... ...A .A.
OREGON CITY ENTERPRISE, FRIDAY, MARCH 29, 1907.
HUSBAND SHOOTS WIFE,
SELF AND FATHER-IN-LAW
Bloody Deed In Upper Story of the Old Wil
helm Tell House Which Startled Citizens
At Early Hour Saturday Morning.
MARITAL WARFARE ENDS IN MURDER
Slaughter Scene Resembles Shambles Desperate Man's
Revenge on Woman He Claims Wronged Him--Her
Side of Story As Told to Attorney
Who Drew Her Will
"For God's sake, don't!"
I Cooke and Mr. Brown too charge, on
These were the last words uttered
by Joseph D. Maxwell before the shot
rang out that may put an end to his
life.
Then followed two other shots by
which the lives of two were snuffed
out almost instantaneously.
William W. Henderson lies cold in
death, the fatal shot supposedly fired
ku hi fiujn hsnH M r Martha
"7 .... '- - I
Henderson, his wife, is also dead, her; the
behalf of the lodge, of which Maxwell
was a past grand, w ill do all that can
be done for him in saving his life.
Mrs. Henderson was killed by a bul
let piercing her right breast. She al
son had a contusion on the forehead,
but whether this is from a bullet or
from contact with a piece of furni
ture when she fell will never be
E. known. Henderson was shot through
head, the bullet entering his
the sitting room of the hotel, occasion
ally going out for a walk. Henderson
came to the hotel for the" first time
this morning. It Is known, however,
that he came to Oregon City last night
on the 11 o'clock car from Portland.
He had been drinking heavily, and a
bottle of whisky was found In his '
pocket after the tragedy.
Detective JameH Stuart, of the de
tective firm of Stuart & Vaughnn, was
In the city yesterday looking for the
Henderson woman and her . father.
Stuart hnd been retained by Hender
son to look up the woman's record,
and It Is said that Henderson alleges
that his wife deserted him when they
were living at Ijitrove, California, go
ing away with another man. He has
been bitter against her, and has stat
ed that she was a swindler, and was
at this time mixed up In a mining I
swindle. He has a letter In the post
office here that Is said to throw light
upon this phase of the case, but It
cannot be gotten out according to the
postofflce regulations, except by a
relative or administrator.
Henderson had a note In one of his
pockets that gave instructions to no
tify his brother, O. M. Henderson, of
Rutledge, Tennessee, in case of death.
Coroner Holman this morning sent a
message to this address asking In
structions as to the disposal of the
body, but has as yet received no re
ply. The brother was at one time an
attorney general of Tennessee.
Nothing further Is known of Hen
derson or his people except that ac
cording to papers found on his clothes
he has been employed at Scuttle on
the street car line. Papers show that
he has been a railroad man. He had
on his vest and coat emblems of the
Masons, Klks. the Modern Woodmen
of America, and the Odd Fellows, but
no cards were found In
DIVORCE SUIT FILED
BY MRS. HENDERSON
Cruel and Inhuman Treatment and
Threats to Kill Are
Charged.
husband firing the bullet that ended j throat and passing through the back
her career. . ; of the head.
The triple tragedy took place at the j Willoughby Hears Conversation.
Wilhelm Tell house, corner of Sixth j There were no witnesses to the
and Main streets, this, morning at half i event, but Ed. Willoughby, who occu
past eight. Ed. Willoughby was stand- j pied the room adjoining that of Max-
ing in his room when a bullet came I well where the shooting occurred over-
Mrs. Henderson, through her attor
ney, A. U. Memlenhall. filed a suit for
divorce from her husband In the
Clackamas circuit court on January
8 last.
The complaint cites that she and de
fendant were married In San Francis
co. March 30, llHlt!, and the cause of
action Is given as cruel and Inhuman
treatment and personal Indignities,
rendering her life burdensome. She
alleges that beginning one week after
their marriage he began Importuning
her fur money and upon his not re
ceiving the amount demanded he ap
plied to her the most vulgar, low and
scurrilous language the same being
too vile to set forth In the complaint.
