Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-07-15
A MISSIONARY MURDERED.
A Struggle for Life Between an Eng
lish Clergyman and Two Assassins.

i Aksh SicFSt man anu wv Aco0SStuSs
| From the London Graphic.
Good Friday, $780, win be memorable to for
| eigners in Japan, for the next morning they
were startled by the news that the day OF sacri-
fee had been stained with what may prove a
| historical as well as a most brutal and cold
FLOODED murder. The victim, the Rev. I. A.
Large, was a member Of the Canadian Motho-
dist mission, who have a large school for jap
| anese girls in Azabu, beautiful suburb of
Toxic, EMPOWERED in blossoming trees and
| famous for its quaint old Japanese garden, the
Sho-kwa-yen. the pride of Toxic.
Mr.. Large had been spending the Easter
| vacation up at Miyanoshita one Of the favorite
Japanese watering places, and had intended to
return on the Saturday, but on Good Friday,
remem boring that the train on the following
day would be blocked with troops returning
from the maneuvers at Nagoya, lower down the
line, and his party being large, he suddenly de-
terrnined to return.
This sudden return plays its part in the evil
dence for it shows how we'll informed the as
sassin-robbers we're of his movements. The
fees of the school, about $500. had lately been
paid in They were not banked, but kept in
the house IN a safe, the key of which had been
taken by Mrs. Large up to Miyanoshita. The
robbers, therefore, could do nothing till their
return and chose the night of their return,
thinking that they would be in deep sleep
from the firing journey. There was then an
aceompEce. Suspicion points to the Waterman.
THE JAPANESE wAroHMAS.
This Waterman, according to Miss Hart, they
had found incorrisibly stupid In China
man stupidity wells cunning; in a Japanese
treachery. OF his completely he gave further
suspicion on the night of the murder. For,
though the robbers bound his hands and feet,
they did not gag him, and, soon unbinding his
feet, babe him lead the way frst to the safe
and afterward to his masters room to obtain
the key of the safe. This he know beforehand
he would do otherwise they would have in
formed themselves i'll readiness. Had he not
been an accomplee he would probably also
have given the alarm at their entry. He must
have been awakened, for they do not seem to
have been experts at burglary, but men of bet
ter position desperate for money. Later or, when
he had betrayed his master, he had an even
better opportunity of giving the alarm, be-
cause, though his hands were bound behind
him, his feet were free, he was not gagged he
was not locked in and he was unguarded But
he simply kept quiet and out of sight of the
horrld work (for appearance sake, perhaps).
IL is possible that he was scared. but the Jap
anese do not fear death, as hari-kiri proves.
Led by the false Waterman. the robbers or
assasslns penetrated to Mr.. Large's bed room
Mrs. Large heard them and asked What do
you wantT I'VE have business, +" was the
enlgmatlc reply. They seemed to her to be
armed with sharpened bamboos-but these
were the terrible Japanese swords-and when
ner husband, suddenly aroused. sprang from
his bed brayely to attack them unarmed, as he
was, he received three mortal wounds at tho
door right on the head; nothing daunted, he
still pursued the assassins. and grasping with
one was hurting him over the banisters when
he was hacked down by the other Mrs Large
with the same dauntless courage flung herself
between her husband and his murderer, re-
ceivlrg severe wounds on her own head and
having her fingers terribly mutilated.
The assasslns then escaped, leaving Mr. Large
lying dead at the top of the staircase and Mrs
Large, IN spite of her own injuries, pitifulv
bathing his face to try and arrest the flow Of
blood Meanwhile Miss Lizzie Hart. also a
Canadian, hearing the melee. had thrust out
her head and for one moment Withdrawn it in
terror, but then, feeling that it was her duty to
do something to help, rushed to the rescue lust
as the murderers made off.
MOTIVES FOR THE MURDER.
What were the motives? The Larges had re-
ceived several threatening letters and one Of
the assassins is said to be a cook whom they
discharged some time back. But, on the other
hand, one at least of the assassins must have
held better position, for the wounds show
good swordsmanship and there is much to hint
that plunder was the motive. In the first place
the men did not cut at Mr.. Large until he tried
to prevent their fight. Then, the attack was
made at time when large sum of money had
just come into the house. The assassins made
for the safe (though that may have been a
blind, and the investing class in Japan are
known to be desperate for money just now, be-
cause so many bubble companies have been
formed in the last few years, some of which
have consumed only the money Of their share
holders and other considerable subsidies to
boot.
MIR. Large, unarmed, met two men armed
with peculiarly deadly swords, and the only
wound he received in his back was after he
fell And why did he face such fearful odds?
Was 1t heroism or recklessness? HE was the
last man you could call reckless" say his
friends at the mission. 1t was simply that he
knew that his wife and baby and many women
were in the house and he deliberately laid
down his own life in the hope that while he
fought he could afford them time to give the