MELBOURNE TRAGEDY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18534, 19 October 1923, Page 7

MELBOURNE TRAGEDY.

TWO WOMEN SHOT DEAD.

INCONCLUSIVE INQUEST.

A. and N.Z. MELBOURNE, Oct. 18. At the vaiwii into the deaths of Mrs. Dougherty and Mrs, Lay,, victims of the South Melbourne tragedy, the coroner returned a verdict that each deceased died of gun'ihoi wounds, bat there was not. sufficient evidence to show who fired £ho shots ; '-■) ~ T'• A witness gave evidence that Mrs. Lay and Mrs. Dougherty informed him the day before the tragedy that the man Dougherty had visited the house and wanted to see his wife, but! she refused to see him. He kept knocking so long that eventually she saw him, and told him it was no us© coming, and shut- the door in his face.' - ~" <.- • Dougherty gave evidence that" he had been living apart from his wife for three months. On the day of. Che tragedy a discussion arose between him and the two women about the trouble with his wife, in which he told his wife that Mrs. Lay was doing her best to keep them apart. He made reference to Mrs. Lay character, which caused her to say she would get her brother to deal with him. whereupon he produced a revolver and said be would give the brother the contents of the 'revolver if he cam© to his place. ''"•'' , Dougherty then repealed the story he told fo the police that his wife snatched the revolver from him and fired severalshots, one striking Mrs. Lay, who, falling, knocked Dougherty down. When be rose ho saw his wife lying on the floor of the room, which showed signs of a struggle. When he saw the two women shot he reloaded the revolver with the idea of ending his own life.

Edward Dougherty rushed into a doctor's rooms in an excited sCale and retried that his wife had shot anofher Woman and then-turned' the revolver on herself. The police' visited tho house in South Melbourne and found Mrs. Dougherty and Mrs. Lay shot dead with an automatic pistol. All the cartridges it had contained had been discharged and "the piste** it-self was lying alongside. " The police state that Dougherty was separatee from his wife, who sued him for maintenance. Mrs Lay rented a house, and three months ago Mrs. Dougherty and two children came to Jcdgo with her. Dougherty called to see his wife, and an "argument ensued, during which, it was alleged, Dougherty produced a pistol. Doueh°rty was detained by the police for being m illegal possession of a fire- ■ mm.