A MADMAN'S SENSATION.

Colonist, Volume LVI, Issue 13549, 17 August 1914, Page 8

A MADMAN'S SENSATION.

The young Hungarian farm labourer Tomsics, who" shot his fiancee's'family when" she refused to marry him and tlien made a fortress of tho church tower of his native village, Grosshcfr flein, surrendered at midday, after a siege lasting 34 hours. Altogether Tomsics killed three people and wounded 19 (says an English correspondent at Vienna).

Ho kept up a steady fire from the church tower on persons showing themselves in the streets until 9 o'clock on the Friday evening before he was captured. Old and young were hit by his bullets. When no more people ventured out of their houses, Tomsics amused hinvelf by shooting at animals. He hit three dogs, two pigs, and on© cow.

At intervals he descended to .the gallery of the church v.nd practised shooting at the altar and tht. pictures, which were much damaged.

One gendarme endeavoured to climb up the b<?ll-ropes in the tower, but was. ::hot in the shoulder by Tomsics. From time to time Tomsics rang the bells in order to briug people into the street. .

At 9 o'clock on Friday evening, when it became- darkyi:; lie ceased firo, but the gendarmes remained at their post all night. At 4 o'clock in the morning he showed himself again, and cried, "Thanks for letting me sleep . I am all right again now," and promptly began shooting again hitting two persons in the garden of a houso which ho commanded from the tower.

The reign of terror began again, and lasted all the morning, but towards midday Tomsics appeared to grow weak, and called out that he wished a parley with the paristi priest. When the latter appeared at a neighbouring window Tomsics asked him to send up food and drink. Tht reqtiest was, naturally, refused, and the priest and a local magistrate urged him to sur-

render

Finally at midday he waved a handkerchief from the window, threw his two rifles and 73 cartridges into the churchyard, and descended the tower.

"When he was arrested, much exhausted, ho "began to weej) and declared that he had originally no intention to kill anyone except the parents of his fiancee, but when ho was pursued the story of Fort Chabrol, which he had read in a book, came into his mind, and he made a church tower his fort.