The daily gazette., 1881-08-12
THIRD EDITION
A MURDER CONFESSED.

The Deed ssInspired by the Devil''-
Christiana Taylor, the Negress,
Acknowledges killing the Fisher
Children.
WASHINGTON, August II, 1881.
The mystery surrounding the tragedy
at the village of Queenstown, reported
in the Herald of Sunday last, was solv-
ed this afternoon. Christiana Taylor,
an old negro woman who was arrested
for the murder of the little boy and gnl,
aged three and six years respectively, on
the farm of Joseph Fisher, on the Bun
ker Hill road, near this city, on Satur-
day last, confessed to-day that she com-
mitted the deed. She has heretofore
denied all knowledge Of the crime.
This afternoon she sent for Captain Yer.
non, of the police, and Mr.. Archibald
White and 10 them made the following
confession: ~ was going along the
path. 1t was not God Almighty, but it
was the devil that put it in my head TO
kill them. l could not help killing them.
l did it, not with the axe nor the wash
board, bu. with piece of wood, as big
as my arm and about eighteen inches
long. The children were running about
the yard of the house. struck the one
with the long hair first, but l don't know
how many times l hit her. l saw the
axe IN the woodpile after hitting them
with the stick. What killed them for
l don't know the devil got into me so
that could not help doing it. picked
the stick up in the road. l never told
any one about ii but you and Mr.. Arch
While. believe it has worried me
some. have told the truth to you,
white people. l. is the truth from my
heart. threw the stick away down by
the woodpile."
At the conclusion of the confession
Christlana was removed to the jail. On
the way down she seemed deeply de.
pressed and talked but little. In reply
TO a question by Police Lieutenant
johnson she said:-"I could not help Ii.
hit the girl three times, when the boy
caught me about my legs and screamed,
and then hit him on the head. l do
not know how the Christmas tree came
to be by the side of the dead children
DISAPPEARANCE OF THE WEAPON.
A thorough search was made this after
noon for the stick of wood, bnt no traces
oflt could be obtained. It Is supposed
that If she did use stick as her weapon
tt was used the night of the murder In
the stove all of Saturday night. 1t is
claimed by some, particularly the color
ed people, that the woman is insane, and
the testimony of Rose Taylor, her
daughter, is literally quoted. Rose In
her testimony before the Coroner's Jury
yesterday said:-"M other sometimes has
giddy spells and behaves strangely.
When she came back from Fishers house
Saturday she said, in very excited man
ner, THE Fisher children are dead and
we must leave and directed me to 90
at once for ny nephew, who works for
Mrs. Lynch. Often when she has the
spells she threatens to knock us down
with a siick of wood" The colored peo-
pie living in the vicinity OF the house
OF Mr.. Fisher have manifested conside
able feeling concerning the murder, and
have conRregated Rightly i'll the neigh
borhood of the police station where
Cbrisfiana and Rose were confined.
While they were not ready to believe
that ChristIana committed The deed, yet
they were anxious that the petpetrator
should be brought to Justice Rose will
be detained as awitness to appear before
the Grand Jury, which meets Septeu-
Der IL. A singular fact in. connection
with this case is that there Ia not liy-
Ing witness to her having committed the
crime. When the Coroner's ry yester-
dsy was ready 10 make up It's verdict the
testimony, although strongly Gil cumstan
tial, was OF such a character that the
verdict had to be worded in the fol wing
language: jury are unable to say
positively by whose hand the deed was
committed, but from the evidence ad-
duced the suspicion points strongly to
Cnnstiana Taylor as the guilty pa ty."