DREADFUL ASSAULT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17239, 15 February 1918, Page 8

DREADFUL ASSAULT

LOITER AND CHILDREN INJURED. Au attempt to kill a wbolo fiuniiy appears to iiavo been made at an eany hour on January 30, in a little ramshackle house situated in tho bush midway betweoa AedJamls and (Jlareuiont, a lew wiles from j.V.rth (states «*i telegram from Pertii to the Sydney Morning Herald). "As a. result o< an apparently premeditated attack, a mother anil two children now iie in the hosrviUl seriously injured. About 1 o'clock the homo of tha Murtha family, which is situated in Dalkeith road, was entered by a man nanred Alfred Ilicharcb, who lived in a tout closo by. Richards crawled stealthily to tho back of the house, :iri)tud with a 'heavy- turned j,-irrah table leg, and entering the back door made for Pic bed in the kitchen occupied by the boy, Jack Mursha. Ho dealt him heavy blows. His screams awoke, the mother, who, on leaving her bedroom and entering tin.- passage, wsis met by Richards, unci li lied with a heavy blow from his club. 1 Icr daughter Alioo says she heard her mother fall to the zround, and then several other Mows struck'. The ii"xt thing the Knew was i.h;it Richards was coining into her bedroom, waving the table kg about hi.s head, iieie the oldest boy, Arthur, was also sleeping. Richards apparently ignored tho girl'.-; presence a moment while he went i.i the" sit!- of the single Wed on wuich Arlhiir was sli'i-ping, ant.! fccppin to deal the unfortunate lad a number of heavy blows on the hear). Having finishe/l with tho boy, he turned hi* attention to the girl, and caught her by tile throat. However, the girl h;iil not fast her presence of mind, ami she struggled fiercely with the would-ho murderer. Finding that he was seriously ch;i:ii-:i£r' , d. he ninde olf. and up to tho present hae evaded arrest. Richiirils. whose nge is ste.trd to bo r.bout. 35. is employed as a stoker at the Pi rlh gasworks. It was his custom to hnvo his mo.* with tho Miirtha farn : !y. but nothing has trnnt-nirod which wo-uld iridi-e-ito why he so brutally attacked the family. Tin , most severely injured of t!ie vie(;rns of Ilio -raault is tho hoy Jack, who is (-fill unconscious, but not. in a critical eondi(ion. A district known in England ns "The covers 750.CC0 acrt>«.