CONTINENTAL CRIMES AND SENSATIONS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVI, Issue 42, 18 February 1905, Page 13

CONTINENTAL CRIMES AND SENSATIONS.

A NICE TRAGEDY. A well ImoTTO English, resident at Nice recently made the acqaalatance of a compstriot, who gave tvs name as Alfred Clarke, of Buckinghamshire. They arranged to dine together at a restanrant on Thursday, January 4th, bat Clark not appearing at the rendezvous, his 'friend Inquired liis address at the police station. On going to Clark's residence at 10 o-'clock, iie fonnd him dressing. He appeared to be embarrassed at finding that the police knew bis address, and on completing his tb!let;. he drew a revolver, and shot himself in the head with fatal result. The motive for the suicide is not clear, but It Is believed Clark was "wanted" by the English police. The British Consul i 3 making Inquiries with the object of establishing the deceased's identity. WHOLESALE iTDBDERS rS SPAIN. The recent discovery of a wholes-Ie murder bed in the vicinity of Seville has caused a wild sensation throughout all Spain. It appears that daring sis years two teen, el Frances and. ilunoz, have invited wealthy men to a country seat of theirs, where the visitors were then killed, their pockets rifled, and their bodies buried In a corner of the small estate. Those criine3 are unrivalled for the cunning and skill with which, they have been perpetrated. They were brought to light ■by the njy-stiP.riJous disappearance of a wealthy merchant of Seville. Than_s to an anonymous letter sent to the weeping widow, the police were put on the track of the murderers, and the estate was searched. At last, after digging around in several parts of the field, a veritable cemei tery of victims was discovered, and so far j six corpses one of them that of the recently missing merchant—have been unearthed. It is supposed that etiil more corpses will be foancl. Both el Frances and Munoz have confessed, but they refuea to say if more vlctin_j are buried in the fields of the estate. When asked how they committed the series of murdcra, they explained that upon entering the gates at night, attracted thither by the hopes of winning heavy suci3l at card 3, the visitors were Instantly fell-' ed by means of a long heavy hammer. MURDERED THROUGH MTJSK. Scent manufacturers at St. Petersburg who Include extract of musk among the ingredients of their perfumes are under a ! feeav- responsibility if the evidence given .it the trial of Mikhail Urnsoff. of Tiatka, be trnr. Last Anirust Crosoff, formerly a devoted hushand and loving father, savagely bntchcrpd in cold blood his wife and j two young children. At the trial evidence 1 was glvi»n that fr>r sis week-s before the miirdpr Unison* had been becominc irritable and suspicious in his conduct, although he was in perfect health and hail no cause of complaint against his family. When a policeman was describing the condition Iα which the wife's bouy was found he- mentioned incidentally that a sachet of musk had discovered in her bodice. The accused's brntiier. a doctor, immediately demanded that the trial should be poetponI ed, alleging that he could throw light on the cause of the mnrder. When the trial was resumed three doctors of high repute were subpoenaed to prove that tUo scent of mnak had such an irritating effect on some rcombprs of the nisi* , ?nx as to lead them r.<> commit crimes of insanity. Further evidence showed that Mrae. UrusoflC had taken to the nso of musk as a perfnme at the time that h»?r hnsbands irritability had first been noticed. This strange evidence so impressed rhe jury that Unisoffi was acquitted and handed over to the care- of hia friends. TRAFFIC IN DYING MBS. The French policp have just made a number of important arrests in Paris and the provinces in connection with a series of ingenious frauds on insurance companies, notably Le Monde. La France. Le Conservatenr, and La Victoria. The men En custody I include a picture-dealer named Frager, the ; chief of the gang, and a doctor named La- ! combe. When the latter was called In to attend a patient who could not live more than a few months he wonid give his name to Frager, who then presented himself at the sick man's house and persuaded him to insure his life for a lar.ee sum, telUng him that by means of a certain system of counter insurance It wonld not cost him a penny. The necessary papers were then given to ' a third accomplice in sound health, who j personated the invalid and was duly insrrr- ; cd. When the patient died. Dr. Lacoinbe 1 furnished plausible explanations, and the money was said. 3y their system of swindling the gang are alleged to have made a total pront of £200.000. A COLD SNAP. Very severe frost was experienced oa th« Continent during the first week of this year, rivers—such as the Elbe, the Rhone, and even the Tiber—being frozen over. Eieven Italian smugglers, who hoped tc elude the Customs authorities under covci of the cold weather, attempted to cross the J Col. Vulsorey, between Matigny and the Great St. Bernard, in order to convey contraband goods into Northern Italy. Thaj were overtaken by a blizzard, and it was found on Tuesday that five of the met were frozen to death on the summit ol the mountain. Two Prussian soldiers Trert found frozen to death on Wednesday a( j their pest on the German frontier. I The Lauaanne-Parls express wa§ raow ■J ed up on. Tuesday at Vallorbe. About X passengers, among whom were British ant American people, passed the greater pan of the night In cGaches. and were finally ■ obliged tr> return to Lausanne, whenc; j they continued their journey to Paris, vli I Geneva. ! From tho Tyrol several deaths are re j ported. At Windiach-Matrei a servant die< 'I of exposure, and at Rein a peasant wa; • J frozen to death while gathering wood ! Another man fell over a precipice neai Fiiess. He was severely injured, and befori j &e!o could reach him. succumbed to th< ) j cold. Three Mnnich tourists were- cangh '. iin a storm on the Gross Venediger, am t I when resetted were almost frozen to death