The New York herald., 1869-03-10
THE MURDER IN sIxTY-sIXTn STREET.


OF Eliza Callahan, who was found dead ON Sunday
morning In one or the shantes on Stxty-sixth street
between Eighth and Ninth avenues. The particu
lars Of the finding OF the body the marks Of violence
which II exhibited and the arrest OF John Hilbst
German, with whom she lived, on suspicion 0i
having caused her death, have been reported
IN the HERALD. The prisoner was present
and evinced very little interest In the proceedings
their final result, duplicating him as murderer. A
man Of more forbldding and positively revolving fea
lures Is very rarely 70 be seen His coarse matted
hair hung In straggiing locks on his forehead black
and blue bruises covered his face and his dress
ragged and dirty. Among the witnesses was q son
Of heprisoner, Q boy giving his age eleven. but
hooking younger. Such an unkempt boy, 80 shock
headed, 30 raggedly dressed, so precoc0us In ex-
preston and SO pertinaciously unyieldihg in de-
tending his father against the imputaton OF the hor
ribe crime with which he Is charged finds hardly q
parallel In al the cons OF Dickens in his descrip-
tons OF life among the iowly. The following Is the
testimony and the verdict In the case:
Margaret May was the first witness called and de-
posed as follows:-I live In Sixty-sixth street. be-
shanty occupied by John Hilbat and the deceased !;
there are about three feet between the house they
the deceased and know the prisoner; on Sunday
morning between 1ve and six O'Clock, little Josey,
the prisoners son, Knocked on one OF my windows
and called out two or three times. mrs.
May, Eliza is dead;" my husband and my
sefs got out OF bed and dressed ourselves; niy
husband let the boy In, and asked him how IL
could be she was dead, as he saw her on the avenue
the day before; then the prisoner came in and said,
..Yes, Eliza Is dead; over for Gods sake and
see her;n we all went INTO the house; the deceased
was lying on the noor by the bed, all cramped up;
par caped u between me III table,
O. Did you see any blood on her A. There were
marks OF blood on her face; near her head
there was blood on this bottle; 1t was
a square pint bottle; there blood ON 1t and also
some hair; close by the bottle was part OF broom;
the accused asked me TO sweep the room, which
did; in the forehouse or passage way was stick OF
w o1f Of wood about ou feet ona and tRre
inches mick produced and shown to the jury; there
was smaller piece q wood near by, also spattered
were al IN disorder; ne asked me to fix the bed,
which did.
Q. Did you see any blood on the noors A. Near
her was large spot OF blood on the noor and other
smaller blood spots. The reason he gave for asking
bad Ksny one should come In to see her. The prs-
oner and my husband raised the deceased from The
noor and put her on the bed. washed nothing He
asked me TO wash her face and said could not do
IT, He then asked my husband to wash her face,
which he did with the corner Of o wet towel.
the death Of the deceaseds <. He said that when
ne got up he saw her lying on the noor and that he
get up, when he found that she was dead.
Q. Did the boy say ANYTHING aboutits A. He said
that he heard her outside the house. that II was very
late and that she was very drunk and he helped her
inQb the house; there are ten persons living In my
house; my husband and went 10 bed about six
though was awake once during the night; /
heard no one in my house say they had heard any
noise; the hast time saw the deceased alive was at
three O'Clock on Sunday afternoon; she was pretty
well intoxlcated; had been out on the avenue with
to the house she was n the habit Of
getting drunk frequently; sometimes two or three
tunes week; he has been in the habit OF getting
drunk about as often; IL seemed to be q partner
ship arrangement; sometimes he would beat her
and sometimes she would beat him; this was q
Tied but lived together as man and wife; am no
relation by blood or marriage TO the prisoner.
went TO beda A. No; drank but lr three or four
times during the day, that was all; am . pretty
sound sleeper; my husband was pretty drunk; saw
e s Mr. and asy s Dss
the deceased; she corroborased the testimony
Of the prisoner and the prisoner comini
70 the house anu telling OF the death OF the deceased
the night; she had been frequently woke up BY ths
noise OF their nghting at night the prisoner sait
that u Mrs may would , sweep up the noor he and
band and the wife OF the prisoner, who died some
years ago, were cousins.
cinct, testified that about six O'Clock on sunday
morning Martin May came up TO HIM on the corner
that woman was dead in Sixty-sixth street, Mr..
May said that he believed the woman had been mur-
dered, ne went u the house immediately: every-
thing had been arranged in the room; the prisoner
his son and Mrs. May were there; under the centre
Of the bed was large blood stain; there were two
other stains the foot the wall also spatered
covered with shawl; ne saw the bottle the broom
thai each had blood and hair them; he looked ali
round tue house and saw no blood stains anywhere
the prisoner told him thar he knew nothing OF the
cause OF the death OF the deceased; all he knew was
that he woke up and wanted her TO make the re and
found dead he arrested the prisoner and took him
nnnf ffyd hlu,
that between ten and eleven O'Clock the evening
previous he heard the deceased outside and took her
faIher asked her to get Ia bed with him which she
refused.to do. The boy also testified that she was
drunk and bleeding when he br ught her INTO the
Captain Helme, Of the Thirty FIRST precinct testi-
Ned that he was at his station house few minutes
pastseight O'Clock on Sunday morning. when officer
BooIey brought IN the prisoner and told him OF the
death OF Mrs Callahan In Sixty-sixth street under
with dicer Ron and saw the deceased and examined
the premises; her face was badly bruised and
been be sten he found the large stick referred 20
standinls by the stove and, there among blood and
ha On - oa rnapse 0, ~ aus ~ also the piece OF
ance OF wing been recently wiped up; seeing some
rubbish p; vty covered up in the entrance he found
q coat roA ed up, which, on examination, he found
jury; Mrs. May told INN tnat she only swept the the
room and we'd no water on It; Mrs. Fancher how.
ever. told b. IN az the station house that Mrs. May
did wipe up the floor; he examined all about the
house, on the lOcks ana tue inherent approaches u
the house. ant found no marks OF blood whatever.
Joseph IIilpa q, the OF the deceased, was next
sworn after sa usfying the Coroner that he under
stood the natu. Of an oath. He testified a. fol
lows:-I am ele, ren years old and OF Mr. Hllbai
came home ab, nut seven O'Clock on Saturday even
ing: there was n one In the house but father and
E1za; my fatnei was In bed; Eliza was sitting Dy
the window on chair and was scoldinQ the nexi
door man: she cal ed him Jacobs Ladder. you son
OF b-h;r she tn en shortly went out and went
10 bed; she came b. vck at eleven O'Clock
q. How did yJ know what time Il was
A. I heard tho c COX next door strike eleven
went out and sal, ELIZA. get up aad come
in;, she gave no al Swer, and ! took her by the
with my help; | saw b Vod on her.
q. Was II light oul stheref A. The moon wa:
shining.
father after helped hel IA the room and he asked
her get into the bed " got In the bed but soor
got out on the moor aud Ia there.
O. DID your father str tse herr A. He did moi
lay hand on her. she fell on the sticks ant
that was the way the bio - got ON them; wher