Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1885-05-21
5flistellauepns &eadinq.
THE RICHMOND TRAGEDY.
THE MURDER OF FANNIE LILLIAN MADL-
SON.

IHE RlU1MUND IhAUGD
THE MURDER OF FANNIE LILLIAN MADL-
SON
4 History of the Crime for Which Thomas j..
Cluverius is now Trial for his Life.
Miss Fannie Lillian Madison and Mr..
Thos. J. Cluverius, pronounced Kla/veers,) }
were second cousins. She was in her 22nd
year; he is in his 24th. They formerly
lived in King William county, Va, and
had known each other from childhood.
They had met under her parents roof, at
their aunt's, at her uncle's and elsewhere.
The parents of both are living. Both fami-
lies are in very moderate circumstances,
though connected by blood and marriage
with many of the best people of King Will
Tunstall, an aunt and a widow OF means,
educated both, and between the two there
was always thought to he onlya warm cOus-
inly attachment. Last July, Lillian left her
parents home, near Manquin, to 60 to her
grandparents and uncle near by, and while
there secured a position as school teacher
at Mrs. Dickinson's, near Millboro, in Bath.
She was visited at her uncle's by her cousin
Tom several times during the summer be-
fore leaving for Bath. Last October she
went to Bath by the way of Richmond, and
| q
Her cousin Tom was here too. 1t is sur
missed that they met, but if so, exactly
where and how is not known. BY the mid
die of October she was located in her new
home in Bath county, at Mr.. Dickinson's
! beautiful place on the Cow Pasture river,
and engaged in teaching. Here she lived a
double life, and doubtless miserable exist
ence, knowing long before Christmas that
she was a ruined woman and must soon be
| or in
wrote any letters to Cluverius from Bath
they are in his possession or destroyed.
What letters he wrote to her while she
was in Bath she burnt up the night before
she made her start for Richmond. A few
empty envelopes left in the trunk prove
that he did write to her, but what he wrote
about is not known.
Last January, on the plea of going to see
her aunt, Mrs. Tunstall, she came to this
city and registered on the 5th, as Miss F..
l.. Merton, Roanoke City. At the same
try. He registered at the Davis House,
near the Exchange, under his true name.
He called to see Lillian at the Exchange.
He went up to her room. One night she
stayed elsewhere than at her room at the
hotel. She met but one person she knew
besides her cousin Tom while at the hotel,
and that was Mr.. Clagett Jones, of King
. and Queen. They had brief conversation
on commonplace topics, and soon thereafter
Lillian left the city for Bath.
SHE LEAVES BATH FOR EVER.
On the 10Th of last March Lillian left
Bath forever to meet her cousin Tom again
in Richmond. Lillian received a letter
falsely purporting to come from young la
dy, former companion, urging her to
come to Richmond, and thence to 60 to Old
Point as her companion, for which she
would be paid weekly sum. Mrs. Dickin-
son lent Lillian her reddish brown canvas
clothes bag to carry some extra Gndercloth-
ing, extra pair of shoes, &C., and, as it of.
fered her a few weeks of pleasure consented
for her to 60.
When the letter was brought to Lillian
she exclaimed to the little boy after read
ing it: "Oh, Willie, why did you bring me
this? Why did you not throw it into the
river?" The night before leaving she told
Miss Ella Kinney, a companion, that she
had premonition that something horrible
would happen before her return, and that
she had secret to tell her, but they were
not left alone before she left, and Lillian
did not reveal it. Before leaving she gath
cred out of the trunk an aprOnful of let
ters. A few she read and shed tears over !;
then she flung the whole apronful in the
! e.
pen to her, and she didn't care for her moth
er to get hold of these letters. On the way
to the train, riding horseback, she said to
little Willie Dickerson, 81 feel as if some
thing terrible will come of this trip"
Lillian was stout and short little wo-
man. She was only4 feet II inches high, but
probably weighed 125 pounds. Her face
was round and full, and she was said to be
really pretty. Dressed for her trip to Rich
mond, she had on a black alpaca dress /;
over that blue jersey, and underneath
that warm jacket; around her neck a
bright, glossy red silk handkerchief, pinned
with u black jet brooch while on her head
she wore hat made of black straw, turned
up in front. 1t had three ostrich tips on it
and was trimmed with twilled silk and
velvet. Around it was worn veil. The
most conspicuous part of her outfit was a
red crochet shawl, sometimes thrown over
her shoulders and sometimes carried on her
arm, sometimes strapped on her clothes-bag.
She wore plain gold finger ring. In one
hand she had the clothes-bag; on the other
she carried small satchel, wherein she
kept her money. What it amounted to no
one knows. Mrs. Dickinson gave her s.
when she started how much more she had
cannot be ascertained. At Millboro, she
took out So and 81 note and paid for her
ticket, and got fifty cents in change.
CLUvERIUs COMES TO RICHMOND.
Tom Cluverius arrived in Richmond on
the 10Th of March from King and Queen
county. In consequence OF late train Lii
lian did not reach Richmond until late Fri
day morning, March l3. She registered at
the American Hotel as "Miss F. l.. Merton,"
and was assigned to room 81. Cluverius was
at the Davis House on Thursday morning.
! Leaving his satchel and overshOes there he
went to the barber shop under the Ameri-
can Hotel, distant some hundred yards, and
got shaved. 1t is claimed by him that he
never wore a mustache.
| Lillian received note while eating her
breakfast Friday morning addressed to Miss
Merton. She read it, wrote an answer at
once and gave it to the messenger, who
took it down to the "yelow boy" who had
brought the note to her. 81 will be there
as soon as possible, so do wait on me-" 1t
is believed that she and Tom went togeth-
er. At LIS she returned to the hotel. At
9 P. NJ, that day Cluverius was seen at the
Dime Museum matinee. She ate dinner
about 80, and soon thereafter started to go
out again as before. When she returned it
is not known. She was in her room some
where about ) p. NJ. when she called il ser
want and asked him to buy two postal
cards. For this purpose she gave him twen-
ty-tive cents. He bought the postal cards
and returned her the change. Between 6
and o'clock Lillian started to go out again.
She had her clothes bag with her. She
went up Twelfth street toward the Davis
House. She returned at $50 o'clock with
an "Old man" who had his pants in his boots,
who said: "Here is lady brought; she
wants room" Tyler, the colored floor
servant took her to her room (2). Later