Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1893-10-26

lioSe imaginary crimes with which Ed
gar Alan Poe chilled the blood of the
civilized world were not more mys-
ferrous and fearful than the murders
III the ShaWangunk mountains of New
York. The giant ape which committed
them was not more hardened con
sclenceleSs, purposeleSS, lOodthirsty.
and indifferent than Lizzie the gypsy,
by her own act widow of. Paul Hall
day. 1t is one Of the most interesting
cases III criminal annals, not only to
ponce detectives and students Of crime
rs crime, but to students of crime as
an expression of perverted nature
to psychologists Here is a woman
VINO, without excuse or apparent mo
tive, brutally murders her aged hus-
band, her cripp ed stepson and two
women who were no more to her than
strangers. Bruta1ly murdered them?
Yes. But gently. almost mercifully;
causing them the least and briefest
pain possible; administering, as it were
the coup de grace in the beginning
Then, having put them out of the
way III the damp and noisnSome earth
under her BEDROOM she pursued her
vocations with smiling face, sing
ing tongue and 4 calm and impene-
trable courage. And all this not in the
dawn Of civilization on the western
continent; not in some remote fastness
WhereintO the light of humanity had
never penetrated: but yesterday, in
the most populous state III the union,
within Il trifiing distance of the second
city i'll size and one Of the first in age
among the cities of the country.
This is the strange story:
Paul Halliday, seventy years old.
three times Il widoWer, a veteran of
the rebellion, in which he fought as
q member of the One Hundred and
IWenty-fOurth New York regiment, oc-
cupied and titled a farm of III acres
i'll Sullivan county, New York Until
two years ago he lived alone there
with his crippled SON About that
time he made the acquaintance Of
Lizzie Brown, 4 young and comely
member of a rowing band of gypsies.
engaged her rs housekeeper, liked her
50 well in that capacity that he con-
ciuded to make sher 4 permanent
member Of his family and so married
her
May I. 1891, few weeks later, Cd
Halliday visited 4 neighbor.ng town.
In his absence the house was burned
and the crippled stepson of Lizzie
Halliday was cremated. Of course
Mrs. Halliday was suspected of arson
and even of murder. Her arrest was
secured, but there was no proof and
the authorities were compe led to re-
lease her During her detention Hall-
day rebuilt his house and barn. A
few months afterWard she was again
arrested, this time on charge of
horse stealing, ana was again released.
Thursday, August 81, 1898, old man
Halliday, who was we'll known up
and down the countryside, disappeared
from view. BY Saturday the neighbors
began to wonder what had become of
him, and, being unable to secure any
satisfaction from Mrs. Halliday. no
titled his sons, Paul and James, whose
home is at Pine Bush. Paul started
Immediately for his fathers house He
found his stepmother singing Justly as
She scrubbed the kitchen floor.
THE old mans gone to Blooming
burg, she said, in response to his
question, ito make 4 payment on some
Ian"
Paul pretended to believe her and
retired All day Sunday he, James
Henry, Cornelius Garfield and Angus
tus La Forge watched the house and
the approaches to it. Monday Paul
called again. His stepmother, all I'M
suspecting the surveillance to which
She had been subjected, told him his
father had spent Sunday with her
and had departed for B,oomingburg
again that very morning. In the
meantime the neighbors had visited
Bloomingburg and learned that Halli-
day had not been seen in that town
since Wednesday, Aug. 80.
On Monday, Aug. %, a woman drove
up to the farmhouse of Thomas Nc
Quillan, gave her name as Smith and
engaged Mrs. NIcQuillan to do house
work for her for 50 per day. Mrs.
McQuilan drove away with Mrs. Smith
the next Wednesday, About noon on
the following Saturday Mrs. Smith ap-
peared again, informed young Sarah
MCilulIldu lHil HpI luOlueI Hdu Ill uTeu
herself and wanted her. Sarah quickly
packed 4 trunk and went off with
Mrs Smith. When Tuesday came
without news from the missing ones.
Nephew Joseph McQuillan took his
horse and went in search of them
and Mrs. Smith. In Walden he met a
man who asked him if he had heard
the news. Bodies of two women
found on Halliday's farm said the
man. "Old Halliday haint been seen
fer week. Folks think he's lynn
around thar sommers."
Josephs heart rose into his throat
He dashed his horse into Il ga-lop and
rode furiously up to Halliday's. He
found great crowd of men and wo-
men collected there. swarming around
the house, peering into corners and
securing the fields as though they
hoped to find a hidden treasure. Con
stable Scott was coming out of the
doorway From him Joseph learned
that the discovered bodies were in the
bedroom. Nobody knows EN-" the
constable said. 60 right in if yor
think you can tell who they are" A:
the young man disappeared within
the darkened room the constable re
hearsed again for the hundredth time
the story of the struggle he and young
Paul Halliday had had with Mrs
Ialli1ax Hn told tho oap inp t1o,.o,,.