In the presence or their friends he
Is charged by her with using such
expressions as "you are a d m old
whore," and accusing her of "sustain
ing unlawful relations with Individ
uals to her unknown, thereby causing
her to suffer great mental anguish."
On two occasions, she says, ho
flourished his revolver over her head
In a threatening manner, and while
so doing Informed her that he would
kill her. and that In September, HiH5.
while angry he struck plaintiff with
his tlsts. knocking her to the floor,
when he Informed her that he
live happily together, and from the
conversation heard by Kd. Willoughby
before the shooting It would seem
that he hnd III (rented her,
I'p to the time when Henderson
met the woman' who ruined his life lie
had borne a good reputation and win
well liked, but after falling Into her
dutches he became Infatuated and
could not keep away from her. She
seemed to have an Influence over him
that could not be broken even by herself.
INQUEST THROWS
LIGHT ON MLIRDCU
The coroner's luijuost over the bod
ies of William W, Henderson and his
wife Martha K. Henderson held Sat
urday night, resulted In u verdict In
accordance with the facts of the rose.
The Jury found that Mrs, Henderson
came to her death by a bullet wound
Inlllcted by her husband, and that I
William Henderson died by a self In
flicted bullet wound.
In the testimony the scene that met
the ga.e of those who first entered the
room was gone over, a fid although
Joseph Maxwell, the father of the
woman was unable to be present on
account of his wound, the statement
he made to Chief of Police Hums and
to the Star wus taken as evidence, and
from this the guilt was placed on
Henderson.
From the evidence it developed that
five shots were fired, two of which
struck the woman, one In the fore
head and one In the right breast, one
hit Maxwell In the back of the head,
one pierced Henderson' hat falling
to Injure bltn. and the other entered
In- Uhe brain.
V
2,(KH) miles ofJoiigdiH
taneo tolejihonn wiro in
Oregon, VMhliii;ttn, Cali
fornia and Idaho now lit
"juration ly lite rieiflc
Station Telephonn Com
p'U y, coveriiiK '2,'2.rU
towns.
Quick, atournto, rhfain
All the Hittisfaolion of a
personal eonmniiiiaitioti.
bmtanon no ellect to a
clear untlerHtaiiiling. Hh
kane and Han Fram'iKca
bh Micily heard an Port
land. Oregon City ollice at
Ilanlinjfs Drmr Store
Maxwell Describes Positions.
if It had not been for the Intervention Maxwell made a later statement to
his pockets ,of her father that he would have car- lho slar whll(( tl(, Wlt ylll( , ,,,
When you require an Abstract of Title
to lands In Ciackamnit County, have
It accurately and reliably prepared
by a responsible company Incorpor
ated for tho purpose. Our rates ar
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Hooks.
CLACKAMAS TITLIC COMPANY.
60C- 6(18 Chamber of Commerce Bldg..
POUTLAND. OKKC.ON.
Money to loan on ('tacksman County'
Property.
J. U. CAMPBELL,
ATTOHNKY-AT-LAW.
Oregon City. ....
Will practice In all courts
Office In Caufleld lit
Oregon.
to show that he was in good standing.
Maxwell .has not been in a condi
tion to talk of his family, and it Is
not known whether he has relatives
at his home In Latrove or not.
i
room adjoining to which hn was tak-
Klnally, she says, til-treatment was rn after the shooting In regard to the
through no ca'ise of hers but solely be- 'positions occupied by the three when
cause she refused to satisfy
peated demands for money.
t
his re- Henderson fired the fatal shots. Ac
i cording to Maxwell, he was standing
through the wall from the next room
and whizzed past his face, missing
him only by a a few inches.. He rush
ed down stairs and out on the street
calling "Murder!"
Chief of Police Burns and a repre
sentative from the Star were passing
heard a conversation that took place
among the three victims of the trag
edy just before the shooting.
According to Willoughby, Hender
son, together with his wife and his
wife's father, came Info Maxwell's
room about five minutes before the
MADE HER WILL DAY
BEFORE HER DEATH
at the time and immediately hurried j first shot w as fired. There 8 much
Into the house and up the stairs. Itjearnest conversation, and Henderson
was a fearful scene that met them. I seemed to be pleading with his wife
Lying on the bed In Maxwell's room ' to come back to him. She replied
Local Attorney Drew Up Testament
Her Story of Their
Trouble.
