MOTHER AND CHILD DEAD

Otago Witness, Issue 3017, 10 January 1912, Page 24

MOTHER AND CHILD DEAD

TEAGEDY IN NEW SOUTH WALES. SYDNEY, January 3. Mrs Perkins and her 10-year-old son were found fatally shot in her home at Casino. The husband says that he left a loaded gun near the door during his temporary absence, and on returning to his home found both his wife and child dead. The affair is shrouded in mystery. An investigation has failed to elucidate the mystery surrounding the tragedy. The victims were Mrs Perkins, a young woman, and Bertie Gilmore, her husband’s step-brother. The scene of the tragedy is a small cottage on the outskirts of the town. Mr Perkins left-home in the afternoon, and when returning he heard two reports. He ran in and found his wife lying on a couch dead, with a four-months-old infant crying on her breast. His step-brother was lying on the floor, also dead. Distracted with grief, Mr Perkins ran out shouting “ My poor wife is dead.” One theory, which it is difficult to justify, is that the boy was playing with the gun and accidentally shot the woman, and then committed suicide. Two guns were used, both of which belonged to Mr Perkins.