HORRIBLE TRAGEDY.

Patea Mail, Volume IX, Issue 1057, 9 July 1883, Page 2

HORRIBLE TRAGEDY.

A MAN AND HIS WIFE BLOWN INTO ATOMS [PER PRESS ASSOCIATION. J DUNEDIN, July 6. Shortly after 7 o’clock this evening the residents of Manor Place were startled with the intelligence that a murder and suicide had been committed in the locality. It seems that, at about that hour, Mr Donald Cargill and his brother; whilst conversing at the corner of Lees-street, had their attention attracted by a flickering light some fifty yards up Manor Place. They took it to proceed from children playing with crackers, until they suddenly heard a loud report as of the firing of some explosive material. Hurrying up the street to the spot where the sound came, they were horrified by finding a man’s body hanging over a fence alongside the street line, and the body of a female lying prostrate at the man’s feet. Both bodies were headless, the pavement being strewn with brains and covered with blood. The sight was sickening beyond description. The bodies, which presented a most ghastly appearance, were removed to the morgue by Constable Parker. On inquiry, it was learned that the victim of this horrible tragedy, the first of its kind in the colony, was Mrs Stephenson, and that the murderer was her husband, George Timothy Stephenson. Mrs Stephenson is well known in Dunedin. She for some time past has occupied the position of head milliner at Saunders, Mcßeath, and Go. She was a daughter of Mr Stenhouse, of Maitland street, and has been separated some time from her husband, who has quite recently been engaged as groom for Campbell, Crust and Co, The parties, as is well known, haye been on bad terms for some time, and Stephenson, through being denied access to his children, of whom he had two, has been known to entertain feelings of revenge towards the unfortunate woman and her parents. In May last he was charged, at the instance of Mr Stenhonse, at the City Police Court, with threatening conduct, and was then bound over. It is said that he has persistently dogged the footsteps of his wife for weeks. It is surmised that this evening he followed her home from her place of business, and overtook her in Manor Place. Of course what transpired at their meeting can never be known, as no one was near at the time. It is believed that dynamite was the explosive substance used. The affair has created the greatest excitement in the neighbourhood. ■ ' Later. The Stephenson, referred to in the case of murder and suicide, was not a banker at Mosgiel, but many years ago was clerk in the Bank of New South Wales in Cromwell. He afterwards became proprietor of a quartz mine in that district, out of which he made a considerable sum of money. After-

wards, about 1878, he went to Taranaki, where ho resided some time. His wife had before then left him.

FURTHER PARTICULARS.

Further particulars concerning the murder and suicide show that Stephenson had been threatening his wife with violence for some time, saying that one or both of them would die that night. He had followed her home, and, overtaking her on the footpath, he grasped her by the breast. He then fired off a dynamite cartridge, holding it in his right hand, and pointing it at her head. She screamed out when he caught hold of her, but no one was close enough to render assistance. The result of the explosion was to blow their heads almost entirely away. He had evidently premeditated murder, and presumed his own death alsso, as he must have been acquainted with the properties of the dynamite. In his pocket after-, wards, was found a cartridge similar to the one it is conjectured he did the deed with. It had a head fuse inserted at one end, and, tied by a piece of thread to the fuse, was a match with the head outwards. He evidently struck the match, and then wave 1 the cartridge in the air after the fuse caught to make it burn brisker. This was the blue light seen by the Cargills, On him also was found a letter drawn out to the Minister of Justice, asking that the separation order obtained by his wife should be set aside. He had been drinking from time to time for the last two or three years, and recently has been several times before the Police Court for drunkenness. During yesterday he had attempted to get his children away from his wife’s control, having taken one of them away from school, but the little one ran away from him. A portion of the deceased’s brains and scalp were found 20 yards away from where the bodies were discovered, and this morning one of the male decease’s fingers was picked up in Maitland-stftefc. It is said that Stephenson procured the dynamite at a mine at.Hindoo. An inquest will be held to-night. The explosion was plainly heard at the North end of the city. Stephenson’s grievance was principally that ho was denied access to his children, and that the protection order was granted in his absence, whilst every obstacle had been put in the way of getting its reversal. There is little doubt but that his brooding over these things drove him to desperation, as when talking of his troubles he spoke and acted like a madman.

