The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1880-08-12


iected to the application Of rods and
levers to see if the flooring was either
hollow or loose. Nothing came Of it.
No blood spots appeared The floor
was solid. The walls were solid. Next
the party searched the back room, The
beds were removed. In their fl ght the
Bender family had left everything un'
touched.
A slight depression was roticed in the
floor, which upon closer examination re-
vealed a trap door. This was lifted up,
and in the gloom a pit outlined itself,
forboding, cavernOu3, unknown. Lights
were procured and some of the men de-
scended. They found themselves in an
abyss shaped like well, six feet deep
and five feet in diameter, Here and
there little damp places could be seen,
as though water had come up from the
bottom or been poured down from above.
They CROPPED around over these splotches
and held handful to the light The
ooze smeared itself over their palms and
dripped through their fingers. 1t was
blood.
Every suspicion was realized. The
murderers had fed, leaving behind
damning evidences of their hideous guilt.
But where were the bodies Of the vic.
tims2 For an hour the party of excited
people traYersed the lonely garden in the
rear Of that human slaughter pen, prod
ding the earth with long iron rod. All
at once the iron seemed to strike a h9shy
matter. In a moments time a dozen
eager spades had resurreeted from its
shallow grave the decaying body of a hui
man being. 1t had been buried lace
down. They turned it to the sunlight.
A cry of terror went up from the crowd,
1t was York's corpse. Although far ad-
vanCed in the stage of decomposition, the
features were plainly recognizable. How
the murderous deed had been done was
speedily and easily learned. A terrible
blow on the back of the head had crushed
the skull upon the brain and the throat
had been cut from ear to ear.
The work Of discovery went on. One
after another were laid bare the graves
of ten murdered people, Most of the
bodies we're identified and the roster of
recognized victims we're as follows: W.
H. York, l. G. Brown, W. f. MCCrotty,
Peter Boyle, Geo. w. LOnCar, Miss Lon.
car, Henry F. Mckenzie, John BOgert
and two men unknown.
The body of the second daughter OF
Mr., Loncar was not found. 1t was bu
ried in the corner of the garden that was
not carefully probed. The victims had
probably been attracted to the Bender
house by the ConspiCuously displayed
grocery sign. A stranger was inveigled
into the death trap and invited to glass
of wine or something to eat, AS he sat
at the table in the back room one of his
treacherous hosts smote him with ham
mer, crushing his skull and killing him
instantly, but to insure death his throat
was ripped from ear to ear, and he was
hurriedly dropped through the trap door
into the bloody cavern beneath. In the
dead of night the body was removed to
the garden and buried.
These ghastly crimes were committed
solely for gold. Whoever entered the
Bender mansion alone and with money,
it mattered not how little, died like a
brute.
Loncar was one of DR.. York's neighbors
and had started for Iowa with view to
locating permanently. Casually stopping
at the Bender place he was brutally mur.
dered. His skull was smashed to jelly,
his throat cut and his body mutilated.
His little child had evidently been tossed
into the grave upon the mangled corpse
and buried alive.
The discovery of the inhuman butcher.
les perpetrated by the Bender family was
made seven years ago. For seven years
search for the bloody murderers
has been pursued in every land on the
face Of the earth. Up to four days ago |
the search was unavailing. But justice |
though tardy, is sure, and once in the |
hands of the grossly outraged law, the |
Benders will speedily suffer the penalty |
Of the f9ndish atrocities. The gallows |
upon which they die should be built 80
high as all the world might see and en-.
Joy tbs death throes of these most inhu
man wretches with which civilization |
has been cursed since the days of Saw
ney Bean and his jnCestuous family Of
canniDals.
THE CAPTURE OF OLD MAN BENDER.
From the Omaha Herald
A man was arrested by Sheriff Gregg
At Richland three days ago and is now
odged in jail at Fremont He was with
4 woman travelling eastward on foot.
they had stopped at house near there,
Soon after arrival they made inquiries
Is to whether anything had yet been dis.
covered of the Bender family, who for.
nerly lived in Kansas. Their talk and
Ictions excited suspicion, which was
urther strengthened by their answers to
Iuestions asked them. They appeared
xcited, and told conf letting stories as to
Who they were and where they were
rom, said they had lived five or six
ears among the Indians, that they had
een up in the Niobara country and that
hey were not the Benders.
Confession.
from the Kansas City Times
Omaha Neb., July 31.-All doubt now
) removed. The original Johnny Ben
er and wife are in the grasp of the law.