Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1880-09-21
MURDER IN PORTLAND
Man Kills His wife Became sh.
Him.

oaturaay night a tradgedy occurred :, po..
'anu only surpassed in shocking details NV ,,,.
""roer OF Williams by Prescott two ..o,-.
ago. The murderer was Holm c.o
sailor The deed was committed at tho
ooardins house of Mrs Roberts. corner n.
Free and Centre streets, between 3 and a
CLOCK, and the criminal was in the hands ..
the police few moments after. The m,r-
uer mad hardly been perpetrated before a
great crowd gathered. The following are
the leading facts in the case:
ohortly after o'clock Saturday niob,
MIS-. ROBERTS was in the dining room with n
| iady Doarder. when a man presented birnsals
a. the door of the dining room and asLa,i
Does Lizzie Farr board hefe:n As the man
must nave pushed open the outside door and
~aiheh up stairs without ringing the bell. she
'Iought he was pretty cheeky" but she re-
pied es. The man said he wished to see
ner, ana that privately. Mrs. Roberts replied
'nA. ne could do so, provided Lizzie was in
| anu she would go and see. At the same Tina
she asked him to take a seat in the narinr
ana supposed he had done so. She then
passed through the corridor and up the second
| nlsht' AS she reached the turn in the stairs
| she called out Lizzie" then. proceed-
ing on, gained the top and. pushing the door
open little said ''There's a gentleman down
| stairs wishes to see you,' and was ahout To
aad, HE wants to see you privately he SAYS
when the man who had FASTENED after her
without her knowledge, pushed the door part.
iy open, and seeing Lizzie and gentleman
| caller sitting together, cried out Now, d-n
you, I've got you where / want YOU" As he
SAID this Lizzie jumped up and tried to push
/ he 81,
drew revolver. Lizzie sprang under his
arm out OF the door, the stranger turning alb
ruptly and running after her. As Lizzie
| reached the stairs the man fired and she
| cried out ''Oh. He then chased her down
the stairs, firing three more shots in quick
| succession, two of them close to her face az
the turn of the stairs. As she reached the
| foot of the flight Lizzie ran int, Mrs Roberts
room, when she fell on the floor, between the
| ioor and the bed, while the murderer fol-
| lowed The husband of Mrs Roberts. on
| learning the deed, at once sent for an officer
Two Immediately responded, and on their ap-
pearance they found the corpse living as above
described, with the feet towards the door, and
the head a few feet from the side of the bed
Close by the wOman's head small bore four
| barrelled revolver was lying, all the chambers
| empty. The murderer was sitting on the side
| of the bed and said, at once. Il did it,
That's what | did it with. Pick it up If
she had done as she agreed to last night,
never should have done it. He gave his
name as john Farr and said he was the
womans husband The woman had no shoes
| on, attired in dress neither in a pro-
nounced dark or light color, and was lying on
| her left side, her head in a pool of blood
with her long curls spread out over the car
pet. She was brunette of petite figure,
pleasing face, and well formed. On the right
| side of the face was an ugly wound where the
bullet had entered. Before the officers came
Farr kept talking to his dead wife in an
undertone. The officers sent at once for DR.
Bray and Coroner Gould. They hand-cutfed
| their man and as they were about to lead him
| away he stopped and kissed the features of
his victim, now placed in the fixedness of
death. saying as he did so, II loved you Liz
ze but you lied to me, and that's what
brought you where you are"
FAIRS STATEMENT.
| Farr was interviewed at the station. lie is
| a man with light hair and complexion, short
of stature. slight build and was evidently
much excited. One hand is crippled, it is
said from disease. He told the following
| story:
NV name is John George Farr. was born
in London, England. and shall be SO years
| old next October. l came to this country
just after the civil war, and have been follow
| ing the sea cook the greater portion of the
time since eight years ago this summer, when
married Eliza Miliken in the city of Rock
land. We lived together until about three
wears ago, |, in the meantime, going to sea.
About this time I had trouble with her and
she came to Portland and | went back to
| London on n voyage. On my return to tins
country, came to Portland, met her, and we
| tt,., al Thor
[ then learned that she was living an irregu-
lar life and we separated again. We have
one child, n boy seven years of age. Regard
| ing the murder he said Tonight l waited
for her until o'clock and she did not come.
| then took the captains revolver and started
| off, went to the Friendly Inn, where she
had worked and asked man there for her
address He wrote it on piece of paper
and gave it to me. BY this she was living at
the corner of Free and Center streets, and l
| went there There is store below. and
went in there and bought cigar. l had pre-
viously bought a bottle of liquor from another
| Mace and took a drink from it. That was all
drank. Invent up stairs into sitting room
| where there were two ladies. | asked for my
wife. One of the ladies went up stairs and
soon heard nv wifes voice. l followed on
nm the stairs When she saw me she shut
the door and held it, but l broke into the
room. There was man lying on the bed
I said, s.Hold on. Lide. this has gone too
far" She ran by me, out into the hall, and
started down the stairs. | fired at her twice
on the stairs. At the foot of the stairs she
ran into apother room, and | follow ed her
and fred two more shots. Then | sat down
and the officers came and ironed me; l made
M resistance. expect to be hung only
hone 10 he buried beside her. loved her,
hnt she has ruined me and made me cripple.
She had been married before she married me
TO a steward on the Bangor boat, whose name
was william Brittle. I did not know tins
until about two years ago. Brittle IS go1 ,
man. and | am now acquainted with HIM. ne
had n daughter by her, who is bright girl
woman grown now. She has had child by
another man since she left me; it sickened
and died and buried it, That Is all l nave
to say.
state Fair.
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