The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-05-07
He KILLED SIX.
An Insane Man Cleaned Out His
Boarding House.
He Permitted One Girl of II
Years to Escape.

San Francisco, Cal, May AT 6:37
this morning Walter Chiefly Davis, a
| carpenter in a fit of insanity, shot and
killed a family of six persons with
| whom he resided at Ala Piers street in
this city.
The dead are:
ORSON r. BUSH, aged ST. his wife
and their young son.
w. S. BEARD, a carpenter, with
| relatives in st. Louis and Denver.
M. E. LINTON, recently from New
York.
MRS. LILLIAN D. CARUTHERS, an
elderly woman. who boarded at the
house.
Davis and his victims all resided in
the house, which was conducted as a
boarding house by the Bush family.
Davis home was in F'armersville near
Visalia, this state, where he has wife
and six children. He has been working
here as a carpenter since the fire.
The shooting was done with double
barreled shotgun. Davis, who slept in
the same room with young Bush and
Beard, arose shortly after o'clock and
after arming himself with the gun, shot
his two roommates and then visited
each room in turn, killing the occupants.
He fancied that the people in the
house had formed a plot to kill him and
take his money. The shots attracted
large crowd and rush was made upon
Davis as he was attempting to reload
his weapon and he was overpowered
and turned over to the police and taken
to the detention ward of the hospital.
The bodies of his victims were taken
to the morgue. One lodger in the house
escaped. She was a young girl OF H.
Davis pointed the gun at her and was
preparing to shoot when he said she re-
sembled his daughter, so he spared her
life.
After killing Bush and Beard the
man took a box of shells from shelf
49, - Il a0Y- a
he met Mrs Lillian Carothers, an
elderly woman, who had heard the
first two shots and came to her door
way to find out what was the matter.
He shot her and with the remaining
shell, shot Mrs. Orson Bush.
NJ. E. Vinton, a government survey
or, who had recently come here from
New York, was killed as he lay in bed.
OrsOn Bush, Sr., was a tallyman in
the employ of the Dieckman Lumber
company, and had gotten up early in
order to prepare his coffee before go
ing to work. He heard the shooting
and rushed upstairs, where he was
met by the murderer. The appearance
of the hallway indicates that Bush
had made a desperate fight for his
life. His body was found as it had
fallen at the head of the stairs. Seven
teen-year-old Annie Bush came run
ming into the hallway and met Davis,
whose shotgun was still clutched in his
hands. He turned the gun upon the
girl, aiming at her head. She was too
dazed to move and speak and could do
nothing but stare at Davis. The mad
man faltered and his hands trembled.
Then the girl found voice to say,
please don't kill me-" and the shot
gun dropped from Davis hands. 81
can't do it, he said, you are a good
girl. Besides you look like my own
child. and 1 would see her face if 1
killed you
When the policemen came to arrest
Davis, he looked like a demon, and a
riot call was turned in. Seven officers
responded in an automobile.
Two of the officers engaged Davis
in a conversation while others got be-
hind him and pinned his arms. He
was then removed to the detention
hospital.
When the police got the murderer
to the detention hospital he was placed
in straight jacket and put in a cell.
He seemed to have no realization of
what he had done and merely said
that he had been worried.
Mrs. Bush received last Sunday
from Davis the following note which
gave a promise of the tragedy:
you have killed my sons and my
nephews, but you have not all of them
yet You expected to kill me tonight.
Perhaps I'll kill myself