TERRIBLE TRAGEDY AT A BALL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIX, Issue 8986, 17 September 1892, Page 2 (Supplement)

TERRIBLE TRAGEDY AT A BALL.

A tragedy, unexampled in its sensational features, has occurred in the outskirts of the city of Mexico. John Palmeyre, a well-to-do young farmer of an adjoining district, was married to a Miss Alice Muller, the daughter of a highly-respectable country doctor. The marriage was attended by a good many friends, and among them John Ellias, an Ohio man, who had courted Miss Muller for several years, but in vain. When the engagement between the young couple was announced Elliasinade some threatening remarks, but as he and Palmeyre had been friends for some years and appeared to be on the best of terms then, no notice was taken of his remarks. The wedding took place at a little country church, and afterwards the party returned to the residence of the bride's father, where a banquet was laid out, aod where later on in the evening a country ball was given. The bride had danced once or twice, when Ellias asked for the privilege of a waltz. She made some laughing remark to her new husband about its being " hec last" dance, and accepted. In a moment the two were spinning round the room, when suddenly, and while the young girl was still dancing with him, Ellias was seen to disengage his left hand, draw a revolver from his pocket, and raising it quickly to her forehead, blow her brains out. The whole thing occurred so quickly that the girl could never have realised what had happened. She fell dead to the floor, her bridal dress saturated with blood. John Palmeyre was the first to spring towards the murderer, but, before he could reach him, Ellias fired again and lodged a bullet in the young husband's chest from which he must die. Then, before he could be prevented by the horrified guests, Ellias put a third bullet through his own head, and actually fell dead upon the corpse of his partner in the waltz of a few moments before.