outrage, but only in time to see the
smouldering embers of the dwelling and
the bones of the murdered woman.