The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1898-01-20
A JUVENILE MONSTER
A Counterpart Of Jesse Pomeroy
Appears in Philadelphia.
MURDEREDAF1vE-YEAR-oLD BOY

Samuel Henderson,, Fifteen Years Old, +,
Lured Little Percy Lockyar to the
Woods, Where He Brutaily Killed
Him and Threw His Body Into Creek
Philadelphia. Jan. 1.-THE body OF g.
year-old Percy Lockyer. who is believed
to have been murdered on Friday night
by 15-year-old Samuel Henderson. was
yesterday found in the bottom of Red
dies" creek. Sixtieth and Catharine
streets, West Philadelphia. and there
seems little doubt in the minds of the
police that young Henderson Is guilty
Of the crime. He Is now locked up in
cell at police headquarters. The
body Of the child, when found. was
weighted by two heavy stones. one
about his neck and the other around
his ankles. His skull was crushed in
and there was n knife thrust just above
the heart and similar wounds on his
breast, side and forehead. while on one
side of the face is n long cut. extending
from below the eye to the chin.
From what the police have been able
to learn the crime seems to have been
one of the most horrible character. and
II all its details are true II stamps
young Henderson az a degenerate of the
worst type. He does not seem to
realize the enormitv of his crime. on
Saturday after his arrest. he told this
story of the killing:
II found Percy Lockyer at play with
several companions in front of the
West End schoolhouse. and induced
him to walk across the fields to the
woods In search of 'piggies to play
hocky with. After coaxing him for
some time he agreed to go. and we went
together.
IL was standing at the foot of a hill
on the side of which, half way up, Percy
was at play. | was whiting a stick.
The creek was just behind me. All OF
sudden got tired of whiting and
stopped. holding my knife against my
hip, blade outward. Just then I saw
Percy running down the hill at full
speed. l had been bending over. and
DUST as l Strengthened up Percy struck
me and ran squarely upon the knife.
1t pierced his heart. He fell over back
ward. and didn't speak again. His legs
twitched once or twice. l was scared
because thought ! had killed him.
and picked the body up and carried 1t
to the creek. where l tumbled II into
the water and went home"
. Yesterday. however, when shown the
mutilated body of the child he admit
ted that he was responsible for those
II was an accident.
The police however, believe II was
a planned murder. In which the guilty
one also purposed ending the life Of an
other small boy. Willie Addison. aged
years. Henderson, 1t Is claimed. has
been reading trashy novels OF the wild
western stamp. and has shown n de-
sire to emulate the hero" of those
tales. The police assert that Hcnder-
son accompanied Lockyer and Addison
to the woods, as he told on Saturday.
but instead OF any accident happening
to either Henderson tied both children
to a tree. Addison broke away and ran
home. 1t was then. IL is said, that
young Lockyer's death was accomplish
ed. Physicians declare that the child
was not dead when thrown into the
creek. Young Henderson's father de-
clares that his boy is insane
A fact that has come out In connec-
tion with Ilenderson's alleged crime is
that his father. John ID. Henderson,
was on trial before Judge Reed, IN
October 1892 charged with killing Il
man named Christopher Nelson. The
killing was the outcome of Il quarrel
Henderson when arraigned, pleaded
guilty to manslaughter. He was re-
manded for sentence. but some time
later 1t was shown that the death was
largely accidental, and there was no
murderous intent. He was admitted
to bail, and Is now n free man.
The murder of young LOCkyer recalls
the crime, early in the 70's, of Jesse
Pomeroy, now serving "a life sentence
in the Massachusetts state prison.
Pomeroy, then l5 years old. lured A.
year-old boy to the meadows back of
South Boston, and there stabbed the
little one to death with a jackknife
The child's body was covered with
wounds. and his little hands were
cruelty hacked. showing that he had
held them before him in an effort to
ward off the cruel stabs. Pomeroy.
since his imprisonment, has made scv-
eral clever attempts to escape.