The Ocala evening star., 1910-04-12
MURDERED BY A MADMAN
Two Mission Workers Unexpectedly
Called on to Make Good Their
Claim to Martyrd0m

Pittsburg, Pa, April IA sermon
on "Martyrdom,' in which Frank
Skala. an editor and prominent mission
worker had declared himself willing TO
lay down his life for the Christian
cause. was followed yesterday by his
assassination in a highly sensational
manner. and the shooting down also
of fellow church leader, John Gay.
Arm in arm the two missionaries
were leaving the little Congregational
Church in Woods Run. a suburb. al
the head of more than a hundred for
eigners. a raggedly dressed and col
1arless man poked his way through the
crowd and when he was but a step
behind the leaders, he pressed a re-
volver to Skala's head and fired twice.
Skala fell dead.
Congregation FIees
Gay, who threw up his right hand as
if to ward off the weapon, was struck
first in the thumb and then a second
bullet was buried in his head. He fell
unconscious across the body of his col
league.
For a moment-for several moments
the assassin stood over his prey in
amazed contemplation Of the deed.
flourishing the revolver while the
panic-stricken crowd fed to shelter
behind posts and doorways.
The man was Jian Radowitch, a
character known to most of the mis-
sion for his shiftless habits, slovenly
dress and radical opinions. \ moment
before he had meekly read from ju-
venile leaflets in the Sunday school led
by Skala; previously he had sat in a
back pew of the church during the
regular sermon and at the commence
ment of the services Skala had shaken
his hand in greeting. In all this RADIO
witch had given no warning OF his
murderous intent.
Stamps on Victims
There was no policeman in sight
when the murder was done. the church
people were TOO frightened to grab
the assassin, and after fiourishing his
weapon and stamping his foot on the
bodies, he made off down the avenue
to the Fort Wayne Railroad tracks and
disappeared.
large armed posse of police, de-
tectives and church people was soon
in pursuit, but up to a late hour last
night they had found no trace of him.
After the madman's disappearance
the mission crowd reassembled about
it's fallen leaders and passionately
mourned their loss Skala's body was
removed to an undertaker's room and
Gay was taken to st. Johns Hospital
His wound is dangerous, but it is be-
lieved he will recover.
Skala was prominent locally as a
mission worker and as the editor OF
the Bohemian Christian Journal which
he and the Rev. James Losa published
at Corapolis He was a Presbyterian
but had filled the pulpit at the Congre-
gational mission house as a substitute
yesterday as he had often done before
The Rev. Mr.. LoSa was summoned
to the undertaking rooms soon after
the tragedy and in violent emotion he
delivered a discourse over the body
while a hundred followers wept.
None of the church workers believe
there was any method in Radowitch's
madness. He was a man who had lived
at the Salvation Army barracks and as
a charitable parasite elsewhere, but
was always at variance with the
teachings of his Christian leaders. II
is doubtful if he had ever seen Skala
before today.
gregation that the sermon Skala
preached. with the emphatic declara-
tion that "any moment God would
want my life I am ready to lay my life
down." had stirred the foreigner &c
test his Christian fidelity. Skala had
taken for his text, Il am the bread OF
life" and had preached upon the old
time martyrs.