Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes County, Ohio) 1856-1865, 1860-07-26
The Attempted Murder in Co.
lUmbia,

The facts of the case of the attempted
murder of the son of Mr.. John Squires,
lad 5 years of age, in Columbia, Lorain
county, are so singular, that we give them
from the Oberlin NeWs as follows.
Wallace Walrath, a nephew of Mr..
Squires, has been laboring on the farm for
his uncle, for some two months past, and
his son has been in the habit of laboring
with young Walrath from time to time,
when not at school. 1t is said that the
boys did not agree well together. On
Wednesday night Walrath came in about
o'clock, and claiming to be unwell, did
not again go TO his work, but retired very
early. John, the son of Mr.. Squires, also
retired as usual, the boys sleeping together.
About daylight Walrath came down stairs
and left the house, being gone some half
an hour, when he returned and again went
to his room, but Immediately came down
stairs tie second time, went to his Uncle's
room and said, "Uncle John, am afraid |
have hurt John in my sleep. He lies in
bed all covered with blood.'
The father hurried to the room and
found his son literally weltering in his own
blood. 1t seemed that during the night
young Walrath had taken gun that stood
iu the corner of their bedroom, and clasp
ing it by the barrel had struck him with
the stock of the gun, so hitting him that
the entire stock of the gun was buried il
the boy as he lay asleep on his side. The
stock of the gun was broken by the blow,
but by replacing the lock of the gun in the
wound, it was found that the end of the
stock inst reached mark on the head
board, which it had evidently grazed when
the blow was given. The shape of the
wound exactly corresponded to the lock of
the gun. From all appearances, the deed
must have been committed in the fore
part of the night.
The boy, up to Saturday morning, was
still alive, though wholly unconscious
His physicians say he is beyond all hope
of recovery.
Young Walrath is onw lodged in Jail TO
await an investigation of the matter. He
is slender lad nineteen years of age. He
says that he has no recollection of the
matter in the least, and claims that the
first knowledge he had of this affair was
upon returning TO his room after going
down stairs the first time, and that as soon
as he discovered it, he Immediately inform
ed his uncle says that being unwell, he
was forced to get up earlier than usual;
that when he first got up it was not light
in his room, and that, sleeping on the back
side of the bed, he climbed over the foot
board TO avoid waking his cousin, and pas
sed out of the room without discovering
anything unusual; says that he has been in
the habit of getting up in his sleep when
unwell for years past. No blood was
found on any of young Walrath's clothing,
whereas it has been stated that it would
have been impossible for him to have lain
in bed without getting covered with blood,
as the bed was entirely saturated with it.
Many of the people look on it as a cold
blooded murder, while few can hardly be-
lieve it possible that so young a lad should
be guilty of such an atrocious crime. The
prisoner admits that he had few words
with the boy the day previous, but asserts
that they went to bed good friends.