STATION TRAGEDY

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 18955, 4 March 1936, Page 9

STATION TRAGEDY

GIRL BATTERED BY REJECTED SUITOR ASSAILANT FOUND DEAD SYDNEY, Feb. 21 Vincent de P,iilt. 23. a farm labourer, shot and brutally battered au 18-year-old girl, Jessie 'Melllluitton, and then shot himself dead -.it the Avocii station property, Milvale, near Stockinbiugal, on Saturday afternoon.

The girl was admitted to hospital in I'oung suffering from terrible injuries. received when de Britt struck her ui the head with a rifle butt until the rifle splintered in his hands. Doctors operated on her on Saturday night, and she is expected to recover, although she is not out (if danger. The police were told that de Britt had worried -Miss Alelllhalton with his attentions for some time, until finally her parents forbade him to enter their tiome. He went to the house during their temporary absence, spoke, with Miss Mclllhattou. and apparently Hew .nto a frenzy when nis advances were rejected. MAX FORBIDDEN HOUSE Miss Mclllhattou's father is a share farmer on the Avoca property, which is owned by Mr. John Heiiernan, and the Mcllllmtton's home is less than 200 yards from the Avoca homestead. De iJritt lived in the neighbourhood. A brother of de Britt, also a share farmer on Mr. Hol'fernan's property, lives at a lawn about three miles from the homestead.

Vincent de Britt and Mcßlhatton had been acquaintances for some time. According to the report to the police, the girl's parents did not approve when de Britt made repeated visits to the house, and eventually told him that ue must not call again.

.Mr. and .Mrs. Mclllliatton left home on Saturday afternoon for Young on a shopping expedition, leaving their daughter and their eight-year-old son alone in the house. Soon after they had gone de Britt went to the house, carrying a pea-rifle. ASSAULT WITNESSED Miss Mclllliatton was too seriously wounded to give a coherent account ol what happened, but apparently a quarrel ensued. De Britt, m a furious rage, tired a shot, and the bullet inllicted a superficial wound in the girl's ear. Then, as the girl tried to escape, he used the weapon as a club.

Mr. John rleffernan was in the homestead when he heard screams. He rushed out of his house and saw de Britt and .Miss Melllhatton outside the girl's home. The girl was lying on the ground and de Britt was striking her oil the head with the rifle, which he was holding by the barrel. lie continued to strike until the stock splintered. As soon as he saw Mr. Heifernan he ran away.

Miss .Mclllliatton was. taken to the Sacred Heart Hospital at Young. Her skull was fractured, and there werenme separate scalp wounds. The wound inllicted by the bullet was trivial.

A party of police totiud de Britt lying dead on the verandah of his brother's home. In the absence of his brother, ho had entered the house, taken a penritle, and shot himself through the head. In 1931, Bertie de Britt, a brother of the dead man, quarrelled with his wife in Gonlburn street, Sydney, and used a razor to kill both her and himself.