Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1872-03-29
A RELIGIOUS MANIAC AND MUIR
DER,
\ HORRIBLE TRAGEDY

in that vicinity by II religious maniac named
Leonard Marguardt, and his wife. They
carried four of their children 10 the woods
and murdered them, and then returned to
the hous ;, Where the husband murdered
his wife. The journal has this account:
TIE unhappy wretch told long story
about his discussion with his wife about
witches, God and the devil. He said she
| urged him to take fire to the woods, and
burn the clock and looking-glasses on it
| because God had told her to. She had
| taken things from her relations Cher father
died several years ago. which she thought
bewitched, and wanted them burned. She
told him that bundle of rags were her
mother, and insisted that she be
burned i'll a crock. He knew God-in
whom he " believed had not ordered
these things to bc burned, because they
weuldn'C burn. Meantime the children got
to believing in witches. They said that
their mother taught them so, and they per-
suaded him that he could catch the witches
| in his hands and squeeze them to death
s'Mary,'' he said, ''wOuld ask three times
OF God, and she got an answer all right
If she didn't, then it was the devil; when
tie devil answered then l would quit, and
say it was foolery. Then Mary would get
mad, but l couldn't have had better wife.
We were both kind to each other through
all this foolery.' The pathos of this poor
| fellow in this recital was extremely touch
ing, especially when he wept over ''Mary
was good wife, couldn't have a better,
didn't tend to Kill her, but did" Then
he went on to describe a wild dance they
had to kill witches; how they killed them;
then that Mary had hallucination that
she ought to cut off his head that she took
knife and cut through his neck-handker-
chief into his skin until he bled, when she
said that his neck was hard as iron, and
that God didn't intend that his head should
! be cut off. ooh, how we hOllered!' said
the poor lunatic. Then we butted our
heads against the wall, and l told Mary to
hit me on the head with a Ratchet. She
did, but it didn't do any good. ltWas sore
next day, but is well now This was last
week, sometime. The poor fellow could
not remember. cit seemed to me-" he
said ''that as Mary couldn't cut my head
off with sharp knife when [ told her to
cut away that nothing could kill me.
felt that as long as | believed in God Al
mighty nothing could hurt me. l did be-
lieve III Him. | read my Bible day and
night, land l believed in God Almighty
with all my SOUL"
The LAST DAY.
We inquired about the children again.
He said they believed in witches as strongly
as Mary did. They were not afraid of him,
but always when he came home they met
with a shout; but Mary would have spells.
! On Friday last she went to bed and laid as
if she Were dead, and he could not arouse
her. She said she saw vision of her own
coffin and the collins OF the children, but
not his. She said the end was soon coming.
| She did not understand it. He did not
want her to 90 to heaven without him !;
g but if God Almighty said so it must be
so.' She had one Of these spells. She went
to bed and would not get up. He thought
she was dead. She did not feed tie chill
dren and would not have 4 fire. They
both set up in bed nearly all night. Some
times he would get up and read the Bible.
In the morning she would have fire. He
told her he was ''tired of this foOlery." and
if She did not quit it he would leave her
and never come back; but, he added pa
thetcally, 81 told her she should have every
cent | had i'll the world; | would not have
taken five cents from her for millions, fer
she was a good wife to me. | could not
have found Il better one in all the world.
MaTquardt went on to say that on that
day, Saturday, - was a little against her,
but didn't quarrel with her. We didn't
quarrel. We only argued about God AL
mighty, the devil and witches. She had
got to thinking that she was witch, that
the children were witches, and that witch
eS should be killed. The oldest child said
she was a witch All the children said
mamma did it Caught them), but they
wouldn't say that had any thing to do
with it, unless Nary (his Wite) touched
Them" Then Marquardt would go off
again i'll his wild way, praising the good
ness of his wife. lie said he made the fire
burn Notwithstanding Mary said it would't,
and after awhile Mary got up and uilllod
tie cows. Then he went to reading his
Bible and got to crying and then another
talk with Mary, when he went over to his
neiGhbOr, Jack Yields, and told his trou-
bic. Mr.. Weld seems to have understood
Marquardt's situation, and tried to pacify
him, but was unsuccessful. At half-past
nine o'clock Saturday night Marquardt
said that he was at another neighbours
house, Dir. Millcr's and that Mrs. Miller,
without any fire, got linn boiling hot cup
OF coffee i'll less than two minutes. " How
she did it, Mister" lie said, :" without fire
nobody but God Almighty could tell. But
as my wife couldn't cut my throat off with
a sharp knife | knew that hot coffee nor
poison couldn't kill me, so l drank the cOf-
fee, and they looked at me in astOnish-
ment. Then the maniac went on to de-
scribe that at ten o'clock he would be
afraid to go home but as it was only half
past nine there was 10 danger. He started
off, saying, " when got out of the yard
shouted to God Almighty to strengthen me.
| had four miles to 90, Mister. Sometimes,
sir, it was so dark L couldn't see an inch.
Then again it was as light as day. l got
into creek half-leg deep, but L knew God
, Almighty was with me, and | was safe"
THE TRAGEDY.
81 finally got home. l had big bull
dog there to keep thieves away. lie never
had been cross to me before, but somehow
he fought me. L seized him by The jaws,
as Samson caught the lion, and tore open
! his jaws. L knew he couldn't hurt me.
called on God Almighty to strengthen me.
, | almost tore the mouth Of the dog open.
He scratched my hands little with his
+ paws. But he was conquered. | gave
, him kick and he left me. | went into
the house and told Mary we had better 60
to the woods with the children. She took
One--I took two. | sat npOn the fence
when she gave me the child he had. |
, held them in my arms tight (shOwing how
=; he embraced them,) and told her to 60
! back to the house for the other two. We
were going to heaven. ] knew We had to
go by the straight and narrow path. There
IS a thorny path in the woods. This is
s the straight way. | went with the chill
dren that way, and dropped them as l
went. l do not know how the children
= came to die. [ went to the pond, took of
= my clothes, and sat down in it naked.
e Mary was at the fence, but after a while
a she came to me naked and sat down in the
2 mud and water with me. She said she
coldnt find the other two children (the
: poor things, frightened almost to death,
e were concealed under the bed) they had
e gone somewhere. 1 told Mary it was very
| cold,and she had better go to the house. She