SHOCKING TRAGEDY IN MELBOURNE.

A PHRENOLOGIST'S OUTBREAK. SHOOTS AT A WOMAN. MURDERS HER HUSBAND. A REMARKABLE LETTER. A long cherished grudge held by one of the tenants of the Eastern Market, Melbourne, towards neighbouring stall-holders resulted in the perpetration of a terrible tragedy on April 10. The hour was twenty minutes to five p.m., and most of the market folk were standing or sitting about their stalls waiting for customers. The public were but poorly represented, and the scene was monotonously quiet and peaceful. The first stall to be met with on entering 'the arena from Little Collins-street, was occupied by Emery Gordon Medor, phrenologist. Next door to him, in the direction of Exhibition-street, a married woman I named Annie Stevens (well known by her I self-assumed title " Zinga Lee") carried on business as a palmist, and had an extensive connection. Her husband, Frank Stevens, carried on business also in the market as a phonograph proprietor. At the hour above-mentioned, Mrs. Stevens was sitting at the entrance of her stall when Medor walked up to her, made an accusation of a trivia! nature against her, and rapidly withdrawing a Waverley revolver ! from beneath his waistcoat, fired at Mrs. Stevens' chest. He missed his mark, {.he bullet grazing her arm only. He then grasped hold of her with one hand, and, holding the barrel of the weapon in his other hand, struck her several times on the left ear with the stock, till the car was almost torn from her head. People by this time began to gather about, and Medor, releasing the woman, rushed to his simp, thing open the door, which was closed, but not fastened, and disappeared inside. Mrs. Stevens staggered about the pavement, holding her hand to her injured ear, and half-stunned by the sudden attack. This was merely the opening scene of a horrible tragedy. Mr. Stevens, who had been about his work in one of the " islands." or central business sites in the arena, ran towards Little Collins-street on heating the report of the revolve:, and, gathering that his wife bad been shot at by Medor, rushed into the phrenologist's stall to avenge the wrong. No sooner had he entered than two further shuts were heard ; then the sound of a body falling on the door, followed bv a few groans, and then dead silence. Almost immediately Mr. Harnett Ftwlman. pieturp-framcmakci', rushed into the phrenologist's stall, apparently with the object of intervening in the quarrel, but as soon as he entered he wa» confronted hi- Medor, who stood, dagger in hand, and stabbed Mr. Freedman in the eye during a short struggle between Ihein. A moment later Constable Walgers. who had been doing dntv in the market, arrived, and entered the stall. Medor attempted to shoot the constable, but the officer knocked his arm tin as lie was taking aim, and thus saved himself. In a moment Constable floikerv. who is a verv powerful man. arrived, and Medor was rushed bv the constables, overpowered, and placed under arrest. Portion of the encounter took place over the corpse of Frank Stevens, and the floor was Hooded with bis blood. The stall is divided into two very small apartments by a i screen, and the body lay in the outer divi- | sion, partly on its left side, with the face. i touching the screen. There were bullet wounds' in the head, one deep gash reaching from behind the right ear to the mouth, and another longer and deeper across the neck, the head being about half severed from the bodv. A blood-stained ibiL'ger, with a sharp blade, fiin long, was picked up in the room, also the six-chambered revolver, three of which were still loaded with cartridges, the oilier three having been recently discharged. Medor was placed in a cab, and taken to the Little lioiirke-strect watchhouse, where he was looked up on the charge of wilfully murdering Frank Stevens. Mr". I Stevens went to the Melbourne Hospital, j whole her wound'-. ■•>.!;, li ,icre not dingeri mis, were droned by Dr. Tiilfour, and she | then went to her home in Carlton. Air. I Frredman also vi.-iled the hospital, and was ! examined by Dr. Daltotir. who, finding that ! the stab which lie received '.ad caused a dangerous Injun to t!:«■ iris, sent him mi to the Eve and I",i' Hospital. Aftei treatment . there. Mr. Fiwdman relumed to his place of residenc in Little Collins-street. All the. ; , irc.imsl.inces of the case point to the fact that Medor, who drank at times rather heavily, laboured under the delusion that other stallholders in the market were leagued together to ruin him. How long he had premeditated murder is uncertain, but it is said that he slated to one of I he tenants that he intended to buy a revolver. Nothing is known as to how long he had the dagger in his possession, but, judging by appearances, it had not been used previously. Medor looked upon the action of other people who slued at the entrance to their stalls and indeavoured by personal solicitation to induce passers-by to do business with them as unneighbourly, and was of opinion that it ruined bis own business, This, added to drink, appears to he the explanation of the horror. STATEMENT BY "ZINGA LEE." The injured palmist, Mrs. Stevens, or " Zinga life," is 38 years of ago, and her address and appearance are in her favour. She has one child, a girl 13 years of age. "I was sitting in the market this afternoon," she said, "and had with me my little nephew, who came over from Sydney a few days ago. I was stroking the little fellow on the head, and had just spoken a word or two to a gentleman