The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1873-03-15
An Unprotected Woman Brutally Beaten
to Death and Her Throat Cut.
MRS. MATHEWS CRUEL FATE.
The Arrest, Trial, Sentence and
Execution of the Wretch.
A STRANGE CONFESSION.
Osborne Declares That He Was Hired to Put
Mrs. Mathews Out Of the Way.
GALEsBuRG. H., March IA, 1873.

GALEsBuRa, Ill.,, March IL, 1873
| AS your correspondent writes these words ILL
nois IS less popul0us by two than she was few
minutes ago, for legal hemp has cut short the
| career at almost the same moment OF the same
mid March day of George Driver. of Chicago
brutal wife murderer, and q still more heartless
wretch, John Marion Osborne, who to robbery
added rape, and sought to cover both by murder.
No eye but the eye of Him who sees all behed the
scene of horror, the piteous appeal for mercy, the
| crime which followed and the criminals flight, but
dumb witnesses rose everywhere from the foot
| prints OF the assassin as dragons are tabled to
| have sprung from the split blood in NEUROLOGICAL
fable, and in eloquent silence denounced him, and
| handed him bound hand and foot in circumstan-
stantial tolls which he could not break to the I'M
reenting minister of Justice
THE CRIME AND HOW COMMITTED.
The crime of which Osborne was convicted
just q month ago was characterized by fea-
lures Of peculiar atrocity. Its victim was
Mrs. Adelia Matthews, married woman, who
| lived with her husband near Osborne's house, not
far from Yates City, in this county. Osborne was
also married, and had worked with and for Mr..
Matthews, so that he knew the latter's habits and
the ways of the house. On Monday, the 5th of
| August last, Mr.. Matthews left home early in the
morning, leaving his wife alone IN the house, in
tending to return in the evening. When ne came
| back he was surprised to find the house showing
| no signs of occupation. The blinds were drawn at
all the windows and all was silent. On opening
the door he could neither see nor hear his wife.
! The table was set for two and the teapot stood
| on the stove in the kitchen, which latte
was unusual circumstance, as neither Mr.
| Matthews nor his wife used tea. Prosecuting his
search further, Mr.. Matthews descended to the
cellar where his eyes fell upon sight that froZe
| his blood with horror. On the earth floor OF the
cellar lay the lifeess corpse Of Adelia Matthew'S
his wife, her clothing terribly torn and dlsOrdered
and the clay around her soaked into bloody mre
by the lfe-current that ebbed from her throat and
skull, and with its peculiar oder tainted the sultry
August air. There were numerous marks In the
soft cayey floor, which showed that struggle had
taken place. Two deep indentatons marked the
spots where the murdered woman resisting vio-
lently the wretch who sought her honor and her
life, had been dashed to the earth, and
NUMEROUS FOOTPRINTS,
oil made by one pair OF boots, and very clearly de-
fined, visible afrOrding possibly, clue to the
assassin. Mrs. Matthew'S person had been vio-
! lenty outraged, her legs and body were COW
| cred with blood, her undercl0thing was soaked
with blood and torn into tatters, and her skirts
| were thrown over her head and face When, how
ever, composed by decent hands more CHASTITY
sight was revealed, for the woman's skull had been
beaten in and her throat cut from car to ear. On
searching the house some money was found to
have been stolen. Footprints corresponding with
those on the cellar floor were discovered without,
in the soil Of cOrnneld, leading towards Osborne's
house. This faint clue was reinforced by one still
sllghter-the presence Of the teapot on the stove;
for Osborne, who was just recovering from an at
tack of Illness had been ordered by his doctor to
drink tea.
THE MURDERER TRACKED
Mr.. Matthews at once gave the alarm, and ar
rangemsnts were made to beat the country next
day in search of the murderer. Early next morn
ing Tuesday) he proceeded to Osborne's house
and Knocked. Osborne came to the door and
asked what was up. care the horses out in the
corn a' he asked, in apparent surprise and uncon-
cern "Worse than that,n said Mr.. Matthews
."My wife has been murdered" 'Pshaw. man."
said Osborne, "that can't be. You must either
be crazy or drunk" and he laughed nervously
Mr.. Matthews reiterated his statement, and asked
him to come to his house. This Osborne
promised to do II he felt well enough He was
there by half-past SIX and offered to join IN the
pursuit. lie would not enter the house and
look upon the corpse. The eye Of the murderer
could not meet that OF his victim, which would,
like the crown of the blood bothered Banquo's Is
sue, scar his eyebas.
TELI-TALE MARKS.
Meanwhile Mr.. Matthews had communicated his
Mr.. Craig, had at an early hour hidden behind
fence at osborne's house, and from his con-
ment seen Mrs. Osborne washing out p O.
coorcd shirt. Then he had secured one orc
boots and tried 1t in some twenty or thir
footprints left by the murderer IN the C
and in the slough without The boots
and lifted exactly into the tell-tale
seemed to warrant Osborne's arreF'
upon Osborne little south Of Mac
hailed him to stop and SAID
Osborne, arrest you. You
"What forf' said the mur' tart
which he could not repress.
'for the murder OF Mrs. Piled Mr.
"Why, am out looking an" said Os-
borne, suddenly becoming
Thus the law laid Its han ~ the murderer.
THE TRIAI
took place in the second week OF February, at
Galesburg, in the Grand opera House; An An, i'm i'm
utmost excitement prevailed throughout the com
ydep 9Ss c Dns
Craig; the defence BY Mr. Humphrey and
Mr.. G. w. Kreitsinger. The evidence for the prose-
The defence failed signally in an attempt to &C.
count for the prisoners time on the fatal day, and
, stant,a evidence on general principles, reading
the sensational cases in the law books, &c. The
tRetc, probably the most powerful appeal to Jury
ever delivered In Illinois; but the verdict OF
guilty after long trial, was as rendered si and
q the scafYold.
|, THE EVIDENCE
= | adduced for the people showed that at eleven
) O'Clock on the day of the murder Mrs. Rhodes saw
Osborne pass her house, proceeding in the direction
|, | OF Mr.. Mathews residence. He was in his shirt
9 sleeves and wore q light-colored shirt. She had
: sold him the boots which he wore. They fitted the
/; ! tracks exactly.
:; Miss Cora Kendall saw Osborne pass her house
; | about three O'Clock.
!, Mrs West saw Osborne between three O'Clock
!, | and hafpast three, on the day OF the murder He
; came in direct line from an unoccupied mouse
; the Corbin house, some eighty rods distant, ana
/: asked for a drink OF water. He drank some and
!, poured three or four cups on his hands and wrls
h bands which he washed and rubbed. He seemed
/; agitated and looked pale.
!: Mr. Craig saw Osborne on the Monday afternoon
}, Mt the depot, near Mrs. Vests house, about half
!, mast three z. M. lie was Walking on the Platform