The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1878-11-23 00:00:00

THE BURGLARY AT BLACKHEATH.

In London, on Tuesday, at the Central Criminal Court,
before Mr. Justice Hawkins, John Ward, alias Charles Peace,
aged 60, described as a sailor' was indicted for burglary at the
dwelling-house of Mr. James Alexander Burness, and stealing
a quantity of plate, his property. He was also charged with
feloniously shooting at Edward Robinson, a police-constable,
with intent to murder him; and on other counts his intent
was laid to be to do him grievous bodily harm, and to resist
his lawful apprehension. The indictment proceeded with
was that for shooting at the constable.

The prisoner, who has nearly white hair and wore
spectacles, appeared to have a rather benevolent aspect as
he was placed in the dock. He pleaded "Not Guilty" to
b•th charges.
Mr. Poland and Mr. Straight conducted the prosecution
for the Treasury; the prisoner was defended by Mr. Montagu
Williams and Mr. Austen Metcalf.—We take the following
report of the trial from the Daily Telegraph :

Mr. Poland, in opening the case, said that the prisoner was
charged with the offence of attempting to murder a police.
constable, and the case was one of a very serious character.
There was no doubt that on the night of the occurrence the
prisoner was engaged in the commission of a burglary, and,
in the constable's attempt to apprehend the prisoner, the
latter fired at him no less than five times with a revolver.
He was wounded in the arm, but fortunately nit seriously,
and the constable was not intimidated by what had taken
place, but kept hold of the prisoner until assistance arrived.
As to the conduct of the prisoner, he submitted there could
be no doubt that when a man fired five chambers of a
revolver loaded with powder and ball at another, the only
object that could be naturally supposed was to take life, and
he asked them, therefore, to convict the prisoner of that
offence.

Edward Robinson was then examined. He said: On the
morning of Oct, 10 I was on duty at Blackheath, in the avenue
leading from St. John's Park, the back of the residence of
3Er. Burness. I noticed the flickering of a light in Mr. Bur-
ness's drawing-room, and this excited my suspicions, and I
procured the assistance of another constable named Girling.
The light continued to move about the house, and I was as-
sisted by Girling on to the wall. At this time a sergeant
named Brown, came up, and he went to the front
of the house and I heard the bell ring, and the
light was extinguished immediately, and the prisoner
jumped out of the dining-room window on to the lawn, and
saw the prisoner in the act of running away. I followed
him, and he turned round and pointed a revolver at my
head, and said, "Keep back, keep off, or by God I wilt
shoot you !" I said to him, "You had better not," and he
Immediately fired three chambers of a revolver at my head.
Two shots passed over my head, and the third by the side
of my head. I made a rush at him, and he fired a fourth
shot, and I closed with him and struck him in the face with
my left hand. The prisoner then said, "You -, I will
settle you this time," and then fired a fifth shot, which
wounded me in the right arm. I seized the prisoner then
and threw him down, and the prisoner exclaimed, "You --
I will give you something else," and tried to put his
hand in his pocket. I struggled with him, and got the re-
volver from him and struck him several blows with it, and
held him down till Sergeant Brown came up, and he was
then secured. The revuiver was strapped round his wrist.
I began to feel faint from loss of blood at this time, and handed
the prizoner over to Sergeant Brown and Girling.

Cross-examined: I hit the prisoner very hard when I got
possession of the revolver, and he fired at me immediately.
I did not hear the prLsoner say at any time that he only did
it to frighten me.
By the learned Judge: I had no doubt that a burglary
was being committed in the house of Mr. Burness at the
time I got into the garden.
Charles Brown, sergeant of police, proved that he heard the
shots fired and the cries for assistance, and said that when he
went to the spot lie found Robinson lying above the prisoner
with a six-chamber revolver in his hand, but it was strapped
round the prisoner's arm. On the prisoner he found a silver
flask, a banker's cheque book, and a letter case, which were
afterwards identified by Mrs. Burness, aud a small crowbar.
Upon examining the house he found a number of silver
spoons lying on the table, which had been taken from their
place of deposit.
Cross-examined: The revolver was a six-chamber one,
and all the barrels had been discharged.
William Girling, the other policeman, confirmed the teiti-
many of the previous witnesses as to the five shots being
fired, and he also said that he heard the prisoner say that
he only did it to frighten him On the prisoner he found an
angur, a jemmy, a gimlet, and other housebreaking imple-
ments. The prisoner attempted to get away after he appre-
hended him, and he hit him with his staff
Mr. Bonny, inspector of the R Division, proved that he
examined Mr. Burness's house, and found that several places
had been broken open by a jemmy. The prisoner refused to
give his name or address, and when he was asked for them
tie replied, "Find out."
Sarah Selina Cooper, servant to Mr. Barneas, proved that
she found a bullet in the drawing-room on the morning after
the occurrence.

Mr. Montagu Williams, on behalf of the prisocer, entreated
the jury in the first place not to allow any prejudice that
might have been created in their mlnds by what they had
read about the number of burglaries that had been com-
mitted in the neighbourhood to operate against the prisoner,
but to be guided solely by the evidence relating to the par-
ticular charge. He said that his case waat the prisoner
did not intend to murder the constable, but that all he de-
sired was to get away, and he argued that the facts were of
a character that tended to support this view of the case.