MRS. HENDERSON
MUCH MARRIED
with his brains spatfered over the I scornfully and said,
wall behind him was Henderson. Part
ly on the bed and partly on the floor
lay Maxwell, in a widening pool of
blood. Behind the door and wedged
against it so that entrance was gained
with difficulty lay the woman who is
said to be the cause of the tragedy,
with a fearful gash in her forehead
and the blood streaming from a wound
In her breast.
I by the bed, the woman wus standing
'at the foot of the bed, and Henderson
'was on the lied. The room was small.
with merely room for the hnd and a
washntand. From the bullet marks
I in the walls and the floor Henderson
must have been standing on the tied
'when he fired. One bullet went
i through tho wall, and one went
I through the floor. This latter was
i likely the one which struck the old
I man.
I Among the personal effects left by
j Henderson was found nothing that
From testimony given at the Inquest , would show to what lodges ho belong
by Detectives Stuart and Vaughn and "'. or whether ho was In good stand
from newspaper clippings found In Ing or not. He Is said to have stated
woman taunted him with abusing her 'office of Judge G. E. Hayes In the j Henderson's possession It appears that 1 1( m,'n around town that he was In
when she was with him. "Pa, can't j Stevens block. Friday, and had him his wife has borne a shady reputation standing, however. His effecin
you do something?" asked Henderson, draw up the papers In which she dis- j for some time. j will be sent to his brother. 0. Mc Hen-
and Maxwell replied. "No, I can't." posed of her property. Part of her game, It is alleged, was Person, of Rutledge. Tennessee. He
The next words that Willoughby heard Judge Hayes said Saturday morn- to advertise In marriage papers for a i a bank book showing a deposit of
. .1 . .. . ..... . . . . . t or i.. . I., i i, .
jwere ror uoa s sane, -non i: ana ing after tne tragedy mat me woman husband, representing nerseir as a;1-" 1,1 o-mtT mum. im rn
then a bullet sped past his nose and i anticipated trouble, that she said her ! young unmarried woman with S0,000, showed that he was working for the
it.,., i ix, ij mmM
1 ,'r '
t
. '
Less than 24 hours before she met
Why don't you ( her fate from a revolver bullet fired
talk sense?" j by her husband, Mrs. Henderson made
Henderson fell to sobbing and moan- her wilt. In company with her father,
ing, and continued his pleading. The j Joseph D. Maxwell, she visited the
Thought tD Have Had Five
Husbands and An Unenvia
ble Record in Court.
hde .euwl i I,r Ir.t for met -
in l tt lill III III lr I lliMi
trttutiilv nt f ruwOi, ttir.r utit
lai;e yk; ! t. ilr-ll, i,,u vrt
txcttllloit fl.mr,., nmk t.'trm l
fellitl.lr ftnt tltr mutt jMtu -
wtirtr Sn'.l ly Bit ilr.lre
k-ccil Aartunl lire on n
0. M. KSRV A CO.,
D.iroil. Mich.
1
$
t
W. S. EDDY, Y. S M. i). V.
Cmduite of the Ontario i '.
nnry Collrge of Toronto '
ml the MrKUlip ! . u .
Surgery of Chicago, ! ti t
Orrgon City and rUl'i'i ! i
office l The I'anhian Mi". ..
Seventh Strrrt ncr Mii.
llotli fflephouri
Partners' 1 33 ! n
All three were alive when found, but
Henderson and his wife expired In
a few minutes, without gaining con-
buried itself in the opposite wall.
Maxwell Incriminates Handerson.
