Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1922-09-17
DOUBLE MURDER
| IN NEW JERSEY,
| CORONER STATES
Rector of Protestant Epis-
CopaI Church and Wife of
the Sexton Are Found
Dead Under a Tree.
By the Associated Press.

New Brunswick, n. j., Sept. 16
by the Associated Press. 1.-The
Rev. Edward W. Hall, rector Of the
Protestant Episcopal church of st
John the EVangelistS and Mrs.
flames Mills, wife of the sexton of
he church, were found dead from
bullet wounds today under an APP
Die tree in a secluded lane in SOM
rville township. The two had been
missing from their homes since
asst Thursday night.
Coroner r. M. Long, of Somerset
county declared it case of double
murder. He said the two had
been dead at least thirty-siX hours
before the bodies were discovered
Ind was emphatic in stating he
believed that the shooting did not
bccur in the rustic lane. NO
weapon was found near the bodies,
which were lying about a foot
hpart. Near the woman's side, how
over, the exploded shell of a o.
taliher bullet was found.
The woman had been shot once
between the eyes. Marks of clinch-
Rd fingers bruised the left arm.
The body of the rector bore three
bullet wounds. One was over the
eft eye and two in the neck. Seat
cred in the greatest profusslon
about the mans body were cards
and letters taken from his pockets
Mills Is Questioned.
Mills was questioned by the au-
| h o.
| lis wife's movements up to the
ime she left her home on Thurs
| lay night. He is not being held.
Mills said that on THURSDAY
hight, shortly after Z o'clock his
lvife received a telephone call,
which she told him came from
IHenrys," the neighborhood gro
,ery store. Turning from the phone,
f Mrs. Mills, he said, went UP stairs,
where he heard her moving about
n her room for nearly half an
hour. When she appeared again
| she was wearing one of her newest
street dresses and her newest hat.
81 asked her where she was go
ling" Mills said, land she told me
that if really wanted to know. /
could follow her and find out"
Playing on the front steps as
| she went out was Mrs. Wills 16-
|year-old daughter, Charlotte. In
answer to a question from the
|girl. the mother is said to have re-
|phed she was "going out for a little
while"
Did Not Follow His Wife.
Mills told the authorities he did
mot follow his wife. He said as the
evening wore on, he was too ner-
|vous to go to bed and at o'clock
lin the Imorning he went out for a
walk This led him up the hill to
the church of st. John the Evan
|gelist, an edifice which crowns a
|rising knoll--the church which he
served as SEXTON, where his wife
|sang as one of the leaders of the
Fohoir, where a small but rich con-
|sregation worshiped, and where
|Rev. Hall had been assigned for
item years.
Mills said he entered the church
land sat down in one of the pews,
Near dawn, he got up and return
led to his home, to find that his
|wife had not returned And at 8
O'Clock that morning. he said he
Wandered back to the church. On
the front stoop he met Mrs. Hall,
the rector's wife.
She asked him, he said, If he had
|seen her husband. He declared
he countered by telling her ms
wife was missing. Mrs. Hall then
went to the police station.
Bodies Are Found.
TT was almost twenty-four hours
|1ater. today that Raymond Schnel-
|der and Pearl BANNER went to
|atroll in Russey's lane. a quaint
rustic way, known by young SWANS
|of the countryside as Lovers lane.
The apple tree midway down the
Hre was the objective of their
stro1l And there they found the
|bodies of the rector and the SEX
tons wife.
= Police differed as to whether
footprints found in the dust at
the tree roots were made in a
struggle. County Detectives also
disagree with Coroner Long that
the shooting did not occur under
the tree. . i
+ Light winds had carried several
of the notes and cards some dis
lance from the two bodies. Mills,
in his statement to the authorities,
asserted that he had seen several
Of these letters and declared that
they were written by his wife to
their children while she was visit
ing in the southern part OF the
state this summer. The detectives
declare they We're written to the
rector.
One Of the letters, bearing no
and no signature, written
in pencil, read: "You are true
priest. You see in me merely your
physical Inspiration. You are the
priest. Was Pan religious? God
makes his people to enjoy them
selves deeply"
Another nj the same handwrit,
ing read: "Please do not laugh
at this, know I'm a crazy cat, |
but I can't be different. Charlotte
talks then Dan asks questions,
then he annoys. So how can
writer"
Dan and Charlotte referred to
in the note are Mrs. Mills two
children.