The Portland daily press., 1869-11-29
DAILY PRESS.
Monday Morning, November 40, 1869.
The Assassination of Albert d. aicha,d
PORTLAND.

The Assassinaiion of Albert ID. Richard
MR. RICHARDSON'S VERSION OF HIS RELA-
TIoNs WITH MRS. MCFARLAND.
The following is an account of the assas-
sination of Albert d. Richardson from the
New York Tribune of Friday:
AT about 1-2 o'clock Yesterday afternoon,
Mr.. Albert ID. Richardson, an old and valued
dttache oil the Tribune, we'll known TO the
country as one of the war CORRESPONDENTS of
that paper during the rebellion. and as the
author of beyond the Mississippi" and 9th
er works, was fired upon and shot in the pub
lication office of the Tribune by Daniel Nc
Farland. Mr.. Mcfarland, it appears, had been
in the office about an hour before Mr.. Rich
ardson's arrival, and seemed to have known
that the latter would call at or about o'clock.
at the time of Mr.. Richardson's entrance in
to the room, Mcfarland was standing behind
the desk opposite the right hand door open
ing on Nassau street, and was therefore con-
cealed from view. Mr.sRichardson, entirely
unconscious OF the danger impending over
him, and ignorant of the presence of McFar~-
land, advanced to the lower end of the coun-
ter, and asked for his letters. Between him
and Mcfarland, and outside the counter, a
gentleman was reading the paper, or search
ing the pages of the Directory. AS Mr. Rich
ardson leaned over toward the desk of the
advertising clerk, Mcfarland rushed from his
hiding place, raised his pistol, and aiming di-
rectly over the head of the stranger at Mr..
Richardson, fired. The ball entered the body
of the victim at point midway between the
breast and the abdomen, and lodged in the
stomach. The wounded man turned, aud for
the first time saw his assailant Without
speaking a word he walked to the Spruce
street door, thence into the street, ard up
four flights of stairs to the editorial rooms,
where he quietly lay down upon a sofa,
called a gentleman to him. remarked that he
was badly wounded, and asked to have
a surgeon sent for at once. In few minutes
a physician arrived, and Mr.. Richardson was
removed to the Astor House. So apparently
unmoved was he on leaving the publication
room, that the fact of his being wounded was
not known to the clerks until the arrival OF
the surgeon. In the meantime Mcfarland
had escaped. Detectives was put upon his
track, and at 10 o'clock he was arrested at the
corner Of Irving-place and Sixty-Seventh
street, by Capt. Allaire of the Fourth Pre-
cinct, and Detective Finn, who at once car
ried their prisoner to the room OF the wound
| ed man, at the Astor house. On being asked
whether the prisoner was the man who shot
him, Mr.. Richardson answered quickly in the
affirmative, and Mcfarland was then taken
to the Fourth Precinct Station House, and
locked up.
The trouble which led to this unfortunate
occurrence dates back to the spring of 1867,
when Mr.. Richardson occupied rooms in the
same house in which Mrs. Mcfarland, wife of
Daniel Mcfarland, was boarder. The lady
was member of theatrical company, and
was az this time living on bad terms with her
husband.
Mr.. Richardson frequently escorted Mrs.
Mcfarland home from the theatre in which
she was employed; and this fact, coupled
with the desire OF his wife to be separated
from him infuriated Mcfarland. On the eve
ming of the 18th of March, 1867, as Mr.. Rich
ardson and Mrs. Mcfarland were returning
| to the clearinghouse, they were met by Mr..
Mcfarland, who, without word of warning,
drew pistol and fired, the shot taking effect
| in Mr.. Richardson's thigh. The affair created
some excitement at the time, but as the
wound did not prove fatal, and as it was not
| deemed advisable to give the matter more
| publicity the assassin was not molested.
| Long after Mr.. Richardson's recovery, Mr..