who came along, when I saw Medor approach. He had a look at his door, on which before he went out ho had left a notice about the time he would return. Somebody had put a bunch of radishes under the notice, and this made him vexed. From what I heard I believe the radishes were placed there as a joke by a friend of his, who used to go to the hotel in Little Collins-street and drink with him. But he seemed to suspect me of doing it, and when he came up he said, 'What do you mean by sticking those radishes on my door ? I had scarcely lime tn answer when he whipped out a revolver— seemed to take it from under his vest or from his left vest pocket —and fired at me, hitting me on the arm below the elbow. The shot did not hurt me much. He made a second attempt to shoot nw, but as I shoved the revolver away he did not pull the trigger. Instead, he'held me, and started hitting me on the ear with the butt end of the revolver till my ear was very nearly torn off. Then my husband came up, and others came, and my husband followed Medor into his stall, and I heard some- shots fired. They tell me ho is hurt." A woman who has been for many years on terms of friendship with Mrs. Stevens, and had been for two hours aware of her husband's terrible fate, here interrupted the conversation in a rather dramatic manner. She said that it was not right to deceive her old friend any longer, and told her that her husband was dead, but as Mrs Stevens appeared likely to collapse, added", At least, I was told that he wasn't likely to pull through." Mrs. Stevens positively declined to believe that her husband was dead, and said he had been "seen walking away with a man." She continued talking and said that she and Mr. Stevens had been carrying on business in the market for the past eight years. Medor, she stated, went to the market about four vears ago, and very scon afterwards began 'to have troublo with his neighbours. On several occasions hi had made threats against her, but she never thought that he intended to kill her. AT THE WATCHHOUSE. Medor, after being lodged in the cell at the Little Bourke-street watchhouse, was allowed to remain for some time with the handcuffs on before he was searched. The prisoner took the matter very cooly, and whilst the operation was in progress laughed and joked with the detectives. Special care was taken to ascertain that the prisoner had no poison concealed under his clothes, and he remarked to the searchers, "Oh, you needn't trouble about that. I bad no idea of anything of the kind when I went out this morning. It was all over quick and lively." Questioned as to what he meant by "quick and lively," he replied, " Well, — it, a man can't stand it for ever. They would have a bunch of carrots hanging at my door when I went out for a meal, and also hung insulting cards on the front of my shop." Amongst his papers were several charts showing the • stars under which different people had been f born, and also effort* on bis part, per the . - , ■..'"'. ■.-'■'■',- '*."h"-'''..,v;'i'--' J /v-'-,^'- , -;.v -J l ''

same, medium, to pick the winners for the Caulfield races, bicycle races, and otter sporting events. A STRANGE LETTER, In making a search of Medor's premises, Constable Garvin found a quantity of correspondence, amongst which was the following letter, addressed to Mr. Clayton, town clerk of Melbourne: — Sir,— wish to draw your attention to the fact that during the past thrco years I hate been subjected to the most dastardly and continuous annoyances by a gang of conspirators, whoso desire, emanating from malice and jealousy, is to cause my removal from the Eastern Market. The members of this gang are Frank Stevens, Annie Stevens, with thoir touts and associates, James Shepherd and his amanuensis, Thomas Koanc, Kenneth Stewart, and others, who appear to have nothing to do but to jpssip. Their persistent plan of annoyance consists of their assembling in front of my office, in the Eastern Market, 'and then using insulting language and speaking falsehoods calculated to injure mo in my profession, and to irritate mo to a breach of the peace. They also, or some of their worthless associates, draw crosses and other marks at my door when I am absent at meals or else at business. I may also inform you that the presence of the woman, Ann Stevens, who usually sits on a chair in front of the pillar adjacent, to my place, is decidedly injurious to my business, so much so that many respectable people, who think that she is connected with mv place, being disgusted with her tout ing tactic?, are not. likely to visit the market again. In conclusion, sir, if phrenology and kindred studies are to he found as useful as honest students try to make them, it is time quacks and impostors, who uso them as a cloak to cover fortune-telling and other nefarious practices, should he removed. Hopine that you will kindly attend to this matter, -I am, sir, yours respectfully, K. OoHno.V Murom, phrenologist and sidereal scientist. 43, Eastern Market, Melbourne, July 6, 1898. The letter, which is written and signed by Medor. was, it will be seen, written eight months ago. After writing it he appears to have changed his mind, and refrained from posting it. Other letters written in a similar strain were found in the room. In his placards outside the stall Medor describes himself as the " premier phrenologist." "physiologist." and "student, of human science for 28 years, who opened this place in 1895 to raise phrenology and palmistry to a proper standard."