The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1871-09-30 00:00:00

THE RAILWAY TRAGEDY.

jealouey which he had entertained, and to which this
violence WM attributed by his friends, the testimony
Was conflicting.
The inquiry was adjourned.
•

The London Standard makes the following reflec-
tions on the tragedy

-
" The murder and suicide in the railway eartlage on the
Yorkshire and Lancashire line have received 101 mucli of
revelation Irs W. to have been expected, and as much pro-
bably se in possible. It is the ohl and terrible atory of
drink, jealousy, :not crime. A railway pouter notices muoke
issuing front the viimlow .1 ialo of the carriages in the train
that draws up at Kirby Junitidt. lie opens the door, and
thole two human beings stone dead—one foully murdered,
the Alter self-destroyed :ii wonian stretched a c.wpse upon
the floor, the blood Moving front the left temple in streams
a man reclining on the seat where he mink Mick allot p his
own hand through the mouth. In Ids hand NOS a small and
Ire.. four-barrelled revolver, two chamliem Ibf which were still
loaded. init the two which were discharged had done their
deathly. work. That there had Imola struggle was plain. It
may have been that murder was not the first intention
of hint alio wan the murderer, that he contemplated nothing
more than a cowardly attack upon the wretched woman by
Iris si.le, and that it was her resistance to the dastardly
attempt is hkh caused the final aim to be taken and the shot
to be fired. In allot relation did these two stand to eacli
other! That was the fret suggested, auol that
iilleSt ion has now Well answered. It was surmised from the
first that the pair were man fool aife, that they had quarrelled
mid were about to separate. The information whieh hail been
elicited by the inquiries already made shows at any rate that
the first of those Min... Was correct. The bnaher of the
wretched man who is dead and the father of the murdered
wornahi have clue forward to identify the bodice, and
to tell all they knew about the origin and the motiree
of the erinie. No doubt t here was much to blame hi the
conduct of Robert Wanks* and his wife. For the laid ,
two years we are told. they hail Hot lived happily together,
' owing hr Wanless Inoleg jealous or his wife, and his taking
to drink hire left him four months ago, snot ha took to
drinking and logt his situation.' last `Monday week Waniese,
lio bad gone to live with his brother at Sutton tisk, left to
vidt his wife, who, he had ascertained, was staying at inn
sister's, near Wigan. Ile went and returned inn WedoeteleY
lase lie left again ; awl Ins broth, knew no none of him till
he saw him a aelf-made corpse In the Liverpool dead-house.
''alp a few days before Ire shot his wife Robert Wetness had
some conversation with his fatherindaw ' I've clone to see
how thiligs are to be,' lie sail. If I hail iny life to live over
again I would act very differently. Within tw el ve hours attire
Unit when he committed the toned, r Wittile. had an inter-
view with his wife. Ile asked her vrhether her love for hitn
had entirely gone! And she replied Yes.' l)n the day
after this WAni.ll, knoaing of his wife's intended departure.
got into the mune carriage, with what purpose in his Main
no living man enrur atty. 'that a 0401 W. hi hia possession
is no absolute proof that minder au in his thoughts from
the very first Ile may have Witaled tO threaten rather to
kill. lint jealousy anti drink together—jealousy it seems
probable, whose inspiring cause think was—had robbed
Wanless of all control over his own autumn. The shot was
fired, anti it was nairder. What motive prompted the
second shot 110lme can certainly say. It may have been part
of his delibunite stint original scheme ; it may have 110C11 the
act of a moment of intense agony, overwhelming terror, and
remorse. It is idle to speculate ripen this. Ali we know is
that that idiot was fired, and the same hand which had
wrought lit, wife's death wrought that of Itoliert Wanless
himself. 'the story is a terrible one, but it sustains a ter-
rible warning too '