The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1911-09-28
SHE DEFENDED HONOR
Mrs. J. f. Shirley was Murdered at
Home Near Mt. MOriah, No.,
While Defending Her Honor.

The following account OF the mur-
der of Mrs. Jasper E. Shirley, at her
home few miles south of Mt. Moriah,
Mo-, is taken from the GAINESVILLE
News: After the News was printed an
information was filed charging
Bunk" Davidson, a neighbor of the
murdered woman with the terrible
crime, and he was arrested and is
now in Jail at Bethany.
Little did Jasper Edward Shirley
highly respected citizen OF Sugar
Creek township in the southwest part
of Harrison county, think when he
left home last Sunday morning to
visit a neighbor, that during his alb
sence fend in human form would
visit his home and murder his wife
as she fought with all her power in
defense Of her honor, and that he
would find her dead in an upstairs
room. Vet such was the case.
There are few details to this hor-
rible affair from the fact that there
were only three parties present, one
little girl 214 years old, the mother
who is dead and the assassin himself
whoever he may be. Yet the follow
ing facts which developed at the in
quest give a fairly accurate idea OF
the awful occurrence.
| The family of Jasper Edward Shir-
ley consisted of himself, his wife 27
years old, four small children, the
youngest of which is little girl 2 II
years of age. The three oldest chill
dren are boys. The family have the
reputation of being highly respected
| in every sense.
On last Sunday morning Mr.. Shir-
ley hitched up team to take an aunt
who had been visiting in his home
to a Mr.. Utterback's home, another
relative, some distance from his home
but III the same neighborhood, and
yielding to the pleadings of the little
boys allowed them to 60 with them.
After arriving at the Utterback home
and leaving his aunt he concluded to
drive on to the home of his father
where he spent a part of the day and
then drove back home, arriving be-
tween and in the afternoon.
On arriving at his home the first
thing that attracted his attention and
aroused his suspicious that something
was wrong was the unusual quietness
about the place and that the doors of
the house were locked. On forcing
an entrance to the house and not see
ing his wife he went up stairs and
was dumbfounded to find her lying
on her back in the middle of the
floor with her arms stretched out
back of her head--dead
Physicians were called who made
an examination and gave it as their
opinion that she had been dead some
three or four hours previous to their
arrival. They found that her neck
was broken which was the cause of
her death. There were no marks of
violence upon her person except
around both wrists which were dis
colored showing without doubt that
man. The physicians gave 1t as their
opinion that her neck was broken
when the brute threw her to the floor.
The disarranged clothing of the dead
woman showed that her assailant had
attempted rape before taking her life.
Splashes of blood about the floor of
that upstairs room told a mute story
of the terrible fight the defenseless
woman made before giving up her life
in defense of her womanly honor
The physicians did not think the
blood splotches came from the dead
woman but rather from her assail-
ant from which it would appear that
her fight was a desperate one and
that she had wounded him in some
way before yielding up her life.
County Coroner A. C. Bonser held
an inquest over the body last Monday,
but nothing of any Importance in ad-
dition to the testimony OF Mr.. Shirley,
and the remarks of the little girl was
found. On being questioned the little
girl said that "a big man came and
had fight with Mamma. She whip
ped him first and then he whipped
her. After hearing the testimony
and failing to get any evidence point
ing to any one as the perpetrator of
the crime, the jury returned ver-
dict that the deceased came to her
death by foul means at the hands of
a party or parties to the jury un-
known.
While no evidence developed at the
inquest that would Justify the Prose-
cutting Attorney In ordering the ar
rest of any one, we are reliably in
formed that suspicion points strongly
toward two parties in the neighbor-
hood and it may be that an arrest
will follow soon.
The dead woman was a member
of the church near her home, prom
inent in church circles, and highly
respected by all who knew her. Her
husband and family, too, enjoy the
confidence and esteem of all who
know them.
1t is one of the most terrible and
revolving crimes ever committed in
the county. A mans lust led him to
take the life of a respectable woman,
4 little children made motherless and
once happy home wrecked. It is
sincerely to be hoped that the guilty
party may be speedily be brought to
the justice he SO richly deserves.
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Presbyterian Church Notes.