New-York tribune., 1891-08-29


His weapon had only five chambers. On the
bureau in the front room was sheet Of napcr. on
which Baxter had written the following in pencil
Dear mother % rsht to tell You that am trd of
LIVING. Dcar ear mother don't worry about me four my
think that am gone in the head But am NOT TO Balls
VII WI y I sdnS Te oG g4od % y mother Dear mother my
Dear Mary my Hfe is lost. now to shots will fix me.
Good BY mother and all from your sun.
My mother lives In 14l ST., 597 Baxter give her
all got
Another scrap of paper bore the following :
"597 East Observation-Disclosures y-Grst-st Mrs
Fordom. good-by. Mary, bury me with my fa-
ther."
There was also time-check, showing the hours
in which Baxter had worked for his last employer.
&. ii. human, of No 90 West -hundred-and
twenty-ffth-st., as follows:
Saturday, hotel. Z hours; co w l31, 1 hour
Monday, so W. l3l. hours; Tuesday GO w.
131 hours
Below was scrawled: "Draw this money for my
mother
The writing, in which mention of his wife and
children was omitted, indicated that Baxter had
planned to kill them, too. Mary" meant his
married sister, Mrs. FOrdham, who lived with his
widowed mother and another married sister, Mrs
GOrtOn, in Cne-handred-a -and-forty- -iirst-st His
brother-in-law Gorton, answered call which the
police sent TO that place. Gorton said that BaX-
ter evidently was crazy and that other ex-
panation of the crime could be imagined. BaX-
ter's three brothers. who are also house-paintcrs
were at work at different places. Thomas for
merly lived in the rooms next to Johns. which
now are occupied by the Alulers but he moved to
e-hundred-and-thirty- The father Henry
Baxter, died about year ago. lie was a voun-
teer fireman and formerly wrecking-master at Hell
Gate He kept bOathOuse at Eighty-sXth-st.
and East River for some years previous to his
death.
John Baxter was q somewhat shiftless house
painter who worked only at intervals and drank
freely at times. There was some improvement
in his habits after he was married
to Mary Regan about seven years ago
She was an orphan and had come to this city
10 find work as q servant only two years before
her marriage. Her only relative in this country
was said TO be an uncle living in Greenpoint.
She kept Baxter at work when he was inclined
to be idle, and chided him when he spent his
wages for liquor, but they seldom quarrelled.
They moved from Yorkvie TO the house in One
hundred-and-siXth-st. five years ago. Everybody
in the house spoke well of Mrs. Baxter yesterday,
and said she never gave her husband cause for
where in the country in July and part of August,
and got back to the city last week lie had
nearly $40 in his possession when he killed his
family and himself On Thursday Ire was idle
all day, and went TO One-hundred-a and -fOrty-irst
ST. to see his mother and sisters. They laughed
at him when he said: u am going to die To-
night" He put his hand on his breast and said
My heart is burning all the time, and ] know
| will die Some more talk OF the same kind
before he left the house did not arouse any
suspicion of the terrible thoughts that must have
been in his mind.
BAXTERs CHEERFULNESS
Baxter was sober when he went home in the
evening, and he sat on the front stOop for awhile
talking with the neighbOrs after supper. He
seemed to be cheerful and contented then. His lit
tie boy climbed into his lap and fell asleep
in his arms. Mrs. Baxter went downstairs and
carried the little fellow up to bed, where his
sister was asleep. About o'clock Baxter went
to his and there suspicious sounds
there until the shots were fired.
Mrs. Muller and other neghbors said yesterday
that when they heard the firing they thought
il in the house No. 1928, in which a number
of Italians live. There had been SO many fights
next door that pistol shots caused no surprise, 1t
was said.
Coroner Levy and his deputy, DR.. Jenkins, went
to the house in, the afternoon and examined the
bodies. They spent some time making inquiries,
but could I,D6 eec rta:n any probable cause for
the tragedy except that of insanity Daniel
Scheffiin, an undertaken Of No. 2,056 Second
ave, took charge of the corpses. 1t said
that they probably would be kept there until
the funeral. BaXters mother would have the
bodies buried, il was said. The furniture of the
dead family was worth little. and only last month,
helped by the Sick Chdren's Mission in Henry
st. Dr. E. j. Lovenge, who attended the children,
had written the following order card of
George Calder, superintendent of the Mission,
which was in the house:
Please deliver TO bearer beef tea, condensed
milk, rice, for Mrs. Baxter, at No. 321 East
Observation-Disclosures
After the discovery Of the tragedy yesterday
the sidewalk in front of the house was blocked
for hours by a crowd of excited people. and the
police at length were obliged to clear the street.