A BRUTAL CRIME.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXIII, Issue 130, 27 June 1901, Page 2

A BRUTAL CRIME.

MURDER OF TWO WOMEN AND A BOY (PBR PRBM ASSOCIATION.) Chhistchuech, June 26. A bru'al murder of two women and a boy «;'S c mmit ed between Friday .<r d Mo day at E»at Eyrerbo, 24 milea from here. It was reported during the r.igh*-, end the policaare out enquiring. The victims i-.ro Mrs. Heaiy Martin, % widow, aged 70, Miss Ellen Martin, " her unniarrird daughto-, aged 40, and a-grandeon, Lorimer Martio, aged 4, whoso father lives in the, dUtriot. In one room the grardmotber ind tthe child w< re found with their beadi smashed, and in another the daughter, similarly treated. All were dead. The hi. use is f.ur hundred yard* from the coid, Later. The reighlours became alarmed at not seeing any bing of the Martin fimily, and informed a eon-in-law of Ms M.rtiV, who, on going to the hou-e, got no answar. He entered forcibly, aod then saw the dead body of M # s Mir in He at onoe gave informa'ion to the pol ; ce, and Inspector Klliro'i went out at m'dnight. H# found Mrs. Ma t'n's body c'ose to tbe b.d, with sevtT 1 do p wounds on ber hoi d. The Utile bo 's head was also terribly cru lied, He was evidently killed whilst at.Je?p. In (ho kitchen was another ghastly sigh',—the body of Miss Martin, covered with bloodstained sheet", being found. She wag partly dressed, and had fix gaping wounds on the head. Ihe foi efitder of tre rijiht hat d had also ben cut right •Inoigli. She bad apparent')'put her ba ,: d to ho,- hi a'i to ward off blows. The weapon supposed to have'been u-ed w.e a Llo d-s'aineJ toinabawk, ■Aliich the poke founi on tha floor. T. e perpetrator of the fearful crima appears to have g ne coolly and .deliberately to work, and was in co hurry to leava the pemises unt 1 he had carried out his intention of robbing tbe place of moiey and valuable*. The hous<> was ransacked fiom end to end; drawers woe turred out and articles broken and thrown about aod heaped up in a'l flections. Exactly what the mot-der. rin'i-iol away is tot known. Sj far no inns'; Ims been nude, though cuspkkna point; in a certain direction. The Martins were a family wellknown and highly rtspec f kd iu the digti ict. Tho only other occupant of the a^W

was a man servant named ■. Alexander McLaan, who bad ben in tbe employment of Mrs. Mai tin for f ome two months, and slept in one of the upper floor roen? At present his wheieabauts are unknotwn. AN INQUEST OPENED. Latest. Very few additionil particulars havo been gathered wi'h regird to the Eyreton tragedy. The hous3 some distance back from the road, and is surrounded by tr?es. No neighbours lira near enough to have heard | any outcry mado by the victims. I An inquest was opened to day, but after formal evidence of identification of the bodies had been taken, it was adjourned for a week. So far the man McLean has not been found; but a min answering to bis description acd driviog a horse and trap has been seen at Oxford, Waddiogton, and other places in the distiic-. within the last day or two.