The Maitland Mercury and Hunter River General Advertiser (NSW : 1843 - 1893) Sat 11 Dec 188024952

Dreadful. Tragedy.
MURDER OF A MAN AND ATTEMPTED
MURDER OF A YOUNG GIRL.
(By telegraph to the Evening News.)

Albury, Tuesday.
A fearful and horrible tragedy occurred
this morning early, near Jindera, at a shanty
kept by an aged man named Martin Menz,
who for some time past had allowed a man
named Wilkinson to lodge at his house.
Wilkinson left the place yesterday morning,
and about daybreak Menz's daughter, a young
woman, was awakened by the report of a
weapon, and immediately Wilkinson appeared
with a revolver in her room, demanding her
money or her life. He then fired three shots
point blank, the first of which wounded her
on the temple, the second on the right
breast, and the last on the finger. The
report that awoke her was the
shot that killed her father. He then
fired the house, leaving both (as he
thought) corpses in the flames. But the
wounded girl managed to crawl from the
burning edifice, which attracted some neigh-
bours, and she was at once kindly attended,
but it is not considered likely she will survive
her terrible wounds and great shock to the
system. The fiend who committed the dread-
ful deed quickly left the scene of his murder,
and after going a few miles fell asleep, where
he was discovered, and made a prisoner.
A revolver was found on him with four of the
barrels bearing evident signs of being re-
cently discharged. The dreadful tragedy has
caused much excitement. The body of the
old man has not yet been discovered, as the
house is still burning.
A post-mortem examination of the remains
of Martin Menz disclosed the facts that there
were two circular holes in the skull corres-
ponding to two bullets found embedded in
the brain. The prisoner Wilkinson was
brought up to-day, on a charge of the willful
murder of Martin Menz. Mary Pumpa is
quite positive regarding his identity as her
assailant. A miner, named Gunt, who was
camped near the house on the night of the
tragedy, deposed to hearing four shots fired,
and it is believed that Miss Pumpa re-
ceived only two shots, her finger being
wounded by the same shot that entered
her breast. This would account for the
four discharged barrels in the revolver.
A publican residing at Jindera, five miles
from Albury, proved that the prisoner came
there on Monday morning, and left again on
Monday evening, ostensibly going the con-
trary direction to the tragedy. After a few
minutes the publican looked out along the
road which prisoner started, but could not
see him. He saw, however, a man unrecog-
nisable in the twilight going towards Menz's
place. On Tuesday morning the prisoner re-
turned to the hotel, saying he had lost his swag.
The prisoner was remanded until to-mor-
row. Miss Pumpa is in a very low weak state
and unlikely to recover. If she dies the pri-
soner will be charged with her murder also.
She states positively that no quarrel occurred
between herself or her father and the prisoner.
(From the Border Post, December 8.)
A report reached Albury yesterday morn-
ing to the effect that several persons had been
shot at Mentz's wine-shop on the Jindera
Road. Troopers were at once despatched to
the scene, and shortly after our special re-
porter proceeded thither and learned the
principal features of the tragedy.
The house ís situate on the Jindera Road,
about six miles from Albury. The main
building contains two rooms, the front door
opening into one of them, in which there
were a counter, fire-place, and a stretcher, the
latter being the sleeping place of Mentz. A
door opened out of his room into another,
which was occupied by Mentz's daughter, who
lived there with her child, and carried on the
business of dressmaking. There were also
attached to the main building two skillions
about 10 feet from these there was a long
building used as a kitchen. There was also
a stable adjoining the south end of the kit-
chen, in which were two draught horses.
The whole of these buildings were burnt
to the ground, and the charred remains of
Mentz were found in the main room of the
building. The incendiary was not only deter-
mined to commit homicide, but he was bent
on destroying the dumb animals in the stable,
for he had gathered up hobble chains and
ropes and fastened the horses together in
such a way that they could not escape the
flames, the result being that they were burnt.
From information received on the spot, it
appears that Wilkinson, the man in custody
on suspicion of being the murderer and in-
cendiary, had visited Mentz's place on Mon-
day, where he had some drinks. Some time
after dinner he left and went on his way to
Jindera. Here he stayed at the Mill Hotel,
kept by a son of Mentz. In course of con-
versation with young Mentz, he told the latter
that he had had a row up at the old man's and
that he would see it out. In the course of
the evening young Mentz saw Wilkinson
place his swag under the bridge and walk
away towards Albury. The next time he saw
Wilkinson was the following morning (yester-
day), when he came to Jindera and was look-
ing for his swag. It was shortly after this
that the troopers arrived, and took Wilkinson
into custody and brought him into Albury.
