The Portland daily press., 1885-08-28
SHOT IN THE HEAD.
The Treasurer of a Manufacturing
COMPANY Murdered i'm His office,


LAWRENCE, Mass, Aug. 27-Albert d.
Swan, one of the prominent and wealthy
citizens of this city was shot in the back of
the head by Henry r. Goodwin this morning,
and killed. Goodwin gave himself up. Good
win entered the office of the l.. Sprague
Manufacturing Company of which Swan
was treasurer about 10 O'Clock, the president
and Swan being in the office. Goodwin has
been in the employ of the Molecular Tele-
phone Company of New York, of which
Swan was general manager, and came to the
office to claim several thousand dollars,
which he said were due him from the compa-
n.y. After brief discussion Goodwin drew
a Smith & Wesson 32-calibre revolver, took
deliberate aim ana shot Swan in the back of
the head. Swan reeled and fell to the floor,
just as the bookkeeper, alarmed by the shot,
entered the room. Goodwin then stepped to
the telephone, and notified the police station
to send man to arrest him. Assistant Mar
shall Vose drove to che Sprague mill, but in
the meanwhile Goodwin had walked to the
station and surrendered himself. He stated
that Swan had robbed him of all he had, and
that there was period in a mans life when
he could stand no more lie had reached
that point, and went to the mill to kill Swan,
and was willing to stand the consequences.
Swan lived but a few minutes after the
shooting Medical Examiner HOar ordered
the remains to be taken to the undertaken
until further instructions. Goodwin is 80
wears old was brought up in Lawrence and
started the telephone business here, and
later sold out to Swan and his partner. He
then went to South America as manager of
the Bell telephone system at Buenos Ayres.
He returned two years ago. and engaged
with the Molecular Telephone Company, ,and
has been establishing the Molecular system
at Cleveland. He served in Co. III, Second
Massachusetts Artillery, during the war.
Goodwin has wife residing on Hampshire
street in Lawrence. He is a very capable
alantripion and nf hriVht and DIpa CipO m
ners. He returned to Lawrence from Chica-
go three days ago. He refuses to see or
speak with anyone. Swan was born in
Tewksbary in 1916, and had a wife and
adopted son. He had been in the insurance
business since 1876, and was at one time in
the banking house of Hall, Garten & Hersh-
field of New York. He was also paying tell
er Of the New York stock board. He was
very largely interested in the telephone bus
iness, in which he made q fortune lie was
treasurer of the Molecular Company, and
principal stakeholder. He was director of
the Bay State National Bank, and has been
paymaster of the First Battalion Light Ar
tillery for the past twelve years. lie has l
wealthiest citizens of Lawrence. He was
universally esteemed.
LATER.
Later developments in today's murder case
show the difficulty between Goodwin and
Swan to have Abeen over a patent telephone
switch board invented by Goodwin. Friends
of both parties state that when the switch
board was invented, Goodwin went to Swan
for financial backing. The latter gave it to
him, and the patent was applied for in the
name of Henry K. Goodwin, assignor of one
half interest to A. ID. Swan. Swan neglect
ed to make the final payment at the patent
office, and before the new patent could be
applied for Watt 81 Bartlett of New York,
manufacturers of telephone instruments, ap-
piled for patent covering the same ground,
and Swan had previously sent Goodwin to
these parties for advice in the matter of his
invention. Finally the matter was adjusted
by Goodwin, Swan, Watt & Bartlett taking
the patent together.
G0odwins friends say Swans carelessnesS
in not taking out the patent led to loss of
$4,000 to Goodwin, which had been offered
him for his invention. The switch board,
when patented. was found not to work salts
factorily, and Goodwin refused to fix it. and
no one else could. Goodwin had an idea
Swan had prevented him getting work in va
rious places where he had tried in order to
force him to put the switchboard in working
order. Goodwin had just made a three
weeks trip through Canada and the West in
search of work, but could find none, and he
came home three days ago, discouraged and
probably brooding over the imaginary wrong
done by Swan, he determined to kill him.
Swans friends say he was the best friend
Goodwin had. Defence will undoubtedly be
insanity