Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1914-02-13
COUPLE SLAIN
IN MOTOR CAR
Man With Two Sweethearts
Kills ODa and Himself
TRAGEDY ON LONELY ROAD
Chauffeur In Letter to other Girl Says
He Can't Love Two and Tells or
Death Ride.

In a lonely section of country De-
tween Latrobe and Ligonier, Pa, the
bodies of Anna Lutz, sixteen years OF
age, and John McFadden, twenty years
old, both of Greensburg, were found
in an automobile.
The girl had been shot twice In the
left temple and McFadden was shot IN
the right temple. The motor OF the
car was still running, when the bodies
were found.
Mystery shrouded the tragedy until
a letter from McFadden to another
girl was found, showing that he was
infatuated with both and had evidently
promised to marry one of them. So he
cut loves gordian knot by killing one
of his sWethearts and himself.
"I'm in Latrobe and going over the
mountains. You'll never see me again."
was the message which McFadden tel
ephoned to his employer, Elmer Tur-
ner, manager of the Standard Garage.
He hung up the receiver. Turner sent
out other employees to find the chauf-
feur.
McFadden was employed by the gar
age and had the privilege of using the
cars. He took a new car and drove
to the Lutz home, where he met Anna,
and took her for a ride. MeFadden
drove the car at high rate OF speed
to Latrobe, where he called up his
employer on the telephone.
Turner said that he thought NC
Fadden intended stealing the car and
he Immediately sent out two other
employees, John and Victor Hayden, IN
a high-powered machine and told them
to stay on the state road and overtake
McFadden.
On reaching Latrcbe the pursuers
were told that the machine containing
Miss Lutz and McF'adden had passed
through that city at the rate OF forty
miles an hour.
They overlook the machine stand
ing on top of knoll, to the right oil
the road, with the engine still going.
Both Miss Lutz and McFadden were
sitting upright in the front seat of the
machine.
Miss Lutz had been shot twice IN
the left temple and had evidently die :
instantly. There had apparently been
no struggle, and it is thought that Nc
Fadden shot the girl without her sus
pecting what he was going to do. He
then fired a bullet into his own righ:
temple. The revolver was found lying
between the young couple, with three
empty chambers. Another revolver.
loaded, was found in McFadden's coat
pocket.
A note was found In one Of Nc
Fadden's pockets which read: "lf you
want to know the reason why for our
troubles, ask, and write to -, who
lives In Uniontown." The name of a
young woman had been written, but
the coroner refused to make her name
public. The coroner left for Union
town.
NcFadden wrote letter to the girl
in Uniontown. This letter contained
the evident motive for the murder and
suicide.
dearest Bertha-I can't love two
girls, but l loved you as well as the
next one. guess when you see me
next time | will be dead one. don't
have money to get married now. I'm
going out tonight and take my friend
for a ride. She loves me and love
her, so l am going to die. If she loves
me, she is going to die with me; 1t
will be a ride to death in a new car
JOHNNY"
Fhe slain girl had been in the fresh
man class of the Greensburg higk
school