The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-12-10
SOUTH JERSEYS RIPPER.
JOHN KNOX, OF MrL1VIIIE. rs
SUPPOSED TO BE THE NAN.

Remark at a Church Meeting.
BRIDGEToN, Dec. 10, 1~sS9.-John Knox.
of Millville, the alleged South Jersey
''Jack the Ripper" charged with the
murder of Mrs. Annie Baird. is held in
the jail here.
1t is generally believed that an action
for murder in the first degree will be
brought against Knox. The evidence
against him, while purely circumstantlal'
is considered very strong. Last Thurs
day afternoon, as has been testified to by
several. he was in the colored woman's
house in q state of intoxication. After
ward he was seer near by, with blood on
his face, hands and clothes, ana tolu
Anthony Lutz, a gunner, whom ne met,
that he had killed someone, even going
so far as to state how it was done.
In his maudlin condition he inquired
"Did l do rightFI and then asked Lutz
and his party to shoot him or hang him.
These facts and his many contradictory
statements regarding his movements
Thursday afternoon, n his equally con-
Trajectory explanation as to how the
blood got on him are all considered very
ominouS.
Knox is a glassbIower and recently
lived in Bridgeton. He has several times
been in jail as a result of his ndness fof
liquor. 1t is charged that he once mar
rowly escaped killing his father-ln,laW
while living in Bridgeton. Once while IN
jail Knox was visited by his wife, VINO
after coming out, said to Jail Warden
Lare-'It would be asgood thing II John
could be kept here. He will kill some
body some time and be hanged"
The murdered woman, with her hus-
band and several children, came to the
Cumberland County Almshouse SIX years
400 and xNnTn in n UnTU nlGf1fJlTA C0n0l-
ton. The pair were slaves and natives OF
Virginia, and made their escape North
just before The close of the war. The
family remained at the almshouse dur-
ing the winter and then left. A year or
two afterward the husband died, leaving
Annie, his wife, with three children,
Frank, Lewis and William. The two
former were bound out and are still llv-
ing in this county, William is still at the
almshouse and had heard nothing from
his mother for about two years until he
learned of her murder.
The old deserted home on the Malaga
road, three miles from Melville, where
Annie had been living alone for q short
Time n where she met her death. Is the
most wretched place for a habitation
imaginable. A chair and a table consti-
tuted the only furniture. The woman
had emo stove and her only bed was a
filthy pile of straw in II corner, upon
which her dead body was found by a
neighbor Friday morning.
Knox positively denies killing the
woman II a y his wild statements
were simply due to his greatly intoxi-
Gated condition. He claims that the
blood came from his nose, being caused
by a fall.
Lawyer Payne claims to lave discov-
cred evidence which will tend TO Grimm
ate others and show that his client is not
a guilty a
Deacon Johnson's Hasty Words.
NEWARK, Dec. 10, 1SS9.-The whole con-
gregation of Ebenezer Baptist Church,
colored. of Orange, was present at the
trial of a case concerning their pastor in
the First District Court yesterday morn
ing. Their pastor, John A. Harris, and a
deacon in the church, William johnson,
were the legal ~combatants. Mr.. Harris
wants his character indicated. He said
that on June Is, 1889, at a meeting of the
church he was slandered by johnson. A
Mr.. and Mrs. George Keaver were being
disciplined by the church for not living
together. and then it was intimated that
the blame all rested on MI. Harris. Then
1t was that Deacon Johnson got up and,
casting his eyes devoutly among the
rafters overhead, said:-"God forgive us
Tor covering up adultery in the church"
The whole Congregation was present,
010 S1S LIZ Wcto 1iOdIO W OFC1f OO0Js
Pastor Harris, through his counsel,
Robert Bell, sued the deacon for 5000
for defamation of character. Deacon
Johns said that he made the remark on
which the suit was based before a meet
ing, and that it was a privileged obserVa-
ton.
A jury of white men sat on the case.
1t took two hours to get all the evidence
III, and then, after listening to a brief
charge by Judge Miller, the Jury retired.
In five minutes they agreed on a verdict
for the plaintiff, giving him 5000 dam
ages. When the verdict was announced
the colored people present shouted and
embraced each other for joy. Notice of
appeal was given.
Bouncing a Passenger Is Assault.
TRENTON, Dec. 10, 1885, the Mercer
Court yesterday William Gulick. Jo-
achim Gulick and Millard Robinson, en-
ployes of the Trenton Horsecar Company,
were found guilty of assaulting Valen-
tine Pheger, a passenger. Some time
ago the company dispensed with conduc-
tors and compelled all passengers to
place their fare in boxes.
Many of the regular. riders refused to
do so, and some were forcibly elected
from the car. Pfleger offered his fare to
Driver Robinson, who refused to accept
it, and when the car reached the depot he
called other employees and a free fight
followed, in which Pfleger was injured.
The Trial lasted all day.
Tile Sad Fate of Two Girls.
MORRIS PLAINS, Dec. 10, 1SS9.-On Sat
urday afternoon a lad named James
Elliott was walking through the extern
siye grounds that surround the house of
Richard A. McCurdy, at this place, when
he saw two little red worsted hoods pro-
truding from the thin ice that covered
q small pond in a low section of ground.
The water had collected from the recent
rains and the place was nothing but a
mudhole. The ice would not bear the
weight of Elliott, so he took a fence rail
and began to poke the hoods in order thai
he might get them. AS he moved one of
them a child'S han shot out of the water
and Elliott, very much frightened, has
tened to the McCurdy residence and told
Hanson Haverborn, a mar who is EN-
ployed about the house, of what he had
seen.
Several men at once went to the spot.
They went INTO the water and found living
on the bottom of the pond the body of one
of Haverborn's little girls, aged eleven
years She was2takenMfromN the water.
and although rest0rAti%es were applied
they were of no avail: The body of q
younger sister of the little girl, whose age
was nine years, was also taken from the
pond. The grief. stricken father took his
two dead children to the house. 1t is not
known how the children happened to 90
near the pond, or how they were drowned;
but it is supposed that one of them fell