TRAGEDY AT NEWTOWN

Mataura Ensign, Issue 1462, 16 March 1905, Page 2

TRAGEDY AT NEWTOWN

TWO MVSTIJniOfS DKA'I'IIS. A <lonM<? iraL<»dv ornin'ri] yi-tmiay morning in a Ih»uso at Newtown. Tin* fn»nt prrinisis worn occupied l»v -'.j as a saddler's shop, 11,.* up, portion liciiiu- (nvupied In -Mrs i'wnlt, i her Mrs and lln 1 ..- childi'cn. Kous« || hoarded with th>' woman. Alxmt >c\<-n o'elocv ye>tcida>' morning- -Mrs li went to ItoiiK ell's roi»ni to call him. and found le r daughter lyinu' on the Hour dyiiiL?'. having apparently Ineii p»»isoned. She rnsli»\l <loun<(airs lo Koiisrll. and found him in the >hop with half hihead hloun oli hy a 1 ill.-. Koiisell was al>out Wi \ears of aue. Uousell had heen carrying on Imsi ti'-ss iis a safldhr for soinr time pa-i in the pivmi<e>. Jle was a widower, and Mrs and her mother and 'family came in January la-t to li\e | with him. It is stated th a t the hus- ' hand of Mjv from vvh(,m tlidead woman had l).eti f<»r >om ( - lim.scpafat'd. h a d tlireaN n--d and wa> contemplating tlhi institution <»t <'i\orce proereditii>s - wife. An a<"»'ount of the trau'dy. a- far a-< she knew ot it. is sUpplh-d h> \\v> l'i:L;h. who that «»n tin- previous ' niuht she retir-d to ivm at t ; i»* u-ual lime, as also did her daughter, who shn)'< d her h.vh'ootn. Ahnul >i\ o'clock in the morninl: , .Mi> wa v awalanei} hy the muiuil of n fall, which ;-he atirihute.l to on»* ol the lioys, who was in the halut of f.Jlim..' out of hj, il. She ai'ii.-r and foun<l that the hoys were a ll and r. iirel to )jcd ;\uiii)». noticing as sin* did that her dntiuhter was not in tin- room. Aslu.'f" da'tiiiit. r fi:td ill she thought sl;i- mit>ht have f, 11 unwell and eone dpwn stairs. At sewn o'eh.ek -he ro-e and went to lions -ll's !-.< di'ooin to e a ll jiim. Slie l-noeked at tii" d'-or. and the door, to her surpri-e la- Housed I.VMiIUy had it locked) L-aVe lo her knock. She calh ( Uo'i>e!l, liut l.o( no answer, and opening tlie door -|i«.ii tly, «i hare foot on the lloor. l-'.n terini>- th" room she Jiseov. r..1 her datiehter hinii on tie lloor, till wa'in and not dead. Being alarmed at the" lack of response to her efforts 1,, n a e lier danuhter rise. -In- went downstairin soan-h of Ri.usel! and entered the shop. There, lyinu close »i»« jurain-t his work bench, and dad on'\ in a shi'-t. she foend lions. 11, wdh .he t«.M of his skull Idown ftN\ay and a rifh* iyin-j he.-idr hitn. She de-patehe.l oli • of her grandchildren to summon l-r lYrkin*. and the j>olic <; wnv sen! for. Mrs I'uwh declares that she heard no shot lirvd. to-d she eoidd L^ no reason for the She knew nothing aUont lious.-H's hnssnesn affairs. i>• u 11 is Lathe),d from otluM' sources thai he was in fmaneinl difli- - in session of the hadifi's on the previous day. wh<> left at closing , takiu.the key with them. Aecordmy to Mr-; Vwv\\. the dead woman, wlio was ;tko. t years ol aire, has heen ill for some time, and was also nior" or less mentally afflicted. Slift sulfered from hor head and used to cry and sometimes tear her hair. Koesell is dencrihed by the iiei<jhhors iis lj<*in£r a quiet and independent sort of a man and not the kind of man one would expect to commit suicide. It was i-em-rally known that lie vas financially troubled, and this, together with any developments arising from tie- relationship of Mr and Mrs llicjle's with himself, is supposed to have at the root til the trouble. It is concluded that the woman died of poison, either self-administered or yiven by Uousell. Kn-iuiries amongst r» sidenls in the vicinity of the se<-n,. of the tragedy went to show that about siv o eloek s<>nie of them heard ii shot fire I. but variously attributed it to a door suddenly Imngintr or a shutter falling. 'Die children of Mrs Hughes also declare, with their "irandmother.

i i 1 'that tliey did not hoar a hliot 1 Ihe house in which the tragedy occurred i* a twa-Htoivyud dwelling, witiia shop front of the tibial kind. Ad joining the rdiop in a room where the Work benelu-s ate, and this is where Kousell was found. In the ivitine i* tlie hole <au-«l by the bullet after it had pass d through the man'* brain. Kousell was a widower and there appears to be some mystery surrounding his marriage, Imt nothing dclinite on the point can be at pre-