The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-05-05
WAS AN NHUMAN MURDER
EDWARD PLANT SHOT HIS WIFE
 AND S1ABBED HIS INFANT.

GOVAhD PLANT SHOT HIS WIFE AND STARRED HIS INFANT.
 The Fearful Tragedy Occurred in Patch
 of Woods-He Finally Ended His Own Life by Blowing Out His Brains-NIar-
 ried but a Short Time.
 Great Harrington, Mass, May 4.-One of the most terrible tragedies that can be charged to the account of Berkshire county was enacted this forenoon about Il o'clock in Clayton, when Edgar Cecil Plant, twenty years old, shot and killed his young wife, whom he was forced to marry less than three weeks ago, stabbed his infant child and then, three hours later, put a bullet through his own heart.
 Clayton is a village in the town of New Marlboro and young Plant was the son of s. J. Plant, superintendent of the Clayton White Brick and Terra Gotta Works, working for his father as moulder. The Plants came there from Toronto. Canada, about three years ago. The murdered woman, whose maiden name was Ada J. Sanford, came there with her parents two years ago and since then she and young Plant have been on terms of intimacy. This intimacy eliminated in the birth of a oh nv, ,,,,,I 1 IL. day, under pressure brought to bear by the girls father, Plant was forced to marry her.
 The birth of the child was displeas- ing to Plant and since that time he has shown his displeasure in his changed manner toward his wife. His parents were opposed to the match and imme- diately after their marriage they went to board with the Sanfords, where they remained nearly two weeks. Then they removed to the house of Daniel Conlan. where they have boarded since. This morning the girls parents decided that the young couple and their baby could come back to live with them and sent their domestic over to Conlan's house. Plant, his wife, baby and the hired girl thereupon started for MT. Sanford's house, taking a short cut through the woods
 After going a short distance Plant went back after the baby's nursing bot- tie and after he had returned and the party had proceeded some ways fur ther the wife discovered that she had left her shawl behind and the hired girl was sent back after it. It was while rI1r t xf<S n~>x< q that the fendish crime was committed, and no one will ever know the exact circumstances that led to it. When the servant returned she was mortified to find Mrs. Plant lying on the ground with three bullets in her back between the shoulder blades, while by her side lay the baby, which had been stabbed four times with a dirk
 After committing the deed young Plant, revolver in hand, went to the factory and told his father what he had done, inquiring at the same time for Harry Lyall, the bookkeeper. against whom he had a grudge He was un- able to find Lyall, however, and then went to the bank of Konkapot river, where he laid down and ate some food that he had induced boy to bring him.
 Meantime news of the tragedy had spread and crowd of excite towns people attempted to capture the mur- derer, whose whereabouts had been quickly learned. With his revolver, however, he kept the crowd back. Great Harrington officers had been appraised of the murder, and Deputy Sheriffs Nor- ton, Chopper and Douglass started for the scene at all possible speed. Plant threatened to kill the first man who lay a hand on him, but the officers closing up on him, and seeing that cap- ture was inevitable, he fired bullet into his left side, fell to the ground and rolled down the bank into the river.
 Deputy Shelf Cropper, not knowing the nature of his wound, called to him to come out of the water, to which Plant replied: T can't. I'm dead" and dis appeared beneath the surface. When the deputy sheriff took him out mo- ment later he was, in truth, dead.
 Medical Examiner Small viewed the remains of the murderer and his vic- tins, and the latter were taken in charge by the dead woman's parents. Plants mother is an invalid and all knowledge of her sons terrible crime has thus far been carefully kept from her. She was taken to Toronto this af- ternoon by her husband in order that the secret could be more closely guard- ed. Plants remains were turned over to his nephew.