The Portland daily press., 1897-01-04
MARTIN HUNG HIMSELF.
Principal Witness in the Batcheldor
Case.
TESTIFIED AT HEARING HERE AND
DROVE HOME SATURDAY.


Night and Went Ont Into Barn Next
Day and Suicided-Gossip Busy Re-
garding the Affair.
ESPECIAL TO TEE PREss.J
Sebago, January 8-Walter s. Martin,
assault case was found by his little eight
year old daughter hanging by mis- neck
in the barn Of his brother-in-law, Henry
Flint, at about 7.30 o'clock this morning.
1t was case of suicide, and the tragic
death Of Martin has set the tongue of
rumor wagging buster than ever.
Whatever there is in these rumors is
of course only matter Of conjecture.
Martin arrived home from Portland
at about O. cook. He drove from Cum
berand Mills with Henry Flint, where
the two had left their tsam, proceeding
to and from the city By the electrics.
Before leaving home Mrs. Martin and
her children had gone over to the Flint
housa 20 remain, the elder Flint, who
lived with his son Henry Flint, being
her father until Martin should return.
For this reason Martin remained at the
Flint house over night instead of going
to his own.
Martin arose a little before seven
O'Clock and prepared to leave the house.
saying that he was going over to bis own
home. Before he went out he kissed the
children and made the remark that his
mother would probably never see him.
Fatally significant as his words were, no
attention apparently was paid to them.
| Martin went out and never returned
again alive. Half an hour later his little
daughter went out to play in the yard,
and running into the barn the first OBJ
ject her eye met was the lifeless body of
her father hanging suspended by a rope
| from a beam over q hay NOW.
With scream of horror the little one
ran to her mother and managed to tell
her what she mad seen. Mrs. Martin re-
| turned with her to the barn and found
that what the child had told to her was
only too true The two Flints were ap-
prised of what had happened and be-
tween them they cut down the unfortu-
nate mans body and took it to 1he
house.
Dr. Norton Of East Baldwin was sum-
moned, though the body was lifeless
when discovered by the child. He did
not arrive, however, until late in the
afternoon.
Martin had of course left the house
with the intention of killing himself.
He went Immediately to the barn pro-
cured piece of rope, tied it to a beam
over the hay NOW and probably jumped
from the BEAM Bis tues were just
touching the NOW below, but the shook
of the fall broke his neck.
"WhHt induced Martin to kill him
.selfP' was the question the gossips asked
as soon as the news of the tragedy had
spread, as it did like wildfire over the
little community.
Ever since the deash of Batcheldor was
made known, Martin had worried great
ly about it. fact which has been ap-
parent to all who knew him. Might
he not have concealed more
than he told; are all the
facts in relation to the death Of Mark
Batcheldor known to the authorities; has
the whole story of the bruised and be-
sotted old man whose body, blood
stained and frozen was found by the
roadside, been revealed? These questions
are on every ones lips. whether with
| reason or not
Martin, like the most of the others con-
cerned with this unfortunate affair, was
heavy drinker at times, but it Is said
that hs had not been drinking when he
returned home SATURDAY. night. He did
not appear more than ordinarily de-
spondent, though it is not known what
he may have said to Flint on his way
home. He was not man of more than
ordinary intelligence, and the probahili-
ties are, despite the ugly rumors, that
the circumstances attending Hatcheldor's 8
death had preyed upon him until his
mind broke beneath the strain.
He leaves wife and two or three
young children, and an aged mother. He
also has several brothers living