Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-03-16
/. CRAZED INTO CRIME.
Worse Than Fiendish Work of a
German Painter in Allegheny.
A CFILD'S BRAINS DASHED OUT
By Her Steptather, Who Couldn't Bear
The Sight Of the Little Girl.
A HORRIBLE EARLT-MORNING MURDER

A brutal child murder was commltted
before daylight yesterday morning, by Franz
Grade. a German painter living on Shady
avenue, in the northwestern part of Allie
rhsuy. The house where the murder
occurred is only about 800 yards from the
place where the murdered infant of Agnes
Taukert was found, less than a month
ago.
At a few minutes after o'clock yester-
day morning, Police Officer Philip
McDonough, who lives on Shady avenue,
was wakened from his sleep by a
hammering on his door, and he
was told that a family had been
murdered up on the hill. The Grade house
stands on the south side of Shady avenue,
on a hill, about a qua rter of mile west OF
the Eleventh ward schoolhouse. Nc
Donough hurried TO the place. He is we'll
acquainted in that neighhorhood, and knew
Franz Grade we'll When he reached the
vicinity of the house he found Mrs. Sophia
Grade, the wife OF the murderer, and his
two brothers, Wilhelm and Herman, stand
ing on the sidewalk in front of the house.
ANGUISH OF MOTHER.
The woman was thinly clad, her feet were
bare. her hair down, her night dress and
face bespattered with blood, and she was
moaning. wringing her hands, and wildly
talking in German. William Carlin, who
lives in a new house Just opposite Grade,
had been awakened, and was dressed and
out.
Mrs. Grade would not talk English. Her
brothers said that Franz had killed the
children and was still in the house. The
house was dark in front. but when the Off
Ger went along one side he saw light in the
dllar windows. He broke open the kitchen
or. Grade had locked it after his wife
fad escaped. Officers McDonough and Car
I'm struck light and explored. In the bed
toom, which was the second room from the
front on the first floor, horrible spectacle
STas discovered.
{ The room is small, uncarpeted and meanly
Furnished. There are in the room two beds
and cradle. In one bed Grade and his
wife had slept with the youngest child, a
boy OF years. In the other there had
slumbered little LISA Heffner, years old,
the daughter of Mrs. Grade by a first hus-
band, and a Grade girl, years old.
A HORRIBLE SIGHT.
The children Law in their disordered bed,
sobblng. The bed clothing was spattered
with blood. On the floor lay the dead body
OF little LISA. 1t was horrible sight. The
skull was crushed as if it had been hickory
nut shell, and face and clothing were COW
cred with blood. On the floor were two
pools Of still warm blood. The head of the
cradle was broken to pieces, and the trag-
ments were thick with blood and hair.
The maddened man had seized the child
bv her ankles, and swinging her as one
would sledge, had battered out her brains
against the head of the cradle. The
blue marks left by the mans
strong fngerd were visible on the thin
white ankles OF the girl. The foot of the
bed where the two girls slept was directed
toward the side of the bed of the parents
and only about two feet distant, so that it
seemed that Franz Grade had leaped out of
bed hastily and grabbed the child by her
ankles, because her feet were nearest to him.
FOUND IN THE CELLAR.
Officer McDonough descended to the eel
lar. Here he found the bloody husband and
father, Grade had carried both lamps to
the cellar and placed them upon box. He
was seated upon another box. His ewes
were rolling wildly. In his hands ne held
a butcher knife, a case knife and two ordi-
nary table forks. He was passing the in
struments from one hand to the other.
McDonough strobe up to Grade and said:
"Frank, give me those things" Grade
arose and handed them to the policeman.
Grade was then led upstairs and to the front
door, and the patrol wagon was called.
When the prisoner saw the wagon coming
he began to struggle, but he was powerless
in the hands of the robust policeman. 1t
was about o'clock when the man was
placed in the Allegheny lookup. He talked
wildly and fought with the officers. He
was put in a straight jacket After the
arrival of Chief Kirschler in the forenoon,
the jacket was removed and handouts were
put on the man. He acted more sanely
when the Chief talked with MIN in German,
and said that he had killed the girl. He
did not know why or how he had done it.
THE MOTHERS STORY.
About IL o'clock Chief Kirschler and
Detective John Murphy visited the distant
scene of the murder. The house was sur
rounded by excited women, with few men.
Mrs. Sophia Grade was found at the house
of her brother-in-law. Herman, with her two
children. She was taken to the City Hall.
1t was only after much stubbornness that
she talked with the Chief. She showed fear
OF the vengeance of her husbands brothers
She Id that her husband came home
early from work Friday evening; that he
was sober, but plainly either out of his
mind or greatly disturbed about something.
They quartered about the eldest girl, which
Franz did not like because it was not his
child. Until 10 o'clock the painter sat by
kitchen stove and read a German book on
witches and the black art This book was
found in his bed yesterday morning, and
neighbors say he was accustomed to read
such books.
After going to bed there was further
quarreling, but Mrs. Grade went to sleep.
She was awakened by the shrek of her
daughter She saw her husband on the
hoor, holding the child by the ankles.
FLED FROM THE HOUSE.
She leaped out OF bed and fed to Herman
Grades house. She said that ner husband
had quarreled nightly, and generally came
home drunk. The woman was held until 3
o'clock in the afternoon, when she was sent
back to her house in the care of Undertaken
Eb5ert.
Franz Grade and his wife have been mar
Tien over five years. He is 33 years old and
she 40. They have been in this country
about five years. Franz is an expert painter
and grainer. He has three brothers
in Allegheny, William and Herman.
who live near him, and Albert, who
lives further away. The brothers are said
by the police to be roIsterers, who drink
heavily and often get into rows Franz was
generally considered the quietest Of the
Iour, but his quietness was of the sullen,
morose order. He owns the lot where his
house STANDS, and had paid for all the cost
of house and lot except 5000. At her hus-
bands request, Mrs. Sophia Grade was con-
fined in the insane department of the ALLIE
ghenr Poorhouse from November 8, 1887,
for six DAYS. She was not thought to be in
sane, except as the temporary result of ill
treatment
ACTED AS IF CRAZY.