Palestine daily herald. [volume] (Palestine, Tex.) 1902-1949, 1910-09-09
INSAN|
The PLEA
OF DEFENSE IN CASE OF BER-
TRAM G. SPENCER, SELF-coN-
FESSED HIGHWAYMAN AND
MURDERER.
CHerald Specially

Springfield, Mass, Sept. "a plea
of insanity will probably be relied up
on to save from the electric chair Der
tram G. Spencer, the self-confessed
bighwayman and murderer, whose
case was called for trial in this city
today. Spencer is charged with the
murder of Miss Martha B. Blackstone
on the night of March 81 last. The
murder, it is alleged, was the climax
of career of crime extending over
many years and which the young
man had successfully concealed by
working steadily every day and ap-
parently leading a respectable life.
The killing of Miss Blackstone oc.
Cured at the home of Mrs. Sarah j.
Dow in one of the suburbs of this
city. Mrs. Dow, her two daughters
and Miss Blackstone, who was a guest
for the night, were seated in the sit
ting room about a small table, when
all intruder made demand for
money from the dining room. They
looked up to see a masked man in the
dark doorway threatening them with
a revolver. Mrs Dow retained her
composure and replied, I'VE have no
money" but Miss Blackstone in fright
jumped to her feet and ran scream
ing into an adjoining room. The bur-
glar said, IF you want to get killed,
keep on screaming" and fired as he
spoke, the bullet entering Miss Black
stones breast. Death followed in
stantly. The murderer turned the
revolver on the group, shooting Miss
Harriet Dow in the head and serious
ly wounding her. The assailant then
made his escape through grove sur
rounding the house.
For several days posses aided by
bloodhounds secured Springfield and
the entire vicinity in vain effort to
obtain a clue to the murderer. The
authorities concluded that the perpe
traitor of the crime was the same per
son who had been burglarizing Spring
field homes for two years past and
who had always escaped detection.
Finally a citizen whose home had
been entered some time previously
turned over to the police gold lock-
ct which he believed had been drop
ped by the burglar while escaping
over a fence in the rear of his house. |
Initials were engraved on the locket
and with this clue to work on the
police finally arrested Spencer, a
young clerk employed in a local es-
Enlistment The initialA The
IUOnOr -CUrrespUuueu- w1tn those u
Spencer's sister.
The young man broke down under
twenty-four hours merciless grilling,
and confessed that he was the mys-
tericus masked burglar and the MUIR
derer of Miss Blackstone In his con-
fession Spencer made it clear that,
associated with his overpowering de-
sire to steal, were an intense love OF
excitement and high degree of per-
sonal vanity. This latter the young
man had gratified for two years by
battling the police and reading the
accounts of his exploits.
He told the police that he had ex-
perienced no qualms of conscience
for his crimes. He revealed career
of almost lifelong crime. Following a
blow on the head while he was a
small boy, in Lebanon, Conn, his ma
tive town, he said, he began to steal
at the age of nine. Later, while still
a youth, he held up young women on
the highways and entered homes. By
engaging in legitimate occupations by
day, he had always escaped detection