The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-01-24
SHE WAS INSTANTLY KILLED.
The Husband Terribly Wounded
but Found Alive.
CRUEL WORK OF AN ASSASSIN.
The Unfortunate Woman Was Blind
and Was Killed While Crop
ing in Despair.

PETALUMA. Jan. 23.-At $3.50 o'clock
this morning two ranchers drove rapidly
into town and notified the officials that
Frank Meagher, who lives on the Willow
ranch, one and a half miles from town.
was dying from a gunshot wound. and his
wife had been instantly killed by some
party unknown.
Officials and physicians at once started
for The scene. The sight that met their
gaze was sickening and CHASTITY. There
are two houses on the ranch, one a fine,
modern handsomely furnished residence,
the other an old house in which the family
lived portion of the time and in which
Mrs. Meagher was shot. In the kitchen,
partly reclining on the floor and against a
lounge. with her body and clothing csv-
cred with blood, lay Mrs. Meagher, cold in
death. In the bedroom, lying in bed and
we'll covered with clothes. lay her husband
moaning feeby. a CHASTITY wound in the
back OF his head showing where he had
been wounded.
A physician at once examined him and
removed several shot from his jaw and
mouth and his serious injuries were
dressed. In the meantime the body of
Mrs. Meagher was placed on a table and it
was found that the entire charge of shot
gun loaded with mixed shot had struck
her squarey on the right temple at close
range. tearing a CHASTITY hole in her head
From indications Meagher had been sit
ting on chair in the kitchen reading
book. lie had his back to the window and
his wife was at the table beside him en-
gagged in making bread.
The assassin crept up to the front of the
house until about within fifteen feet of the
window, when kDeeling, he fred, the shot
striking Meagher, who no doubt fell back
In the chair stunned, the book falling at
his feet Mrs. Meagher. who is blind, ter
rlhed by the gun report, evidently CROPPED
her way through the door into the adioin-
ing room and endeavOred to open the door
leading to the front porch, and as she
opened this the murderer poked the deadly
weapon against her head, fired and she fell
dead. A large pool of blood remains to
tell the tale. To finish his work the per-
petrator of the deed dragged the body into
the kitchen against lounge, near where
the husband was shot aud when away
leaving both for dead.
Meagher must have remained uucon-
scious for some time and when he revived
uldE6CQ ~ lU6 yea In the Dack
room and remained there until discovered
this morning. A theory is advanced by
the officers who state that Meagher,
who is a man of fine physique, might have
easily wandered around while out of his
mind, and in this way they account for
several trails of blood in the house and
finding him in bed. The tracks of the
murderer were plainly visible outside the
house and viewed by the officers. Two
panes of glass were broken by the first
shot which hit the husband. and half of
the charge lodged in the window sash and
half in bis neck.
Great excitement prevails in the city
and large knots OF citizens are discussing
the horrible affair. There is no clew to
the perpetrator unless it is the marks of q
No. 10 rubber boot just where the shooter
stood. An inquest will be held to-