The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-01-17
KILLED HIS FAMILY.
John Matthews Brains His
Wife and Two Children
and Then Shoots
Himself.
A MlLEMAN's AWFUL DISCOVERY
Letters Found Show That Man and
Wife Agreed to Die and Take
Their Darlings With Them.
A. MILKMAN's AWFUL DISCOVERY

NEW YORK, Jan. II, 1S9S.-John Mat
thews, a retail grocer, some time between
last Saturday night and this morning.
murdered his thirty year old wife and
their two. children, a boy ten years DID,
and a girl twelve years old by hacking
them to death with hatchet. Matthews
then committed suicide by shooting him
self in the head. Before dying it is be-
lieved that he turned the gas on with the
intent that asphyxiation should complete
his murderous work.
The crime was committed in a small
bedroom in the rear of the store. run by
Matthews at Columbus avenue and Eigh-
tieth street. The mother and her two
children met death while asleep. 1t is
supposed that Matthews had become de-
spondent from pecuniary difficulties.
The four dead bodies might have laid
in their ghastly disorder in the little bed
room for many hours longer had not a
milkman who left can OUTSIDE Mat
thews door smelled gas Wnen ne maze
his usual visit this morning. a ponce
man was summoned and before he broke
down the door of the grocery store
good sized<crowd was on hand.
Through the parlor the policeman and
the crowd forced their way into the
darkened bedroom. The shades We're
thrown up and as the early morning light
crept through the panes it showed the
body of Matthews lying on the 1oor. In
his hand was a revolver ana there WAS d
bullet hole just above his mouth. There
were two beds in the room. On one OF
these beds lay Matthews wife. Her head
was chopped and mangled almost beyond
children lay side by side. Their faces,
too, were cut and hacked until there was
little left to identify them by. The piood
stains made the little bedroom look ike
y ofa,.6
The victims of Matthews thirst for
human life had evidently been dead LOT
some time. The coagulation OF the blood
and the condition of the bodies proved
this although the doctors who examined
the corpses were unable to definitely
state whether the crimes We're commit
ted last night or on Saturday nlgnt
But that the murders and suicide were
premeditated and as determined as were
ever heard of in the criminal history OF
this city was evident "a MaI9aews hiaeen were nae
asleep Then he stripped himself to the
waist, took the hatchet in his hand, ana
Drained his wife After that ne ne attaca. ts,as
ascertained that for some time Matthews
had been intending to end his own life.
He had been in the dry goods business
further uptown and had failed. few
months ago he opened a grocery store and
had met with little success. His WIFE,
a pretty little woman, had recently 1n-
dergone a severe operation. It was these
things that prompted Matthews to write
this letter, which was found open and
unaddressed:-
No healthy man or woman can com
init suicide from poverty or business
reverses He is so healthy that hope
and activity aresboilng rampant with
in him My wonder is that suicide is
not more common 1t seems to me
wonderful provision of nature that
man need not live when life is burden
some
Another letter, apparently written later,
was as follows
1t is a terrible thing I have to do to
keep my word. | promised that all
shall go with me and delay is no good;
If l could only have died alone. |
love my wife and two children. I told
them didn't want to go into any busi-
guess that my nerve. is all that IS left.
For five years. we have talked the
thing over. l always wanted to go out
in boat and accidently capsze. |
knew that otherwise l would have
hard time of 1t.
From letter left by Mrs. Matthews to
a friend it was gathered that she was a
party to the suicide agreement. She
Hermann is going to die, and Ham
going with him, and we are going to
take our darlings with us.
Herman is supposed to refer to Mai
theWs. From other letters the impress
sion was gained that Mrs Matthews,
driven to desperation by the serious eff
feet of the operation which she under
went had even urged Matthews to- kill
himself and family and that from time
to time he had put off the execution of
their plans.
. Mrs Matthews had even left instruc-
tions as to the clothes in which the dead
children should be buried, and signified
the place of intermen for the entire family
as Highland, N. Y, where she was born
and lived during her girlhood. Matthews
was thirty-fiye years old.