Morris tribune., 1884-10-15
AN ATROCIOUS DEED.
Father and Two Sons Murder the
Wife and Mother.
Horrible Crime Unearthed Mt Troys
lndinna-One of the Fiends
Strung UP by Judge
Lynch.

EvANsvILLE, Ind, Oct. 1S.-Late Wednes-
day evening the citizens of Troy, Ind, were
thrown i'll q state of excitement by finding
the headleSs body of woman in Il cistern on
the farm Of Peter Backer, milo and half
back of town, The body was perfectly nude
and blood still gushed from tho trunk, and
when taken from the water was still
warm. ~ deep cash was found just
below the shoulder blade, which ap-
peared to have been done with an
AK. The head was found in a thicket about
seventy-tive yards from the cisteru with two
hullet-holes in the left side of the forehead.
In barn near by was found pool OF blood,
partly covered with loose straw, and the
walls near the pool were despatched with
blood, showing that the murder was commit
ted in the barn. The body was taken to
Troy and viewed by many people. 1t was
finally identified by farmer to be the re-
mains of Mrs. Henderson,.
The murdered woman's husband, Stillwell
HenderShot and her son, F. NJ Henderson,,
were in Tell City, and left yalise in the
Adams Express office consigned to F. NJ.
Henderson,, Golconda, Ills Suspicion fell on
Heudershot and sons. Thursday night,
while the steamer J. P. Drouillard
SNNsAAS~A
the boat and secured Memberships
valse. A search disclosed few pieces of
the murdered woman's clothing. A shawl
found was full of blood. The officers at once
arrested Henderson, and son, who denied the
crime, but stated that the younger son,
William. was the murderer The latter WAS
arrested on his fathers farm back Of Troy.
An inquest was held on the body Tuesday
Nv, ba ,>ralinina,-y .Son,ina ton
the father and two sons were sent to Jail
without bail.
1t is said that Stiuwen HendersAot, the
old man, made full confession Of the affair
to the officers, which was about rs follows:
NY wife and two sons were on their way to
Troy Wednesday morning to make acknowl.
edgmeuc to a piece of land l had sold. When
within mile Of Troy she said she would not
SIGN the deed, and row at once en>ued,
which resulted in my son Sam knock
ing her Oh the head with large stick
of wood, and killing her. The boys
then carried her to a barn near by, and, after
taking her there, cut off her head and threw
it into a brush pile near by. Then they
stripped the body of all the clothing and
threw it into Il cistern. l had nothing to dc
with the killing. The boys did it ALL" Still,
well E1euGeGSlloI Is dpOuG W StulS VI
and his sons are aged 26 and 80 years respec-
lively During the examination party OF
men procured Il rope, and but for the inter
vention of tho officers would have hanged
them after trial.
A special from CanneltoR says that late
Friday night q mob OF 200 men took F. NJ
Henderson,, the eldest son, from the Jail al
Troy and walked him TO the barn in which
the crime was committed and hanged him t.
the beams Before he was lynched he made
confession, stating that his father shot hi
mother, and he completed the work by
chopping her head off with an ak and after
ward throwing her body into the cistern.
1t is reported that = mob passed through
Tell City en- route to Cannelton to hang thu
father and younger brother, who are in jai
there.
LATER.-A telephone message from Can
Melton, as $50 Saturday morning, says thu
mob from Troy did not come there Friday
night, but that Il mob of about $50 people
formed at the Cannelton jail and was very
threatening, but did not do anything becaus
they seemed to have no leader, and the non
arrival of the mob from Troy discouraged
them.