Staunton Vindicator

HORRIBLE AFFAIR.

Murder of a Lawyer and Arrest of his Wife.—A dispatch, dated Rochester, N. Y., Dec. 21, says:

Our city was yesterday morning thrown into a state of great excitement by the discovery of the mangled, murdered body of Charles W. Sittles, lawyer, of this city, in the Tennessee river, a few rods below the Falls. From the pools of blood and other evidences of struggles, the murderers were easily traced from the place of the fatal conflict to the river, where they attempted to conceal the evidences of their crime by sinking the body of their victim. The water being shallow, the body did not float away from the shore, and was found at about 7 o'clock yesterday (Saturday) morning. The body was immediately taken to the police office, and arrest made of his wife, her brother and several others of her relatives.

From the evidence, it appears that Sittles and his wife did not live happily together, and that a separation took place about a year ago, but for the last month or two they had lived together again.

On the ground where was discovered blood and other evidences of a conflict, were found a piece of a victorine corresponding with one worn by Mrs. Sittles, a rosette matching one found in possession, and a comb, a pair of spectacles, said to belong to her brother Ira Stout, a young man aged about 28 years, and the arm of a chair said to have been taken from the office where Sittles was employed. Mrs. Sittles left wrist and her brother's left arm were found to be broken, showing that they had been engaged in some extraordinary conflict.

The evidence, so far, seems strongly against the wife of the murdered man and her brother, Ira Stout. The examination continued through all yesterday, and was adjourned from 12 o'clock last night till 9 o'clock this morning