Cleveland daily leader. [volume] ([Cleveland, Ohio]) 1865-1873, 1866-01-10
The Horrible Michigan murder.

The abolition of capital punishment GER
tainly does not work well in Michigan.
The most horrible murders of recent times
have been committed there. The Bivins
tragedy is still fresh in our minds, and it
is now succeeded by the Cooper horror, to
which we have referred. The following
additional particulars in relation to this
demoniac deed we copy from the Detroit
Free Press of the 9th:
The man, Hanly or Cooper, was a per-
son of the most terrible and ungovernable
passions, SO much SO that it has been at
times it was impossible to live with or
near him when in those paroxysms of
anger. While living with his family in
Macomb county, something more than a
year ago, in these outbursts of passion, he
treated his wife with so much cruelty that,
for fear of her life, which he had threat
ened, she caused him to be shut up in jail
at Mount Clemens. Upon one occasion,
Just subsequent to her confinement, he
threw her out of doors in the midst of a
heavy rain storm, and it was for this act
that he was incarcerated. While in jail,
his wife sold the house and land, of which
she owned 4 portion in her own right, and
went to her friends in Ohio, to get rid of
him. This had a fearful effect upon him.
He swore vengeance upon his wife and all
who had ever aided or assisted her in any
way, including his sister, Mrs. Lynch, who
had frequently protected her from his
brutality. He also at one time got the no.
ton into his head that the Court or county
officers were to give him a piece of land,
and, going to the office one day, he threat
ened to burn the courthouse unless this
demand was complied with. During last
harvest he was employed by a farmer
living near the Creek, until he became SO
bold and terrible in his threats to kill
certain persons, including his employer,
that he was DISCHARGED, and came
to this city soon after. He declared
to his sister and. to others that he
would kill her and tear her heart out. On
Wednesday, as before stated, he went out
to the Greek and was noticed by several
persons crossing the field to his sisters
house. he had a revolver, which he
showed to several persons, and about which
he made various and vague remarks, which
were accounted as but idle words by those
who heard them, nor was anything serious
w apprehended when his sister, Mrs.
| Lynch, expressed her fears, as she did to
Justice Corby and others, that "John
meant harm to her" During the afternoon
| of Wednesday he wentdownt to the woods
where a person in the employ of the man
| by whom he had been discharged was en-
! gagged in chopping. To this person he
exhibited a pistol, remarking that "that
pistol had never shed any blood, but it
would do so very SOON" The person,
knowing that the life of his employer had
been threatened before, suspected that the
murderer's designs were against him, and
took measures to warn him. No violence,
however, was attempted, and Hanly soon
went away to the house of John Corby,
where he stayed all night. During the
forenoon of the next day he went to his
sister who was washing. He said to her,
"Betsey, will you wash a shirt for me 2" to
which she replied, kindly, she would. He
then asked if she would let him lie down
on her bed while she did it, and permits
sion being given he took off his shirt and
lay down upon the bed. After a few mo-
ments he got up, and approaching her
with the pistol, said "Betsey, 1 am going
to kill your and fired. The shot took
effect in the back part of her head, but
she had strength to seize hold of the pistol
barrel, and in her struggles it was un-
screwed and rendered useless. He then
seized an iron pot, and hurled it down
into her face, one of the legs penetrating
her eye. Taking the IKE next, he pro-
ooeded to the bloody work related in yes
terday's Free Press, and to execute the
horrible threat to "tear her liver out and
slap it in her face" which he did literally,
as the appearances showed, the Viscera OF
the thorax being found lying at her feet
afterwards. These facts, up to the time
of the shooting, are related by n of the
children of the murdered woman, who is
said to have been an excellent person, a
good neighbor, charitable and kind even
to a fault. We arc informed that che
actually brought up, from a child of six
months old, when the mother died, this
brother, who has now so cruelty murdered
| her.