The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1868-02-08 00:00:00

The Times, in a leader, has the
on the ease :-

remarks

r Mr. Speke's case has attracted more than ordinary strew.
tion 'root his station in life, his profession, and the celebrity
which his name has acquired from the African adventures
and untimely fate of Ins brother. But in itself it is not an
I unusual one. So (seas we know as yet, it is simply a disappear-
ence. On the oth of Jan. Mr. Speke left his temporary home
! iii Becteston square. London, and hehtie not been seen since.
, It is strange, but the records of the police have numbers of
I such strange stories. These prove that men do continually
diaappeu for more than the time which has elapsed since
' the tith of January, and then come hack or are brought
' back. Therefore we must not hastily jump to the conclusion
that he has best the victim of crime. Yet. on the other
hand, such a crime may have been committed. Gentlemen
have been murdered before now in Loudon, and Mr. Speke
may have met such a fate. We are as yet almost entirely
without evidence, for the only trace of the missing man, the
finding of It's hat in the Birdcage-witlk, may he adapted to
either hypothesis with almost equal ease. We are forced
I to form a judgment exclusively on the circumstances which
I preceded Mr Spekes disappearance, and they unfortunately
are but very inautticteut guides.
1 The BMWS character who found Mr speke's hat is respect-
able, and there is no reason to doubt that he gives a truthful
account of the matter, Ile says, we believe, that he found
the hat close to the iron railings of the Park, opposite to what
are called the Cockpit steps. This, it 110elt hardly be said,
is a place public enough, with cabs and foot passengers cog,
tinually passing, and with police and sentinels in the neigM
! bourhood, who would probably have heard something of
such cries as a strong inan assailed by murderers would
utter. Now, on the hypothesis of a murder we must sup-
pose that it was committed not long after sin o'clock, since
Mr. Speke, who proposed to lids Eceleston-square in tune to
dress amigo out to dinner at seven, would hardly be in Si est-
minoter later than half-past six Supposing. then, the place
where the has was found to be the scene of the crime, we
must conclude that a man can be murdered in a frequented
thoroughfare, and close to &thickly-populated district, at 11.11
hour when numbers of people are shoot, and that his body can
be spirited away so that no trace of it remains, l'robably
no such deed can be recalled to the memory of the oldest
Londoner, and it seems so utterly incredible, that we must
put a highway robbery mid murder in the Birdcage-walk out
of the question. There remains the supposition that Mr.
Speke may have been decoyed into some haunt in West-
minster and there robbed and murdered. Be is said to
have had 4:20 with him, and if, being • powerful man,
he had resisted robbery or extortion, he might have be-
come engaged in a struggle which terminated in hie
death. It is, then, just possible, though hardly probable,
that the murderers might have taken the hat, which it
appears had the owner's name in it, to the Birdcage-walk,
and there thrown it 011 the ground in order to divert sus-
picion from the place where the deed was really done. This
hypothesis of an indoor murder is, of course, much more
admissible than the other Such things have been done,
and will be done again. Ruffians like those who have lately
made Endellstreet notorious, ur like the garrotters who
infested London two or three years ago, are quite capable
of knocking down a man and then murdering him if needs-
sary. No one can say that such a crime has not been
committed. But there moo evidence of such a crime. Tho
flossing roan was not seen to enter any house of question •
able fame, no articles of dress have been found except the
hat—in short, there is, so far as we know, no clue to the
matter at all.

Let us now turn to another view of the subject. It
certainly does seem strange to suggest that • sane and
respectable man, who left his friend's house after five
o'clock with the alleged Intention of returning before seven,
and who, moreover, had a wedding to attend the next
morning, should of his own free will absent hitusel
altogether, and disappear from the world. Vet such an
event is proved by experience not only to be possible,
hut to be even more likely than • murder ins tavern or.
brothel. People are always disappearing, sometimes under
the influence of an uncontrollable impulse bearing no affinity
to reason, sometimes under the 'pen of. sudden temptation,
sometimes out of shame at some excess into which they may
have been betrayed. It may be remembered that at the
time of the accident on the lee In the Regent's Park many
persona were looked for by their friend, in the dead-house
who had never been near the Park at all, but had merely
disappeared during the preceding twenty-four hours These
represented, in fact, the evasions of a single Loudon day. It
Is, at least, within the lymials of possibility that the missing
man may have gone to some place where he was made intoxi-
cated and kept until the dinner and the next day's wedding
were over, and that afterwards he was ashamed to return. The
posting of the placard, with the offer Id a reward for his re-
covery, may have still further prevented his re-appearance
by seeming to preclude tlll3 possibility of the matter being
hushed up. The throwing away of the hat may have been
hut a atrategem, and if It shout I turn out that the finder,
who kept it several days, was mistaken as to the day he found
it, this supposition would acquire further strength There
is aho the possibility of a simple unreasoning flight. Men
have before now gone out to their bashiees like Mr. Spoke,
and the next thing that has been beard of them is that they
were at New York or Bombay. It Is not always the surest
way In these matters to look for what appears the moat
reasonable. Men's minds often act in utter defiance of
reason, and the most improbable solution proves to be the
trite one.

