National Republican., 1881-08-08
FOULLY MURDERED.
TWO CHILDREN BRuTALLY KILLED.
Horrible Tragedy At Dundas Farm, In the County
Joe and Lizzie Fisher, Aged Three and
Six Years, Found Lying Dead
Upon the Ground.

Pasaeu iIOln inc memory OIL lne reaulng pubic
when new crime is discovered which surpasses
In horror any that has taken place In this vicinity
for years. The victms-for II isa double murder
are not men, who could resist an attack and who
would have the power to struggle against an at
temptupon their lives
BUr TWO INNOCENT CHILDREN,
little boy and girl Of the tender ages Of three and
six years respectively. The motive for the crime
is not at present apparent, and the circumstances
surrounding the dnstardly net are shrouded in
mystery. Two persons have been arrestod-a col
ored woman named Mrs. Chrstiana Taylor and her
daughter Rosc-upon suspicion of having com.
mtlcd the crime, but there has yet been discov-
cred no cause which can be assigned MS an induce.
mcnt for them to take the lives of the children.
THE FACTS ARE AS FOLLOWS:
About six o'clock Saturday evening Mr.. Joseph
Fisher returned from the Street Market to his
homc OH the Bunker Hill road, just beyond Brooks
station. When he came to the city In the morn.
ing he brought his wife with him and cft at his
farm his little nephew and niece, Joseph and Liz.
2te Fisher the children Of his dead brother The
mother of the children is compelled to work for
their support, and is employed as domestic in
the family Of Mr.. c. Horner, who keeps an eating
house on Ninth street, opposite the Centre Market.
When Mr.. Fisher reached home he expected the
children to run and meet him, as was their Gus
tom, but upon going TO where they were appa.
FILLED HIN WITH HORROR
mud he uttered loud and agonizing cries for help.
The children lay upon the grass, with garments
blood stained and pools Of blood upon the ground
about them, which told at once that they had been
fouy murdered The crushed skull of the girl and
irghtiul cash on the boys forehead showed where
tue fatal blows had been struck. AS soon as he
could collect himself Mr.. Fisher nt once returned
TO the city. leaving the bodies of the children
which had hpnu int ha tn lao
OF the ncighbors, who at once responded to his
cries for help lie went first to the Second Precinct
Station and
GAVE NOTICE OF THE CRIME
that had been committed, and Lieutenant john
son Sergeant slattcry aud Officers Dunngan and
Matkwood proceeded to the scene of the murder
Mr. Fisher then took his wife and the mother of
the children home, and the meeting Of the be.
rcaved parent and her sister over the dead bodies
Of the murdered children was affecting in the cx.
treme. The two colored women above mentioned
were arrested because of the conflicting stories
they told. the elder Taylor having at one time de.
MED having been to Fishers house. while at
another she admitted to have gone there to return
washboard and she was seen leaving the house
by the farm hands
THE INQUEST.
Coroner Patterson held an inquest yesterday
morning, at eleven o'clock, nj the residencc'of Mr.
Fisher, and while the witnesses were being ex.
amined Drs. Hartigan and Wohaufter were max
ing an autopsy in an adjoining room. The first
witness called was Ephraim Barnes who testified
ms follows 81 work on the place here and board in
the house. The children were well at dinner
time, between ten and eleven n. m Saturday. After
dinner the colored men and me got up the team
and Mr.. and Mrs. Joseph Fisher went to town. and
the men and myself went TO hoeing corn. Every
thing was quiet abOut the house until between
three and four o'clock in the afternoon, when the
dogs made racket, and looked toward the
house and saw an old colorcd woman coming
from that direction. asked one of the colored
men. Tom Ham, who the woman was and he re-
Piled that 1t was the old woman who lived at the
gate. thought no more about 1t until Mr., Fisher
came, about six o'clock About ten minutes after
he came he called to us, and ran up TO the house
Us fast MS | could. found the children dead.
The little girl was stiff and cold, but the boy was
not still. The blood on the face of the girl was
dry, and that on the boy partly dried. l saw the
children later in the evening and the blood on
their face seemed TO have got a little darker.
The colored woman came up here and
asked her what she had been 10 the house for.
She said she came to bring washboard She said
slc stood at the front door knocking for about half
an hour, and that she could neither see nor hear
any one About seven o'clock saw her again. west
of the house. She seemed looking about the
bushes asked her what she was doing. She said
: thought heard somebody hallon.' asked her
what she did with the washboard, and she
said she took itinto the house and sat 1t down by
the table in the back room. asked how she got in
She said, BY the front door / asked her where
she came out, and she replied, By the front door,
The washboard was found where the woman said
she put it, This is all know about the case
Thomas Ham (colorcd) sworn II have been liv.
ing on the farm here for about two months Sat.
urday afternoon, about two or three o'clock, saw
a coored woman coming down the hill from the
house, but could not tell who it was l told Mr..
Barnes that she looked like the woman that lived
at the gate. have seen the woman and talked
with her / never noticed anything wrong with
her can't say whether the blood on the chill.
dren was dried or fresh. came up from the field
when Mr.. Fisher called lie had the little boy in
his arms"
Margaret Lynch IA neighbor) sworn: az reside at
Fort Bunker Hill. About a quarter amer seven
o'clock Saturday evening Rose Taylor came to my
house in an excited manner and called her
nephew. She said he could not stop TO eat his
supper but must come with her at once. She was
trembling and excited. The colored girl who
works for me said something must be the matter.
the woman seemed so much excited. The woman
never came for the boy before, and 1t was earlier
than he generally eft the house by half an hour"
Joseph Fisher, uncle Of the deceased, sworn: "I
reside here III this house. These children were
my brothers, aud they have lived with us-the
girl two years and the boy most of the time since
he was five months old. came home Saturday
afternoon. between five and six o'clock put the
horses In the stable, and as came from the stable
toward the house found the children dead. do
not think 1t was more than ten minutes after
drove up TO the house that found the children
The old coored woman here has picked peas for
me sometimes ! only know OF her coming to the
house TO borrow the washboard from my wife.
The dog would generally bark at her when she
came 10 the house. There was no trouble with the
mother OF the children in regard to them. The
mother was willing to have the children here, and
VIC liked to have them"
Dr. Harigan sworn: 81 have made an examina.
lion ofthe bodies of the children. Joseph and Liz
2ie Fisher; the boy first. ] judge he was three
years old found transverse lacerated wound,
cilptlcal shaped an inch and half above the
LEFT eye, three.eighths Of inch long; another OF
the same character, diagonally above and behind
the len car There were several bruises Of the
scalp, indicating repeated blows by blunt weapon.
The dnra mater, or outer covering OF the brain,
was not injured, The skull was extensively frac.
tured and crushed in in two or three places. The
girl was next examined. She appeared to be
Of the scalp above the right ear and cx-
tending 10 the top OF the ear; another a
quarter Of an inch below, and smaller one three
inches above, On the corresponding side there
was also bruise three inches above the ear, and
for half an inch around IL presented bruised ap-
peaTaDce. The last two wounds but partially
the scalp, and all of them were evil
IDENTITY made by the same weapon rs that used on
boy, The skull IN this case was also extensively
fractured aud crushed in, portions of the bone
being loose, and the dura mater ruplured, allow