Love Tragedy at Yarmouth.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVI, Issue 196, 17 August 1895, Page 4 (Supplement)

Love Tragedy at Yarmouth.

A great sensation was caused ab Yarmouth on Saturday, June 29th, on its becoming known that the bodies of a young man and a young woman connected wibh two- of the leading families of the town had been found in the dyke ab Caister—the deceased being Mr Schofiold Stanford, who was clerk at Messrs Gurney's bank, and Miss Argyll, daughter of Mr J. W. Argyll, a large wholesale and retail grocer. The young couple were very fond of each other, and ab present there is nothing to accounb for their taking their livee. They were seen late the previous nighb walking beside the river bank, and sometime afterwards the bodies of both were discovered by a marshman in a steam mill dyke, close bo where three suicides have occurred recently. The parents of the young pair have been thrown into uncontrollable grief by the sad end of bheir children.

Another correspondent states that the parties were each about 24 or 25 years of age, and had been engaged some months. The position of the bodies when found appeared to indicate bhab Stanford had held his sweethearb down in the water, which was only three feeb deep, until she was Buffocated, and then drowned himself. Stanford is said to have been of a morose and jealous disposition. Ab bhe inquesb the evidence showed thab the couple, who were 25 years of age, had for some time been engaged, but lately Stanford had been taciturn and morose, developed religious mania, and threatened to take his life. Stanford, it is alleged, firsb pushed hie sweetheart into a dyke; and, jumping in himself, knelb on her, and held n6r face downwards until ehe was dead. He then drowned himself. The jury returned a verdict of' Murder' against Stanford, and found that the young man committed suicide while temporarily insane.