THE WELLINGTON SUICIDE.

Otago Witness, Issue 1502, 28 August 1880, Page 11

THE WELLINGTON SUICIDE.

The inqueßt on ihebody of. Matthew Henderson, of Cbriatchurch, was commenced at WeU lington on the 20th inst. Several witnesses were examined, and the following letters were read :—

"Wellington, August 17th, 1889. ■ "This letter is to be given to the person in Chrietchurch calling heraslf Mrs Hen. derson. "You have produced a certificate of marriage and laid au information against me for deserting you. In the fira£ place you knew! was going away, because I told you, and I alao told you that I was not coming back to Christchuroh any more. And, secondly, you know that you t are not my lawful wife. When you enticed me into marrying you, I had a wife to whom I was lawfully married, which you knew, and I left England to esoape a prosecution for bigamy. I sinned, but repented long ago, and although you deceived me I stood to you, and. for the sake of the two children, have submitted to a life of agony, of torture of the worst description, from you, a woman 20 years older than I am — a t<hrewd, calculating womau, a modern Jezebel of the lowest type and worst description, a regular attendant at ohurca and partaker of God's sacrament, but a hypocrito of the T«ry worst kind. You devoted your life to ruin me, and now you have accomplished it botu body and boul, as you hope ; but lam not afraid 10 trust myself to God'B mercy. Oh, when 1 I think of tho past and of your hypocrisy, how you have tortured me iv your quiet, nagging, and uncharitable words— cruel words— which I have seldom answered, and how you have led the outßide world to deem you an angel of light, and how you have succeeded, it makes me think there Burely cannot be a God cognisant of such cruelty, Biich sin, or He would never have allowed it. lam now goingto die, and I leave you to the remorse of conscience— if you have any — that you are my murderer. Yes, you have mo— for I told you I had Binned— that every man's hand had been against me, and what a hard struggle I had had to keep the home together, and, to make you and the children comfortable, and I told you if I was stopped it would be my ruin s and you promised me you would say nothing. At the same time you were glorying within yourself how you would gloat over my downfall. What is if that is in y<.u— it cannot be lust, at your time of life, 60 years of age? May God forgive you as I do— the dear children whom in years gone by I have loved, but whose affections you have weaned from me, atd who, although you have taught them to treat me with contempt, are old enough to havo seen your treatment of me, and will yet live to eurae you. I cannot say any more, so good bye, and may God yet bring you to your semes, and in His graat mercy forgive you for Christ's sake. Amen. (Signed) "M.Henderson." The other, also in Henderson's handwriting, ran as under : — " Wellington, 18th August, 1880. "MydoarMr3Blyth,— l deem it my duty to ask yonr forgiveness, and to state that I am not the villain you would believe me to be. I took your daughter from you, but I love her and she loves me, and, it is the first time in my life that I have known what love is. It will be necessary for me to go somewhat buck in my history, and explain to you that when very young I got married to a young lady whom I thought I loved, and we lived happily together for three months, when she doped with another man. I sold off my home, and went to lodge with a widow who had three children— a shrewd, calculating woman of the world— 2o years my senior. I was very young and very foolish. She enticed me into marrying her, and I did—committed bigamy— and to escape the consequences I had to leave England. I could Bee my folly almost before the ink was dry that signed the marriage register, and, although I repented, I stuck to my bond. I done my best for the woman who had deceived me, and for the past 15 years have submitted to a life of tor. ture at the hands of a woman who calls herself Mrs Henderson. No need for me to tell you *nore of this. I met your daughter, and a. new what pure love wa3. You saw it and have seen it all along, and have spoken of it. Why have you interfered or helped to interfere ? We have resolved to die together, seeking and preferring to trust ourselves to God's mercy than to man's. You must forgive us for Christ's sake. (Signed) "M. Henderson." In a very shaky hand follow these words :— " Dear Mother,— Forgive me. KiBB my sisters and brother for me. I may not have loved wisely, but too well." [Here there is a cross, and the deceased's handwriting is taken up as follows]—" Goodbye, dear mother, your erring daughter, (Signed in Miss Blyth'u handwriting) "M.J;Bltth." At the foot of the letter deceased again takes up the pen and writes : " I wrote from the cross. Jenny could not finish it, but managed to sign her name." The Jury returned a verdict " That deceased committed suicide by taking strychnine, and he U felo dt ae."

Strategy.— A certain bald-headed man has a large spider painted on the top of his head fa flytime.