The news & observer., 1905-10-22
Coroner Jordan Held an
Inquest Yesterday.
OCCU RRED MONDAY
But Woman Died Thursday in Hospital.
BirdsaII Charged With the Crime. A.
Eliza Moulding and Sister Were
Struck in the Head With
an Axe.

/ an Axe.
There have lately been notorious
disturbances in certain sections of
southeast Raleigh-fights, firing of
pistols. cuttings and various other dis
| turbances, and one has resulted in a
murder. Alexander Birdsall, colored.
for whom a warrant has been issued
charging him with an assault with a
| deadly weapon on two negro women,
will also answer the charge of killing
one of them. The most sensational de-
| Velopmcnt in the case, aside from the
murder, is that the coronerS inquest,
which was held yesterday before the
coroner, DR.. Thos. NJ. Jordan, was
upon the afficavit of DR.. A. w. Knox.
who learned of the Woman's death by
calling at Leonard Hospital, Shaw
University, the day after the negress
died.
The facts in the case. as gathered
| from the inquest are these:
Monday afternoon several persons
! living near BledsOe's grove and South
Person street were startled by the
cries of "Murder!" Murder" and
rushing to the home of George Hor-
ton, a negro, found his wife in the
ward bleeding about the head and she
| told the people to go into the house
saving that she reckOned her sister
| Eliza Maulding was dead. In the
house they found the Maulding woman
| bleeding freely against the door facing
| with wounds on her head. Other Wit
! nesses saw a colored man enter the
| house with an axe. He went first TO
! the window and then to the door, ana
a moment later the witnesses heard
a., I, CT
| and then saw the negro emerge from
the house and run away. Directly af-
| forwards the Horton woman ran
! screaming into the yard. Later she
was taken to Leonard Hospital at
Shaw University.
DR.. J. O. Plummer, a negro physic-
ian, testified that~he attended Eliza
Maulding at o'clock Monday after
noon at Horizons home, and sent heT
| to Leonard Hospital
The head nurse of the hospital tes-
tilted that when she received the pa
| tient the woman was able to walk ana
was conscious; She was put to bed,
and Dr. NJ. d. Bowen, another colored
doctor. was summoned, who dressed
her wounds. There was then seen
only one clean cut, and several bruises,
made with an axe. On Tuesday at IL
O'Clock the woman was carried to the
operating room where she was Oper-
ated upon by DIR. A. w. Knox. DR..
/ Henry Mckee Tucker gave her ether,
kand said that her heart was in per-
| fectly normal condition She slept
we'll the night after the operation. but
| Wednesday she grew worse, became
restless but when spoken to answered
intelIigently. At midnight she be-
came perfectly quiet, and in moving
her the nurse discovered stiffness IN
her limbs. She remained quiet till
l1:30 O'Clock Thursday morning when
she died Unexpectedly.
DR.. Bowen said he examined, the Wo-
man and saw smooth cut on the back
Of her head penetrating to the bone,
and there was a crushed scalp wound,
as if made by a blunt instrument; an
other wound was on her face. The
wounds were bleeding freely
DR.. j. w. McGee in his examination
at the inquest, stated that he made
an autopsy assisted by Dr. A. w
Knox. on the Maulding woman. He
stated that he was not prepared to
say what wound caused death. He
didn't find a satisfactory cause OF
death
A synopsis of the autopsy is as fol-
lows: The autopsy disclosed the
wounds described, and after having
shaved the entire scalp two other
SCALP wounds were found. After re-
moving the scalp the pericranium un-
derneath the incised wound was found
= to be cut through and the bone eX-
posed. Having removed the calva-
rum there was found underneath the
incised wound on the inner table OF
the skull a fracture, but no depres-
sion of that part of the bone. Under
meath that fracture in the duramater
were found longitudinal punctate eX-
| coriations, but the duramater was moi
ilacerated and there was no blood clot
other parts of the brain being divided
and examined were found normal. On
opening the thorax the heart was
found appreciably enlarged, witt
some fat upon the heart. There were
I holes found in the bent supposed tC
ihave been made by the embalmer
Some soft clots of blood were found
5 in the pulmonary artery.
: The coroner's jury were as follows
IT, A. Collier F. w. Hunnicutt, E. S
Cheek. F. p. Williams W. NJ. Utley
and P. c. Enniss.
The only witness who can identify
, TO the murderer is the wife of George
| Horton. and her condition was es
teemed too critical for her to be sub
! mitted to the excitement she woulC
have undergone on the witness stand
{ She has already stated, however tina
= Alex. BirdsalI was the negroNWho nj
> the two women, and upon this state
ment two warrants Tor assault Wer'
issued for him last week.
= The verdict of the jury was: wv
: believe that Eliza Maulding came t.
her death by blows upon her head D.
! e,,,ft<. II N Il