Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1900-10-10
ADAM GOODLING MURDER.
En

AQam GOOQllng, q cltlZen OF
Susquehanna township was shot
dead while he was sleeping in his
rocking chair in his house near Or
iental, Juniata county about hall
past eight o'clock on Tuesday even
ing October 2, 1900 by an assassin
During the forenoon of that day,
he had shocked buck wheat for is
neighbOr farmer Beale and in the
afternoon he seemed as if endowed
with prophetic vision when he told
his family, his wife and two sons
that he feared an enemy. He had
two enemies, the one would not
harm him, but the other he feared
He feared his bullets. His talk
was like coming events that cast
their shadow before. Was it pre-
sentiment of his impending assas-
ination. Could he have forcasted
the future and moved his chair
from its accustomed place he might
yet be living, for that night mur
derer stealthily walked to the win
dow in the north side of his house
and shot him dead while he slept
in his rocking chair.
Goodling lived with his second
wife to whom he had two sons, and
she is the owner of the little log
story and a half house with two
rooms down stairs and two rooms
up stairs, located on a sloping piece
of ground, having thereon stable,
pig-pe &c. They were the own
ers of a COW and calf, a couple of
hogs and chickens. 1t was home
and home sweet home is the dear
est spot on earth whether in a reed
top hut in the PHILIPPINE Islands
or located in the woods of the
United States or in the palatial
house of an American millionaire,
who must have an income of sever
al hundred thousand dOllarsa a year
cash to spend. He must have help
in abundance to run his home,
cook, a butler, a chamber maid, a
dining room maid, gOverness for
the larger children and nurse for
the baby, a stableman and coach
man, an Outrider, a gardner, a
coach and two, cottage by the
sea and a yacht sail upon the
ocean, but such a place was no
more home than the humble abode
Of Mr.. and Mrs. GOOdling, which
the murderer turned for the time
being into pandemonium. By
the second wife GOodling had two
sons, both about grown and both
at home and in bed upstairs when
the bloody tragedy was en-
acted. Year in and year out it
was the custom of the husband and
father to rest when off work and
at home in the rocking chair. He
leaned it back against a table that
occupied a place in the south east
corner of the room That position
faced him opposite window in the
north side of the room and that is
the way he was faced the night he
was shot. His chair was about
twelve feet from the window.
Diagonally across the room toward
the northwest corner stood the
cook stove. The stairway to the
story above was in that corner.
On the south side of the room Op-
posite the stove was a stand and
on it stood the lamp that gave
light ON the night of the, murder.
Mrs. GOOdling had table in the
corner of the room on
which she had a dish pan in which
she was washing dishes when the
peered in under the
of a peach tree and look
ed through the window in the
north side of the room and so close
was he then to Mrs. GOodling that
he could have reached in and
touched her as she stood engaged
at her work on the left side of the
window. One almost holds their
breath as they picture the scene at
that moment. There was the mur-
derer looking in. At his left side
of the window was Mrs. GOodling.
His gun as it laid on the window
sill almost touched her garments.
If she had been quick of ear she
could almost have heard the fiend-
ish breath of the assassin. OppO-
site to the murderer sat Mr.. Good
ling the victim peacefully sleeping
only twelve feet away. His head
reclined against the back of the
chair, his right arm lay on the arm
0 the chair, his left arm lay across