New Britain herald., 1919-12-05
bLAYS HIS WIFE, DAUGHTER AND SELF
|razed New Yorker Also Tries to Kill Three Others

New York, Dec. 5.-Apparently Nrazed by a protracted illness and q Belief that his mental powers were Naning, Mason R. Strong, an archi-
 ect and structural engineer, with of Bees at No. 2 Wall street, killed his R1fe and eldest daughter, Elizabeth. 8lxteen years old, With an axe late #uesday night or early Wednesday, Nlorn1ng at his home in Passaic. N. J aie then killed himself by cutting his 8lroat With a razor after seriously in #lflng three other children in an at sFnpt to exterminate his entire fam s Of the three children surviving, one S-Walter, twelve years old, the only
 Hon-ls expected to die. The other @No, Nlna, fourteen, and Susanna, Sght who were hit with the blunt 8lstead of the sharp end of the axe aiade, are at the Passaic General hos Sltal and probably will recover
 Because of the inability of the sur 8lVlng children to tell just what hap Nened the details of the tragedy are
 pmeWhat shrouded in mystery. There Ere indications that Strong may have Hrugged or administered an anaes- shetic to his victims before attacking Shem. An open book on a bureau Hear Strong's bed indicated that he @lay have found in the story of the aanfng power of a preacher, the < Principal character of the story, Harallel to the loss of mental power N1 his own case.
 The tragedy did not become known #ntil late yesterday afternoon, and Ahe three surviving children are be- @eyed to have been unconscious in Nheir beds since Tuesday night. Two Mchoolmates of the two younger Nirls, Catherine Mott and Ruth Nchmidt, had a part in the discov- A Ary.
 None of the Strong children ap- Feared at school on Wednesday, and Katherine and Ruth called at the @trong house on their way home to Mearn the reason. They were unable @o get 8 response to their ringing of %he doOTbell and left without a Thought that anything was wrong. @ When the children failed to appear @t school yesterday the two little girls Mgain tried to learn what was the &natter with their friends. They found @l Newspapers for the last two days in Hhe doorway and several bottles of #nill< at the back door. Believing that Momething was wrong the girls pound Md on the door and shouted for their M huns After 8 long time two wan #aces appeared in the doorway. M s'Everybody's Sick" Her Report a "tEveryDody's sick at our house, V #Sina the elder of the Strong girls, Mold her little friends. The latter, M caring that those in the house might &be suffering from some contagious &lisease. went away, and Nina tele- #ohoned Dr. John H. Carlisle, the Strong family physician, to como at Sbnce to their home at No. 237 Lex Sngton avenue.
 Dr. Carlisle upon going to the sec #bnd floor of the house immediately Discovered evidence of a tragedy. Mrs. MStrong was lying in her bed with two &axe wounds--one across the mouth &and the other a gash in the back of &aer head, either of which would have #oeen instantly fatal. On a couch in @he same room was Nathaniel, the @box, with a fractured skull caused by N he blade of the axe but still breath Mng. The body of Strong, with his Singular vein slashed, was found in @t he bathroom. The body of Eliza Nbeth. the eldest daughter, with the @slull crushed by one blow of the axe #Was in an adjoining bedroom.
 Dr Carlisle notified Police Captain MBeniamin F. Turner and called Dr. A MW. Van Riper, and the injured boy Hand his two surviving sisters were #taken to the hospital, where the boy: Mcase was pronounced hopeless. The Ninjuries of the two young daughter: #wcre not as serious. Apparently they had been struck on the head by thu blunt end of the axe, the crazed fath e., at the last having faltered in hi intention to kill all his children. Both of the girls appeared to be il :: dazed condition and were unabl