Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-10-30
BENT ON VENGEANCE
Husband Tries to Kill Wife and
Her Parents.
THEN HE SHOOTS HIMSELF
Tragedy Follows Betrayal of Carroll
James to Authorities for Ex-
press Robberies.

PARKERSBURG. w. Va, October 30
Driven to desperation by the fact that his
pretty wife, who was suing him for a d.
vorce, had given information to the state
authorities which bid fair to lodge him
behind prison walls for many years. Car
roll James, a Baltimore and Ohio railroad
conductor. armed with two revolvers. yes
terday morning at Pennsboro, Richie
county. wreaked summary vengeance up
on mis- wife's family.
Invading the home of his father in la
William Pritchard, about . o'clock yester-
day morning by breaking in the front
door. James began firing at the figures in
the beds in the different rooms before the
occupants were fairly awakened. He
shot and instantly killed Mr.. Pritchard.
his father-ih-law, as he rose from the
bed: shot Mrs. Jennie Pritchard, his
mother-in-law, three times, inf1icting upon
her probably fatal inquiries. and shot his
wife. Mrs. Minnie A. James. in the hip,
inficting flesh wound. The four-year
old daughter Of James, who was sleep
ing between Mrs James and Mrs. Pritch-
ard, escaped injury.
Mrs Pritchard. after being shot three
times. ran from her home in her night
clothing and bare feet to the residence
of neighbOr across a ravine some 90
yards away. When she arrived there
she was in a pitiable state from fright
and shock, as well as her wounds. which
were bleeding profusely. the woman leav-
ing q trail Of blood behind her across the
field which she traversed in her wild
flight.
Pursues His Wife.
Mrs James meantime had escaped from
the room and jumped off the back porch,
a distance of eight feet and started to
run. James followed her. and Mary,
their four-year- daughter, came out on
the porch. and either fell or jumped
from the porch. and followed them. James
overlook his wife and attempted to shoot
her again, but found that both of his
revolvers were empty.
James then began choking his wife and
beating her over the head with the gun,
while the little child was clinging to her
mothers skirts screaming and crying
for him to stop. The noise attracted
Joshua West, who resides nearby. and
he drove James away with a club. James
then went hack toward the Pritchard
home. and while standing in the back
yard reloaded his revolver and fired a
bullet into his head, dying instantly.
James Accused by Wife.
The tragedy was the direct result of
a recent sensational occurrence In this
city. when James claimed that he caught
his wife at an early hour in the morning
with one Seymour Kuhn Of Fairmont, a
railroader. James at that time fired a
shot at Kuhn, slightly wounding him
He then brought suit for divorce, but
Mrs. James beat him to 1t by securing
service in a counter suit first Last Mon
day Mrs. James. during the taking Of
dispositions in the divorce case. gave evil
dence which resulted in the arrest OF
her husband and George Mitter, an ex-
press messenger of Grafton, on the
charge of conspiring to defraud the
United States Express Company. it be-
ing alleged that these two men had. with
the collision Of others, been systemati-
cally robbing the express company for
three years past. The hearing of James
and Mitter was set for Tuesday, and 1t
Is said that the state had strong case
against James, and it is believed that in
this fact lies the cause Of yesterday S
tragedy. Mrs. James went from this city
to her parents home in Pennsboro Sat
urday night and James followed her, ar
irving there on a freight train at
o'clock Sunday morning.
A coroner's inquest was held at Penns-
boro yesterday. the jury rendering a
verdict of murder at the hands of James
in the case of Pritchard and of suicide
in the case Of James.