The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1910-12-11
WORST CRIME
OF KANSAS
Four Persons Murdered at Farm
House and Bodies Concealed
Under Hay In a
Stall.
FARMER AND HIS WIFE
MIR. and Mrs. Barnhart and Two
Farmhands Were RrutaIly Kill
ed Some Days
Ago.

[Gate City Leased Wire Service]
CLATHE, Kans., Dec. 10.-rhe
most brutal crime in all criminal an
nails OF the state of Kansas-the mur-
der OF four persons-was discovered
on farm eleven miles east of mere
late this afternoon.
The dead are:
20,
GEORGE B. BARNHARDT, 45.
THOMAS MORGAN, II, trapper,
staying at Barnhardt home.
VIM. WORTH, farm hand.
The crime, committed several days
ago, was discovered by neighbors
who becoming alarmed by the quiet |
that oyerhung the place, one of them
made a search. An overfilled mail |
box gave the first suspicion to a rur-
al carrier that something was wrong.
George Knoche, Grover Holmes
and jasper Christensen, neighbors
working on a road near the place
made the first search, They found the
bodies of three men in stall i'll The
barn covered with hay An hour, lat
4 er the body of Mrs. Barnhardt WIS
/ found in the second story of The
1 farmhouse where she had been fol-
/ lowed by the murderer or murderors
| and beaten to death with an iron
slug.
4 The bodies of the three murdered
men had been carefully laid side Ey
+ side, each. .coysred with hay avn scil
4 had been trampled down. Leaving
4 the bodies as they had found them,
:. the discoverers of the murder went
4 to the house. Evidences of a struggle
4 were apporent, the white walls be-
j ing covered with blood. Following
i these grim traces to the room on ne
\ second floor they found Mrs. Barn
4 hardts body, her features unrecognis-
il able
J, The house had been ransacked from
cellar to garret and the authorities
are convinced that robbery was the
, motive for the quadruple crime. The
Barnhardt's were reputed to be
J, wealthy, and it had been neighbor
J. hood gossip that they kept Large
, sums of money in the house. How ~
er. statements to the contrary wa.e
: made by bankers here tonight.
Everything about the place, in the
barn and in the house. points to 4
!, fierce struggle. The rough board
walls in the barn stall where .te
; three men were found are bespatter-
ed with blood Barnhardt's head was
beaten to pulp. The other two men
, died from blows over the head with
an iron slug. All were fully dressed
Outside the barn were found Two
hounds belonging to Barnhardt, both
nearly starved.
Despite her years, even, the house
plainly shows that Mrs. Barnharlt
> put ND plucky struggle against her
:. assailant. Overturned chairs, torn eur
tains and broken furniture are mute
signs OF the terrific struggle .hai
must have taken place in the home
Her body was found lying near a
small door opening into an alcove
through which it is believed she trle0
to escape. The weapon of the slayer
| AN iron scale weight, struck the Wo
man over the right eye, ntera.'S
q mashing her skull inward
Young Morgan had been staying a.
theaBarnhardt home for several DAYS
His home is in Kansas City, MO. hf
had taken vacation, spending 1t II
Il training on the Barnhardt farm.
v The farm hand who had given hls
# name to neighbors of the BarnhardtS
\ as William Worth was obtained 1r )ir
g en- employment agency in Kansas
n CITY and had been at the Barnard
home less than two weeks.
|. Prosecuting Attorney c. B. Little
|. Sheriff j. S. Stead, Coroner D. L
+ Bronson and County Commissione
, Robert Baker and scores of neighbor'
@ arrived at the house several houf
h after the grewsome find and tool
s charge of the case.
The only crew as yet discovers
n by the authorities are the hnse
d prints everywhere to be found on in
white walls in the upstairs portion
s of the house. They are much to
Is large for that o. the woman.
It Prosecuting A,',rney Little ton1gn
a advanced the theory that the murdai
III ed persons had been attacked one
a time by one person, who KNOWN
Il or believing that he knew of tn
> boarded money of the Barnhardt'
hut discovered in his act, by Mr.
Barnhardt, killed her and then in q