The Murders in TASHANIA.

Manawatu Standard, Volume 4, Issue 119, 26 April 1883, Page 2

The Murders in TASHANIA .

♦ THE I QUEST. (BY TJBLEGRAPH.) (UNITED PRESS ASSOCIATION.) OUNRDIN, April 25. At the inquest h.-ld on April 11 m connection with the Kpping Forest tagedy, the following was the evidence given by Mrs Wilson, wife of the murdered plate-layer, as reported m the liobart Mercury : — " Theresa Wilson : I am trie wHow of the late William Wilson, one of the repairers on the main line of railway, and resi i ing near thn line near Eppinsr. <>n Tuesday, 11th ins* ant, I saw -he body of my late husbmd at Campbelltown Hospital m the presence ot the coroner and jury. I rem 'mbf>.r last Monday nif lit, the 9th inst., my husband, Mrs Boram, my four t hildren, and I were m our house that night. Toere were three boys and one girl. Mrs Bor .m was a lodger for the night. We went to bed about half-past 8. All but Wilson went to bed. He stayed to get a cup of tea. He came to bed just before the passing of the mail to Hobart, which passes the place about five minutes to nine. He had undressed and goDe to bed. He said he was very tired with working hard that day. After we had been m bed for siute <ime a noise was heard 'ike gravel falling on the root. 1 was just between a dose and a sound sleep Wilsnn was asleep. After a tew minutes Mr Boran asked if we had heard the noise. Wilson awoke, and replied that it must have been a rat. Mrs Boram was lying on a shake-down m the same room. Wilson went off to sleep again. Another stone came. And Wilson said, ' Hallo, that must be someone/ I told him to get up and see where the dogs were, as they had not barked. He did so. Lighted a candle, and having found the dogs had gone ut, he got back to bed. tie lay a little longe-, and another stone came. Wilson jumped up. I xaid, ' Don't go outside.' But he drew the bnlt and went out m his skirt. I heard one word, not spoken by Wilson, but I did not know who spoke it, nor what it was. '1 hen 1 heard a gunshot. I jumped out of bed and went to the door, and shouted, • Murder, mnrder I' Wisun staggered past, and saiJ, ♦My I dear wife,' or *My dear Theresa, lam j shot.' I «aw no one outside. A voice | spoke three tim»s. It said, ' Come out here, Mrs, or I'll put you wherehe lies. I'll give you three times, and if you don't come out, IM sec fire to tLe. piace.' 1 could not recognise that voice us the voice of anyone I knew. I went back into the house and closed tho door. The voice outside said, * Come on, Kelly, we will get b sticks an J sei fire to \ the place and burn them ouc' Then the windows were broken m with stones, which came on the bed. The person outside tried r he door once. 'I he next 1 i saw was the cottage on fire at both i ends, and I heard the crackling of fire. H eootta^e was weatherboards. Nothing was spoken while the fire was burning I was confused, and things may have been said and done that I did not know of when the flames compelled us to go , out. I palled out my three boys from the bed toward the door. I said to Mark, the eldest boy, 'Go out first ; they might not shoot you.' The boy went out ; nothing was done to him. Mrs Boram then went out, dragging a bsx full of clothes. I remained m,- , si»ie. A shot was fired just as Mrs Boram got outside the door, and I then ran out. The whole hou>e was m flames, and the place was as light as day from the glare. When the shot was fired, Mrs Boram cricl out, 'I'm shot.' I saw a maa or boy standing near the house. Mrs Boram was out on the gr< und. The man was two or three yards off. He bad a gun m his hand. I took hold of him by the shoulders^ That man (indicating Sutherland) was the man. That was just how he stood. That was the hat. (The witness was somewhat Agitated on seeing this man.) I said : • Spare me, oh spare me, will you, to my dears, my children.' He said ' Yes ' I told the little girl to run to Mrs Barker's after the boys, I then saw another man there ; it was O^den (indicating the man m Court). 1 had known him well for some time m the neighbourhood. He was landing at the railway close to the house when Sutherland answered •Yes.' He went over to Ogden and spoke to him. He came back to me, and called my girl Ligzie from where she was making away through the ,?ate, He said to her, pointing to Ogden, ' Do you know that chap standing there.' She said ' Yes, Jim Ogden.' He again wont to Oiiden and spoke to him. Sutherland ran past me to the gate after the girl. Lizzie had then started off again. He overtook Lizzie. I stood still. He said to Lizzie, 1 Come on, you must go with me.' He dragged her by the shoulders towards Epoing Forest. C ran after him and begged of him to let the child remain with me. The child cried, and sai I, 1 Let me go to my dear mother ' Suth^r land told me to go back. I still fo 1 - I lowed , and he put the barrel of the gun agpinst my breast, saying, « If yon don't go back I'll shoot you.' Ogden was going; on ahead towar a the Forest. I ran down tho road screaming, and got nto a tussock to fcry and hear the voice of my child. I could hear her sc^am* ing. I made for Mrs Robert Bakers', a neighbour, where I knew there was a man. I shouted sis I got to the door, and I told him everything. The house whs still blitzing. Ihe house is about halt a mile from Mrs Barker's. I asked Mr Barker and William Sutherwood, and Jam°s Smith, who were there, to go to my assistance. Th-y dressed themselves. Barker loaded their two guns, but the men did not go. Smith said tint if they went outside the men might be under a bush, and per? baps lut fly at them. I named Ugdon to them, saying it was Jim Ogden. Barker al o said the two men mi<ht shoot at them if th'-y went out, and he then pulled the blind asiile ? an^ looked at the blazing hut. Barker said also that his mother was not well. None of the men went out. I remained there there till daylight till the mail train went by at nearly 6 o'clock, '§ Then I

went to Mrs Raider's-, v neigb -ur, thn •uvuer uf the itext cotfc ge to oars, but on th« road-ide, and th»re I found Lizzie, all safa and unharmed. The three boys were also there. Mr Boram with w:»s Mr-»Bowley. I remained at Mrs Barker's with the girl. The next thing I wa< the arrival of Constable Cat* lnghan. I wenr, wih him al ng the lino. While t-he house. wis» b'lrnin^ J. saw my husband through th» win>low. He was lyinar on his hands and face outside. T did not see him from that time untiil he was m the hospital."