The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-08-29

der was committed early last evening.
George Van Horn, bad character
and about 80 years old, lay in wait in
the cellar of Mrs. Josephine Westcotts
boarding house, corner Of Franklin ave-
nue. and Linden street, and cut her
throat with razor or other sharp in
strument.
He eluded arrest: she is lying in the
Lackawanna hospital and is as liable
to die as to live. Each Is married but
separated from husband and wife. Van
Horn was a rejected suitor for the
landlady's affections.
With great. gaping slash, which
extended across her throat, almost from
one ear to the other: with the blood
flowing in a stream over her chest; with
her wrapper held to catch the CORY flow,
and barely able to speak-in that con-
dition Mrs. Westcott staggered up the
outside cellar steps and made known
the awful deed to her little 9-year-old
daughter and the only two boarders who
were in the house. a few moments
later, almost before the arrival of police
and surgeons, dense crowd surrounded
the house. The neighborhood was
thrown into a fever of excitement.
VAN HORNS ESCAPE.
A neighbor heard someone scrambling
over the low board fence in the rear of
the building, and, a few moments after
the horrible deed was perpetrated Van
Horn was seen at the corner of Spruce
street and Mifflin avenue, two blocks
away. That was all the police could
learn of his doings and course of flight.
After supper last evening all the
boarders left the house, except two,
Mrs. Fetlerolf and another boarder who
were in their rooms on the second floor.
1t was with the main floor deserted that
the brutal act was committed in the
cellar. There was no witness to it, and
the only light on the matter was Mrs.
Westcott's few broken utterances to
Mrs. Feuerolf, after the victim had
staggered up the outside cellar stairs
and groped her way into the front door.
Mrs. Fetlerolf heard someone stumble
on the stairs and mutter as II in great
agony. 1t was Mrs. Westcott.
whats wrong?" asked the boarder.
I'm murdered" was the reply.
1t was then that the former saw the
blood and gaping wound.
MY God! Who did that?" exclaimed
Mrs. Fetlerolf, rushing to the others
aid.
1T was George Van Horn" gasped
the victim as she sank upon the stairs.
That is all the police or anyone else
knows of the immediate crime.
HE CALLED OCCASIONALLY.
Van Horn boarded with Mrs. Westcott
up to about two years ago. She then
kept boarding house on Spruce street
near the Florence Mission. After he
was no longer a boarder, he called on
Mrs. Westcott occasionally. The
neighbors gossiped about it. His visits
ago.
Late in July Mrs. Westcott missed
SIS. She had Van Horn arrested. He
was the only person liable to be guilty,
who knew where the money was kept.
Before the hearing he pleaded to the
woman to withdraw the charge. She
did SO. 1t was after this that he was
known to have threatened to "get
even"
In passing from the cellar-way to the
front door. the mother was seen by
Cora, the 9-year-old daughter, who ran
screaming to neighbor's house where
she was cared for. The woman was laid
on the bed on the main floor of the house
and several neighbors did what they
could to staunch the flow of blood until
the arrival of DR.. w. G. Fulton and DR..
Blanchard, of the Lackawanna hospi-
tai. They succeeded in temporarily
dressing the wound so as to make It
possible to transfer Mrs. Westcott to
the hospital
THE WOMAN CONSCIOUS.
At the house and in the hospital she
was conscious and able to gasp few
words with great difficulty. She sew
eral times named Van Horn as the
guilty person.
The wound was clean cut about six
inches long. 1t penetrated the wind
pipe and laid bare one juglar vein and
the two carotid arteries. There was no
other cut on any part of the body, face
or limbs. showing that Van Horn did
the deed with deliberation and with.
out a preceding struggle.
A peculiar condition of affairs was
found in the cellar. The house is on
the southwest corner and faces Frank
lin avenue. There are two cellars, n
large one and a small one connected
by an archway. From the later a
short flight of steps leads into the yard
at the southwest corner of the build
ing.
Each cellar was neatly kept and that
Is why the presence of a quantity of
clean rags in the archway is peculiar.
The rags were arranged regularly and
In the form of bed. At one end of
the pile was an improvised pillow made
out out of bag stuffed with rags. The
police noted the very neat and tidy
condition of the cellar, which were en-
tirely out Of keeping with the crude
couch. 1t was argued that Van Horn
did not come in the cellar to sleep 80
early in the evening. and, IL he did,
that he would have ran up the outside
stairs or concealed himself when he
heard Mrs. Westcott approach.
ACTIVITY OF THE POLICE.
Patrolmen Hawks and Parry, whose
beats were in the neighborhood Of the
scene, were early at the house and i'm
mediately despatched word to Lieuten-
ant Davis and Chief Robling. Special
Officer George Wickenhoffer, who was
among the first to arrived, secured the
immediate neighborhood and then set