It seems to be very clear that Hen-
In Portland making and wanting a husband with a fev jPuget Sound hlectrlo Co.. at the time
her but she was not thousands to Invest who could take',0' li-ath. He bad also been em-
sciousness. The woman died first, a.derson did the stiootlng, for Maxwell
few low moans signifying her passing. made a statement to the Star repre
A minute afterwards Henderson also ' sentative as he was lying helpless
passed out amid fearful groans. Max- j when found.
well, although terribly injured, was j In answer to a question as to who
not unconscious, and was removed to i red the shots, he said between moans,
the next room where Dr. C. A. Stuart
is battling for his life.
A 41-caliber Colts was the weapon
used, and was found on the bed by
the side of Henderson. Five of the
six chambers were empty, but wheth
er more than three shots were fired
j husband was
i threats to kill
I afraid. Her father also said he was care of her fortune. She Is known to
not fearful of Henderson. have caught ono man whoso name was
She claims that they were living O'Dell, this way before she married
Is uncertain. A 38-caIibre Harrington-Richards
revolver was found ly
ing under the pillow of Maxwell's bed
with all the chambers full.
in San Francisco at the time of the
earthquake, in which she lost much
property. Her first husband's name
was Odell. He died, leaving no child
ren. She claims to own 100 acres of
was .land at Kirby, Josephine County, Or
leeon. Mr. Maxwell's residence was
Henderson. Her father Is said to
have worked with her, and one rumor
has It that he killed one of her hits-hands.
j ployed In St. Imls and other cities
on the street car lines.
I Henderson to be Buried Here.
I Coroner Holman yesterday receiv
ed a message from tho brother giv
ing Instructions that the body be bur
I led here. Earlier In the day a tele-
She married Henderson In San ; Kram was received directing the cor-
Francisco in April, 190fi. At the tlme;(m'r t0 H,I th" 1,0,y Tennessee,
she was on trial In an Oakland conrt,,,,lt aft,'r consultation with tho other
replied, at Latrove, Eldorado County, Cat. He ;for running a marriage bureau to lure relatives It was decided to have Hen-
1
"Henderson did."
"Whom did he shoot first?
asked.
With difficulty Maxwell
"The woman first, then me." iwas a widower, and Mrs. Henderson 1 men. and Henderson was the star wit- i 'lerson burled at Oregon City. Tho
After that he lapsed Into a state of Jwas his only child. She was 38 years ness against her. she Is said to have 'funeral will be held Tuesday morning
and could talk of age and her father was Co. In her married him so that he might not have rrom ""'"'ans undertaking rooms.
conversation in Judge Hayes' office, to testify against her. Deprived of 'aHl n'K"i claiming to i.e n
the witness testimony she was acquit- c"Hn f Henderson came up from
semi-unconsciousness:
no more.
Fred Griessen, proprietor of the ; she told of her husband's cruel and In
Wilhelm Tell bouse, stated to the .human treatment, which she said was
Star that Maxwell and his daughter .because she had 12900 which he was
The bullet struck Maxwell back of jcame to Oregon City for the first time desirous of securing from her.
the left ear at the base of the mastoid ; on March 2, and secured rooms with j The will drawn up Friday evening
process, passing downwards and came ! him. They were there together till j will be filed for record in Josephine,
out at the angle of the jaw. The I Friday afternoon, when the woman county, where her real estate Is Bit
wound in itself, according to Dr. Stu-! left, saying that she was going to uated. Professional ethics, aside from
art, will not necessarily prove fatal, ! Portland for her baggage, and would law, prevents the contents of the will
but the mental shock and the loss of go on to Grants Pass. Her father , becoming public before filing, but it?
blood may result in death. Soon af-1 said he would stay on at the placets surmised as she had no other near
ter Maxwell had been shot a com- ' Friday night Mrs. Henderson returned relatives she willed her property to
mittee of Odd Fellows consisting of and took a room for the night. ;her father. There is a heavy creditor
Harry M. Shaw, Elmer Veteto, II. W. ! Griessen said that the couple were 'of the estate and ho will probably ask
Trembath, William Shannon, J. W. quiet and spent most of the time in for letters of administration in Jose
. . , phlne county.
Mr. Maxwell and Mrs. Henderson
had been In Oregon City about, ten
days, staying at the Wrn. Tell house.
Her business presumably was her di
vorce suit. She could have secured
that by default anytime since March
11, the last day in which Henderson
could answer.
