Pawtucket tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 1890-189?, 1892-04-11
AN UNGRATEFUL SON
Kicks and Pounds His
Father to Death.
ABUSED THE WHOLE FAMILY.
An Old Man Killed While Protecting
His Wife and Daughter from Assault.

BO~ToN, April IA lrutal aud unpro
vokcd assault occurred Saturday evening
at ~ Lawrence street tharlcstown, from
the fleets of which Dauicl Donovan died
yesterday afternoon at the city hospital.
The perpetrator OF the assault, Mr. Dono
vans son John, is h. ~ station IL on the
charge OF drunkenness. the assault not
having been known 60 the police at the
time of hi, arrest
The story uf the crime and the facts
which led MP To {. as told by a daughter
Of the dead man, are as follows;
John Donovan. the son who so brutally
assaulted his father, is worthless,
drunken fellow, who never works. When
under the influence OF liquor, he is re-
ported TO be veritable ilend, aud has
more than once assaulted members OF his
family.
Saturday afternoon he came home about
4o'clock, considerably drunk and with a
bottle in his l4>ket lie Immediately be-
gan to abuse every body in the house, par
ticularly his sister Bridget, and his
mother, who is 10 years OF age.
He struck His Mother
several times. and her face now shows
black aud blue marks from his rough
treatment. He also threw n salt cellar at
her which narrowly missed her head.
lie continued his abuse Of them until
his father came home from work, about
$3.50 O'clock. The father Immediately inter
fered and ordered him to keep quiet or
leave the house. The fathers sternness
angerod him, and he threw whisky bot
tie at him.
Not content with the mischief he had al
ready done, the son started to again attack
his sister, who ran into the passageway
leading TO the front room lie followed her
and started TO strike aud kick her The
father interfered aud, getting between his
children, he received
4 Kick in the Abdomen.
He T. man i3 years Of age, aud had
becn suffering from hernia for several
years. This kick was probably the fatal
blow, although the son had struck and
kicked him previously several times,
knocking him down
When the sister saw that perhaps her
father might get killed, she went to sta
tion Il and told the officers that her
brother was drunk and creating dis
turbance. Officers Metcalf and Iougee
were sent to the house, but Donovan had
in the meantime left. lie was, however,
arrested n few minutes afterward on the
street, anu WIS thktn 10 the stdtlOn anu
locked up.
1t was not known at that time that the
assault was very serious. The injured man
was put 10 bed, but grew rapidly worse.
DR.. Mcdonald ordered his removal to the
city hospital. An examination at the hos
pital disclosed the fact that his body was
badly bruised, and that several ,ibs were
broken His face was also badly disfgured
from the brutal treatment he received.
He died at 2:l0 o'clock in the afternoon.
The dead man leaves widow and five
adult children. lie has lived In Charles.
town for thirty.six years. He is highly
spoken OF by all the neighbors as n hard
working, sober. industrious man.
His son John bears a most unsavory
reputation, and is said TO be common
drunkard, continually causing trouble ut
home The members OF his family have
been afraid Of him, as he has been heard
10 say when drunk that he would kill his
father some day. lie is ss years old.