A HORRIBLE CRIME.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 464, 6 July 1909, Page 3

A HORRIBLE CRIME.

Son Shoots His Father Dead. torsw Escape of Step-mother and Brother. Sister’s Awful Experience. Perpetrator makes off to Levin and is Arrested. Inquest and Verdict. When the news was circulated yesterday morning that our esteemed townsman, Mr Thomas Nye, had been shot dead by his son Hedley, at his home at an early hour in the morning, quite a gloom was cast over the town. The intelligence was at first treated as a wild rumour v and others associated it with a duck-shooting fatality, as it was stated that Mr Nye had been out for duck-shooting the night previous. Our represebtative set out on horseback to “Sunnyside,” the charmingly- ■ situated property of Mr Nye, about a. mile, and a half from the Post Office, on what is known as the No. 2 Line, of the Whirokino road, which leads to Levin, The road to the homestead skirts a pretty clump of natiye bush and an avenue of pines leads up to thg house. There was no sign of any one about the premises. All was quiet save tor the twittering of the birds. On the front verandah there was some boy’s clothing. There was no response to the knock at the back door, and opr representative proceeded to the front and knocked. There being no reply, he opened the door and ahead of him in full view on the dining-room floor lay the prostrate body of the unfortunate man, - just as he had fallen. There was an ugly wound on the left side of the neck. Our reporter proceeded to the paddocks and met the police and three civilians who were returning from a fruitles search of the fugitive whose footsteps they had traced on to the Whirokino Road. The conjecture that he had made for Levin subsequently proved correct.