Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-06-12
MURDER AND ARSON.
Four Persons FouIIy Murdered
at West NewfeId.
Geo. ". Goodwin, Mother, Adopted
Son and Hired Man the Victims.
No Clue but Cfi;ers hc Locking for One
George Champion.

West Newfield, Me. June 1.-THE
wave Of revolving crime which appears
to be sweeping over southwestern
Maine seems to have reached its
Of the family of George w Goodwin.
the robbery and subsequent destruction
Of the house and the incineration of
the four bodies. Naturally, the entire
community, already aroused over the
unexplained Sprague murder in South
Berwick the bank robbery soon after
in the same place and numerous as
sault cases within few days, is al
most in a state Of frenzy over this last
and most terrible tragedy; and what
little cleW is in the hands of the OIL
GERS is being hunted down with The
greatest diligence.
Mr.. Goodwin lived quiet life in his
house about two miles outside tho con
tire of the town on the road To East
Wakefield. y. H. He WAS a man wei
off in worldly goods ana mad always
borne an excellent reputation among
his neiThhors. With him lived his
mother Mrs. Elsie L. Horne. IS years
of ag,, his adopted son. Scott Good
win, % years old, ana hired man,
Fred Ecrtsch. The bodies Of all four
If these persons We're recovered this
afternoon, from the ruins of the house
and two them. those of Mrs. Horne and
Eertsch. gave every indication that
they had brrn foully murdered, for
both the heads We're crushed in. while
a of G,.l -h, Il
as if made by 4 knife. The bodies of
Goodwin and his son We're 50 badly
burned that no trace IF weapon We're
discernable.
Strangely enough while the fire was
noticed as early as o'clock this morn
ing, it was not until nearly that any
one visited the place ana learned the
fate Of the inmates Of the house John
Drew first gave the alarm. as he had
occasion to go to the Goodwin place
soon after sunrise for Il COW which he
had in the barn. lie found the house
in ruins and seeing no trace Of the
family about he made Il haSty exam
ination of the embcrs and then started
off to call out the neighbors. Some
hours elapsed, however before the
town officials appeared on the scene
and the work Of recovering the bodies
commenced.
At the same time it was learned that
young Scott Goodwin had told i friend
that a man named George Champion
who formerly worked in this vicinity,
and returned after some months in
Boston. had been hired 10y Mr.. Goodwin
70 work on the place. 1t was also re-
called that Champion had had some
troubIn in Eostou ana ma pr,son VIVA
Nv
il'dfu ABOUT MN from scott Goodwin
had also been told by Scott that Cham
pion wanted ia have his prr-anra in
tbi. ,.ioir,+- I-..,.. ,.,,i..t c,,,t,,,,,.,,.t,
800 ''iii'' IT n 'i"i'' n '.'''' tt''i '''5 Il
as only four bodies We're found in the
ruinc of the fire = dflicrut search WAS
tl,-,,,, far ,.t,,,,,,,,i..,, ,,,.I ,,,i..t. -,
~ =" ~ ii'ii'pi.H ''i'i' t'iil''t' -
New England has been notified To look
out FOR him ana det3tn hin If dis-
ll,,-,,.I
tuNe'tu-
The work of taking the bodies from The
ruins was vigorously conducted and ono
~. NAL, tt i,,- ,- ,.,-1 r
L, ..,,-.,.l
ne Sm"uldoflns fragments ot hr"r and
roof -halug laid in one ar the outlying
bui1,I,r,e tn. nc.lic.,l .va,niror r,,s an
-, -.
hand and at once began an autopsy.
1t was soon known that the hrc was
nat Iva ,ecid.rt MA AVA bcfora n hroka
,....,,. t.I,a,., ,',.,l.
within The, walls the ruins of which were
only bllcl,cncd timber.
The bodies Of Mr.. Goodwin and his son
were hardly rtcutniZlhlc. in fact that "a
thc latter Wa he9dlcss. Thc body v
iJcniiiinI whit, thIt Of Ecrtsch vas sim
ply chlrrcd. The medical examiner dis
covered that the head of Mrs. Horne had
been crushed in hv some blunt Instrument
Ana that death probably cnsugd before
thr fire reached Ill IN the cas-, oI Gcrtsch.
unt nuIy VIII thc -kUll crushed ~. in a
similar mauucr to that of Mrs. Horne.
hut there were wounds ON Other parts a., "i
backed 'nyer III, heart was 4 deep wound
which must have caused death; # death
ware twn more deep cuts in thc breast.
wounds which ordinarily would have
proved mortal ...,.
Of other bodies. principally with The idea
that perhaps nanlpinm llliIa.' It'll ,nd
In the meantime worn ildtl bttiI sum an