The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1885-05-02
A TERRIBLE TRAGEDY,
Woman Murdered by a Former Lover who
Afterwards Kills Himself.


Afterwards Kills Himself.
| Mrs. Hattie NJ. Null, of 1861 Alder
street, Philadelphia, was murdered by
her former lover Harry A. Smith on
| Monday last, and he afterwards commit
| ted suicide the two dead bodies being
found together upon the floor of her bed
room by her husband late the same night.
| Mrs. Null and Smith had been on terms
| of intimacy, which was discovered by
her husband about six months ago, and
he, Smith, was elected from the house.
He did not return until last Monday
when he went there undoubtedly for the
| purpose of taking her and his own life.
An examination of the premises showed
that the woman had made desperate
fight for her life. The struggle began in
bedroom on the second floor and ended
in death in the woman's room on the
third floor. The progress of the battle
for life is plainly marked by trail of
blood.
The supposition is that the couple oc-
cupied this room on the second floor dur
ing the morning and after the young man
began the attack the woman ran to tho
window and pushed open the shutter,
with the intention of calling for help.
She was evidently severely wounded at
the time, as shown by the bloody marks
on the shutters Similar marks on the
walls near the window indicate that she
was dragged away, but not without a
desperate struggle. She then probably
rushed to the third story room, follow ed
by Smith, and here made the final but
unsuccessful fight for life. The fight,
however, was undoubtedly desperate
one. Every fragile article in the room
was shattered to pieces. Either the beer
pitcher or the wash-basin was the wea-
pom used by the murderer in his effort to
batter out the woman's brains, probably
before the two pistol bullets were fired
into her head. Both of these articles. as
we'll as the walls and bed clothes, were
despatched and clothed with blood.
The head and face of the woman were
cut and battered until no sembance of
humanity remained. The arms and
breast were also badly cut. Large pieces
of flesh were gouged from the arms, evil
IDENTIFY by swinging, downward sweeps
of the broken pitcher. A handful of the
dead woman's golden hair which had
been torn out by the roots was found
firmly grasped in her murderer's right
hand. The murder must have been COM
mitted after one o'clock. At that hour
Smith, who was employed as a driver by
downtown baker and had driven to the
house IN his wagon, came out on Alder
street and beckoning to young man
living opposite employed him to drive
the wagon home. For this service he
paid one dollar and then handed the
young man six cents to pay his car fare
back. Smith then re entered the house
and that was the last time he was seen
alive. 1t is supposed that the tragedy |
occurred shortly afterwards.
That the murder and suicide were I'M
doubtedly premeditated is shown by a |
postal card left by Smith and addressed |
to Miss Clara Mace, of l743 North Tenth |
street, which read: "Please, for Gods |
sake, comfort father all you cam 1t |
was signed 'H." A sheet of paper, on |
which was written IN the same hand
writing the following words, was found |
with the postal: Come unto Me all We
that labor and are heavy laden and will |
give you rest. This woman shall not live
to torture another heart as she has mine.
God have mercy. | suffer- my father,
but could not resist. | could not live ON
this broken love by the only one who be.
trayed me for cash. A bad woman must
suffer and also the one who loves for
another"