The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1910-08-05
WOMAN slain and
HUSBAND WOUNDED
LOdger'S Dread of Insane Asy=
Ium Leads to Tragedy in
Oakland Home
Murderer Became MOrOse When
Victim Laughed at Him and
Shooting Resulted

OAKLAND. Aug. z.-Dread of the in
sane asylum impelled William Cooper.
81 years old. an employe of a coal deal
ar, to kin Mrs. Margaret Buss in her
kitchen at I24S Myrtle street at 6
O'Clock this morning and then mortally
wound her husband, Hurley Buss, who
had been the murderer's close friend
for years. Mrs. Buss was slain almost
instantly, the ball fired at her enter
ing her forehead. Buss, who rushed to
his wife's aid, received a ball near the
carotid artery and is not expected to
survive. Cooper died at 6:45 o'clock at
the receiving hospital, having turned
the third hall into his own morbid
brain.
GIRL BRAVES DEATH
There was one witness of the shoot
ing of Buss, 16 year old Mabel Buss,
who heard the screams and the shots
and reached the kitchen just as Cooper
fired point blank at her father. The
wounded man staggered to the wall.
and Mabel. daring the frenzy of the
murderer, who stood staring, took her
sire by the arm and led him to her bed
room. There Buss tainted His daugh-
ter barricaded the door with a chair.
: He recovered his senses just in time
To hear third shot, the one with which
cooper killed himself.
- For several minutes Mabel Bslss and
her 10 year old sister, May, waited in
the barred room with the landla dy,
Mrs. p. Mckay. When finally they
Ventured out. they found Mrs. Buss
dead and Cooper gssping on the floor.
Policeman Merrick, who heard the pis-
tel reports in the street, arrived with
several other policemen. Mrs. Buss'
body went to the morgue, while Buss
and Cooper were rushed to the re-
ceiving hospital.
CAME WITH FAMILY
II Cooper could have talked the police
might have been able 10 close up their
investigation at once, but as the muir
derer was unconscious until death his
motive may be known only from his
remarks days before the shooting. He
came here from New York with Buss
and family, and when they rented three
rooms at the Myrtle street house he
took one Both men got work with
r. P. Hughes, a coal dealer at Eighth
aud Market streets, brother in law of
their landlaoy. Mrs. Mckay.
Cooper, il seems, tried to win Mrs.
Buss' regard. and became morose when
she laughed at him. A few nights ago,
according 10 the two daughters. he
= became angry because Buss had taken
Mrs. Buss to theater and left Cooper
at home. This morning. when Mrs.
Buss was preparing breakfast, the lodg
er went into the kitchen and talked
with her a few minutes. Then suddenly
she was heard to scream, and the first
shot was fired. That revolver report
&. brought Buss into the kitchen. to be
shot down, and aroused the daughters.
who saw the closing acts of, the
TRAGEDY.
WEAPON ONLY CLICKS
Mabel Buss has told the police of
how Cooper stood wa tching her help
her father out of the kitchen, raising
his pistol TO his forehead Five times
he drew the trigger. but the weapon
only clicked. When the bedroom door
had been barricaded they heard Cooper
talking TO himself. Mabel believes he
was reloading his revolver for after a
short silence the third shot was heard
and few moments later the girl found
the dying murderer on the floor.
Buss formerly employed Cooper on
his farm at Auburn, N Y He was
Familiarity known to the Buss children.
who say that he has been moody only
ih the last few weeks. 1t was not
10 the girls. but 70 Mrs Mckay. that
Cooper talked of the imagined inten-
tion of the Buss family to try to send
him TO the insane asylum.
= Buss is 35 years of age. and his wife
was So years old.