Mrs. Pumpa, who is a daughter of Mentz's
and lived with him, was stuck up by Wilkin-
son and told to deliver up her money or he
would take her life ; she put her baby on the
floor, and thereupon took from her chest 15s.
and gave it to him, and as she wanted to pass
out Wilkinson placed his back against the
door, and raising the revolver deliberately
shot her three times in succession, and when
she fell he dealt her a heavy blow on the back
of the neck, which caused her to lie still for
a short time, but on seeing Wilkinson leave
the room she seized her baby and got away.
On reaching Mrs. Douglass's house, distant
some quarter of a mile, she was faint with
the loss of blood.
Mrs. Douglass, a widow residing on the
Jindera Road and within a quarter of a mile
of Mentz's wine-shop, informed us that at
about 3 o'clock on Tuesday morning she was
awakened by a knocking at the door, and, on
asking who was there, She received as answer
"It is me, Mary Mentz ;" and that, after let-
ting her in, she said at the door, " The old
man has been shot, and I think he is dead ;
and the same person has shot me, but I have
managed to escape with my child." She also
stated that Wilkinson demanded her money
or her life, and shot her after obtaining the
money.
We have also obtained the following par-
ticulars from James Kente, who was camped
the same evening near Mentz's place. "He
says :--- I camped on the night of the 6th in-
stant at a spot about 300 yards from Mentz's
place by the Gap ; I was not comfortable,
and during the night half made up my mind
to move ; as it was thundering and lightning
I did not do so, and as near as I can judge
between two and three o'clock a.m. I heard a
shot fired; then, after a lapse of a few
minutes, three more shots ; I thought it was
some one opossum-shooting, and paid no at-
tention, but shortly afterwards saw a blaze,
and running up to the shanty found it on
fire; I cooeyed for help, and tried to get in
to save any one that might be there, but
could not get very far for the flames; I
saw a man's legs sticking out from between
two mattresses which were burning very
fiercely ; everything about the place was in
confusion, and the furniture tossed here and
there ; I had not been at the shanty the pre-
vious evening ; during the night and just be-
fore I saw the fire I heard a man's voice, but
whether he was talking to himself or any one
else I cannot say ; there were two splendid
draught horses tied and hobbled together and
fastened inside the stables, and it was a hor-
rible sight to see them burning ; I could not
help them, and they were destroyed by the
fire.
The following deposition was taken before
Mr. Maunsell, J.P., at the Albury Hospital.
It may be taken in connection with the above
events, being evidence taken in the presence
of the prisoner in a charge preferred against
him of shooting Mary Pumpa, with intent to
murder her :---
Mary Pumpa deposed : I am the daughter
of Martin Mentz, with whom I have been
living on the Jindera Road, about five miles
from Albury ; I saw the prisoner for the first
time on Sunday last ; he came at between 11
and 12 o'clock noon and asked to stay, as he
was tired ; he did stay until Monday morning
at about 10 o'clock, when he left; I never
asked him his name, and don't know it now;
he had a swag, and said he was going to
Brookong; neither I nor my father had any
words with him before he left ; the next
time I saw him was at 3 o'clock this morning,
when he came into my bedroom; he said,
" Have you got any money ?" I said, " Only
a few shillings;" he then said, "Give me
your money or your life;" I opened the box
and gave him 15s. ; he had a light in his
hand and a pistol; as soon as I gave
him the money he shot me in the  
chest; I fell, and he fired twice more at
me, and struck me with something on the
back of the head ; he then left the room, and
I got my child and left the house by the
back way and got to Mrs. Douglass's; when
I left my father was in the front room; from
Douglas's place I saw our house on fire; dur-
ing the time prisoner was in my room I
heard my father in the front room; when the
prisoner went away to the latter I heard him
give my father a couple of blows; I saw my
father for the last time at 10 o'clock last
night, and he was then quite well; he was
about 60 years old ; he had had no altercation
with the prisoner, who paid me 1s. for his
bed, and 1s. for his meal; he had had a couple
of glasses of wine on Monday.
The prisoner was then removed under
remand for eight days, but will probably be
brought up before the end of that period.
The prisoner, who gives his name as
Wilkinson, is a man about 40 years of age,
standing five feet six, with scrubby iron-gray
hair over his face, and a villainous cast of
countenance.