Mrs. Henderson claimed in Judge
Hayes' office that she was going to
Lake county to work as a cook in a
mining camp, and read a part of a tel
egram from Grants Pass to that effect.
1
t
1
Private Money to Loan
I havo private, parties with the fol
lowing amounts to man on real estate:
Parties
I
I
2
5
i
2:,
Amount.
Iinnn.no
$ Io00.no
I.isoo on
$1500.00
$ 600.00
f 300.00
$ 100.00
to
f 20 00
Time,
in 10 year
to 5 year
to 3 years
years
to 3 year
to 4 year
1 to 5 yer
Is your baby thin, weak, fretful ?
Make him
baby.
a Scoffs Emulsion
Scoffs Emulsion is Cod Liver Oil
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Consequently the baby that is fed on
Scoffs Emulsion is a sturdy, rosy
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ALL DRUGGISTS i BOc. AND $1.00.
SCENE OF MURDER.
The old Wilhelm Tell house, the
scene of Saturday morning's awful
tragedy, Is one of the most historic
buildings In Oregon. It was erected
over CO years ago, and at one time
was the meeting place of the Oregon
territorial legislature.
After many vIsslcItudoB the building
Is now used as a cheap lodging house,
the first story being occupied by a
saloon and the two upper stories used
as a hotel,' under the management of
Fred Griessen.
High Grade 1
HighP nee- g
'PmcltJ in Full Mfturt VottUt
r'fl Always j
Same -
I WRAQji on
I mmA Merit
ted of the charire on which she was Portland and Identified him. He left
held. no instructions with the coroner for
Henderson told his detectives that tho 'HHlHaI of the body, and the In
she had secured some $1000 from him "'ructions from the brother In Tenne
on her representations of the "Ogalla" H!"'" wl" ,KJ fH'"l "t. The er
mines, which, it appears, are worth- rangements for tho funeral have not
less. She and her husband did not yet bfi,'n f'ml"tod.
' I '""'y (lf tno w""ian will bo held
until her father becomes well enough
to give directions for the burial.
TAKEN TO PORTLAND HOSPITAL.
Joseph D. Maxwell, shot by his son-in-law
W. W, Henderson, Saturday
morning and seriously wounded wns
taken to the Good Samaritan hospital
In Portland on the Southern Pacific
Saturday night. He had been remov
ed previously from the room to which
ho had been carried In the Wilhelm
Tell house after tho shooting to the
Electric hotel, where he received nil
the surgical aid that the limited ap
pliances of Oregon City would permit,
After the wound was dressed Satur
day morning, Maxwell appeared to bo
resting easily, but about half past ten
he seemed to be growing worse and
Dr. Stuart was hurriedly summoned.
He worked with hltn for several hours
before hn wus thought to lie out of
,ln,r,.. r,l I'Ih 1....1I ,
uui.v,. i, fin, i in, ..,iiii w its Hiiniinoueu
In tho early afternoon.
I Towards evening he was removed to
itho Electric hotel, as a quieter and
more convenient plnco to care for
1 him, bill. It was thought that the bos.
3'pllal was a better place for him, and
'j lie wns removed there. In the lute af
ternoon. It Is sfutod that, ho has a
good chance of recovery, and If he
survives the shock tho bullet would
will not necessarily prove fatal.
At Inst reports he was resting easily.
Interest at C per rent and your own
time for repayment.
Also a little Chattel money at 8 per
cent. ,
Will buy notes and mortgages.
Also own Oregon City property to-
trade for country land.
Will look up titles to lond froi If
trade Is made.
Own 3 lots, hoiiso, barn and chljkon
park at Willamette, for sale cheap on
installments.
No real estato agent to Interfere.
If Interested mil, writ or phone,
JOHN W. LODER,
Attorney at Law..
Slovens Ilulldlng. Oregon Gily,
Oregon.
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J. A. Folger & Co.
San Francisco
JJY STIPI'
ATTORNICY-AT-LAW.
Justice of the Tcnco.
Office In Jagger Building. Oregon City.
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