The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-01-11
" BLOOD STAINED BEDS.
Man, Wife and Daughter Slaughtered
in Their Home.
AN UNSPEAKABLE TRAGEDY In
MASSACHUSETTS TOWN.

Hired Man Known as Paul Miller Sup
posed To Be Murderer-Bodies of the
Women Horribly Mutilated-Crime
Committed Two Days Before Discov-
cred.
Brookfeld, Mass, January 1O.-One of
the most terrible murders in the history
of New England took place in the quiet
farm house Of Francis d. Newton, about
three miles from the center of this peace
full but now Mortified village some time
last Friday night.
The details of the crime, the death of
the father, the mother and the little girl,
all from blows of an axe in the hands, it
is supposed, o. farm hand, are, as yet,
subject only to conjecture. Whether the
fiend who sent all three lives into eternity
dealt with the man first: and then the
helpless woman, is also a mystery. If
those lips now cold in death could speak
the tale of night made hideous could be
unfolded, the mere thought of which
blanches the cheek of every man, woman
and child in this community.
The entire police force of this state is
tonight hard at work trying to find with
in the limits OF civilization one Saul, or
Paul Miller, foreigner, whom they be
lieve slaughtered in cold blood Francis
D. Newton. his employer, together with
the helpless wife, and the still more help
less girl of ten yers. That the bodies of
all three should have lain for two full
days without being discovered can only
be accounted for by that distinctive New
England rural habit of allowing every
one to mind his own business, coupled
with the remoteness of the scene of the
| crime.
A full quarter Of mile from any other
habitation lived the Newtons, pursuing
the even tenure of their life, seeing their
neighbors but seldom, but Keeping ike
many other families. well within them
selves.
Mr.. Newton, hard working, but not
rich farmer, kept one servant, who IS
now being searched for. The household
tasks were performed by Mrs. Newton
unaided.
No one who passed the house on Satur-
day, and there must have been many,
thought it strange there appeared no
signs Of life ssEven Elmer Newcomb, who
on Sunday afternoon heard the lowing of
the cattle in the barn, did not think OF
looking into the house for it's Inhabitants.
It apears still more strange that Nm.
Benlis and VIM. Eaton, who were not1-
fed by Newcomb, and who went to the
barn and fed the cattle, should not have
gone littlei, farther and hunted up the
family. They went off believing that the
family were away and may have possibly
have been delayed. A suspicion, however.
that all was not right seems to have some
how lurked in their minds, for they told
of their going to the Newtons to other
neighbors, who seemed tn become still
more suspicious.
the most worried about the Newtons, and
he it was who asked four Others to In
yestigate the Newton premises. Beside
Eaton were VIM. Bemis, Arthur Kice,
George Pike, Hebert Doane and Elmer
Newcomb, the latter being the one who
had fed the cattle in the afternoon. They
found the doors locked, front and back,
hut one of the parlor windows was open
and a pane of glass broken. Before enter
ing by that means, however, they knocked
and kicked at the doors hoping to arouse
some one in the house. No one answered
their call, so one of their number climbed
through the window and let the rest In
damp The lighting of the lantern which
they found in the shed, however, gave the
five mon the first idea of what had really
transpired and in measure nerVed them
for the fearful revelations which were
soon to follow.
The light of the lantern fell upon a
scene of widest disorder. Scattered about
the sitting room and parlOr were bureau
drawers, turned upside down, clothing
of every description thrown in every
direction and in fact half the household
| effects were disordered, which showed
plainly that ran sacking had been made
| for money. But even this condltlon OF
things was insignificant to the scene
| which met the gaze Of the five men when
they stepped into the little back bedroom
| which leads out OF the sitting room.
There, upon the bed, lay the mother OF
tn, household, and beside her, the little
daughter, both covered with blood, while
the bed clothes were also blood stained.
The searchers had only to turn to the
| wall to discover the fearful weapon which
the murderer's hand had SO relentlessly
| wieldcd.
| The clothing on both the bodies was
| thrown back over the victims heads, and
| it was only after it had been smoothed
down that the men discovered the fearful
wounds In the heads of the mother and
child which caused death.
Each had been dealt two deep blows
| which undoubtedly caused almost instant
death. Not content with this the tlend
had thrown off the clothing of each and
hacked at the lower part of the bodies of
the victims. That the head Of the house
hold must have met similar fate seemed
reasonable, and the six men, leaving the
first scene of butchery, began search for
the second which they felt sure they
would soon find. 1t did not take long to
discover 1T. Upstairs in one of the cham.
bers lay the dead body of Mr.. Newton, he
too, covered VITA blood, with the same
gaping wounds in the head. There was
still one more member of the household
unacco9nted for, and to his room in the