Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-09-19
HER FIRST SIN WASFATAL
TRAGIC STORY OF MRS. JACK
SONS TERRIBLE FATE.

/ A.
/ Shot on the Threshold by Her Husband
| in Mistake for Her Lover-The Start
| ling Situation in the Bedroom vividIy
Portrayed-The Woman Dying, but
| Mcdonald Out of Danger.
ATLANTA, Ca, Sept. 1S.-The shooting
last night of William 0. Mcdonald and of
Mrs. NJ. j. Jackson by her husband,
Thomas NJ. Jackson, commanded univer-
sal attention here to-day, and was fully
commented upon in all circles. Public
sentiment seems to justify jackson in his
action, while Mcdonald is looked upon as
having done nothing more than most
young men would have done under SINH
larly inviting circumstances. This morn
ing Jackson and Mcdonald appeared be-
| fore Justice Tanner to answer the charges
brought against them growing out of
the shooting. jackson was charged
| with assault with intent to
murder and Mcdonald with fornication.
| A preliminary trial was dispensed with
in each case and bond was fixed. Jack
son, upon failure to give bond of $1,000,
was sent to Jail, to remain there until he
| furnished the required security. McDon-
aid made $500 bond, the amount requir-
ed of him, and was released from custody.
Nearly all day he has been in his room,
adjoining his saloon, or about his usual
place of business.
AN INDIGNATION MEETING.
This afternoon an Indignation meeting
was held ON Decatur street by the friends
of Jackson, who fell that Tanner should
not have held jackson to answer the
charge preferred against him. The meet
inc narfO0k larpnlV Of q pnnpra1 diSauC-
sion of the shooting, and adjourned with
out anything definite being determined
upon. Mrs. jackson is at her home on
Decatur street, and IS considered in
very precarious condition. Opinion diff
fers as to her chances of pulling through.
The contents of the musket, with which
she was shot, are located in her stomach.
Mcdonald, while suffering a great
deal from his wound, is not con-
sidered seriously injured. He de-
clined to have the wound probed
and the ball removed. Mrs. jackson is
SAID to be a very handsome brunette,
about 80 years of age, and quite attrac-
tive in appearance. Mcdonald is hand
some man, of fine size, and particularly
attractive in his address. He says that
he thinks that the affair was a put up job
on him, and does not seem much worried
over the occurrence, further than the pain
that his wound is giving him.
THE HOME WHICH is RUINED.
jackson, who is a prosperous box
| manufacturer, has been married IA years,
and is the father Of five pretty little chill
dren. One of the stories afoat is that
until few days ago he had never had
| reason to suspect his wife's fidelity. At
that time, so the story goes, he thought
he discovered his wife making signals to
the handsome proprietor of the saloon
hn -
when he left home he
told his wife that he was going to be out
| of town until the next day. This, it is al
| legged, was a ruse to trap the pair, if there
was anything wrong between them. Then
arming himself he watched the house
with the tragic result detailed in the
MORNING NEWS of to-day.
THE FATAL SHOTS.
The first bullet fired from Jackson's re-
| vOlyer at the guilty couple in the bed
| lodged in McDonaId's shoulder. The
wounded man sprang from the bed
| to the floor, looking for an ave-
nue. Of escape. Jackson dropped
| his revolver and opened fire with an old
army musket. The charge lodged in the
bed clothing, firing them. Mcdonald,
| like beast driven to bay, drew his re-
volver and fired two shots toward his foe
| outside of the window. This so added to
| Mrs. Jackson's terror that she started on
a run from the bedroom for the front
| door. Within the room the smoke was so
| thick that Jackson could no longer dis
cern the forms of his victims. Hearing
| the footsteps of has fleeing wife he con-
cluded that they were made by Mcdonald
! in an effort to escape. Running around
| the corner of the house Jackson reached
it's front just as the door turned on it's
| hinges. The form Of the fugitive was
frY1I nf haF r
| was his wife jackson levelled the
musket and fired. The charge
lodged in the woman's shoulder
and ranged downward into her
stomach. She fell in her tracks. Two
policemen and eight or teno of the neigh
b0rs rushed up just in time to seize Jack
son and disarm him as he was making
a frantic rush for the interior Of the
house to kill Mcdonald.
THE BLOODY WORK AT AN END.
Both men were put under arrest, while
the wounded woman was cared for by
neighbors. The last act for the night in
the terrible tragedy had been
enacted. The scene in the i'll
terror of the house was start
ling in the extreme. The bed
clothing was in a furious blaze, ard but
few moments would have been required
to have ignited the whole house. Scat
tered about the place, sleeping in their
cribs and trundle beds, was the quintette
of innocent children, on whose lives the
nights work Of their mother had cast so
heavy a cloud. Evidences of pandemo-
nium's reign were everywhere to be seen.
1t is said that Mrs. jackson and Nc
Donald had never spoken before, and that
her previous life had been spotless. His
handsome face had bereft her of her rea-
son, and her first serious sin had proved
fatal one.
NOTES ABOUT TOWN.
Prof. Slaton, Superintendent of the pub
lie schools of Atlanta, in an interview
to-day, said that latter filling every seat
in our public schools 1,400 children are
yet to be supplied with accommodation. !"
An effort will be made to have more shoOl
houses built.
A prominent citizen of Atlanta, who is
we'll informed upon the condition of the
Exposition Cotton Mills, says that for
some time past the mill has been running
at a loss of $S per day. Some
time ago when Hugh Inman was
President and General Manager the mill
made money. Recently, however, d. N.
Speer has been filling the position, and
the mill has been losing money for its
owners. Hugh Inman stepped down and
out upon the refusal of the owners to paw
him salary of $4,000, and Mr.. speer ac-
cepted the position at s., 200. 1t is not
charged that Speer is to blame for the
loss the mill has been sustaining for some
months past. That the mill has been
losing money daily for months is settled
fact. AS to the cause nothing authori-
tative is known by the public.