The McArthur Family Tragedy –

TRUE STORY OF THE TRAGEDY

Mrs. Kate McArthur, a widow, aged 36, her two children, Bertie aged 3 yrs, and Lily aged 11 months, and a nephew named Walter Brewerton, aged 23, lived together in Mt Magnet in a small house, the entrance to which was covered by a brush shade. Mrs. McArthur was a hard-working woman who made a living by washing and cleaning. Brewerton is a miner. A short distance from this house is a camp occupied by a man named J. H. Bowen (AKA Bone) and his wife, who is a sister of Kate McArthur.

Recently a quarrel occurred at Mrs. McArthur’s house between the sisters. At about 1.30 a.m. on Sunday morning, a man named Wyatt, employed in night work by the council, observed a fire, which was also noticed by Mr. Mindner, of the Magnet hotel. Mr. Mindner, with the police, made for the scene of the conflagration and found Mrs. McArthur’s house blazing. The brush shade in front of the house, which covered the only entrance, appears to have first caught fire, and this prevented the escape of the occupants.

Efforts were made to effect an entrance, but this was impossible. A portion of the iron roof was then removed and the bodies of Mrs. McArthur and her two children were observed lying inside. It was obvious that they had already perished. Some of the remains of the victims of the fire were recovered afterward by the police. The head of the woman was consumed and the lower extremities were burnt off at the knees. The body of the infant girl was partly recovered, and that of the boy was found lying on the bed in an attitude of sleep, the bed being burned beneath him.  The body of Mrs. McArthur lay across the place where a canvas partition had stood, dividing her room from that occupied by Brewerton.

Walter Brewerton, the nephew, was aroused from his sleep by the sound of something falling. The room he occupied was then full of smoke and flames. He rushed into his aunt’s room and aroused her, but the fire had already possession of the place and the unfortunate woman was paralysed with fear and fainted. He endeavored to get her and the children out, but his efforts were fatally hampered by the increasing smoke and heat, and the door was impassable owing to the flaming brush shade. At last, the suffocating smoke and the flames forced him to abandon his efforts to save the others and he managed to save himself by diving through a small window, which only measured 18 inches by 12 inches, in his room.

It is assumed and hoped, that the unfortunate victims of the fire succumbed to suffocation before the flames actually touched them. The position in which the body of Mrs. McArthur was found, namely, across the floor where the partition between the two rooms had stood, goes to show that Brewerton attempted to drag the insensible body towards the window.

Was It Murder ?

The most dreadful aspect of this tragedy is that there seems to be a reason for believing that the fire was purposely kindled in order to destroy the family. The police have arrested a man named John Hartley BOWEN (or Bone) on suspicion. Bowen is called “Deadwood Dick.” on account of certain characteristics. He is an ex-convict and has served various terms of imprisonment for threatening people. He is a man of about 45 years of age and is not of a prepossessing appearance. He is a Cockney by birth and picks up a living of a sort in Mt. Magnet by doing odd jobs and acting in the capacity of town crier. The evidence against Bowen is circumstantial but sufficient to justify his arrest on suspicion. It appears that he has several times threatened to destroy the McArthur’s and on Saturday he was heard to say that he would either-

“Chop them up or Burn them!!”

Bowen seems to have been fond of indulging in criminal fancies, and he has frequently said that someday he would be hanged.  On Sunday morning, an Aboriginal tracker picked up a fresh trail made by a man in heavy boots — similar to some found at Bowen’s camp, at the scene of the fire and followed it. They came to a spot where there were marks where the man had sat down and removed his boots, and there the tracks ceased. Near Bowen’s camp, similar markings were found as of a man putting on his boots again and the tracks again commence and lead around Bowen’s camp to another camp, where it appears that Bowen called at 1.30 a.m. on Sunday morning and asked to be allowed to camp for the rest of the night.

The inmate, however, would not have him there and told him to clear out. The police suggest that Bowen went to this camp to establish an alibi, and he removed his boots for a similar object. On Monday morning Bowen was interviewed by the Police and he made a statement that at midnight on Saturday, he was at a certain place and went from there to the camp. Here he asked to be allowed to stay. He admitted that the tracks found might have been his, but explained that he was at Mrs. McArthur’s house in the afternoon. He totally denies having been at Mrs. McArthur’s early on Sunday morning or on Saturday night. The police are in possession of certain evidence which shows that in one statement, the hour between 12.20 and 1.30 a.m. is unaccounted for. Bowen persistently denies having any knowledge of, or any hand in the tragedy and protests his innocence. For the sake of humanity, it is to be hoped that in spite of the present appearances, this latest tragedy may be proved to be the result of an accident. At all events, the police will make every effort to prove beyond a doubt how the fire originated, and we have only to await the result.

The Inquest was opened on Sunday at 11a.m. before Mr. E. P. Young and a jury of three adjourned until Monday next.