The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1873-01-23
A BELGIAN TRAGEDY.
A Strange and Startling Story--HorriJle
Domestic CriBae-A Mtrderer's Con-
tessior Of HIS Shocking Brodaliy-
A Father Deliberately Murders
HIS Wife and Child,

The assizes at Limbourg are now en-
gagged in the trial of man named Van
derzande for the murder of his wife, his
sister-in-law and his son, a boy of eleven.
The crime took place at the quiet little
hamlet Of Brock. in the commune of
Jesseren. The victims were found bru-
tally murdered in their night clothes,
early on Sunday morning. Suspicion
Immediately fell on Vanderzande, who is
a farm lab0rer. The prisoner led Il very
steady life until a few months ago, when
he conceived a violent passion for
servant girl named Rosalie Awonters.
This gave rise to family quarrels, and he
then took to drinking, and was often
heard to wish his wife and sister-in-law
''out of the way, in order that he might
inherit their savings and marry the girl
in question. Vanderzande at first denied
the crime, but his clothes, stained with
blood, being found hidden in field, he
ultimately confessed everything.
A little after midnight, ''savs he, |
returned home. | tapped at the window
of our bedroom, from which my wife
always gave me the key of the house.
This time she replied that | should not
enter, that it was too late, and that | had
better return to where | had come from.
Annoyed by this answer, | sat down in
the garden till two in the morning. |
then broke a pane of the window which
leads out to the garden and opened it.
! entered the house and lay down on the
bed by the side of my wife. | had not
undressed myself | remained there
about half an hour. My wife did not
cease annoying me-. She reproached me
with my drunken habits and my relations
with Rosalie. Losing my temper, | got
up to leave the house, when my wife
followed me. | seized hold of my gun
and knocked her down with the butt end.
then took up knife that was on the
/ table and cut her throat. During this
scene, which lasted about two minutes,
nv sister in-law, Marie Spalman, aroused
/ by the noise, got up, wrapped herself in
| Il blanket, and came out OF her room into
ours. l struck her twice on the head
with the gun; then in the heart with the
knife, and then when she fell, cut her
throat as l had cut my wife's. My sister
in-law defended herself most energeti-
cally, and had great difficulty in killing
/ her. This scene lasted for about five
minutes.
While this was going on, my son had
put on his trousers and boots, and tried
TO rush out of the house to shout for as
sistance. l pushed him back, either
with my gun or the knife don't know
which He then turned to me, and
urged me to give him time to pray. He
was bleeding. l asked him ii he bled
much. He replied in the affirmative
| then seized him by the hair and cut his
/ throat also. Had he not been wounded,
/ | should not have killed him. | left the
three dead bodies, and went up stairs
/ into the bedroom, where the chests of my
sister-in-law and wife were kept. | opened
and searched them in vain. l know that
my sister-in-law had a good deal of money
and that she had made her will in my
favor. Rosalie did not encourage me to
commit the crime. had long the inten-
ton of robbing my sister-in-law, but the
idea of numbering her and my wife only
came into my mind about week before
I executed it. | intended to marry the
servant girl. did not want to kill my
son. The prisoner related these details
of the crime with the utmost GOODNESS.
The trial was not over when the steamer
/ left.