The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1886-02-19
A TERRIBLE CRIME.

A Young Lady Set Upon By Vindictlvs
Ruffsin at Windsor, Ill, and Bound,
Gagged and Hanged to Cherry Tree
Timely Rescue BY Brother of the Vic
tim--The Young Lady In a Precarious
Condition.
WINDSOR, H., Feb. I4.-Miss Georgia
AIdridge, daughter of H. H. AIdridge, Of
this village, had narrow escape Friday
evening from being hung by an unknown
villain. She was left at home alone, her
father and mother having gone to church.
About nine O'Clock, hearing disturbance
at the barn, she stepped outside to see
about it. She was seized by the scoundrei
in waiting. His evident object was to
outrage her. A fierce struggle ensued in
which the lady tainted from sheer ex-
haustion. Her assailant then gagged her
by thrusting a corn cob down her throat
and binding it to it's place with vail
Her hands were pinioned and heavy
bricks tied to them. Her apron was torn
into strips, and with the strips used with
the strings as a halter, she was hung up
to a limb of cherry tree, her
feet being three inches from the
ground. In this condition she was
left hanging to the tree. She must
have been hanging there some twenty or
thirty minutes when her condition was
accidentally discovered by her brother,
who was on his way to his own home,
block further on. Hearing a noise as Of
some one in distress, he entered his faith
er's yard. He was hOrriled to find hang
ing to the tree the apparently lifeIess
body of his sister. It was quickly cut
down by him and carried indoors. Her
body was cold, but the presence of a very
feeble pulse assured him that life was not
yet extinct. Physicians were quickly
called, and active restoratives applied
After two hours rubbing and applications
of hot irons she began to show "
signs of reviving. In the moments of
reviving she would shrek: "Oh,
that mani That man! I'n die first! God
help mel" Ali day she laid in a stupor
betwixt life and death. Her nervous sys-
TEN had received such a shock that it may
be days and weeks before she will regain
her right mind and be able to give clear
account of her trials. She must have
been hanging by the neck for several min-
utes. On the floor Of the room which she
occupied was found note evidently writ
ten by the Would-be ravisher after he haC
hung her to the tree and before her
brother discovered her. The letter is
addressed to her father, and with the foul
words erased, of which there were many
reads as follows:
Old DR.. Aldridge. your daughter is dead. 1
even with you and watch my chance long
time and now think am mighty nigh even
body is afraid of you and your upstart son
1 am not afraid of the devil himself. l did
lifted % her n up she was dead. She was Scared
to death. did not kill her, but let her go.
gerOus. Good by. You can not find me.
will be far Off remember me. 1 will lay
for you and some other folks Ia this town.
No name was signed to the letter. The
object of writing it is almost inexplicable.
1t must have been done by the fiend in
the moments of excitement following the
killing. No arrests have been made
Strong suspicious are directed against a
Windsor man. The evidence, while
strong, is purely of a circumstantiAl
nature. It is important to hear
the young lady's account that
she may give when her mind is
restored. In this particular, the present
case resembles the Emma Bond affair
She can only give detached circumstance
connected with the assault. Windsor has
fairly famed with indignation because o1
zthe outrage. There is an Anti-H Thief
Association, which is kind of a vigilance
committee. meeting was called for last
night to take the outrage into cOnsidera
tion.
Miss Aldridge is a young lady, aged
twenty-four, and is highly respected
She is of retiring disposition and sci
dom goes out in society. Tuesday nighl
she chose to remain at home and read T.
going to the church festival that attractet
her parents. Being at home alone aud
unprotected made her an easy prey. Th'
house in which the outrage took place Is
in a thickly settled part of the town. ano
it is a mystery that the scene could have
taken place without alarming the neigh
bOrs.
At ten o'clock last night Miss Aldridge's
condition was very much worse than il
was in the morning. She lies abed in
semi-comatose condition, and grave fears
are entertained that she will not recover
from the shock. She no longer has hcl 4
intervals of returning consciousness
She no longer recognizes her friends at
the bedside. Knots of men stand on the
street talking over the remarkable case.
Considering the length of time the vic
tim hung to the limb of the cherry tree ~
the nights cold air, it is indeed wonder
full if not miraculous that she still lives
Perhaps 1t is only explainable on tht
ground that her body swung against tn,
tree, which does not stand quite vertical
and that it partially supported the weight
of her body, that would otherwise nave
hanged entirely on her neck.