Mcfarland asked for an insertion of his YER
sion of the difficulty in the Tribune. The re-
quest was granted. Mr. Richardson, few
days later, published in reply card. McFar-
land in his statement claimed that he had al
ways been a kind, affectionate and gen.
erous husband, but that Richardson Sc
duced the affections of his wife from
him and enticed her from his home. Mr.
Richardson's rejoinder to this embraces sue
| cnct account of his relations to the assassin
and his wife. He says:
| Both allegations against me arerutterly and
preposterously false. These are the facts I:
l. With the full sanction OF her family and
| friends, Mrs. Mcfarland left her husband,
| charging him with gross cruelty during his
| paroxyisms OF intemperance; with negecting
| to support her, and with living upon and
sometimes squandering her own hard-won
earnings The charge OF ill-treatment did
not rest solely upon her statements, but stood
and yet stands, explicitly admitted in his own
| handwriting, and over his own signature,
long before l knew either of them. That will
| appear, in due time, before the proper tribu-
nal At their last interview, in presence ol
several witnesses, she distinctly announced
that the separation was final and irrevocable,
i and he as distinctly acquiesced. 2. After this
formal and final separation, and while she
was beginning life anew, with two little chill.
| dren dependent upon her, it came to be un-
derstood between her and myself that when
ever she should be legally free she was TO be-
| come my wife. Several of my friends and
several OF hers were acquainted with the fact
3. About three weeks after the separation
Mcfarland intercepted a letter from me tc
her-such letter as one would naturally
write to the woman he expected to mar
ry. Mcfarland claimed that it "fren.
zied him." but there was method, moi
to say deliberation in his "frenzy." In
stead of meeting me face to face he kept
this letter in his pocket three days, and finally
at IL o'clock on dark, rainy night, crept vi
behind me in the street, and with his revolver
within fourteen inches of my back, began Il
shoot. Before he could fire the fourth shot,
succeeded in throwing him to the ground
where held him until the police came pp
and secured him. One ball only took effect
keeping me in bed for a week. refrained
from prosecuting him partly because knew
had been rash, but chiefly to withhold the
lady's name from an additional and unavoida
BILE publicity. A. For weeks and months aftel
this, he earnestly sought to induce her TO re-
turn to her "kind" and affectionate husband
Finding this hopeless, he seems since TO have
devoted himself chiefly to slandering her, anC
reading an alleged copy OF my letter, witt
many dramatic accompaniments, to every ac-
quaintance or stranger who will listen to il
Sometimes he ends his tale: "And now, aftel
all, don't believe the scoundrel will eve
marry herr' But his common peroration i
that if ever do, he will kill me ION sight,
Finally, he has brought suit against me fo
civil damages, rating the money value OF hi:
wounded affections at $4,000! that at least
| ought to prove some equivalent for being de
prived of the "affectionate" privilege ofstrik
ing a helpless woman in the face, or terrifying
her with a brandished knife, and baffled in the
Temperate" act of stealing up in the darl
behind an unarmed man and shooting him IN
the back.
Whatever the intercepted letter really con
tains, he would better print it, and save him
self the trouble of many future readings an,
declaimings. / wrote 1T for but one person
yet did write it, and propose to stand b
it. Whatever fault there was in holdin
such an attitude toward a lady who had yer
recently separated from her husband wa
wholly mine, and l shall not try to palliate Il
Whatever sum twelve unbiased men ma
determine that l owe this "good" and stem
perate antagonist" / shall with alacrity pa
it, it 1t comes within my modest means. And
finally, whatever violence he may rethreatel
or reattempt, should the lady ever be iegah
free during my lifetime. she Will certalny oe
come my wife, if she will aeeep1 % ~ orp poor
New York, March IL, 1Soo.
S;noo that time, Mcfarland has been hearC
cnmantiv 70 threaten that when the oppor
Siitv offered he would kill Mr.. Richardson
,'.,t Within the past year, both before ant
s;Tce his trip to the West, he has often com
. ;n contact with Mcfarland who has neve
once in his presence manifested the slightes
desire to molest or injure him. Six week
ago, Mrs. McFarland-through her counsel
- A ~ d. a T.. rs IL.