The times and democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1881-current, 1910-11-15
AWFUL CRIME
Some Vile British Fiend Assaults and
Murders LiliIe Child.
FOUGHT DESPERATELY

FOUGHT DESPERATELY
The. Maltreated Body of Ten Year
Old Girl, Missing Since Wsdnes-
day, Discovered In New jersey
Woods on Last Sunday Afternoon
by Chance.
The, horribly maltreated body OF
little Marie Smith, q school girl OF
ten years, who had been missing
since Wednesday last, was found at
dust Sunday in a clump Of woods
not far from her home, at Asbury
Park, N. j.
Some instinct seemed to warn her
mother OF how the search had end
ed, for, although an effort was made
! to shield her from the truth, she
rushed from the house and looked
into the full horror Of the fact be-
fore she could be withheld.
Half fainting, half in convuls;ons,
she was carried into the house, and
there is grave fears that she will die
and with her the life she was soon,
to have brought into the world.
Chance discovered the body as
chance had hidden it. There seem
ed to have been no effort a mccall
ment. The wind had strewn fallen
leaves upon the body and their color
so matched the brown of the child's
dress and her brown hair, that las
she lay face downward she was near
ly indistinguishable from her sbroud.
Searchers had passed again and
again within twenty feet of her in
full daylight, during the past several
days, and It was only random
glance, shrewder than the rest, that
happened 10 rest on her with discern
ing vision.
Thomas Williams, known in the
neighborhood as Black Diamond,
negro wood chopper, employed by the
girls aunt, had been missing stree
the same day on which Marie disap-
peared. A warrant was issued for
him and an alarm Tor his capture
sent out broadcast throughout the
country. His axe was found near
the body. ~. s. 5.
It did not require an autopsy to
show criminal assault. The child was
small for her years, and not strong,
but she had fought to utter ex-
but she had fought to utter e1-
i.austion. The broken sticks and
trampled ground around her showed
that, as did her injurie2. Her gray
skating cap and the blue bibbon she
wore in her hair had been tied tight
about her throat, but she had also
been beaten on the forehead with
some blunt instrument and the leaves
under her face were frozen together
with her blood.
IN the struggle she had been grasp
ed by the hand with such force that
a gold ring she wore had been fIaE-
tened into the flesh. Her arms were
badly scratched and there was a
wound in the cartilage of her nose,
which surgeons say must have been
caused by human teeth, shut down
on 1t to cut off her breath.
Marie Smith was last seen at II
o'clock Wednesday morning on her
way to school, two blocks from hc~
home. The spot where her body was
found is OF her path and either she
must have been enticed into The
woods, or picked up and carried bod.
lily.
AS a result of the arrest warning
sent out Williams was arrested in
his room. The police went there 10
search for evidence and found their
man instead. Williams admitted that
he had not left the room since last
Thursday, and the appearance Of the
room bore him out. His suspenders
were stained with what looked like
blood, and a towel was found, on
which bloody hands seemed to have
been wiped.
When placed under arrest the nc
gro was in ptiable terror, and would
neither. admit nor deny the crime
with which he is charged He was
taken quietly to jail, and there was
no attempt at lynching, though SEN
timent ran high against him.