The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1884-09-12
What the Loss Of Watch II
An Abandoned Coal Pit
Led To.
AHideous Skeleton and It's Story Of Crime
Committed Many Years Ago Scratched
on a Tobacco Box.
Father and Three Children Murdered-The
Wife An Accomplice-Her Sub
sequent Taking Of.

BEAVER GLEN, w. Va, September IL.
The clearing up Of an old and forgotten
murder mystery was effected here yester.
day In most remarkable manner. About
the year 1868 several abortive attempts
to sink coal shafts along the river were
made. One Of these shafts was near this
place. 1t had been sunk about twenty.
five or thirty feet and abandoned soon
after. Wild stories OF unearthly sounds
coming from its depths were circulated,
but died out and were forgotten. The
family living nearest to the abandoned
shaft was that of John Ireland,
who lived In cabin in ravine, a quar-.
ter Of a mile away. Ireland was reported
to be well off, as wealth went in those
days In mountainous regions. One OF
the men concerned In sinking the shaft,
Ira Tompkins, hung about the neighbor-
hood, spending much Of his time at Ire
lands. IL any suspicion of his feelings
towards lreiand's rather pretty wife ex-
listed, no one seemed to remember it.
One day, after an alleged absence from
the neighborhood, Tompkins reappeared
at neighbours, saying ne had Just come
from the Ireland cabin, where he found
the threeachildren dead ION the floor and
Ireland and his wife missing. The neigh
bors visited the cabin and saw evidences
Of terrible struggle. Mrs. Ireland was
found in the woods short distance
away, bound to tree and gagged. She
appeared to be greatly exhausted, al
though now 1t Is remembered that she
presented no evidence of having engaged
in the struggle. She declared that in the
night her husband had killed the chill
dren, and that she was afraid to cry out
for fear that he would kill her. After
killing the children he attacked her, but
at her frantic prayer, spared her life,
bound her to a tree and then disap-
peared. She declared that he was
UNDOUBTEDLY CRAZY.
As Ireland never returned, her story was
| believed, and In course of time the
tragedy was forgotten. A year after Ire
lan4's disappearance Tompkins and Mrs
Ireland were married. Quarrels wer,
frequent, and one morning, four year:
ago, the woman was found dead in bed
Heart disease was said to be the cause
There was no outward evidence OF fou
play, and so the matter ended. Temp
kins left the country and has never beef
heard OF since.
Yesterday party of boys were at tn
old shaft and one OF them accidental
dropped his watch into 1t. A leafy liml
was procured and the atmosphere in the
shaft thoroughly stirred, so as to driv,
out foul air. Then a torch was mad,
and, with the aid of rope, the youns
fellow WAS let down. In cropping about
in the debris he was horrlfied at finding q
skull and made an outcry. He was
drawn up and the authorities were
notified. They investigated and dis
covered portions of the skeleton
of man. In the search for something
that would furnieh clew, an old copper
tobacco-box was found and in it, badly
scrawled, was history of the murder o
the Ireland children written by Ireland
He declared that he had been attacked b.
Tompkins and his wife and left for dead
He revived sufficiently to see the murde
of his children, but could render no aid
Afterward he was seized and dragged t.
the shatt-hole and thrown in.
The story seems incredible, but james
Wagner, an old resident, says that b.
Identifies the tobacco-box as one belong
Ing to Ireland. He says that the writin.
Is that of Ireland. The theory Is tina
after being thrown into the shaft, Ire
land revived, and, knowing he must die
wrote history of the crime. Evidently
Tompkins bound Mrs. Ireland to the tre'
to avoid all suspicion. 1t is now sai(
that Tompkins killed his paramour be
fore be fled.