The Union and journal., 1867-02-22
THE WEST AUBURN TRAGEDY.
The Prisoners Confession.

murderers OF the TWO heeu women ~ Nes'
Auburn. the Journal gives the following:
In general terms 1t may be stated that the
negro says that the subject was broached tO
him on the evening Of Wednesday while re-
turning from Lewiston, hy the man whom hs
r duplicates In the confession, who held out 10
him the inducement that Mrs. kinsley had q
, large amount OF money in her house. and also
r suggested another inducement which shall be
usmeless.
In brief the confession represents that while
the particular object Of entering the house was
robbery, he had no idea that murder WAS in.
tended, or would be found necessary, however
i may have been with the accomplice Other
circumstances indicate that tho accomplics
J foresaw the possibility OF having To resort to
/, this extreme wickedness, and provided the
means for il. In short that the plan was to
have the money anyway, and II he couli make
the women tell where u was and get away
without their recognizing the parties engaged
In the robbery. then the inmates were not to br
killed. But II they were recognized, then both
women were to be put out Of the way.
The negro proceed. at first To give an account
OF his movements Wednesday evening OF the
murder, substantially as already reported In
these columns. lie came 10 this city with Mr..
W. II. Keith's horse and sleigh, alone, visited
several friends, Obtained q pint bottle full of
vhiskey. and fortified himself with four drinks
during the evening, leaving this city to return
home. about D O'Clock, where hc arrived near
ten O'Clock. Mr.. Keith lives about half mile
beyond the place Of the murder. After taking
care of the horse he went to his room ut MIR.
Keitn's, and soon oil Was quiet In the house and
all peacefully sleeping but the negro who, ex
cited with the liquor. was awaiting the hour OF
midnight. appointed rs the time to execute the
bloudy work. The prisoner alleges that he
soon met his accomplce after leaving the house.
which he did steslthily. without making any
noise OF creating disturbance, In his stocking
feet, carrying his boots In his hands.
The parties (the confession goes On) at once
proceeded To the rear OF Mrs. Kinsley's house,
we'll aware that there, then, were only the two
old ladies, quietly and unsuspectlngly asleep
within, beside their little worldly treasure on
whose possession these birds OF prey were bent,
and understanding also in just what room they
slept.
On reaching the rear Of the house the negro
tore of q loose board from the privy, and at
tempted to Get in, but found the opening rath.
or small. lie then took OF his coat and threw
Il into the privy. and renewed his attempt with
better success. On reaching the iuterior he at
once proceeded to and unhasped the shell door.
and let in his accamplice, who, meantime, had
passed around to the front OF the shed.
The negro. after letting his accomplice into
the she'd. returned to find his cap, which he had
lctt IN ntlNys HhNluk " tu WIN utS
coat before crawling in. After fumbling about
. few moments he found IL. The privy rs may
here be said. rs win be seen by reference to the
plan, can be seen from the highway, being on
the end OF the shed and entered from Il.
Mean time, as the negro alleges, his accom-.
plice, armed with h,tchet and knife, he him.
self having no weapons. went ahead through
the rear entry door leading into the shed, into
the house. When the negro returned with his
cap, he passed through the doorsb b and d, which
had been opened by his accomplce. into the
Kitchen, and from thence through the door g
into the sitting room, where he heard proceed.
ing from the room |. where Mrs. Kinsley slept,
the door being open. the shrek and cry, POL
ly, Polly, come here" Polly being the given
name OF Miss Casuell, who Was sleeping In the
room X.
The acoomplice, mean time. seems to have
entered the room OF Mrs. Kinslcy, reaching IL,
Of course, from the shed, through the doors
above named, Of which the door, d, was the on
ly one fastened, undoubtedly opening that by
lifting Il up 10 as TO raise the latch above the
catch. II was so dark in the house that no OBJ
4 ject could be plainly discerned.
II may be mentioned here that the negro
states that the accomplice on reaching the sit
ting room, as the former afterwards ascertain
ed, laid his hatchct upon the lounge and pro-
ceeded At once to Mrs Kinsley's bed room OPP
ening into the sitting room, finding her peace
fully sleeping. Tie Immediately moved TO- her
bedside and seized her with his hands. just
then Il Was she shrieked and cried. "Polly,
Polly, como here" and the negro appeard on
the scene. .-.4
} As soon rs the shrieks were made and the
plan thus spoiled the scoomplicc seired chair
and struck Mrs. Kinsley with Il over the head.
demanding TO know where the money was. At
6rst Mrs. X. said that "her daughter had oil
the money with her down to lewiston" The
negro then appeared upon the stage, and the
demand Was repeated, when she indicated u
was at the head Of the bed. In closet in that
place.
The negro then opened the passage way door
leading from the bedroom into another room
at the right, and searched the passage way
In every part. but could find nothing. The
money Was really in q trunk on bureau In
this room beyond, and there was q second door
in the passage way opening directly into the
room. The negro missed II, supposing that
the passage way Was only closet, while II
Was both q passage way and olvsct. While
the negro was searching for the money, Polly
Cssweli. aroused by the cry, arose, came out
j into the sitting room, and proceeded tu the
mantle piece where she Was trying to light
lamp.
The accomp,cc. hearing Polly coming out,
left the bedside Of Mrs. Kinsley, the latter be-
ing partially insensble, and passing out of the
Ledroom-leaving the negro there--stealthily
tip.toed up behind Polly. who stood back to
by the mantel piece, and struck her on the
head with, as Is supposed, the hatchet. This
felled her to the floor, and the accomplce left
her. supposiDg she was dead. II was there
that the pool Of blool was found on tho a0or.
while the accompcc was disposing Of Miss
Caswell, Mrs Hiusley began to move. a.
though attempting to get out OF bel, when
the negro turned upon her and gave her .
heavy blow With the chair, which feled her
sen.eless hack upon her bed.
The sccompiice then returned to- the bed
room, and demand Was again made for the
, money, but no response was received. Mrs.
Kinsley Was still alive, but perhaps In . swoon.
Her pockets and closet were again searched.
while the negro was searching the closst the
aocomplioe was on the bed With the balf-dead
Mrs. Kin,ley, and what happened there the
negro docs not pretend to have personal
knowlelge of
Al this point, Polly, who had been left for
dead, by the mantle piece. was discovered up
and moving across the floor towards her room,
her white night clothes making her visible In
the DIN moonlight. The negro went out 10
{ tais care Of her, and seiiiug .. chair, struck
her and at last felsd her In the door-wa
where she was found.
Returning to Mrs. Kinsley's room, the negro
found that the accomplice bad made way with
Mrs. X. by s,abbing her in the neck. The ne
gro was then sent for light--all the transac-
tious detailed above having been In the dark.
lie proceeded to the kitchen, but In trying to
obtain match he upset the match. box, and i
, turned out that neither Of the murdercrs could
light = lamp Having sstished themselves OF
. this, after some immaterial incidents, they sat
down together upon the lounge in the sitting
room and talked over the money matter.
Alter sitting there shor, time, the negro
said, "It IL Of no use to stay here, We can't
, fpd the moneys" whereupon they both arose
anil left the house by the back door.
!. The negro asserts that when he entered the
house he had not the least idea that murder
was contemplated. but when the work was
! commenced he says. she did his part"
The negro says there was no attempt to hre
the buildings. The detective Vas satisfied pre-
, viousyifrom the inspection OF the pile of burnt
wood found in the phed, that II Was simply