The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1896-06-17
MOST BRUTAL MURDER
John Miller. a Colored laboreT, Beats His
Wife's Head to a Jelly.
A CHASTITY DISCOVERY IN A CLOSET.
Atcr Committing the Awful Crime
tho Enhuman Husband Nailed UP
the Doors and Made His Escape,
Deserving His Two Young Chill.
dren In the Room.

Between 9:45 and 10 o'clock last night
there came to the station-house 4 colored
| man, William Yancey by name. and a
barber by trade, doing business at No.
2Os Cumberland street, He asked for an
| audience with the officer In charge and
| narrated to him q story which led to
the discovery of one of the most brutal
murders ever committed In this section.
According to Yancey, IL colortd man
named John Miller, having wife and
two small children. the Oldest being only
4 years of age, occupied the rooms over
his shop Miller was employed at the
Boston wharf and before ipg went to
work yesterday morning came to Yancey
and giving him the keys to his rooms.
asked him TO look after the children for
! him until he came back. saying that
their mother had gone off on the Boston
\ boat
Yancey. who seems to have been an
accommodating fellow, took the keys
and promised to look after the babies.
| AT IL o'clock he head them crying,
went up and fed them. A little after
six p. III. they became fretful again.
and wondering why their father did not
| show up, the barber took them down
| into his hop and amused them to tho
| best of his abilities.
The hours passed by and still Miller
did not put In an appearance. Becom-
| Ing at laSt weary OF his troublesome
| charges, and suspicious because OF the
behavior of their natural guardian.
| Yanccy, about $3.50 o'clock sent q man
down TO the wharf where Miller worked
| who asked If the man was still there.
He received an answer to the effect
| that the subject of his inquiries had
not reported for work that day.
Upon receiving this Information Yam
cey came ut once to the station-house
and requested that the police help him to
make some disposition OF the children
| Sergeant Taylor and Fl. H. Hill went
| Immediately to the house. The door to
the front room, in which the children had
been all day, was open and nothing was
| found of an unusual naJure. The door
leading from this apartment into the
| rear room was found to b. locked on
the inside. and secured further by large
spikes as long as a mans finger. 1t was
broken down and the two men, entering.
discovered that the other door to the
| room op.ninS at the head of the steps
had been nailed up in the same fashion,
though not locked. This door was not
disturbed.
| Sergtans Taylor became. of course,
suspicious and began to investigate more
closely. In one corner of the room, near
the first door alluded to, the two men
perceived large dark spot that had 'ihe
appearance of blood. In the other end
Iof the room. in front OF a small closet
about SKA feet. the floor had evidently
been scrubbed, but some blood splotches
We're found.
The Sergeant and his assistant then
broke down the closet door, which had
been nailed SO securely as to defy their
united Efforts for many minutes When
at last they effected an entrance they
perceived for the first time II dlsaCreea-
be stencil, and when their eyes became
accustomed 10 the darkness behcld "a
horrible. CHA sight,
! Under ii heap of old clothing including
an overcoa, and shawl, they found the
mutilated body OF Aiiller's wife. a mula
TO woman of some % years She wa
lying upon her back with her feet cross
ed and the right side of her head turned
TO the floor. The left side had been
crushed in. The skull was broken. and
| mashed into jelly y little to one side
| lay 15-nch monkcy-wrench with the
| big end clothed with hair and blood.
proving 1t indisputably Ito be the in
| strument with which the terrible deed
was committed. II seemed as though
the woman had first been Knocked un-
conscious. and then dragged into the
| closet, where the tiend finished his bru
| tai work with the wrench
| Coroner Newton was notified and nro-
ceedlnS TO the spot made a very superb
cial examinations of the body, declaring
IT as his opinion that the woman ha d
| Dsen dead Tor perhaps more .han TWEEN
tE-iour hours. He thea ordered an in
quest TO bs held this morning, and left
the body in charge of Officer Morr!se;re,
| The children were, taken, temporarily.
ny a colored man living at No. "A Cleve-
land street.
Little information could be obtained
about the couple. 1t is known that they
mad had frequent quarrels and thai. is
about all Iancey heard Miller driving
nails Monday afternoon and asked him
| what he was doing. The fellow replied
that he was just putting up some pegs
TO hang his clothes on The woman
! WIN whom the murdered woman work,
| ed. when the latter did not show m yes.
teiuay, made some inquiries. about The
| ponce station. but little was thought OF
| 1t. the questioner herself attaching no
| special Importance to iEhe absence OF her
! chlim. She said that she had asked
| Miller where his wife was and he In !
| Loid her that she had gone to sac a
| friend. The woman then inquired of
| the friend OF whom Miller spoke. and re-
| celVed the information that the Miller
! woman had not bean there This had
| made her suspicious and hence her in
| quiries at the station
| Miller has an alias of John Sonnig ar
| Sonnisk. He is about the color of .,in.
| seFbread. five feat eight or nine inches
| nigh and weighs about 100 pounds His
| upper mp is very prominent and his
| teetn project something in the shane OF
| n w. The barber who was in The bohit
| OF shaving Miller says there. was a -ar,-
| poiaFy soar on his left cheek. hui he
| Coulu not Tell whether or no. IL wac s.uI