For these reasons we think the police ought not to limit
themselves to searching for a dead body. That Mr Speke
has been made away with is naturally the first conclusion.
He came to town tor two days only he went out in the
afternoon loran hour and a half, which would have been
quite taken up with the call he intended to make lie did
not return; he has never since returned therefore he must
be dead. This is the fliers obvious reasoning, hut it may
not be the true one, and we should belittle surprised to hear
that the missing man once more appeared in the laud of the
living.

ACTION BY A COMEDIAN AGAINST A
RAILWAY COMPANY.
Lord Chief Juatice Bovill, with a special jury, has
had before him a railway compensation case, Worboys
1.. the North-Western Railway Company. The de-
fendants had paid 1:300 into court, so that the only
question to be tried was whether this sum was auttis
cient to compensate the plaintiff.
The plaintiff was a leading low comedian who had
performed at several of the London houses and also in
most of the principal towns in the provinces. On the
29th of June last he was travelling from Liverpool to
London, in pursuance of an engagement to form one
of Mr. Sothern's company in Paris during the Exhibh
tion time. An accident happened not far from War,
rington junction, in consequence of some points being
wrong, and the train ran into some coal trucks that
were upon a siding.
The jury, after considering the matter in the box
for a few minutes, found a verdict for the plaintiff for
£2.00 beyond the sum paid into court.
THE BIRMINGHAM MURDER. .1

At the Public-office, Birmingham, on Tuesday, -
'Joseph Beesley, 21, shoemaker, residing in Lawley-
street ; William Beesley, 27, costermon ger, Park-street;
Charles Grayson, 35, hawker, Albion-street ; and
Elizabeth Grayson, his wife' were charged with being
concerned in the murder of Miss Mary Millbourne, at .
heherargheoduse.in.„.l.l.e7nstbredet, onThtehec 21st
ouflt.poll'ihcee
prisoners were all apprehended at an early hour in the .
and on being. placed in the dock were
asked for a remand, on triegjoi....
implicated would be in custody in a fes;"i`kin4ll...tiel
remand was granted accordingly till Tuesday next.
A brother of the two find-named prisoners has also
been apprehended at Bristol.
At the meeting of the Watch Committee of the
borough it was resolved to offer a reward of £5O to any
person who can give such information as may lead to
the apprehension and conviction of the murderer.
THE MARKETS.

M ARK:LANE, MONDAY.

There was only a limited quantity of wheat on sale here
to-day coastwise and by land carriage, andthe bulk of it maw
In very middling condition. Good and flue samples were in
fair request, at prices equal to Monday last : but inferior
parcels were very dull, and rather lower to selL The show
of foreign wheat was good. On the whole, about an average
business was transacted in most kinds, at last week's cur.
reucy. Floating cargoes of grain were inactive, but not
cheaper. The supply of both English and foreign barley was
rather limited Most descriptions were in moderate request,
at late rates. Malt was held at very full prices, but the de-
mand for it was by no means active. The supply was
seasonably good (Pats were the turn dearer, although the
inquiry for them was by no means active. The imports of
fereigu were on a limited scale. Beans moved oil slowly,
but at very full prices. In peas only a limited business wu
passing, at late rates. The flour trade was steady, at full
quotations. Maize was held at quite last week's quotations.
Coeds, generally, were a slow inquiry. In the value of cakes
no change took place.
MARK-LANE, WEDNIMAY.

Fresh up to our market to-day the arrivals of English
wheat were only moderate, and the quality of the sample.
generally was most Inferior. The demand for both red and
white parcels ruled very inactive, and to force sales lower
prices must have been submitted to. lied any really tine and
dry parcels been on offer, however, last week's prices would
have been readily obtained. Foreign wheats were very dull
of sale, and the quotations were barely maintained. There
was a fair show on sale. Both English and foreign barleys
were in request, and, being scarce, commanded lull values.
The foaling grain cargo trade has ruled inactive, but with-
out change in price for any description of produce. There
was very little inquiry for malt, but values were Minty
maintained. Oats sold on former terms, with little business
; doing. Beans were in little request, at stationary prices.
Peas were neglected, MA without change in value Linseed
was in better demand, and prices were firm. Rapeseed was
steady in value. English seeds met with little inquiry, hut
quotations were unaltered. The flour trade was very dull,
but both town and country marks were held for Monday's
terms, foreign qualities being quite as dear.

METROPOLITAN CATTLE MARKET, MoNDAY.
There was only a limited supply of foreign stock on sale
here to-day. The demand, however, ruled heavy, and the
quotations had a drooping tendency. Fresh up from our
own grazing district.; the arrival of beasts was moderately
good, and in prime condition. The supplies from Ireland
and Scotland were rather limited. For all breed, the demand
ruled heavy, at a decline in the quotations, compared with
..rviny last, of 21. per Sib. The best Sects and crosses sold
at to 10,1. per Sib. From Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, and Canr.
bridgeshire we received about 1,5,0 Soots and tamers: from
other pasta of England, 700 varloua breed,, from Scotland,
332 Scots and crosses and from Ireland, 170 cows, holler%
eirc. Notwithstanding that the supply of sheep was limited,
sales programed heavily. In prices, however, no quotable
change took place, the top figure for Downs and half-broils
being 55. per 817. There were a few lambs on offer at late
rates, namely, from 35a. to 37a, per head. The few calves in
the market changed hands slowly, at last week's currency,
namely, from 4s. 4-d. to 55. Cl. per 81b. In pigs—the supply
of which was good—very little was passing, on former terms
The highest price was 45. 2d. per 81b.