The sun., 1873-12-27
srE rRAGEDY ~ THE PINES.
Farmer Murders his Wife and Four CHI
dreu-rheu Cuts h'a Thrunt with an Axe
A Wan who tnd Lost all Hope.


wooDsru,K, Dec. 21.-Ycs:yrdiy GUY usu-
ally quiet town was moved To- f. arful state q
excitement 10y feuor that Timothy iolping.
farmer living IN West Oxford. and known by
nearly every person here, had Killed his VIE
AID four children. and then cut his own throat.
The story wa too appalin. !" be, ,,cd'tc IL @nd
secured was brought into rcqWsitiOn, and hum
drcds visited the scene ol crime To- see aud learn
the particulars. The distance Is Cigit I.iles
from " oud stock anu three from Swoab ~, On =
ridge of land called The Pines If West OK
furl The land was formerly covered with nine
timber but apparently Ire has run through Il;
ard now uuthin- r"WuiLs hut pine stuWps and
half decayod tiu"cr IL h. ore of the ruu1heet
farms III the county. ale house Is frame and
Topping Is The Youngest s,n Ola large family
Of tI.t name. was born H,4t here. and l. nov
about forty years of age. His wife was dauCli-
ter Of the late Adam Dodge, who was one of tie
pioneer setts rs Of the township aud whose ntl-
ncrous brothers and sisters are settled In the
neghhorhoud aud IN good circumstances. Top
ping sold an old cleared fam few years ago,
ANA moved further south to the new place mem
toned, hoping to ! ettcr his circumstances. but,
~ he remarked toa friend lately, TO whom he
lehihd every year, aud he was afraid his wife
ana family would vet come to beggary and
starvati. He has two sons, about twenty To
twcntv-twu wears old 70 whom he Entrusted the
work on the farm, and he attended to the duties
Of ausiionccr. and once or twice as assessor or
collector for the township. lie belonged to
sect that believe. or at least profess 10 believe
that there Is neither reward nor punishment be-
yond the grave. Hence, without the fear
Of God before his eyes, he felt IL to he hls
duty to place hs helpless wife aud family
beyond the possibility of starvation here. and
his only regret now is that he failed to eject
his purpose Ia killing two more. whom he
suprosos cannot provide for themselye-.
During the ua.t wcrk he seemed TO be brood
ins over .uucthiug that trOuhled him, md it .e
sli pos, q that be- did not ~ To- bed during the
ght About O'clock ON SUNDAY morning tie
three eldest sons and a daughter about |, veat-
years old, who were sleeping up stair. were
awakened 10y something; they supposed i was
their mother, calling suddenly, Buts.' and
nothing more was heard 10y tht m, but on pro-
CCedIng To- the head Of the stairs they saw their
father coming up with knife IN his hand
which they succeeded In Wrestling from him
Ia the mean time a hoy of ~, who was.tU hc his
next victim. sprang down the ladder aud ran
caught up the axe and given chase. hut furtu-
u1tcly fIr the boy he was -wiftcr Of foot. flnd-
ing hat ihc boy had escaped and the other in-
tending victim was guarded by her brothers, he
drew the sharp edge II the axe across his own
throat, and would have completed his bloody
WORK, bus the sons were TOO quick Tor him.
Having snltched the axe awny aud secured bis
arms be w'S Ilsced IN = chaE aud guarded ~
three Constahlcs. where lac still sat when seen by
me at o'clock. lis winGp!pe was cut 50 that
he could not speak: hut he cmpluycd himself
all day In that rlnodv condition writing with a
pencil. lie cNp.cs~ed u desire TO have a certain
lawyer bro ught flum lug,rsoll to make his W III.
During tho holding 9f tie inquest ~ las pros
e"cc. I'm rc'iv 20 questions, he sta ed in wiring
tAl' hc was not sorN for what he had done but
regretted that Lr hAd failed to VII the other
two. Mat ht thought TIE two cliDs' could do
lor themselves, aId did not iutcHd TO todch
them. In one corner of the room stands a bed
- "a, CON which t. two mui deied Lirls were
l'ft hy the lrufal father. having driven thc sharp
axe into the hrt' Of each. On atruudle he'd
laN the Tvs, boys. DO" Youngest. a-ed tive, with
his mead severed f.um bis body; the other,
eleven year ulI. WITH his bead hall cut In two.
Ia the adj inng room lsy the wife, with her
head su ltti.alN s'sned that te,ulntlon even
, bv her friends would I've di9l'ult The most
siCkeular s-ht of all was the criminal. sitting
upright in a chair, with his head Clotted with
blood ami M hI- ctuf uos saturated. hole So large
In his throat that the cavity Il the wiuupipc was
Ct-ccrnt de-. Ills breath c~rdicd through the
aperture, ard srfi ulution YVES imposs ole. \
humber of doctors were Ia attendance, and
when lcit were proceeding tu SOW up the gap
with some confidence uf ~aiiu- life Grcai
sympathy l. toh for the connections OF the
wrtchrt family, vino ar" Industrious and re-
I FlertaUle.