The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-09-09
Mrs. J. f. Nichols Is At
tackled i'm Her East 18th
St. Home and Killed.
SERVANTS ARE BOUND
BY THE INTRUDERS
Tablccloth Used as Murder
Weapon-Rings Taken
From Fingers.

Mrs James =. Nichols, widow of
member Of the wholesale asocery firm
OF Austin. Nichols & Co. was murdered
In her home at East Seventy ninth
street late last night by three masked
men who carried revolvers. After the
men had entered the house at the
poin Of their guns and had bound and
gagged two OF Mrs. Nichols's servants.
maid and boy. they went into Mrs.
Nchols's room.
When she was found by the maid.
who managed in AN hours time to free
was dead on the he'd in her own room.
She had been strangled by means of
tablecloth and dolly.
The maid said she thought she recog
n!zed a former servant as one OF the
masked men.
Mrs Nichols was 60 years old and in
heritcd more than sl.oOo,Ooo from the
estate of her husband, who died abroad
year ago.
After searching examination Of the
house Second Deputy Police Commis-
sioner Lord announced AT o'clock this
morning that so far as could be discov-
cred nothing had been stolen except
three rings which We're taken from Mrs.
SCho,ss fingers one OF these is
known to have been reset recently with
diamond worth $4,000.
Inspector Faurot and Inspector Gray.
hurried to the Nichols h me imme-
d!ately after the murder,
The story they obtained came from a
hallboy in the house Owney Pallis by
name, and the maid. who was unable TO
from her experience.
Attack at 10 O'Clock.
At about 10 o'clock there was a ring
at the basement doorbell. Pallis told the
police At that time Mrs Nichols was
n her own room on one of the upper
floors and ne and the maid were in the
basement. The house - five story
rrownstonc one just Off Fifth avenue.
palhs answered the bell. He was con-
tronted by one man, who stuck a gun in
The hallboy's face, and stepped into the
house. He held the boy still at the point
o. the revolver.
In a moment the maid. who had heard
Palis answer the bell, thought that
something was wrong, as she didn't hear
any conversation. She stepped into the
basement hall to see what was the mat
ter The man with the revolver said
ihr servants, covered her with the gnn
also
Then, keeping them covered. he
opened the door and two masked men,
each carrying a revolver. stepped in.
The three men bound and gagged the
servants and went into the upper stories
Of the house.
That is all the servants knew OF the
entry Of the supposed burglars, they
sad. They did not hear the men leave.
The maid struggled with tlc ropes
mat bound her, and in an hour she was
be TO wriggle free from them Her
hTs' care was for Mrs Nichols, she said,
INA sh' went to look for her mistress
Maid Finds Her Dead.
Size found her in her room lying on
the oed and obviously dead, although the
maid didn't know what the cause Of
utath was. She thought that Mrs.
N'chos, whose heart was weak, had
Deen frightened TO death by the appear
snc" If the three men.
me maid freed Pallis, and they tele-
hhoned TO the police. Inspectors Faurot
ana ray. acting Captain Jones and a
sluad Of detectives hastened to the
mouse. They found that Mrs. Nichols
laH hat tn
rom the dining room and dolly had
bern for this purpose.
Nhen the police got to the house they
round the maid examining Mrs. Mich
ols rs corsets. She told the police that
she VAS looking for some keys which
Mrs Nichols kept there, The keys were
gone
The maid said that these keys were
70 The drawers where Mrs. Nichols kept
her valuable collection OF jewelry.
w. one side of Mrs. Nichoss home Is
I"' home ~ Isaac Dudley Fletcher on
t"t other that OF William Frederick
" ross The street at No / Is the home
' MIS-, lsaac V. Brokaw, and other
residents of the block include Mrs. Vlr-
MA panziger, Mrs, Charles Walton
,Sd'n' Mr. and Mrs. Charles NJ. Kahn,
ar and Mrs J. Woodward Haven and
All ana Mrs John Il. Delafield
several Rings Taken.
home rings, the value of which has
rot been dseertained were stripped from
MLs N'ruis's fingers after she had been
Killed
tn" butler and the cook had had a
FN' on and pallis and the maid were
ITO only servants left in the home, No
N''''s called 80 the hallboy and the
""'I "'tr alone with Mrs Nichols all
evening
'' ."'N '"luued to the house shortly
"'e' 'u" police authorities got there.
eut .a.' tor, which the police heard
J. Wv" '"' ~i'''ion and Immediately after
4 N''' NrN logan to devote themselves
; ''"'' cross examination of Pnllis.
a., ''''.A! detectives were sent out to
''s. "p lnre' friends of his
- COOK sand that she left the house
n'' evening out AT o'clock and that
~ ,N outside three or four men whom
shs had seen before and whom she