The San Francisco call., 1899-07-26
FOUL MURDER
COMMITTED IN
CHINATOWN
Chinese Woman Cut
to Pieces.
A SICKENING SPECTACLE
MURDERER ESCAPES BY CLIMB
ING OVER THE ROOF.
Lem Sang Suspected of WELDING the
Cleaver Which Was. Found
Beside the Dead
Woman.
MURDERER ESCAPES BY CLIMB
ING OVER THE ROOF.

One of the most brutal and most bloody
murders committed in Chinatown during
its already dark career was discovered by
the police last night in room on the top
floor of a lodging house at 500 Stockton
street The sight that greeted the eyes of
Police officers Dinan, Hurd and High
land when the door to the room was burst
open by their combined efforts sickened
them, hardened as they are to sights or
that kind. A woman partly undreSsed lay
on the floor in pool of her blood and by
her side was butchers cleaver, which
had been used in ending her existence.
The sight of her face and body was ghast-
ly and instantly recalled the brutal muir
ders said to have been committed in
Whitechapel, London. by Jack the Rip
per-" The unfortunate woman's throat
had been cut and her teeth knocked out
by her infuriated assailant. Her right
hand was jammed in her throat as If she
had made an effort to save herself from
being hacked to pieces. Her body was
also terribly cut. When turned over by
the Morgue officials more gashes were
found
That there was a struggle was appar-
ent from the condition of the room. The
windowshade, which threw a blood-red
glare on the interior of the room, was
torn from its fastening The chairs in the
room were overturned and broken and
various articles of wearing apparel were
which the poor woman was lying when
dragged to her doom by her relentless
murderer was disarranged and gave every
indication of having been the starting
place of the deadly struggle. 1t was
thought no one but a crazy man could
have committed such a crime and the Of
ficers expect when they arrest the muir
derer to find him in that condition.
About three weeks ago the woman, who
is unknown, and Chinaman named Lem
Sang, who it is thought is the murderer,
moved into the small hovel on the top
floor of the tenement house owned by
Jeung Bin, and which is Immediately op-
posite the Chinese Consulate. Almost the
day the new arrivals came they began the
quarreling, which was incessant up to the
time one of them was quieted for all time.
Last night about o'clock the noise they
made aroused the inmates of the house,
and complaint was made to the landlord,
Jeung Bin. G.. Akabane, Japanese, who
lives Immediately under the room occu-
pied by the couple, was unable to sleep,
and he went upstairs and knocked at their
door to demonstrate with them. Not re-
ceiving an answer, and as their .quarrellng
did not cease he went down to the base
ment and informed Bin. Bin also tried TO
pacify the inmates, and not being success
full went down the street and informed
officer Dinan. The latter went back to
the house and hammered on the door with
his club, but whether the murderer had
accomplished his work and escaped, or
the couple in true Chinese fashion recog-
nizing the tread of the policeman's feet
on the stairs, decided to keep quiet, is
unknown. Getting no response to his
hammering on the door Dinan left the
house and walked down the street, where
he Joined Officers Hurd and Highland. The
latter had just been told by another
Chinaman that a crazy Celestial was
brandishing a pistol and threatening to
kill any one who would go near him, on
Clay street Immediately around the cor
ner from the scene of the murder Hurd
and Highland were on the point of going
to arrest the pistol wielder, but had, at
the request of their informant, waited
until he could go there and see how mat
ters were, so as to report to the othcers.
It was while waiting for the informant
to return that Dinan came along and told
them of the fight in the room on Stockton
street. At his request Hurd and Highland
accompanied him back to the room and
after repeated knocks, which were I'm
answered, the officers burst in the door
and were startled by the terrible scene.
A thorough search of the room was
the murderer They discovered the apert-
ure through which he escaped after COM
mitting the crime and also found his coat,
which was left behind in his flight. An
opium lamp, still lighted was found on
the bed and the officers wondered how 1t
was the bedding did not take fire during
the death struggle.
The Morgue was at once notified and
also the California-street police station.
Four policemen were at once sent from
the latter place and they aided in the
search. They climbed over the roofs and
discovered the scratches made by the
murderer while escaping. They also
found an open skylight through which he
must have jumped and gained his egress
to Stockton street.
No one in the tenement house would
open it's doors to the inquiring policemen
and very little could be learned about the
antecedents of the murdered woman and
the man who committed the deed. De-
tectiye Mcmahon is hard at work on the
case and has hopes of landing the muir
derer within a few hours.