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Subject: [GM-L] Maria L. Crue Murdered, 1880 at Groton - Boston Herald Story Part 3
Date: Mon, 4 Mar 2002 17:04:50 EST
Here is Part 3 of the Maria L. Crue Murder at Groton, Mass., as published by
the Boston
Herald March 19, 1885. As I type the file, it will print out to 22 pages,
single spaced. A
bit much for the List. What I will do is continue the transcription and
then offer it in full
to the List (freely shared) as a WordPad Text attachment file sent on
request.
Janice Farnsworth
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Part 3
>From the statement of Mr. Reed, it would appear he examined into these points
at the time of the
murder, and disposed of, most effectually, all doubts in connection
therewith. One peculair point
in the case was that no motive for the crime on the part of Abbott was known,
but it will be seen
that a motive did exist which the government could have proved if it had so
desired, but it was
not thought necessary to drag such an unpleasant matter into open court. A
great handle has been
made of this point by those who claim the innocense of Abbott, but it may be
said this evidence is yet
at hand. Several weeks since the public mind was directed to this case by a
report that Crue had
died, and before death had confessed the murder of his wife and left a
written confession. This
report was given considerable prominence and traced down by reporters. The
result was that Crue
was found in Waltham alive and he indignantly denied the story. It could be
given no authentic
source. No one would be responsible for it. It turned out to be but a puff
of smoke from the pipe of
rumor, and soon faded from sight. The question is....who was the smoker and
what was his object
in starting such a report, for it is evident it had no real foundation.
The latest development in the matter is the retaining of counsel on the part
of Abbott and the proposed
circulation among the people of a petition praying the governor and council
to pardon him. What the
outcome of this will be remains to be seen. Before signing this petition the
public may desire to know
the government's side of the case, illustrated by a sketch of the country and
a plan of the house where
the tragedy was enacted. It is therefore herewith given.
The Murder
How It Was Discovered, Condition of the Body When Found.
At about 1 o'clock Saturday, January 17, 1880, Mr. Joseph Crue, husband of
the murdered woman, who
is a teamster by occupation, left his home which was three miles from Groton
on the main road leading
to Boston, for the purpose of going to a woodlot five miles away, he being
employed with others in haul-
ing logs to Ayer Junction. His home was in the woods, in as desolate a
location as one would wish to see,
and a better place to commit a crime it would be hard to find anywhere in the
vicinity.
>From the time he left until after 6 o'clock in the afternoon, Crue was hard
at work, and at that hour he
obtained a bag of meal of Abel Prescott in Ayer and started on his return,
arriving at about 8 o'clock
in the evening. Upon his arrival he was very much surprised to find the
outside door which fronts
on Littleton Road, locked and the curtains closely drawn. After vainly tryng
to effect an entrance in that
direction, he walked around to the side entrance, trying all the windows on
the south side of the house
and finding them all locked. He then looked for a key, which his wife was in
the habit of leaving on
a window ledge, and not finding it in the accustomed place, Mr. Crue started
for the house of a Mr.
Laws, a near neighbor, for the purpose of ascertaining whether or not his
wife had been there. Re-
ceiving a negative reply, he retraced his steps and upon again arriving at
his house, effected an en-
trance by means of a bulkhead leading to the cellar. From the cellar a
flight of steps extended to the
rooms above. As soon as he entered the sitting room, Mr. Cure began groping
around for matches
and a lamp. These necessary articles procured, he struck a light and began a
search of the premises,
a better idea of which may be obtained by an examination of the appended plan.
See Plan
Almost the first thing that attracted his attention was a dark red stain
extending from the middle of
the apartment, where was standing Mrs. Crue's sewing chair, to the bedroom on
the same floor,
a distance of about ten feet. Upon entering the door, he was met by a sight
which will remain in=
delibly stamped on his memory to the last day of his life, as it certainly
will upon the minds of all
who witnessed it.
Stretched upon the floor on her back, with her feet extended twoard the door
was the lifeless body
of his wife, who but a few hours before was in the bloom of her young
womanhood. A quilt had
been thrown loosely over the remains as if to conceal them from the site of
the murderer. Almost
unmanned by the terrible sight and hardly conscious of what he was doing,
The Terribly Bereaved Husband
started on a run to the house of Mr. Augustus Woods, a near neighbor, whom he
informed that his
wife had either been murdered or had shot herself, and requesting him at the
same time to come and
see what the matter was. In a comparatively short space of time, the alarm
was spread among the
neighbors and the greatest excitement prevailed. As quickly as they could
get to the place,
owing to the isolated location of the house, Dr. B. H. Hartwell, medical
examiner and Deputy Sheriffs
Brown of Ayer and A. S. Lawrence of Groton were on the grounds. Then it was
discovered that the
poor woman had been shot three times. One bullet had struck in the center of
her forehead, flattening
against the skull, and was then inbedded in the flesh. Another one of the
deadly misiles had passed
directly through the right eye and thence into the brain, while another had
penetrated the left breast.
The dead woman's face was discolored by the blood which had exuded from the
eye, and on the
floor there was a considerable quantity of the same fluid. On his way to the
scene of the murder,
Dr. Hartwell notified Detective Samuel Reed of Ayer of what had transpired
and that officer, with
characteristic promptenss, at once began an investigation.
Part 4.
Working the Case
How Stearns Kendall Abbott was connected with the
Crime.
Work in Progress
Transcribed by Janice Farnsworth
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