The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1893-07-26
MRS. nIUMAUGH's STORY.
Relates Her Troubles with Her Hus-
band and Tells of the Shooting.

Relates Her Troubles with Her Hus-
band and Tells of the Shooting.
Mrs. Mumaugh is woman about
thirty-six years Of age, intelligent and
with prepossessing, though not hand
some, face. She told the following story
of the crime: I'VE have been married
a little over eighteen years and through
out of the first few years of our married
life We lived happily enough. My hus-
band always had a violent temper, but
1t was rarely that he mistreated me
or he children until he took to drinking
heavily. Whisky made a beast of him,
and he made my life a hell on earth.
Life with him became unbearable, and
last fall l secured divorce in Judge
Harper's court on the grounds of cruel
ty, drunkenness and failure to provide.
The last time saw him until today was
few days after L had applied for the
divorce.
Il had rented this house, and with my
children, with what help my two girls
were To me, managed to make a living,
and l hoped that he would stay away
from us and let us alone, and the chill
dren had the same feeling for him. He
had abused them so much and for so
long that they seemed to have lost the
last spark of love for the man they were
ashamed to call father.
AS l was about to say, he came here
intoxicated one day while the suit was
pending in court and began to abuse me
for applying for a divorce, and finally
wound up by almost choking the life out
Of me. 1 believe he intended killing me
then, and would have carried out his in
tention if my two sisters-in-law had not
come to my assistance. 1 swore out a
warrant for him then, and that was the
last 1 had seen of him until tonight
when we saw him coming toward the
house. He had several times threatened
my life, and almost as many times at
tempted it, so that L was determined
never 10 let him in the house again.
when 1 saw him coming locked the
doors. We were all pretty badly scared,
because we knew that he always carried
a pistol, and supposed that he had come
here with the intention of using l. My
sister. Mamie Winsh, had stopped in a
few minutes before on her way from her
work. She lives with my mother on
Water-st., and works at the starch fac
tory, and often stops in awhile in the
evening on her way home. She had good
reason to fear Mumaugh, as he had fire.
quently said he had it in for her for
persuading me to get divorce.
when Mumaugh came to the side
window / talked to him for a few min
utes from the adjoining room. where he
could not see me- but when he began to
demand that the children be allowed to
come out to him l left him because I
knew that 1 would only anger him the
more, and my sister told him that he
should not see the children. He asked
where 1 was and when he was told that
l had left the house he drew his revolver
and fired a shot at Mamie, who was just
going through the room toward the
kitchen. The next thing 1 remember was
hearing the second shot and hearing
Henry Blake say that Mumaugh had
shot himself. With that man dead /
feel safe for the first time since / Sc
cured the divorce. L feel as if a great
load had been taken from me. 1t may
not sound very we'll for me to say these
things, but 1 must say that his death is
a great relief to me-"