Evening star., 1922-10-28
.SLAYER0F RECTOR
AND SELF HELDMAD
Montana Preacher Victim of
Judges Wife, Police
Officials Declare.
May NOT CALL INQUEST
Shooting at Parsonage Causes
Sensation in Western
Church Circles.
MAY NOT CALL INQUEST
BY the Associa ted Press.


HAVRE. Mont. October :s.-The
Rev. Leonard Jacob Christler. rector
Of st. Mary's Church of the Incarna-
tion here and widely known as the
bishop of all outdoors" and Mrs
Marguerite Carlton. wife of a former
Montana district Judge. who were
killed yesterday in the clergyma NJ
home within a few feet of the room
where they just had left Mrs. Christ
Ter. were the victims of temporary in
sanity on the part of Mrs. Carleton. in
the opinion of local officials.
So sure are the officials that the
deaths represent a murder and sui
eide that Coroner John Holland and
the sheriff's office last night announc-
ed that no inquest would be held un-
less relatives OF the dead man and
woman, insisted.
The theory of the officers received
confirmation from Or. d. S. MacKen-
zie, who was called by Mrs. Christler
immediately after the shooting, Dr..
Mackenzie said that when he arrived
at the Christler home the pistol with
which the two had been shot was
grasped in Mrs. Carleton's hand with
her f1nSer on the trigger
Letters Give No Clue.
In an unsuccessful effort to estab-
lish motive for the shooting. officers
yesterday partly reconstructed a num-
ber of mutilated letters found in a
room Mrs. Carleton had occupied in a
local hotel. They declared, however,
that they could find no mention of
the dead clergyman in these letters,
which came from Mrs. Carleton's
mother, daughter and husband, for
mer Judge Frank Carleton. from
whom she was separated. One of the
letters from the husband, officers said,
mentioned that he was sending her a
sum of money.
Mrs. ChrlstIer. describing the shoot
ing. said that Mrs. Carleton came to
the Christler home late Thursday
night and remained until early Fri
day morning, talking to the Rev. and
Mrs. Christler. When she started to
leave the clergyman accompanied her
toward the entrance, the widow said,
and Just had shut a door between a
small hall and the room where Mrs.
Christler was left when two shots
rang out. Mrs. Christler opened the
door and found the bodies, that of
Mrs. Carleton being across the min
isters body.
Principals Prominent.
All Of the principals in the tragedy
were prominent both in Montana and
elsewhere. The Rev. Christler, who
was forty-six years old. had held
charges in New York and New Jersey.
He came to Montana in 1907 as mis-
sionary Of the Milk river valley and
had developed his field into one OF the
largest mission territories in the
United States.
Mrs. Christler Is the daughter of
the late David Wadsworth, Auburn,
N. Y. manufacturer. and a niece of
United States Senator ]. w. Wads-
worth. jr., Of New York. The Rev and
Mrs Christler were married in 1914
when the clergyman was lecturing in
the east on the resources Of Montana
The lecture tour was under the aus
pices Of L. w. Hill. president of the
Great Northern railway.
Mrs. Carleton's husband was on an
automobile trip in California when
the shooting occurred. and up to late
last night had not been reached to
be informed of the affair. Mrs. Car
Teton was the daughter Of Don Daven-
port, formerly OF NeIeHa, Mont, Dut
now of the Imperial valley, California.
She Is survived by q daughter by a
previous marriage. She had returned
to Havre only recently after having
spent the summer in the east in chau-
tauQua work.
Mrs. Christler announced that the
Rev. Christler would be buried in his
former home in Cayuga county, N. Y.
Funeral arrangements for Mrs. Carle-
ton await instructions from relatives.
smArE 160TTRNS REcT0p