THE CRUMPE MURDER CASE.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 155, 1 July 1907, Page 6

THE CRUMPE MURDER CASE.

DETAILS OF THE TRAGEDY, IFram Our Special Correspondent.) ■ LONDON, May 24. A Southsea lady in good circumstances named Mrs Crump was shot dead in her own house on Wednesday, and immediately afterwards an elderly man gave himself up to the police as the murderer. He gave the name of •Tohn I.angford Crump, and stated that he had recently returned to England from New Zealand, where he had spent some time in Auckland.

It appears that soon after two o'clock on Wednesday a cab drove up to the residence of Mrs Crump, and an elderly man. respectably dressed, and of gentlemanly appearance, got out of the vehicle, and. ringing the bell, asked to see Mrs Crump." He was admitted to the breakfast room, while one of the servants went for her mistress. About three minutes afterwards the servants were horrified to hear the report of firearm?. Paishing to the room they found the man hurrying out of the door, and Mrs trump iii the act of falling to the ground, while blood was flowing from a bullet wound in her breast. The servants tried to raise her. but could not do so. They at once sent for medical aid, and Dr. Gordon Sparrow was soon in attendance, but when he arrived the unfortunate lady was dead. Meanwhile, the man. on leaving the house, had walked to Granada-road, one of the principal thoroughfares in the best part of Southsea. where he entered a'restaurant, and drank a small bottle of claret. Then, going outside, he went up to a policeman, and gave himself up as the murderer of 31rs Crump. He was at once taken to the Southsea Police Station, and detained in custody.

Mrs Crump, a lady of considerable was the widow of a barrister, who for many years practised in Tasmania. Having inherited some property, he returned to Ireland, where renouncing his original name of Moriarty, he a-ssumed that of Crump. He married the deceased lady at Tasmania, and, with his wife, be setiled in Southsea. Mr Crump died about a year ago. and soon afterwards his widow purchased Cromwell House, where she had since resided. Her alleged murderer has given the name of John Langford Crump. He is seventyfive years of age, and has lodged at 11 Chnrch-street. Landport, where but little was known of him. From chance words he uttered, he had apparently, in his eariv career, lived a wandering life. He had'been to the gold diggings, and spent some time in Auckland. The only motive that can be assigned for the crime is a dispute as to property, the man having been heard to assert that he "was entitled to an estate of which he had been unjustly deprived.

Furiher inquiries show that the accused arrived in the town about three weeks ago. and engaged apartments about a mile from Mrs Crump's house. He appeared to be well supplied with money, and paid promptly for everything. He had a peculiar habit of walking ;:boi.l his room for the greater part of the night. From remarks made to his landlady and fellow lodgers, they that he recently returned to England from Xew Zealand, and was making inquiries concerning certain property in which he said he had an interest, and it is presumed that it was with referpnee to this matter that he secured the interview with the deceased lady, ■with whom he claimed relationship.

ACCUSED BEFORE THE COURT.

"I am spun out. That woman weald not give mc a penny. I am heir to the estate, and she refused to give mc the means to see a doctor."

Such is the statement made to the police by John Langford Crump, who was remanded at the Police Court at Portsmouth on the charge of the murder of Mrs. Crump.

The man's statement of his heirship refers to property in which he apparently held a small interest under a will so remarkable in many ways that to avoid litigation it was agreed among- the legatee.- to divide the property. The estate to which he lays claim is one said to brine; in about £1500 a year. According to the prisoner, a condition of the will ■was that it was not to pass out of the Crump family. His contention is that Mrs Cramp, as widow of Mr Crump, was not one of the family, and consequently was not one of the legatees. Litigation was commenced six years ago, but the Courts decided against him, and ever since there has apparently been a good . deal of ■feelinc on his part. The accused, as a ■member of the family of Crumps, who settled in County Kerry. Ireland, about the year 16SS, is connected with the oldest families in that county. He is a npphew of the late Francis Crump. M.D., of Tralee, to whose estates the murdered woman's husband succeeded. Under Dr. Crump's will. John Langford Crump was left the sum of £300 a year, provided he never set foot in the British Isles. He recently arrived from Auckland, and intended returning to New Zealand after jroing to the Channel Islands on business. The will in which the tragedy centres vrs.s a document so remarkable that the question of the soundness of mind of the author was more than once questioned. Dr. Crump was famous for his cures, and was for fifty years surgeon of the County Kerry Infirmary, which position he resigned in 1872. A few years before his death Dr. Crump was a surgeon of considerable eminence. He is described as being of a morose and somewhat, savage temperament, but such ■was his reputation as a surgeon that people flocked for hundreds of miles to be treated by him. In consequence, he amassed a considerable fortune from his profession, and. aided by successful speculations, on his death left a fortune variously estimated at between £SO.OOO to £100,000.

The murdered lady was a widow of a Mr Moriarty (a relative of Dr. Francis Crump), who. as principal legatee under the conditions of the w<ll, adopted the name of Crump. The will, which was of great length, was so full of alterations, corrections, interlineations, and initialinjrs that it was found impossible to make a correct copy of it, and it had to ■be photographed, at a cost of £300.

The will contained many conditions, jwhich at least showed Dr. Crump was eccentric, as an instance of which lie prescribed the dimensions of his coffin, which was to be so ample that there should be no pressure on his chest. In explanation he stated that in his lifetime he hated anything tight on his chest, and he was sure he would do so when dead. He further directed that his coffin was to be fiDed with quicklime, as he had an abhorrence of worms. Amongst the bequests in the will was one to the accused, described therein as "my ne-er-do-weil nephew," of £300 per annum, provided he never set foot within the British Isles.

Many other bequests under the will iwere subject to such, conditions that they kg-"the pjjbqrn de-

scendants of his relations ~ a ~s .-r — -~, f as of r haco m * te ' it was found impossible to Jr* c na * to it witiout extensive mEjP* <*"* understood, that with the Sent $& the legatees, a scheme of spBiZT ? submitted to the Courts by which effect was gi ven . quests, omitting the .extraordinary conditions attaching to many of them. It is probably owmg to the latter fart that the accused was able to be in this eoun try at the present tune.

[We have since received news by cable that Crump was found to be insane, and ordered to be detained m an asylum during His Majesty's pleasure.]