A profound sensation was created this morning in Sale
by the news that Mr Arthur Montague Short,manager of
the local branch of the Commercial Bank, had cut the
throats of his two little children, shot his wife,
and blown his own brains out. The first intimation of
the event was received with incredulity, but,
unhappily, it was soon proved to be true It had been
overstated only in oneparticular. Mrs Short was not
dead, and though shot twice in the face is expected
to have a good chanceof recovery.
The nursegirl employed by Mrs Short was the first to
learn anything of the tragedy. About eight o'clock
she was giving the two children their breakfast when
Mr Short entered the room dressed in his pyjamas
He was calm, and spoke quietly. Addressing the girl
he said "Mrs Short is ill ,I want you to run out for
the nurse, Mrs Nelson. Tell her to come here as
quickly as she can". The girl asked what she should
do with the children while she was away. He answered,
"Don't bother yourself about them. I will look after
them". Just as he was leaving the room he called her
back, and said "Now go quickly and don't go to
Mrs Short's bedroom. She might not let you bring the
nurse if she knew"
The girl hastily descended the stairs to carrv out her
instructions, and as she went looked for one of the
other servants to ask that attention should be given
to the children while ahe was away. She did not see
one, and without further delay went to seek Mrs Nelson.
When she returned a quarter of an hour later she was
horrified by the sight of her mistress who was standing
at the head of the staircase calling to her. Blood was
streaming from her face, and as she clutched the
bannister for support she faintly whispered, "Mr Short
shot me in my sleep. He is in that room, dying. Go and
see". The girl made her way to the room with Mrs Short
clinging to her. When they looked in Mr Short was lying
in a pool of blood and Mrs Short cried out in agony,
"He is dead". At the same moment the cook came out
of the children's room and fell at their feet in a faint.
As she fell she gasped, "The children" and her words
struck Mrs Short with unmistakable significance.
The news of the tragedy spread quickly, and while
several ladies assisted the servants in the care of
Mrs Short, Sergeant McGann accured the services of
Dr Wells, Dr Gibbs and Dr McDonald. They attended
first to Mrs Short, who was found to have two bullet
wounds in her face. One bullet had entered in front of
the left ear below the temple, and passing through the
base of he nose had come out on the right cheek bone.
The other had entered the neck on the left side and
had come out on the point of the chin. Both bullets
were found in the bed in which Mrs Short was lying at
the time. When the injuries were attended to the
doctors examined Mr Short and the two children. All
three were dead. The children's throats were cut so
deeply that their heads were almost severed. They
must have died instantaneously, and so also must
Mr Short. He had placed the revolver in his mouth and
the bullet had passed through his brain.
An examination of the several rooms supplied the
history of the tragedy. The nursegirl left the two
children in the middle of their breakfast. She was
only absent about a quarter of an hour, so Mr Short
must have taken them from the table immediately after
her departure, and having placed them in their cot,
cut their throats with his razor. The razor, stained
with blood, lay between them. After killing the
children he went to his own bedroom, and firing two
shots at his wife, threw himself upon the bed and
blew his brains out.
Mrs Short had recovered sufficiently this evening to
be able to give a few details of the occurrence.
She said:- "I was lying in bed dosing when Arthur
came into the room and said, "Aren't you going to
get up". I answered, "Yes, presently". Then he caught
hold of the back of the bedstead with one hand and
with the other drew a revolver and fired a shot at me.
I cried out, "Oh, Arthur, what are you doing?".
He said, "It's all right, dear. It's all right".
Then coming close he fired a second shot at me.
That is all I know".
Mr Short was so well esteemed locally, and was known
to be so utterly devoted to his wife and children,
that the first and most likely explanation of the
tearful tragedy was that he had gone suddenly mad and
had committed the deed while out of his mind. All the
evidence which had so far been collected is against
this theory, and goes to prove that the deed had been
premeditated, for some hours at least. In addition to
letters giving instructions to the police to telegraph
to several friends and relatives intimating his death,
and letters to friends asking them to break the news
to his and his wife's parents, Mr Short had left
behind him envelopes addressed to employees of the
bank containing their wages to date. The following
memo for the police had also been penned by him: -
"I have killed my noble wife and innocent children to
save them from the effects of my ruin. I intended to
blow my brains out, but cannot leave them alone to
have the punishment for which I am solely liable.
God help our unfortunate relatives.
- A.M. SHORT."
So far nothing has been learned to explain the message
which Mr Short left behind him "portending his ruin".
His accounts at the bank were recently audited and
passed as correct, and apart from his business there
does not appear to be anything which could involve him
in "ruin". He and his wife were popular, well liked,
and respected. He was steady, and never speculated or
gambled. His time was devoted to his bank, to his
family, and to the affairs of local institutions, such
as the Mechanics Institute, School of Mines, and the
Gippsland Hospital, in the management of which he was
interested. He is known to have been much worried
during the banking crisis and to have been deeply
touched by the distresses of a few friends who had
left their money in the institution on his assurance
that the bank was sound. Later the orders given him
from the head office to call in or reduce many of the
overdrafts were painful to him, and it is believed
that these and general business troubles had unsettled
his mind. Throughout the district there is a feeling
of deep sorrow for the tragedy, and local gaieties,
such as the Agricultural Society's ball, have been
abandoned out of respect to his and his wife's memory.
The inspector of the bank arrived today, and has made
arrangements for the conduct of the bank and also for
an examination of the accounts.
