The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-03-25
MURDER At PHILADELPHIA
Samuel Langdon Held to Answer tor
Annie NcGrath's Death.
MYSTERIOUS LOVE AFFAIR
YOuug Girl Thought 10 Have been
Murdered by q Man with Whom
She Had Resided as
Mistress.

shadow or the accusation OF the teTrlpie
crime of murder The body was that
of young girl named Annie McGrath,
and the man with whom she lived as
wife is Samuel =. Langdon. Langdon
is man of about 70 years Of age. and
occupied a position of considerable
prominence in financial and business
circles in Philadelphia and the state.
He Is president of the United tollierieS
company. Il bituminous mining com
pauy; president of the Altoona and
PhillipsburG connecting railroad, ana
was formerly president of the Altoona.
Cl-arlield and Northern railroad, Be
sides these companies he has other va
ricd interests in the bituminous coal
regions of Pennsylvania.
Although he lived with Miss Nc
Grath as her husband. Langdon has
wife and a grown son and daughter.
hut he has not lived with his legal wife
for some time.
Tonight l.angon occupies Il cell in the
central police station and the police
are working on the mysterious manner
of the girls death.
About six weeks ago Lanedon rented
Il comfortable little house al 29.6 Girard
avenue. The house was furnished in
an expensive manner and then Langdon
took ~ his residence in it with an ex-
Cecdngly pretty girl of about Is years
of age. whom he stated was his wife.
I.angdon looks fully his 30 years and
the youth and beauty of the young wo-
man caused the couple to be consider
ably talked about in the neighborhOod.
They neither sought nor seemed to
wish to make any acquaintunces, and
they We're variouSly known by their
nCiGhhors under the names of NCGrath.
Mcdonald and I.angdon. The couple
frauIInnilN hSnni fran, tha hnnSa
three and four days out of the week and
ii was understood that the man had
business interests that took him away
from the city frequently and that his
wife went with him.
SYMPTOMS OF TROUBLE.
\ colorcd girl named Bertha Stewart
was employed as Il servant. Mrs.
l.angdon' came down tn breakfast on
Sunday morning in her usual good
health. At dinner she complained OF
feeling unwell and later in the after
noon the servant girl heard her moan
ing in her room on the second floor.
I.andon told the girl that there was
no occasion to disturb his wife as she
was suffering only from a bilious at
tack, the servant did not ~ near her
mistress room again that day. About
> O'clock yesterday afternoon langdon
C:lnic DOWN sralrs With Il yalsc in his
hand. And told Bertha that he was
going to New York and that she need
not worry about his wife. who still
was unwcll from bilo,lsness. I.angdon
then left the house. About s o'clock
last night Bertha became alarmed at
Mrs. l.angdon'S quiet. Going to the
room ON the second floor she looked
in and saw Mrs. l.angdon lying on the
1inor. fully dressed. Her feet were
crossed, there was u towel over her
face and her attitude was SO quiet that
Bertha was frightened. She snatchcd
he towel from the girls face ana even
(" IN" colored worhan's unframed eye
one glance was sufficient To show her
that she looked upon death.
Thoroughly scared Bertha fled from
the house and Went to the home of her
brother. with whom she returned to
he Girard avenue residence. A ply
stefan was then summoned and he. af-
ter an examination of the body. gave
il as his opinion that the woman had
been dead fully twenty four hours be-
fore he was called in. The police were
notified and from some letters and othrr
things found i'm the house they easily
learned the identity of the couple.
a DOUBLE LIFE.
! he SlTl WIS tilt uauSnttf OI Il press
man on one of the daily papers here
1t seems that when she was supposed
To have been travelling with I.angdon
she was really at her fathers house.
To her parents she had some plausible
tale of IL situation that required her
absence from home. and thus she was
enabled to be with Langdon. She was
also careful to never appear at her
fathers house arraycd i'm the handsome
dresses and jewelry with which Lang
don supplied her. Just when and where
the girl met Langdon and how long
her connection with him has existed is
known only to the man at present.
The revelation of his daughters de-
ccit and downfall came with a peculiar
ly terrible shock To her father. for a
year or So ago. his son shot and killed
his S-year-old daughter. and then com
mitted suicide. The police easily
learned that Lancdon had an Office in
the Drexcl building. A detective went
there this morning and put Langdon
under arrest and took him to the Cen
tral police station, where he now is.
With their usual policy the police are
making as much of "A mystery of the
affair as they can. and are giving out
very little information. They refuse to
give the charge upon which I.angdon
is arrested and simply say that. as he
was the last person seen with the girl
when she was alive he is being held to
await the corOnerS action. The detec-
tive who arrested Langdon stated that
the latter told him that he went to the
house on Sunday morning and re-
manned oil day. He said that the girl
was taken sick i'm the afternoon. but
that he had fallen asleep and did not
awake until II O'Clock Monday morn