SHOT DOWN IN JEALOUS FRENZY

NZ Truth, Issue 1237, 15 August 1929, Page 7

SHOT DOWN IN JEALOUS FRENZY

Mrs. Brauman Slain by Enraged Man With Revolver In Presence of Daughter

TO SUICIDE FOLLOWED MURDER

(From " N.Z. Truth's " Special Dunedin Representative)

.':.. The peace of the nignt was suddenly shattered by a revolver shot, then a terrified scream rent the air followed quickly by a secdrid'shot, rind finally a deathly silence. Dedifi had taken Us toll on the St. Clair Esplanade that night,, and a wife and mother lay murdered on the rocks below. .The alleged murderer groaned m agony on the roadway suffering from the effects of a self-inflicted bullet wound, and called upon his Maker for mercy. y - ;; '

jr«RS. BRAUMAN liea dead, her life IYI cut short by a bullet, and at *** the time when she and her ; daughter were beginning to regain the confidence brought about by their immunity from annoyance by her husband. , , •.,/■ ... . ': , ; AIT through the fateful day of the tragedy, Mrs. Brauman and ' Olive had been together. In the - afternoon they had visited a relative in :•■ the Public Hospital, and when night had fallen they werestrolling along the St. Clair Esplanade. ••'•".. But, lurking m the darkness of the houses Svas a' man, who watcned them, a revolver m his pocket,* the butt of which was firmly gripped' and heady. ' Oblivious of the ; :danger that threatened them, Mrs. Brauman and Olive met a young man,- who, it is understood,, was a friend of Olive... The trio stood chatting as they stood beside the Esplanade wall. : A short time, afterwards a. motor-car drew m tp .the kerb, and. another young fellow, and, friend of the parties, who was trying out a new car, asked them to go for a short drive. . This invitation was accepted with pleasure, and .the quartet moved off. The drive was only of short duration, and within the space of ten minutes they Were all back at the . starting point. ...■•■ When Mrs. Brauman, Olive and her friend had alighted, the driver went away, leaving the i others talking. '■ Mrs. Brauman arid her companions moved off the Esplanade, and walked slowly along the path that leads to the St. Clair Swimming Baths.. The footpath is barely three -feet wide, and there is a fence some two and a-half feet high, below which is a, drop of about nine feet on to jagged rocks, and further on is the sand of the beach. Coming to a standstill, Mrs. Bi'auman , leaned against- the low fence, while her daughter and the young man stood near her. 'If only "something or someone had- told this happy trio that the man who walked past them on the opposite side of the, road held a revolver tightly gripped m his hand; and that there Was murder m his heart. But still oblivious of the tragedy that was to be enacted within the next few minutes, the three people continued to talk. « . Back came the man, this time closer 1 to. them, and, when .he- had gone some little distance he suddenly swung round and came tip to Mrs. Brauman.

Before Mrs. Brauman could say or] do anything, the man is stated to. have said, as he gripped her arm:"T6u are having a. good time." ■ ' '. With that, I and before any of those present had time to realise what was happening, he whipped a revolver from' his pocket, arid, pushing 1 it almost? into the woman's ear, fired. :; With a low moan, Mrs. Brauman fell against the low fence; hung grotesquely balanced for a, second, and then fell with a heaVy, J dull crash, to' the rocks belowj><her.fingers clutching her bag. ' ? V Screaming, and terrified,. Oliyo"■rushed from the scene of tlie^* tragedy 'to Mr. Bridgeman's house. :. . : '■.-.". When he had fired the' fatal, shot j the nian stepped back; fr'oyn the youth who stood us if paralysed with shock, and then, when the. young man made a rush. at the alleged 'murderer, the latter levelled the revoiVec, tod ordered: him to "stand back." >■'">'/* s ". ." He then lifted the revolver!- : tp: his right temple ' and pulled tile Jtrigger.'

I time. he is making a good recovery and all danger is said to. be past. The body of Mrs.. Brauman was hastily removed to the. morgue, and the next day aii inquest was opened by; Mr. J. "?. Bartholomew, S.M., and adjourned! after; 'evidence of identification Had been' fafeni: . ' ".' " ■''■ '•" It jseenis v'remarkable that although the district^. is' well: populated, few. people heai'd i'h'e shots, and those who did were not struck by the fact that anything out' ' the ' ordinary had taken place. ; >~ r .v" ' - ' • '•"'•■» . One woman by . a ■ "Truth" representative, sai^she heard both shots .distinctly,- but thought 'it was some children letting off crackers. She did riot hear v the screams of • the girl, and knew--- nothing 1 about the case until the-next ! day.."' , . .-. -.-... Mr. A. Holland; who was staying at the home of Mr. 'Bridgeman, was the only one iioiii'p; AVh^n Olive; wild-eyed and distracted, ran "screaming into his armsi':..- .^: ."•:ci^:: .■'■•'••:>',•■■■■'•: . ■' : ' : - :■.■'•-'>.■ , ; She cried.-in .an -agony •of f ear : "He's killing hej^gyoiu^ can't do anything, j •■ : '■■•'■''.' '■•■!.l.?.sf.' r '.-'.-'-.'''^':'.. : .- ■.■.-.- ■ ■ -'.-•'■-

young, but like a. man, he squared his shoulders arid ;made at. once for . the detective office, and .later to the morgue, where he glanced for the last time at the face of . the mother who .meant so much to him.' , The man' who was. taken, to hospital is '"William Henry Brauman, a native of Bendigo, Victoria, arid, was a land salesman m Invercargiu\ but since coming to Dunedin he has been mainly engaged" as a bond salesman with no apparent fixed place of abode. All who have been seen m connection with the tragedy' state that Mrs. Brauman was* an attractive woman possessing a wonderfully bright disposition and that she was a competent worker, who was a good and . devoted mother.. Mrs. Dorothy. Brauman worshipped her four children, two boys and two girls! and that, love. was wholly reciprocated by her sons and daughters, but William - : Henry • Brauman, because of his.; alleged harsh treatment of their mother; found the children could not give him their confidence or "their love. It was only a short year ago that Mrs. ' Brauman parted from her husband. m In vercargill, and, m order to support herself and the children, she wen,t to ; Mosgiel, where she entered domestic service. >■■..'. ' ■' Her daughter, Olive, who is deeply (attached to her, mother, and who was | with her the whole of that tragic day, was always m her mother's company. .Mrs. Brauman, after spending about six months at Mosgjel, moved to Dunedin and obtained a similar position m the household of Mr. F. O. Bridgeman, of Cliffs Road, St. Clair. .>■; By a strange coincidence the house- overlooks the exact spot upon which the murder was perpetrated. ' . Brauman made every endeavor to see his wife, and matters finally became so bad that Mrs. Brauman was forced to take him before a Magistrate. She asked that he be bound over to -keep' ( the peace, as she was afraid of him. : She" - stated that he had threatened" her oh several occasions. The. case was- heard barely six weeks ago m the Dunedin Police Court, and at that time the Magistrate refused to believe BraAiman's story. He stated that he did not go out -of his way to see his wife, but that it was always a "coincidence" if he met her: : , As Brauman had no money the 'Magistrate; did not order him to find sureties to keep the peace, but '.he .warned^ Brauman to keep away . his wife, and "adjourned the -. case. .'■,- ■•'■'..■■•••• ■ -.■■- ;