January 24: Child murdered; Remembering Jack Matheson.

Winnipeg Evening Tribune January 25, 1939

January 24, 1939 - Winnipeg is shocked by the murder of a child. Excerpts:

All the resources of the police were mustered today in an effort to track down the unidentified slayer of of 6 year old Rose Mary Eiler, choked to death with her own underwear which the marauder stuffed in her mouth to stop her cries as he ransacked her father's suite Tuesday night and carried off some mysterious papers.

February 4, 1939, Winnipeg Free Press

It didn't take long for police to zero in on the father as the culprit. Going through a messy divorce he cooked up a fake robbery to remove valuables from his suite so that it wouldn't be part of the settlement. Things went wrong when the child suffocated.

Mr. Eiler was found guilty and received a nine month sentence. The housekeeper

January 24, 2011 - Jack Matheson dies. The long-time sports reporter began his career with the Winnipeg Tribune in 1947 and remained there until its demise in 1980. (Also see.)