TRAGEDY OF A HOME.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXI, Issue 53, 3 March 1900, Page 5 (Supplement)

TRAGEDY OF A HOME.

WIFE, HUSBAND, AND CHILD DIE

TOGETHER

A tragedy of the saddest character took Place on Saturday, January 13, at Bassingham Road, Barlsfield, London, the victims being Albert Walter Chalfont and his wife and their youngest child, a baby-girl of 11 months.

Chalfont (25 years of age) was employed by the Wandsworth Board of Works as a clerk. For some time past he had been the victim of melancholia, caused by two successive attacks of influenza. He lived on the ground floor of his house, sub-ieL-ting the upper part to Mr Chas, Hodges, a paperhanger. ',

Early on Saturday morning. Mr Hodges was induced, by the continued crying of the Chalfouts' two elder girls (they had a family of three), to make inquiries. In the sitting-room he discovered the body of the baby, Eva, lying- in a chair with an antimacassar tied tightly round her head. In the kitchen were the young father and mother sitting by the lire, with bulletwounds through their heads. Both were lying back in their chairs as though asleep. A little nickel-plated revolver lay by the side of the man. Doctors quickly arrived, but could do nothing for THE DYING PAIR, who succumbed within an hour or two without recovering consciousness. Letters were found in the house written by husband and wife declaring: that life had become unbearable by reason of their small income—l 9/10 a week—plunging them deeper and deeper into debt. They had decided to kill their children and die together. The husband wrote:— "I i=i.oke to ray darling Mary and she sine!. 'If you go, my love, you must take me with you. I could not face the wor.d alone without you, and I shall never love any one else.' I was, glad she said this, and I thought it would be very wicked to leave her by herself, so I am going to take her with me. She will be happier with me, and she again begs that I will take her with me and the others.". The eldest child, Norah, said that her mother, in putting her to bed on Friday night, cried all the time, declaring that she was going away and "Would not see them any more," She would seem to have intended destroying the two eider children herself, but her heart failed her, and the baby, killed by Us fa her, .'as the only victim. On the following Thursday, at Wandsworth, Mr Hicks held an inquiry into the circumstances siifrounding the tragedy ' The first witfiess called was 'Charle.i William Chalfont,who said he was a clerk employed by the Battersea vestry, and was a brother of the deceased' man, It had been stated that his brother's age was 25, but a.s a matter of fact.he was only 22. The deceased entered tile service of the Battersea vestry when lie was 15 years of age as a temporary clerk, and received 25/ per week. In 1594 he was appointed a regular clerk, and wus then un- : married. His salary Was fixed at a trifle under a pound a week. He married in March, 1895, being then 18 years.of age, his wife being two years his senior. The Witness had not tlie slightest1 idea that. the deceased was. in pecuniary -difficulties. Had he known It, both he and his brother" would readily have assisted the deceased. At the time of his death the deceased was ' receiving £S0 a year regular'- salsify, 'but ■ lie- was also paid for. overtime and for ! duties in connection with Parliamentary j and Vestry elections, which brought his i income to something- like £% per' annum. ' His salary was increased £5 yearly, and he would shortly have received £S5 per. annum regularly Intel He lived. 'Witness had put several things in the way of the deceased, such as getting liini fd make articles of furniture, and they were on the best Of terms. Witness was hot aware that his brother had purchased his furniture on the hire system, nor that lie had been pawning his things. :

Joseph Sheppard, night porter at Albert Court Mansions, Battersea, identified the : body of the deceased woman as that of his youngest daughter. Witness had visited her and her husband frequently, and " found them always most affectionate and happy. They never complained of any serious pecuniary trouble. Had, they done so witness would have clone anything in the world he could for them. The Coroner: I suppose you could have { advanced them £10?— Witness: Oh, certainly. Apparently.the deceased man was only in debt to the extent of about £6. Mrs Sheppard said her daughter had I been married four years, and had'three children. The eldest was four years old, the next, named Violet, two years. The .' previous Friday afternoon she visited her > ■ daughter and found her in? the best of spirits. Deceased's husband was also in the house, and complained of a headache, i —In answer to the Coroner, the Witness said she did not know he had a revolver, but he had an air gun with which he was playing in the garden, amusing his youngest daughter.—Witness broke.down and , had to be carried out of court in a fainting ■ condition. . , i Inspector Colg'nn said when he arrived | the man Was dead, and the woman died soon afterwards: On the table with some letters were veil and ink and a bdx of cartridges* ■ WHne.isrrriade a-search of the1 premises a-ml round a hirffl-furriishing agreement, oh Wlifch £6 Wad unpaid. Thfe rent book showed only 21/ arrears: • Thp Coroner, in summing' Up, aftimadverted on the Sad nature of the tragedy, J and said it wns quite evident 'that the j wart hart tfot into some pecuniary tilffieuity of whi'.'li Uie Court knew nothing:. Moreover, iin believed , that he had destroyed thd moat important letters bearing OhThl e ejury' returned A verdict that Aittejitt Mary Ghalfont svjui wiifully murdered b> afterwards ("Oinnnlfcd siiUcicle Yfhl at tempor«irliy insan^i '<\l'M rc-gnM to jhe bat>> they found that il was .suffocated, jbu: bywhom there was not sufficient ..evidence to show. ".'"