Murder in Dunedin.

Western Star, Issue 988, 7 October 1885, Page 3

Murder in Dunedin.

A middle-aged woman, named Mrs Greorgina Butler, was discovered on Saturday morning dead in her house with her skull fractured and other injuries. It was at first thought tint her death was duo to the bursting; of a ■ blood vessel, but an exa nidation showed that sho died from violence. Mrs Butler was over 50 years of aire and known to be in'emperate. She j lived in a small three roomed cottage j at South Dunedin with her daughter (Mrs Edward Brown, aged from 25 to 30) and the hitter's two children. The daughter's husband is at present at ishburton. On Saturday morning Mrs Brown alarmed the neighbors with the intelligence that she had found her m ther dead in bed. The woman was discovered lying dressed upon the small stretcher bed she occupied. She was quite dead. Her head was surrounded by a pool of b'ood, and at first it was supposed that deceased, being 1 a woman of drunken habits, had probably broken a blood-vessel. Dr Hocken made a post mortem examination, and found that the woman's skull was fractured, apparent y by a blow from some blunt instrument, and there were other wounds about the head, hands, &c. Mrs Brown's statement is that she left her mother and retired to bed at nine o'clock on Friday evening, and did not fee her again until she discovered her dead body. The two women were drinking beer on Fiiday evening, but the daughter does not say that any visitors were at the place. Medical examination showed that the wounds on Mrs Butler could not hive been self-infi'cled, or be the result of a fill. The wall of the room opposite tho bed is bespattered with blood, showing that she was attacked where she lay. Both women were drinking, and the daughter is unable to give an intelligible account of her actions on Friday At the inquest the medical evidence showed that death was caused by violent blows on the head. The police found several articles in the house with blood on them, and a dusting brush, apparently recently washed. In the dead woman's hand was found some woman's hair, and among this one of the hairs from this brush.