The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1907-07-05
NO 27
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Buried Ills Wlfe's Little Daughter
Alive In a Refuse HoIe.
MYSTERIOUS CASE.

Pretty Little Seven Year Old Mary
Ncwliil Buried Alive by Her step-
father, Irwin Lewis, Who Is Now
In Jail.--Lewis Admits Burying
Her But Declares That He Thought
Her Dead.
Buried alive by her stepfather was
the tragic fate of pretty, little sew
en-year-old Mary Newlin, for whose
death Irwin lewis is now in jail at
Chester, Pa, awaiting the action
OF the grand jury Lewis, thought
admitting that he buried his little
stepdaughtor, declares he did not
murder her, or know she was living
when he buried her. 'I thought
her dead when she fell from the car
riage barn" he moaned in his de-
Tense at the coroner's investigation.
But his excuse was so flimsy and :
the weight Of the evidence against
him SO great that he was quickly
remanded to Jail to await the Janu-
AIRY term of court, and 1t was only the
prompt work of the sheriff and his
deputies In getting him quickly out
OF the little courthouse at Avondale,
where the hearing was held, that saw
cd the young Pennsylvania farmer
from death at the hands of the mob.
Lewis partial confession was
wrung from him by District Attorney
MaclIlrec on the day in which his
StcpdaughterS tiny BODY was found
by w. G. Shelley and John O'Brien,
deputy sheriff, in a hole that Lewis
had declared he dug to bury some
refuse in. The one essential feature
to establish the murder without
doubt on the young stepfather, the
admission that he killed the child,
Maclilree was unable to get. On
the contrary, the farmer insisted his
stepdaughter's death was due to her
fall from the carriage shed roof, and
that he buried the body after finding
the child dead, giving as his reason
that he wished co spare his wife who
is in delicate condition, the shock
of her daughters death.
But the alert prosecutor was pre-
pared for just such move as this,
and startled the vast audience at the
inquest by producing medical evil
dence to show that the child died
of strangulation and suffocation.
There was not a mark nor bruisc
on the body Of the child and she had
not been assaulted, as intimated. On
her neck, however, were the marks
of fingers, showing some one had
gripDed the child by the throat, and
wound tightly around the neck there
was also a piece Of string, fixed tight
enough to produce SuffOcatiOn. -tt
This partial confession upon the
stepfathers part removes all question
Of kidnappers being mixed up In the
case, as was at first thought, and it.
is the opinion of everybody In Ches-
ter county that when the cell doors
closed on irwin Lewis, the girls real
murderer had been safely secured.
The prosecution is said to have two
witnesses under cover who will say
that Mary is said to have told them
that some one in her own home had
tried to kill her twice during the win
ter The child is said to have divul-
ged the attempts upon her life while
telling how much afraid she was of
her dad" meaning young Lewis
81 always run and hide when I
see him coming" the dead child is
reported to have said to the two wit
nesses before she finally disappeared.
That she stood in deadly fear Of her
stepfather has been learned from
men and women who have worked
about the Lewis farm or visited 1t,
and who, on several occasions, watch
ed meetings between the dead girl
and her accused parent. There are
many who reside in the vicinity Of
the alleged crime who believe that
Lewis is crazy, and that it will be nee
cssary to either take him to an insane
asylum or have a commission inquire
into his state Of mind before his
trial, still months distant, Is begun.