THE FATHER’S STATEMENTMary Stephenson was my daughter. She is 83 years of age, and was married by Dr Stuart to Timothy Stephenson ten years ago. There was three children by the marriage, one of whom is dead. Stephenson went to Tauranga four years ago to buy land, and he said that if he came back broke he would cut all our throats. - He subsequently returned, and kept troubling his wife for money. She gave him upwards of £3O to keep him quiet. He visited our house on Thursday, and wished, to have a conversation with my wife, who said she would have nothing to do with him. He went away, and I have not seen him since that time. Stephenson never previously showed any disposition to act in this terrible way. When my daughter left home on the day of the tragedy she was in her usual spirits, and had nothing else but her husband’s conduct to The occurrence took place yards from the residence of the Stephenson. LATEST PARTICULARS. The scene of last night’s dreadful occurrence was visited by crowds of people to-day, but there is little to gratify their curiosity, the police having last night cleared away all the evidence of the crime. Some of the palings of' the fence surrounding Mr Read’s house, against which Mr and Mrs Stephenson were standing when the explosion, took place, are stained with blood, and brains are visible scattered over the laurel hedgeand fruit trees in the garden, and some were on the roof of the house. The deceased man, it is said was about 35 years of age, his parents living in Otago, and a sister married to a Dunedin contractor. . As early as 1866 he was clerk in the Bank of New South Wales on the West Coast, and four years later was transferred to the Bank’s branch at Cromwell. It is understood that his services were then dispensed with, and he brought an action against the Bank for wrongful dismissal, bat he failed to recover damages! He then went quartz reefing in the Caledonianclaim on the Garrick Range for a time. The mine turned out well, but afterwards it became unprofitable. Then he gave way to intemperate habits, and a downward course followed. He went to Taranaki and Canterbury, and supplied stores on the railway works, and, whilst he was away from Dunedin, the protection order, which he alleged was the canse of his marital trouble, was granted. Quite recently he took to pick and shovel work, and his latest employment: was as groom to Campbell and Crust, expressmen. Stephenson made attempts to get the protection order, which was granted in 1881, set aside, but the Magistrate always refused. Unsuccessful in moving the Court in his- favour, he communicated with the members of the Government, and the Hon. Mr Oliver, with a view of getting an amendment of the Married Women’s Property Act to meet his case, and he addressed a lengthy communication to the Minister of Justice, setting forth the hardships of the existing law. A letter from him on this subject was addressed to the local Star , and appeared a couple of months ago. He endeavoured to persuade a legal gentleman in this city to take up his ease, but he never discussed the matter in a frame of mind that was likely to lead anyone to assist him. His fancied wrongs had deprived him of , the power to talk reasonably on the subject, and ho was always vowing to be revenged on those who ho declared had injured him. He‘.was advised to clear

out from the colony, but declined. No l later than yesterday he was heard t«declare that ho would make “ New Zca land ring with his wrong's.” Stephenson s great grievance seems to have been thai every obstacle was put in the way of his seeing his children, indeed that he was practically denied access to them. Marion Corfield, who is head milliner at Messrs Saunders and Mcßeath’s, states • tha; yesterday evening she and Mrs Stephen son left the shop together about five minutes past six o’clock. She lives in tho same neighbourhood as the Stephenson’s, and frequently went homeward along Princes street and Manor place with Mrs Stephenson, On this occasion, as they were passing Mr Larner’s fruit shop, Miss Corfield saw Mr Stephenson standing on the pavement, and lie followed them until near the Prince of Wales Hotel, when he went upon the right hand side of Mrs Stephenson and spoke to her about their children. He said he had Fred out of the school, and went to the other school to get Sissie away also, but was refused admission to see her. He seemed nervous and agitated in his manner, and Miss Corfield thought this might be tho effect of drink. Mrs Stephenson seemed all'right and in good spirits when Miss Corfield parted from them, but she did not speak to her husband at all. Miss Corfield parted from Mrs Stephenson as usual, at the corner of Melville street in Manor place. Mr John Blakely, tentmaker, of Princes street saw Mrs Stephenson and Miss Corfield passing his shop on their way home last evening, and he also noticed Mr Stephenson followed behind them. He had repeatedly seen Mr Stephenson following his wife along the street, when she was accompanied by anyone, but, if Mrs Stephenson . was alone, her husband was in the habit r - ofwalking alongside her, and talking to her. An inquest is proceeding this ingTHE VERDICT. After about half-an-hour’s retirement the jury brought in a verdict to the effect “That the deceased persons met their death by the explosion of a dynamite cartridge fired by George Timothy Stephenson, but that there was no evidence to show what state of mind he was in when he fired such cartridge.” They added a rider that no one should be allowed to purchase or use dynamite without a license.