A WOMAN STABBED BY HER DIVORCED HUSBAND IN CHURCH.

Southland Times, Issue 887, 24 January 1868, Page 2

A WOMAN STABBED BY HER DIVORCED HUSBAND IN CHURCH.

A despatch, dated uanton, umo, October the 13th, says : — This afternoon* a,-, while the congregation was assembled in the German Eeformed Church,, almost; desperate and deadly assault was made by Ferdinand Hoffman upon the s person of his divorced wife, Catherine Tost. Approaching her in the choir, he demanded a few moments' conversation, which being denied, he asked her to kiss hitu'V" and :t »'-' i while in the act of: doing; so, he;. stabbed her with a butcher's knife— three times in the ~ breast : and. m . . the, ..., t abdomen and on the limbs. The scene ~ was terrible; : The heart-rending, screams Ul of tho women and the shouts of the men as the assassin fl^d from the scene of his -.'-- assault, .were, .- exciting in. the extreme. The murderer,' wrth the butbble'r's knifein his hand streaming, with jthe. blood of his victim, attempted to reach the railroad,, pursued °by "a'^madderied an excited! crowd, and was arrested in his flight bya l stalwart countryman who compelled! him to surrender. The excitement atthis point was intense, and the general demand ' AVas that the monster «hdaldjjbelynched on the sp<t. Prudent counsels prevailed, and he 'was marched* to jail.At one point the. agonised mother of the - unfortunate young woman confronted the' crowd and with a large-sized sticjc beat: the prisoner over the head, while, at theShine time, hewaabeatenindescriininately" by parties in the crowd, and anotherdemand" was u made' for' his immediate h nging. He wvb, however, safely lodged ia jail. . The etcitemeiit is J stiii'' "verf* I great, and numerous, threats; are .made to take the prisoner from -jail. It is doubtful whether; the lady can, live till morning. , Hoffman is a desperate character, and Vas | Released but ten days since from the" State' Pfraon. 1 ' His regret is that he ■did ..not. kill her. at once. A later despatch nfco the Chicago IDnbtine, da^ed Canton; .phio, October 21, says:— rMrs HofFinan,.^ the .wo man who was stabbed in church last Sunday by her divor< ed husband, died on Saturday last. Hoffman hung himself in his cell last night. He had tried yesterday to kill himself by bumping his head against, the wall, and his. feet had been chained as a precautionary measure, but he managed r t6 burn a hole 1 in*^he partition with -j the stove ppker^.and tearing the sheets of his cot into strips, twisted them into a rope, whi<sh>he passed through the hole around the side of the partition and around his nec^. The body was standing ''square on : the flod* "whifen found this morning, and although.. ; Jthe ( neck was aome what stretched,- it is evident that the feet T -were not entirely clear of the floor, unless lie drew them up while hanging himself.