A BRUTAL MURDER.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 20 October 1913, Page 5

A BRUTAL MURDER.

WOMAN OUTRAGED.

HER HEAD BATTERED IN.

SUPPOSED SUICIDE OF MURDERER*.

(By Telegraph—Press Association.) ASHBURTON, Last Night. The Mayfield district, some twentythree miles south-west of Ashburton, was the scene of a shocking tragedy on Wednesday evening. About 1.30 this morning, Mr John A. Lilley got into communication with the Ashburton) police from the Mayfield post office, and informed Sergeant Emerson that he had been away from his home (about 2£ miles from the village of Mayfield) for some days, and that when he returned home on Friday evening he found that hie wife had been away" from home since Wednesday night, ■ whenshe had gone to see a neighbour, whom she was informed was ill. His suspicions were aroused, and on making a search he found his wife's body lying amongst the tussocks about six chains from the house. He did not, at the time, notice any marks on the body, but covered it with clothes and communicated with the. police. His wife, he said, had been ill for some three months previously, and suffered from pains in her side. Sergeant Emerson despatched two constables to. Mayfield at 4 a.m., and when, they went out to view tlie body they found evidence which pointed in an unmistakable manner to'a fiendish murder having been committed, for the poor woman lay in a pool of blood, with her head battered in and her clothing disarranged. The body was lying face downwards, with the dress disarranged and limbs exposed Co the knees. The left arm was under her head and the right arm bent, with the fingers turned in. Her left-boot was off her foot, and was lying five feet away from,the, body. The right boot was half unlaced. A small sledge-hammer was lying three feet away from her head, witit hair and blood on. it. Her Head was terribly mangled, and her face covered with blood. The body wais lying in si about 270, yards from Lilley's house. The spot where she was found is . situated about two miles from Biddie's blacksmith shop, and two and a-half miles from the Mayfield post office, stores and school. The hammer with which the murder was committed was soon identic fied as belonging to Alfred Biddle, blacksmith,-who owns a forge about half-a-mile from the village, and was of a type usually used for beating out plough shares. - : The police immediately made inquiries about Buddie's whereabouts and discovered that his smithy was locked up and that he had not been seen at his boarding-house since Wednesday evening at 6 o'clock, when he rode away on his bicycle. Biddle had been in the neighbourhood for the past four years, and was a well known mail to the farming community. He is about 29 years of age. Sergeant Emerson joined his two constables at the scene at 10-30 and careful inquiries showed that the last had been seen of Biddle was at 4 o'clock on Thursday afternoon, when he had called upon Bernard Kennedy (a at his hut about li miles from Mayfield, and towards the hills. Biddle was then wet through, very white, and shaking. He told Kennedy that he was very ill, and was going to the hospital. He left soon after he arrived. At 1 p.m. Superintendent Kiely, of Christchurch, with three detectives, arrived at the scene, and the SubInspector and a detective also came from Timaru. . A vigorous search at once instituted, special attention being paid to the course of the Hinds nver, which passed within half-a-mile of Mayfield township. The search' was not without result, for traces of the missing man were found in the midst of an almost lm- , penetrable tangle-of high-grown gorse in the riverbed, about 1* miles above It was plain that he had attempted to do away with himself, a bottle which had reoently contanied "rough-on-rats" being discovered. The neck of the bottle had been ! broken off, and the contents lowed, for the' wretched man had vomited considerably. ■ , , Tobacco had also been left about. An hour later Sergeant Emerson and a Guardian reporter met a party of local farm hands, one of whom had seen Biddle at 6.30 on Thursday evening and spoken to him. . Biddle, who was looking very sick, appeared to be returning m the direction of Mayfield then. _ This was the last seen of mm. The search is to be resumed by a posse of police and residents to-mor- > A formal inquest was opened "by Mr V G Dav, S.M., this afternoon, and adjourned till Tuesday morning at Ashburton. AN ARREST MADE. BIDDLE IN A WEAK CONDITION. THE POLICE RETICENT. (Bv Tdegravh—Press Association.) ASHBURTON, Last Night. Biddle was arrested by DetectiveSergeant Fahey, of Timaru, and Detective Gibsota, of Christchurch, at 8.45 o'clock this morning on a charge that on Wednesday evening last he did murder one Rose Anna Lille-y. . The suspected man was in a very

weak condition, and made no resistance. , The detectives and other police had kept up a vigilant watch throughout the night. The special force left on tho eoene on the previous night by Superintendent Kiely adopted the general assumption, which all known facts supported, that Biddle had not gone very far. Consequently, the suspect's smithy and Kennedy's place where he was last seen on Thursday evening, were closely watched, and detectives were not unduly, stflrprised when Biddle emerged from the Hinds riverbed, about 20 yards from Kennedy's, at 8.45 a.m. _ , The scene of the arrest is 11 miles at the most from the Mayfield post office, about half a mile from Biddie's smithy, and two miles from the scene of the murder. As it had been announced on Saturday evening that the search would not be resumed till ten a.m. to-day, the detectives made their capture unobserved, and had Biddle for nearly an hour before the residents' knew of theJ position. Biddle made a statement to the detectives during that tbae, but the ....... on the spot were not able to leara anything of its terms; beyond th& faet-that it was significant. ■ v . Biddle was; brought up "to his smithy in a gig by the detectives at 4 ten a.m. As ho was in a wretched state, and "wet through, a chiange of underclothing was procured, and after a doctor had made a cursory ex- ' amination of hhn and had stated he was alright except for weakness (possibly due to exposure "and hunger) he wasi given some stimulants, and allowed a short rest in his bunk in the whare beside the smithy. At 1 p.m. the two detectives left Mayfield with their prisoner in a "notor car, and Biddle was lodged in the, Ashburton lock-up at 2.5 p.m. . He was kept there all the afternoon ■ (probably for medical treiatment owing to the weak condition, though the police refused to giye any information m this or any..other rp.spevt), -and it is understood he will appear before the local bench toil oi row corning and be iciiianded.