Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1901-12-28
MURDER LIKELY,
Mysterious DEATH of Three
Italians at Mi||inocket.
Their Charred Remains Found in
Ruins of Their Shanty.
Death Supposed TO Have Occurred in figk.
tuesday Night.

Bangor. Me. Dec. Millinocket is
in the throes Of excitement caused hy
the terrible fatalities that occurred
there. Tuesday night, although it was
not until Wednesday that the residents
Of the Magic city became aware Of the
horror nelperatod While they slept. IN.
news finally reached this city, Wednns-
, day evening. although the accompany-
ing details are meaGre ana q similar
situation has since existed.
From the facts rs known it appears
thar three members Of the Italian
colony mt Millinocket came to tnci.
deaths while celebrating christmas
eve. There are indications that q fight
occurred and that the three men were
either killed or severely wounded as
they We're unable 10 leave the hotel i'll
he fire that evidently followed the iisht
From the circumstances Surruunding
the deaths il seems that the only par
lies who had knowledge of the events
which led up To- and occasioned the
tragedy are those VINO now lie cold in
The embrace ~ death. There il one
particularly ola feature hoWever. ana
that is the extreme rcticence of III.
other members ri the italian colony.
FOR that they could have remained in
ignorance At the affair il utterly inn
possible as there are scores Of the cab
ins which almost touch each other.
Whether this silence is an attempt to
shield some other members of the
colony. VINO might have had hand In
The crime or is Que simply to lack Ut
definite knowledge ana ignorance is Il
question for the cornncf's jury To de-
eide
The scene Of the tragedy was i'll the
locality known ~ Little Italy" across
the stream from The village and the big
pulp and paper plant of the Great
Northern Co Here in huts and shan
ties Of the cheapest and fiimsiest de-
scrintion live or exist about % Italian
laborcrs. members Of The. colony formed
ut MilinCekct some t.mc ago when The
big mill Na@ in process OF construction
These itali.,ns an" Very G:innish. ana
nearly or lu.t, al al them belong 10 i
sort IL club. Of society. which receives
many of It's supplies including liquors
from New York. ana which INDUCES in
sports and m-lrymakings peculiar to
itH!i;tEs 1t is said thai the members
Of the colony never become drunk. but
they "r- ve}Y rT,it;tble. ANA ycugeful
u4G tAtt may account for III. horrible
-, rl:irtIc,. uf Tuesday night
~ uhunt 10 O'Clock Tuesday night.
people in the village Of MillInocket
heard what sounded like three pistols
Shots. ia 4ui,k succession, in The dirrc-
ton o. tha Italian settlement. but no
invest icatiUn Was made. and nothing
morr Was Thought "f The circumstance |
until Wednesday morning. when 4 man |
from the settlement brought 4 terrible, !
story to the village.
The story is that there had been Il |
fie in Little Italy Tuesday night. |
ana that three mer. The occupants 81 |
one OF Ithc cabins there. had been |
burned 10 death. Deputy Sheriff Drag |
don ana uthars went over. and found |
that one of the little shanties had been |
burned close to the ground, only a few |
inches remaining of the thin boards |
II hat composed its walls.
In the STU! smoking ashes were three
,h7rred corpses.
.\0No Of the Italians in the colony |
knew the names of the dead men. OF |
could tell anything about the fire-at |
least. no information could be gotten
from them.
The burned cabin had been arranged |
much like the others in the settlement.
In one corner was the door. in another
the stove. and in the other corners
hunks in which the inmates slept. III
one corner where Il bunk had been, the
three corpses lay close together where
they would not naturally have fallen
had the fire been accidental ana had
the men tried to escape
Furthermore and most significant,
upon the head of one of the bodies an
peared what looked like a deep wound,
as though the man had been Drained
The body was frigntfully burned and
the other two We're pasted to a crisp.
In the ashes were found the metal
parts of Il gun and two revolvers, and
there We're also the remains of two
Dicyc.es-tha wheel rims. etc.
Just what occurred in the Italians
cabin on Christmas eve will. of course
never be definitely known. but there
are numerous indications that they had
a fight. The positions of the bodies as
found. the sound Of shots at 10 o'clock
that night, the fact that they had
weapons-all go to sustain this theory.
but what will strike the observer as
most conclusive of all evidence in this
this theory. but what will strike the OBJ
server rs most conclusive of all evil