Mr. Justice Hawkins having summed up.
The jury, after a very short deliberation, found the pri-
soner Gullty upon the first count of the indictment which
charged him with discharging the revolver at the constable)
with intent to murder him. The jury at the same time de-
sired to express their admiration of the courageous conduct
of the constable, and expressed a hope that he would receive
some reward for the way in which he had acted. The
foreman of the jury handed in a written paper to this
effect.

Mr. Justice Hawkins: I am not surprised, gentlemen, that
you should have made this representation, for the constable
has certainly behaved in a very gallant manner.

Mr. Poland said that probably his lordship would like
to hoar something of the previous history of the prisoner.
Mr. Justice Hawkins said he should be glad to receive
any information that could be given to him respecting the
prisoner.

-
Inspector Bonny then stated that at the prisoner's house
at Sheffield there was found a large quantity of property, and
in twenty•siz cases property had been identified by the
owners as the produce of different burglaries. The necessary
legal proofs were not at present in court, bu% they would be
produced on the following morning.

Mr. Justice Hawkins said he did not think it was
necessary to postpone passing judgment, as he thought the
court was already in possession of sufficient Information to
leave no doubt as to what course should be taken.

Mr. Read, the Deputy Clerk of Arraigns, then put the
usual formal question to the prisener whether he had any-
thing to say why judgment should not be pronounced upon
him.

The prisoner, in reply, said: Yes; I have this to say, my
lord. I have not been fairly dealt with, and I declare, before
God, that I never had the intention to kill the prosecutor,
and all I meant to do was to frighten him, in order that I
might get away. If I had had the intention to kill him I
could easily have done it; but I never had that intention.
I declare I did not fire five shots— I only fired four—and I
think I can show you, my lord, how I can prove that only
four shots were fired. If your lordship will look at the
pistol you will see that it goes elf very easily, and the
sulk barrel went off of its own accord after I was taken
into custody. At the time the fifth shot was fired the
constable had hold of my arm, and the pistol went off quite
by accident. I really did not know that the pistol was
loaded, and I hope, my lord, that you will have mercy on me.
I feel that I have disgraced n:lyself. I am not fit either to
live or die. lam not prepared to meet my God, but still I
feel that my career has been made to appear much worse
than it really is. Oh, my lord do have mercy on me—do
give me one chance of repenting, and of preparing myself to
meet my God. Do, Yny lord, have mercy on me, and I assure
you that you shall never repeat it. As you hope for mercy
yourself at the hands of the great God, do have mercy on me,
and give me a chance of redeeming my character and pre-
paring myself to meet my God. I pray and beseech you to
have mercy on me.

The prisoner delivered this speech in a calm and earnest
tone of voice, and at the conclusion he appeared to be quite
overcome by his feelings.

Mr. Justice Hawkins then addressing the prisoner said:
John Ward, the jury have found you guilty upon the most ir-
resistible evidence, of having fired this pistol five thins at the
constable with intent to murder him, and I must say that I
entirely concur in that verdict, and I do not believe that any
other would, upon consideration, have been satisfactory
to themselves. You were detected in the act of committing
a burglary in the house of a gentleman, and, putting alto-
gether aside what may have been your conduct on other
occasions, the circumstances of this particular case are quite
satisfactory to prove to my mind that you are an ac-
complished burglar, and that you went to this house
determined to rob, by fair means if you could, but
armed in srich a manner that you were also determined to
resort to foul means if necessary to escape detection. You
have asserted that you only fired the pistol at the constable
in order to frighten him, that thus you might be enabled to
make your escape. Ido not believe you. A man who lets a
deadly instrument of this description strapped to his arm
does not make use of it in the manner you did wi hout a
deadly intention, and it is beyond belief that he can have
any other; and the prosecutor and you also have to thank
God that his life was spared. In the discharge of his
duty, and in the bravest manner, he advanced to close
with you, and while he was close to you four shots were
deliberately fired at him, and if any one thing was wanting
to show your murderous intention it was supplied by the ex-
pression made use of by you before you fired the fifth shot,
"I will settle you this time." This shot was fired at his
heed, and but that he was guarding his head at the time
with his arm he would have received the shot upon it, and,
it that had been the case, d-iath would probably have
been the result, and you would at this moment pro-
batlly be receiving a sentence of death. I do not
cotno yourantecedents. sidyeor it at all necessary to make any inquiry
, the facts before me are quiteurin
sufficient to show that you are an accomplished burglar,
and a N
man who would not hesitate to commit murder in
fail carrying out that object. otwhaitmhsytadnudtinygteyotuhre apguee,htc if here
fore, I feel that I should a
I
You the extreme sentence of the law for
which you have been convicted, which is that
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warders in attendance, and was
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Mr. Justice Hawkins then directed the prosecutor, Edward
Jury
nhseovo ,a to
expressedstan d forward,the
tr
admiration and
th he i m ,
bravery you
have exhibited in this matter, and have also ezpressed a
wish that you shouid r,9ceive some reward. In the first
z your conduct in order that
you ,ed their opinion 0f
exprea
place, I hand to you the paper in which the jurY have
i
you may kaep it and refer to it in after life, and that
t may be an incentive to future good conduct. I quite
regard to the man-
concur in the opinion of the jury with
and „
ner in which you have acted on this occasion,Punk
, the country ought to be proud of you and of ihe force to