The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1907-11-23
Husband and Wife Found
Shot by the Fire
Fighters.
MURDER AND SUICIDE ?
Indications Are That Nicholas N.
Smith Started the Blaze in
His Home, Killed Mrs.
Smith and Then Himself.
Had Financial Losses.

NEW YORK, Nov. 2s.-Nicholas M.
Smith. jr., and his young wife. Grace.
were found shot to death in their blaz-
ing home, so Woodland avenue. New
Rochelle. at 1870 o'clock this morning.
The fire men had hardly got their
bodies to the yard before the house was
mass of flames and was consumed
with its entire contents.
Letters saved by the police and fire.
men. along with revolver which lay
on the table on which Smiths body
rested. lead the police to believe Smith
set fire to his own house, then shot his
wife to death as she lay sleeping and
blew out his own brains.
1t may be proved. however that
these letters have no bearing on the
double tragedy and that the young
couple were shot to death by robbers
who set fire to the house to conceal
I their crime.
| Two maid servants who slept in tho
rear of the handsome house were not
awakened by the revolver shots, nor
by the smoke and flames, and when
rescuers came they were carried to the
yard. unconscious and burned.
| The police base their suicide and
murder theory on the report that
Smith, who was in tile automobile busi-
ness in New York has suffered heavy
financial loss during, the present money
stringencg.
| He was looked upon as q successful
!; man. and ae and his wife were popn-
I Tar among the ssaciety people of New
Rochelle. wherc they were seen cons
stantly together, spinning about the
neighborhood in their AUTOMOBILES.
Smith appeared to be very much IN
love with his wife.
Smiths father and mother spent
much of their time with him, but last
night were in New York.
Passing the Smith house at 1;i5
o'clock this morning, a neighbor saw
| flames shooting from the cellar door.
The neighbor turned in an alarm and
then ran to the house yelling fire. He
was Joined by several others. but they
were helpless.
Tho fire had started in the cellar
and eaten its way up through the
first floor to the front OF and rear
stairs.
When the fremen came ladders were
raised to the rear windows. and the
unconscious servants were found
They were carried to the ground and
then the front rooms of the house
were entered.
MIR, and Mrs. Smith had not appeared.
and the firemen were led to the be-
lief that both were away from home.
They went into the already flaming
rooms as a matter of precaution.
As one of them felt his way through
the middle room he stumbled over a
bed and the next instant felt the warm
blood flowing from Mrs. Smiths breast.
The fireman grabbed the woman in his
arms and climbed to the ground by the
ladder, where 1t was found that she
was dead and that the blood came from
bullet wound.
The flames had already caught the bed
clothing and the body was slightly burned.
Back up the ladder the fireman bounded.
Again he made his fay into the middle
room and then Into the front of the house.
There he found the body o fSmlth, fully
dressed and leaning over a table on which
were letters sealed ready for mailing.
Smith was about SO years old. His wife
was 30. They were married several years
ago, but they had no children.