MURDER OF SIR W. CURZON WYLLIE

Otago Witness, Issue 2894, 1 September 1909, Page 53

MURDER OF SIR W. CURZON WYLLIE

A TERRIBLE TRAGEDY. Our own correspondent at London, writing under date July 2, supplies full particulars of the tragedy by which on the previous evening Sir *W. Curzon. | Wyllie and Dr Cawas Lalcaca were 1 killed. The account now given supplements the somewhat full cable account already published. i A terrible political % rime was comj mitted late last night at the Imperial Institute, the victims being Lieutenantoolcnel Sir William Hutt Curzon Wyllie, K.C.1.E., Political Aide-de-camp to the Secretary for India, and Dr Cawas Lalcaca, a Pareee physician. The assassin is an Indian student, who gave his name as M-adar lal Dhinagri, aged 25 years, residing at Bayswater. The assassinations have caused the greatest consternation in London. THE TRAGEDY. Sir Curzon Wyllie, with Lady Wyllie, had dined at the Savoy Hotel with some Indian friends, and afterwards proceeded to the Imperial Institute, where an "at home " was held, under the auspices of the Indian Association, with which he was connected. The gathering took pkee j in the Jehaajir Hall, on the first floor, | several hundred Indian students being present. At the close, about 11 p.m., Sir Curzon was descending the stairca.se prior to leaving, Lady Wyllie having in ' the meantime gone to the cloak room to J fetch he* wraps, and near Sir Curzon j was Dr Cawae Lalcaca. Suddenly, in the twinkling of an eye, as it were, and to the stupefaction of those around, shots rang out, and Sir Curzon fell on his back on the stairs. An Indian student was j standing in front, holding a smoking revolver. One bullet had shattered Sir Curzon's righ' eye. Another bullet had pierced his face just below the other eye. Dr Cawas Lalcaca fell with a bullet through his chest. Doctors were among the guests, and though immediate medical attention was available. Sir Curzon's fate ! was sealed, while Dr Lalcaca passed I away shortly afterwards at St. George's Hospital, THE ARREST. Directly the onlookers had recovered from their first feelings of stupefaction, the assassin was secured and handed over j to the police. The- body of Sir Curzon was conveyed to his residence in On-slow square. Only that evening there had arrived from Siam Sir Curzon's nephew, who had not scan his uncle for a considerable period, and who was in bed when the mournful cortege containing the body of the distinguished officer was brought back to the home which he had left in his accustomed- health only a few hours earlier. AN EYE-WITNESS'S STORY. " The first four shots were all fired so quickly," said Mr D. W. Thorburn, an eye-witness, " that I could do nothing. Then I rushed at the assassin, and another man sprang at him from the oth«-r side of the door. We seized him. and he struggled. Wresting one hand free, he placed the revolver to his head arid puiled the. trigger, but it clicked harmlessly. He had fired all his shots. A stately woman in dark evening d'*ess came upstairs from the cloak-room at the sound of the shots to see what had ' happened. ' Poor fellow !' phe said, as she looked at the form of the Englishman on the floor. She knelt down, for the wounds had disfigured him. Thevn I saw horror leap to her eyes. Quite ( quietly she said : ' It is my husband, my husband! Why wasn't I with him?' It" was Lady Wyllie. She had oniy left her husband a few minutes before to set her cloak, and he was following her when the Indian student engaged him in conversation. " The assassin was absolutely calm. While I was holding him, some fewminutes after the tragedy, I took the opportunity to feel his pulse. There was not a. tremor in his arm, not the slightest hastening of the pulse-beat. His gold-rimmed spectacles had falK'i , out of position in the struggle. He asked permission to readjust them. We lcr.s- ; ened his hands a moment, and he ■ quickly pushed the spectacles back over ' his ears. I think he was by far ih-J least agitated of those who were pre- 1 sent." The grief and indignation of th? 1 guests were terrible to witness. At tire i name of Sir William Curzon Wyllie was , whispered round as that of the English victim many of the natives broke into sobs. "He was one of the best friends : India ever had," said one Hindu. An- I other exclaimed, " And 1 was to hay? seen him to-morrow." Others demanded to see the face of the murderer that they might discover who he was. c "l' in sorry for the poor fellow, he's mad," one English gentleman of military ap- ( pearance said. But a Hindu near him replied. " No, I'm not sorry for him. ; I'm sorry for India, which will have to suffer for his wrong-doing. We all have . to share the blame for what he har , done." Every native present echoed < this feeling. THE MURDERER. { From laFt Easter Monday the murderer lias .shared rooms with .several of his £ countrymen at 108 Ledbury road, Bays- ] 1 water. A 2 o'clock this morning the | hou.=e was visited by the agents of the , Criminal Investigation Department, who j d carried away all the personal property, j t books, and paper* belonging to Dhinagri { for examination. VISCOUNT MORLEY' S HOUSE » GUARDED. j A press representative visited Flowermead, Wimbledon Park, the residence t of the Secretary of War for India, early i this morning, and conveyed the first news l of the outrage to Lord Morley. Although -, his lordship was still unacquainted with ( th« ea4 fate of his aide-de-camp, pqlice- j

men, both in plain clothes and . in nnS form, were posted in the lane outeidrf Flowermead. The press representative first saw Lady Morley, who was greatlj up&et when the news of the assassination was broken to her. She iminediatelj summoned her husband, who was als< a&tir, and put the pager containing th< intelligence into his lordship's hands,. Lord Morley, too, was greatly shockeo at noticing his aide-de-camp's name anc the terrible headline, and at once eagerl; read the tragic story. Naturally, he r« framed from making any statement o^ the matter, and shortly afterward left for the India Office. [The assassin has sinve been sentence* ti death.] _