St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-12-26
DR.. Munroe Accuses His Wife
Of Intimacy With Other
Men.
His Fiendish Cruelty Prompts
the Woman to Seek a
Divorce.
These Causes Led to the
Larchwood Tragedy on
Christmas Eve.
Col. r. j. Stevens, United
States Consul at Victoria,
Dies Of Apoplexy.
Snecial TO the Globe.

Special 10 the Globe.
SIOUX FALLS, S. D., Dec. 25.-The
people of hardwood, Iowa, are terribly
excited over the tragedy of Tuesday
night, in which DR.. John Monroe of
that place inflicted what he thought to
be mortal wound upon his wife and
then severed mis- own jugular. bleeding
to death. DR.. Monroe was the only
practicing physician in hardwood,
a man who was under the sway of a
bad temper, and who never turned back
from anything he undertook, no matter
what the cost might be. He settled in
hardwood about year ago. coming
from Beloit, To-, where he abandoned
good practice. When under the influ-
ence of liquor, and he frequently
got drunk. he tore about the
quiet village like a raviDg maniac,
Tuesday afternoon DR.. Munroe was ar
rested at the instlgatiOn of II. A. Miller,
the leading merchant of hardwood. on
the charge of assault. 1t seems that
Miller had sued Munroe for an old ac-
count and Munroe had gone around to
make a settlement. He accused
Miller of criminal intimacy with
Mrs. Munroe, and said that he
would kill him the next time he got
sight of him. Miller struck MunrOe
with his fist. and this aroused the anger
of the doctor to frenzy. He stamped
about like wild man and left Miller
with the avowed intention of purchas-
ing a revolver to shoot him. MunrOe
obtained the revolver, but before he
could find Miller he was arrested by the
city marshal. He was kept in charge
by the marshal until he had quoted
down, and was then released upon his
own recOgniZance. MunrOe went to
his Office and there
BROODED OVER HIS TROUBLES
until he became almost insane. He
and his wife had agreed some time pre-
viously to live apartand she had filed
bill in the Lyon county court for di-
vOrce Oh the grounds of cruelty. MunrOe
left his Office about $50 for the residence
of his wife, and on his arrival there
the couple talked over their troubles.
Munroe tried to induce his wife to over
look all his old offenses and live With
in the future. Mrs. MunrOe refused TO
listen to the proposition, and
her husband, without any show of
the intense excitement under which
he was laboring, suddenly arose and said
Every well, my dear; you must prepare
to meet your God" He Immediately
drew a 3S-calibef revolver from his
pocket and shot at her at short range.
The first shot went wide of its mark
and Mrs. MunrOe fled to an adjoining
room, where her fiYe-year-old son was
sleeping, screaming for help as she ran.
Placing her arms around her child, Mrs.
Munroe turned to the unfortunate man,
who had followed her into the room,
and said: "For Heavens sake, John,
don't kill me!' Munroe gave
no heed to her plea for mercy.
but placed his revolver close
bullet passing through her lung. Mrs.
Munroe ran out of the house and fell
fainting in the yard. where she was dis
covered by neighbors who had been at
tracted by the explosion of firearms.
Upon seeing his wife fall i'm the yard
and believing he had inflicted mortal
wound, MunrOe returned to the house
and cut his jugular vein with lance.
Leaning over wash basin, he allowed
his
LIFE BLOOD To FLOW
until from sheer weakness he fell to
the floor and bled to death before medi-
cal assistance arrived. Mrs. Munroe
was carried to neighbOr's, and the
HOW OF OlOOu ITOHl Her Sue
was stanched. On the arrival of
the physicians who went from
here. the bullet was probed
for but could not be found. She now
lies between life and death, but hopes
for her recovery are entertained. DR..
Munroe was thirty-eight years of age.
and graduate of the KeOkuk, To-.
School of Medicine. Mrs. Munroe is
handsome and accomplished woman of
thirty-fve.