St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-12-21
DEAD FOR MANY DAYS.
Topeka Woman the Victim of
a Most Horribly Brutal
Murder.
LIFELESS INPOOLS OF BLOOD,
Which Had Long Since Dried,
Her Body Is Discov-
cred.
LIFELESS IN POOLS OF BLOOD.
OUTRAGE AND ROBBERY
Evidently the Objects Of the
Perpetpators--Affair a
Mystery.

TOPEKA, Kan, Dec. 20.-The body of
Mrs. A. ID. MatsOn. stiff and cold and
lying in pool Of her own blood, was
discovered at her home, at the corner of
Fifteenth and Monroe streets. this aft
ernOon at $3.50 O'Clock. To all appear
ances the woman had been dead about
ten days. 1t is undoubtedly a case Of
cold bloOded murder, with robbery as
the incentive. Mrs. Matson lived alone,
and it was generally supposed she had
considerable money about the house. A
criminal assault had preceded the hor-
rible murder.
The only person who seems to know
anything about it is deaf and dumb
cOlored man named George Knight, " ho
saw two men, probably on the evening
of the 18th, enter the window of the
murdered woman's house and after
wards saw them run away.
No intelligiDle account can be arrived
at from Knight except through his
brother. who is the only person who
can understand him. The two will be
brought together tomorrow at the cor
Oner's inquest.
The first inkling of the murder was
made known this afternoon by milk
boy, who had noticed the can Of milk
he left OH Mrs. Matson'S doorstep ten
days ago had been untouched. He i'm
mediately made known his fears to the
pOlice, and an Investigation followed.
Officers were unable to gam admittanee,
and, breaking in the rear door, soon
% fhn In
back room, lying on her back
In Pool of Blood.
long sice dried, lay the murdered wom-
an. Two sacks or potatoes had been
rudely thrown over her head, while a
bundle OF rage and old clothes haIf-cov-
cred her body. Investigation showed
the most brutal treatment had been
dealt the woman before her life had
been taken. Her clothes were thrown
up over her head, and clotted blood
held them to the floor. TheAentire top
of her head was crushed in, evidently
by some heavy, blunt instrument. She
lay with her arms at her sides. her head
turned to the right, her right leg straight
out and the other drawn uD a little.
When the news Of the horrible find
became known the most intense excite
ment prevailed. and detectives were i'm
mediately put On the case. The neigh
borS in the vicinity are all colored. and
they say they have not seen Mrs Mat
son for six weeks. Mrs. Robinson, who
lives across the street, says she last saw
Mrs. Matson about two weeks ago. and
she was then coming from the direction
of her house, and she had evidently
been collecting rent. She saw no one
around the house at the time, and never
heard any noise or disturbance of any
kind there.
Mrs. MatSon was a member of the
Topeka Equal Suffrage association and
a prominent suffragist worker. For
many years she was a member of the
city board of education and took an
active interest in the city schools.
She was at one time city teacher.
and was very we'll known locally. She
was generally supposed to have con-
siderable money, and owned five or six
houses on the East side. Her husband
left her four or five years ago and took
up homestead in California, where he
has since lived.