Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1880-08-19
LOCAL INTELLIGENCE.
/. MISS MATTERS DEATH.
The Funeral-The Inquest and Investi


The Funeral-The Inquest and Inve.,isa-
ton.
Yesterday the body of the victim Of the
terrible burning accident, Miss Tillie
Matcer, was consigned to her last resting
place in the Mount Joy cemetery. The
funeral was announced to take place at 10
o'clock at the U. B. church, and long be-
fore that hour large number OF friends
had assembled in the edificc. a long line
of relatives and friends followed the
corpse to the church, making the large
upper room we'll filled. The remains,
which lay in 4 silver-mOunted coffin, were
nicely decked with flowers and evcrgreens.
When the mourners were seated Rev.
NJ. p. Doyle, after sinsin. al appropriate
hymn, preached from Exodus xx.. IL: :
"HOnor thy father and thy mother, That
thy days may be long upon the land which
the Lord thy God giveth thee This text
was suggested to the minister by the TN
fortunate girl while standing by her death
great frankncsS her disObe(lience 10 her
parents that had she been more Obetlient
the accident would have been avcrted.
He, in IN earnest manner, impressed his
hearers with tho great responsibility rest
properly; and the great Importance of rc-
pentancc before reaching tho death bed.
! Rev. Henry Enelc, of the River Brethren
denomination, spoke briefly in German,
| after which the remains We're taken to
the buryinG ground amid conyuIsyc sobs
Of the relatives which were painful to hear.
On Monday forenoon Coroner Mishler,
with jurors John Z. Shelly. Will II. Eel
Ter, john II. Zcllcr, Alex. Dys:,rt, licnry
kurtZ and Robert AlcFaIldcn, viewed the
| rc1,ains of Miss NIateer, and adjourned to
meet at o'clock on Wednesday, at Shell
ly's Red Lion hotel. lin the meantime
persons who saw the accident and were
| concerned in it were subpUnaed. Five
| witnesses, for one hour in the side room
of the hotel, told all or parts Of what they
knew connected with the accident, and the
Jury asccrtaincd that no one knew how the
| fire originated, when = wave Of astOnisli-
mcnt swept through the room. Charles
| Swarncr, the supposed innocent cause,
| affirmed that he couldn't for the life OF him
| tell how her clothing was set Oh fire. lie
knew that he lighted his cigar ut home,
| and by appointment met the girl ut Cas-
| sells lumber yard. He didn't rccollcc
whether he carried his cigar in his hand u t
any time or not but another witness did,
and testified that she saw the cigar in h is;
hand. He did know that she was not smO OkinS
either q cigar or y pipe, rs WAS reported,
that he was acquainted with her since
childhood and never saw or heard Of her
using the "weed.'' The story set afloat
that she was sharing the pleasure Of smOk-
ing, and that OH seeing some men approach
she thrust the cigar in her pocket, is con-
scqucntiy unfounded according to the tcs-
timony. Ono account of the calamity said
that he ran in an opposite direction from
the burning girl. This is incorrect, rs his
hands, which are badly burned in blisters
as k:rgc rs a cent. are enough to prove the
misstatcmcnt. 1t was shown that hc did
all he could for the girl. Afterthc fire WAS
cxtinguishcd he went for DR.. Norris, paid
81 to DcarEeck, the young man who was
driving by, for her conveyance to Mount
Joy, and 81 to replace his burned lap
blanket.
| Henry Kaufman and wife were among
the witnesses, and claim that injustice was
done them by the statement, in the Lam
caster tlailics, that she refused to allow the
girl to be taken into the house for medical
treatment Here is her evidence =" saw
her after she was burned. Very little was
said that heard because could not stand
to SEQ her. DR.. Norris came up aid asked
if could care for her. l said | was sick
myself and he said | sec that. She was
asking to be taken home" Mrs. *. fur
nishcd him with stimulants and wrapper.
In letter to the coroner from DR.. Nor
ris the doctor says the family has been
wrongcd by the statement in the papers.
| One OF the witnesses testified that when
Miss Matccr heard the refusal it hurt her
very much, and that she then commenced
to ask to be taken home. Another said that
Mrs. Kaufman said she ''would like to
take her, but she couldn't"
| Whatever was the cause Of the fire it is
evident from the searching inquiry that it's
origin will never bc known by the public.
There are two stories that have been heard
from the two principal actors in the terri
bic tragcdy-onc directly from Mr.. Swar-
ncr and the other from the girls mother
two hours after she was brought TO her
home. The mother said that Tillio said
''hc was lighting Il cigar with q match
and by it the clothing was i.nitcd.'
This is The verdict that tl:e jury returned
!, short tinc after they retired for consul
tatiun That Miss I'iilic Mateer came TO
her dcat!, by the accidental burning Of her
clothing, tie origin OF which is unknowl,
10 the jury"