Huntsville gazette., 1894-03-17
A SUNDAY TRAGEDY.


Family Misunderstanding BY Killing
His Wife and Himself In the Presence
of His Step Daughter the Railway
Platform at East Alton - The Direct
Cause of the Tragedy Not Definitely
Known.
ALTON, ILL.,, March 13.-The South
western limited train of the Big Four
railroad had as passengers to East
Alton Sunday night, bound for their
home at Alton, Mr.. and Mrs. Marion
L. Skaats, with Mrs. Skaats' daughter,
Miss Cora Phillips. The daughter ar
rived here at 9 o'clock, accompanied by
the dead bodies of her mother and step
father
The story of the tragedy, as told by
Miss Phillips between her sobs, was
brief but terrible. She and her moth
er had gone to st. Louis at noon, for
what was not stated, and had been fol-
lowed by Skaats on a later train As
they returned on the limited and ar
rived at East Alton they changed to
the plug" train for Alton, and as
they walked across the little plat
form Skaats, saying to his wife,
1--WE will settle this matter now,"
quickly shot her dead and then fred
two shots into his own head and died
almost instantly. The affair was soon
over, taking but a moment, and both
were dead before the daughter or the
bewildered spectators of the scene
could realize what had happened.
WARNED HER MOTHER.
Miss Phillips says that when Slkaats
came in and sat down in the car behind
herself and mother, he made some re.
mark which caused her to look at him,
and she at once said to her mother,
Look out for tragedy but did not
suppose he meant to kill her mother
and himself as we'll
When the plug" train arrived at
Alton the ambulance wagon was ready
and the body of Mrs. Skaats was first
taken to the family home, her daugh-
ter refusing to allow the BODY of the
murderer and suicide to be taken to
the house. When this task had been
accomplished the wagon returned and
Skaats' body was taken to the police
station in the city hall
Skaats has father, E. E. Skaats, OF
Wichita, Kas., and two little daugh.
ters, who are with their grandfather
A son lives here
Mrs. Skaats, formerly Mrs. Celia
Phillips, leaves four daughters and one
son, the latter cripple, who are all
distracted with grief, as they find
themselves almost friendless orphans.
SUCH A TRAGEDY PREDICTED.
The history of the dead couple is pc.
culiar, and they have been for many
years the subject of much discussion,
many having the foresight to predict
just such tragic end as has come tc
them.
On the 5th of last December the
Skaats family had terrible row, he
beating his wife and threatening tc
kill her, and making such noise as tc
arouse the entire neigh borhood. He
was only quieted by the arrival of a de
tachment of police. AS result of this
quarrel Skaats and his wife separated.
he taking his children and going to his
fathers at Wichita. Mrs. Skaats al
once applied for divorce.
Some three or four weeks afterward
however, she received conciliatory
letter from him, and the trouble was
patched up He returned to her, leav.
ing his children with his father A
more loving couple was never seen Oh
the streets of Alton than the Skaats,
and their regained happiness was the
subject of general comment This has
continued without interruption until
the present tragedy, at least SO far as
the public knows, and the awful end
ing of the pair, while not altogether
unexpected, came as violent shock to
this community, and is the sole topic
of discussion in this city of sensations