Year: 1871

A most foul and brutal murder was
committed on Monday night, the 9th
ult., in Big Greek township, about six
miles east of this town The fendish de-
liberation with which the murderer pre-
pared himself to do the horrible deed has
but few parallels in the annals of crime.


We give details of the homicide as they
were furnished US by gentleman who
was present at the inquest, held on Tues
day, over the dead body of the murdered
woman, before Squire Hemingway. in
Big Creek township, and heard the testi-
mony of the witnesses.


The name of the murderer IS Clay Liv-
ingston. He is about forty-fve or fifty
years of age, and his wife was about
twenty-four, and is said to be highly in
telligent and well cultivated in mind, and
possessed of good looks and winning man
ners. They were married in the State of
Illinois, about four years ago, and came
to this State and settled on their farm on
Big Creek about three years ago. They
had no children of their own. A boy
about eight years old, an adopted child,
and a boy named Hudgins. about eigh-
teen years Of age, were the only inmates
of the house on Monday night.


After Livingston had done his chores
and taken supper that night, he brought
an ak from the woodshed and deposited
it up stairs, then locked the doors, took
the keys out, and mailed up another door
that had no lock, then ordered his wife to
bring down stairs the bed the boys slept
in and put it against the door in the
south side of the house.-After this was
done they both pulled off their shoes and
sat down before the fire, then went up
stairs-the two boys to their bed


After they went up stairs, the boy
Hudgins states that Livingston covered
the opening with trap-door. then pulled
the bedstead he and his wife occupied,
and some trunks on the trap-door, SO that
no one could come up and interfere with
his bloody pasttime.


He then said his prayers (what sacri-
lege J and then both went to bed, after
which the boy heard them quarreling for
about an hour or more, when he went to
sleep. The boy was awakened by the
cries aud groans of the wife, who called to
the boy to come up that Livingston was
killing her. He tried to get into their
rooms, but, of course, failed after the pre-
paration made to exclude him detailed
above. He heard the wife moan and
groan, crying family, "Oh DON'T" for
about fifteen minutes, when it was still,
The two children were very much terri
fed, fearing that they might meet the
same fate, and looked about for some
means of escape. Luckily the brute had
dropped one of the keys on the floor Of
the room below, which the boy found,
unlocked the door, and made his way
about midnight to the house of brother
of the boy Hudgins, about half a mile
distant, and told him what had taken
place. The alarm was communicated to
the neighbors, and Mr.. bennington, ].
Lynch 1.-THE constable of the township,
and several others soon arrived at the
house where the murder was committed
and demanded the murderer to come out
and deliver himself np. He answered
them that he would neither come out OF
let them in, when the constable fired q
couple Of shots through the door and
then went in and took him into custody.
He told his captors:


''For God sake, don't kill me here
Take me out. and don't bloody things
here"


He was doubtless laboring under the
suppositiOn that justice was to be meted
out to him at once.


The body Of the murdered wSm, n laid
in bed in a natural state. There was no
blood visible, only scratches and confa-
sion on the face and throat, clearing indi-
eating the wretch had choked her to
death.


On the evening following this most un-
natural crime, the citizens of the neigbor-
hood collected together and went TO the
house where Livingston was in custody,
and demanded that he be turned over to
them at once. The guard made as efec-
tive resistance as possible, but no power
there could save Livingston from the
vengeance of an outraged community !;
''blood for blood" appeared to be the de-
termination of the mob. They took the
prisoner out into the woods, and proceed
ed to make preparations for hanging him
Everything was quickly prepared, the
prisoner given time to make peace with
his God and during deathlike stiffness,
Clay Livingston was laun ched into eter-
nifty.


He hung about twelve hours. when
some neighbors cut the corpse down, and
took it to his late residence and prepared
it for burial On one side of the room
lay the wife-in death retaining her
beauty victim to jealously and pas
sion on the other side lay the homicide,
a victim to the speedy vengeance of an
outraged people.-NeaO Chicago Rans.,
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