The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1904-12-16
House Burned to the
Ground Over Their
Dead Bodies.
A MYSTERIOUS HORROR,
Father, Mother and Two
Young Girls Killed and the
Dwelling Set Afire
By Unknown
Parties.

was stunned Thursday by as horrible a
tragedy as thu human mind can con-
ceive. Just as the day was about to
break, the town was awakened to find
that one Of its best known and best
respected families had been massacred,
and their home burned to the ground,
with perhaps no human being left
who can tell the tale. In the ruins
were the charred bodies Of father,
mother and two youthful daughters
the women killed in their placid
sleep and the husband and father shot
through the head. The victims OF
this horror are:
Ben. B. Hughes, merchant and
farmer. aged AZ years.
Mrs. z 2. Hughes, { tTn1eTiy Miss
Eva Miller, about 40 years of age.
Miss Emily Hughes, aged Is.
Miss Hattie Hughes, aged is.
TRENTON WAS SHOCKED.
Trenton was she cked and sorrowed
and Mortified when the residents learn
ed the terrible truth. 1t was shortly
after 5 O'Clock that the house was dis
covered to be on fire, the tirst person
to reach the scene being Mr.. A. Ii. S.
Day, who lives next door. The house
was then almost consumed, the ire
being too far advanced for any one to
enter the building. The first thought
OF those who reached there was that
the Hughes family had escaped, as
nothing was seen Of them at the win.
dows or doors. 1t was only after the
neighbors began to inquire Of each
other that they realized the horror. 1t
was then too late, far too late, even to
make an attempt to get out the vic
Tins. Even then 1t was supposed
that the family had been sim ply un-
able to escape after the fire started.
perhaps suffCcated by the smoke or
burned to death in their beds. 1T was
not until the neighbors had waited
for the flames to subside and it was
possible to 20 into what had been the
house that they knew murder had
been ommitted-murder in most
horrible manner.
THE BODIES FOUND.
The house was small, one story,
frame dwelling. The young women
were slee ping in one bed in a room on
the left as one entered, while Mr.. and
Mrs. Hughes occupied the front room
On the right, across rarrow hall from
their daughters. There were no other
members of the family and no one else
staying In the house. The body of
Mrs. Hughes was so badly burned that
1t cannot be said for certain how she
was killed, but there is little or no
reason to doubt that she was murder
ed before the fire reached her, since OF
all four persons she was fartheSt away
from the point where the fire appear
emily started. The wind was owing
acress the house from tile room occu
pied by the girls, their bed was In the
Ear corner and hence their bodies were
not SO badly charred. 1t could he plain
ly seen that their heads had been
crushed In with some heavy, blunt In
strumept, su ch as hammer, for the
bloody matted hair told the tale all
too certainly. The innocent girls lay
Side by side, their positions showing
that they had not even made a strug-
gle for their lives. Tie strange thing
Is that 1t was possible to kill one after
the other, without arousing the second
one, who must have survived her sis
ter only for the time it took to raise
the weapon for another blow. The
bodies of these two we're still resting
on the springs of the b. d, the inflam-
mable part of which had burned away.
Mrs. Hughes body w3s also just whe &c
the bed had stood in her room, ard
1t seemed that her head might have
been under the.pillow.
THE CRIME A MYSTERY.
It Is difficult to accept the theory
that the hus land and father extermi
mated his family, but the facts which
lead to this tht ory are by no means
such as can be lightly disregardcd. He
was fully clothed, not hastily dressed
as one suddedly awakened from sound
sleep to face peril or as one reused
to defend that most dear. He had not
met his death In the flames nor In the
manner in which death came to his
wife and daughters. Mr.. Hughes was
shot through the right side OF the
head, the ball ranging upward and
coming out Though the top OF the
skull, Eltht he shot himself or he wa,
shot by some intruder against whom
he had prepared himself to defend his
CdSUle, SlnCe plSIol was lOCuu ny uiIe
outstretched right hand with one
chamber exploded by conclusion aud
the others exploded afterwards by the
fire. The absence Of any motive for
murder and arson makes it seem un-
reasonable to suppose that the home
was invaded. Mr.. Hughts and family
ad always been on the best OF terms
with every one in the community and
there Is no one who Is known to have
had a gIudge against him. He was not
a conspicuously popular han, but not
unpopular, regarded as safe, conser-
vative business man and close trader,
and never known to be inclined to
speculation. There was no reason to
believe that the robbery Of his house
would prove profitable especially, and
IL robbery Is the clue the robber is
hardly a resident OF that section. %
the other hand no one who knew Ben
Hughes would suspect him of a ten
dency towards suicide, much less the
more horrible crime involving his fam
t1v,a determination He had his De-