The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1868-10-01
A WATER GAP TRAGEDY !
One man slain and another seriously
woundedl IA community In arms to
arrest the perpetrators !-Unbounded
excitement
DEL. WATER Gar, Saturday Sept. 26.

the kittatinny House, Delaware w ater zap. |
4 few minutes after that time a man came rush
ing up to the village of Dutotsburg calling for
help to 60 to the mountains in search of two
strange med who, he said, had shot and NOR
head. Very soon the road leading to the scene
was thronged With men fastening with any
weapons they could command to avenge the
blood of their fellow citizens. Your corrospon
dent was among that number. Reaching the
spot there was terrible picture to behold
There lay the lifeless form of Theodore Brod-
head 4 ball had pierced his side and the as
sins had done their work to him.
Thomas Brodhead sat, bleeding, his face al
most entirely covered with blood and wounds.
He was still able to speak. The murderers
had pcrpetrated their fiendish deed and fed
down the road towards the mountains. Armed
men, at once, organized themselves into squads
and set of, in various directions, to head off
the wretches. Every man i'll the neighborhood
in less than one hour was on the pursuit. So
thoroughly and so quickly the chase COM
menced that in two hours time the fellows found
themselves so cornered that they left the noun
tains and were discovered making for the west
side of Cherry creek. The creek CHANGED to be
bank full and one Of the men came very near
swamping in endeavoring to cross. At length
they were hemmed in on the opposite side of
the creek in a small strip of woods near the
place of Mr.. Alsop. At this point they SEEM
ed st first inclined 10 show fight by pointing
a pistol, but the Sheriff coming up, and finding
Themselves surrounded, they came out OF the
thicket, facing the guns pointed at them, and
gave themselves up. They were now taken to
the village, tue crowd increasing with every
moment When / first saw the criminals
remarked that they had younger appearance
than / expected. Some person in the crowd
observed that, they will not get much older"
At the village Judge Lynch was loudly and
repeatedly called for, and it was with the very
utmost exertion that the Sheriff kept the peo-
pie from tearing them away from him and
hanging or shooting them on the spot. There
ia no doubt that if they had been taken by any
other party in search of them they would have
been dead men forthwith.
|
away their pistols and had very little about
their persons, except some pocket knives, sto-
len from hardware store in Stroudsburg the
night before. Soon after their arrest carpet
bag was brought In from the mountains which
they had thrown away in their flight and
which contained various utensils such pro-
fessional burglars usually carry. AT length
they were marched off towards Stroudsburg
Jail, an armed band of citizens accompanying
the Sheriff, determined they should be well Sc
cured.
The fellows gave their names as William
Brooks and Charles Crme, one Scotch and
the other an Englishman. 1t seems they came
down the rail road from Stroudsburs and, Just
above Water Gap, seeing a village, nestled a.
gainst the hills thought there might be spec
ulation there suitable to their occupation, aim
ed for it. Coming up to the Brainard House
kept by Thomas Brodhead, they went in and
called for something TO drink, calling in two
or three people of the place who chanced to be
there. Mr.. BrOdhead was not at home at this
time. 1t is supposed they surveyed the prem
ises and determined to rob the place as soon "a
opportunity offered. All others having stepp-
ed ont, they broke open the drawer, took the
contents of monoy, some eight or ten dollars,
and left. Thomas Brodhead, coming home
soon after, found that there had been thieves
in his bar, and after inquiry got description
of these men, found they had gone towards the
Gap and set out in pursuit Of them, taking his
brother Theodore with him and some two or
three others. As it was about train time ii was
thought best to go by way Of the depot. 1t
was found they had not been there and he and
Theodore continued their walk towards the
Gap, none of the other men accompanying
Arriving at the Kittatinny House they found
two of the men who had been with the strange
ones at Thomas's and learned that the two he
was after had just gone towards the Gap. He
and Theodore followed ON when Just below the
stables they caught sight of the thieves. Thom-
as hurried on, running got before them, and,
taking hold Of them, told them they had rob-
bed his money drawer and must go back with
him. At first they refused, threw some money
down by the side of the road and told him there
was all they had. They afterwards pretended
to be willing to go back and stepping aside a
pace or two one of them drew pistol aiming
at Theodore, ~ he was approaching. Theo-
dorc said, you better not shoot" or, you dare
not shoot when he drew the weapon on Thorn
as the ball taking effect in a thick package of
letters in his coat pocket and thus saving his
life. Immediately the revolver was drawn on
Theodore again and he fell, the ball entering
his right side passing through both lungs, the
heart and almost severing the main blood chan
mel through the heart After the first shot
Thomas, supposing himself mortally wounded,
sprung for his adversary, determined TO hold
him till help arrived, as he was calling "mur-
der" at the top Of his voice. Whilst thus in
close contest one or more shots were fired which
merely grazed his head by watchful lodging
The men were continually prompting each
other on in their deadly work when il was
found their pistols were empty. With these
they then hammered his head until one told
the other to get stone and pound out his
brains. Weakened and over-powered, Thomas,
at last, released his hold when the murderers
ran rapidly down the road leading through the
Gap.
At this writing Thomas is not thought to be
wounded. The excitement is in
tense. Our quiet community was never start
led with an affair so tragic and so sad
A, b. B.
DEL. WATER GAP Sunday Sent 27