The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1861-06-18 00:00:00

tifrfrtiLEY.

BDROLARY AND MURDER AT ELNOSWOOD,

On Monday, June lOth, a—ha—Ammo murder was corn-
nutted in the house of the lice. Mr. Tilyler, incumbent
of the new church built a few years since by Thomas
Alcock, Esq., M.P. The house where the foul deed was
perpetrated is situated in a very secluded spot, the
nearest house being that of the schoolmaster of the
National schools, about 2(X) or 300 yards off. The Rev.
Mr. Tsyler and his family were on • visit to thertsey,
and left Men. Holliday, aged 55, wife of Mr. Holliday,
'mtge.-keeper to Thomas Alcock, Esq., M.P., to kot
after the house. We were informed the rev. gentleman
wished to karr some other person with lier,but deCell.42d
soul ahe was n/t in the least afraid. Her husband kit
her soon after pis on Monday evening, end agreed to go
egain at nine the nest morning. He did an, and not
finding the abutters down, and the front doord. bet
the wherenl',erteewr hailaarwuifeedSlepOt,nthperunfortinugnate
woman was found in her night dress lying dead at the
foot of the bed. It appears the murderer,
first tut • pane of glass from one of the front windows,
and cut their lisnds, as there is a little blood on the
woodwork. They then proceeded to the ba4 of the
house, the lower windows of which are protected be
iron bars. They then took the stump of an old tree
about 12 feet long, and placed it against an out-house
Joining the dwelling-home, sod thus got on the roof and
sinsalird the window of the bedroom in which the de.
ceased slept, knocking down • looking glass that stood
i,n a tsh: jet r the window. The noise probably
awoke ile,eased. alio no doubt made an elem. It
would seem us if the inurdertrs then dragged lit•r from
the liend¢if the Ltd, as there is • streak of blood on the
floor from the head to the foot of the bed, where they
bound her tightly, lands and feet. They then thrust
an old stocking so forcibly into her mouth, that the
tongue was pushed back as far as the glottis. A formida-
ble weapon was found in the bedroom, 20 inches long,
with a heavy knob at one end, and a piece of cord to
twist round the wrist at the other end. Active
measures are being taken to apprehend the guilty
parties.

-
XIXGSWOOD, Thursday Evening.
By the active exertions of Superintendent Coward,
of the Surrey constabulary, who has the entire manage-
ment of the case, and Sergeant Robinson, of the London
detective force (who bail been sent Lore by Sir Richard
Mayon, at the special 'clues! of Mr. Alcock, 111. P., to
assist the local authori ties), impor tent information was oh-
Weed to-day, which may have the effect of elucidating
the mystery which at present surrounds this atrocious
murder, and perhaps of bringing the guilty parties to
justice.
The Rev. Mr. Taylor being absent from the parsonage'
house upon the night of the murder, it was impossible to
ascertsin ebether • robbery had been committed until
his return, slid previous to ascertaining that fact it was
almost treeless for the pollee to etterupt le trace the per-
petrators of the crime. Mr. Taylcr was therefore
courniunicated with, and upon his arrival home
he made 'careful inspection of hisproperty, and reported
that nothing whatever hail been taken away. There was.
braket of plate in the adjoining room, and • fair amount
of portable articles of value in every other apartment
in the house, but nothing had been removed, and
even the unfortunate woman's own purse, which
contained money and • ring, was left untoucred in
her dress which hung behind the door of the room in
which she had Iren sn ruthlessly deprived of life.
No room in fact, had been entered rave that where
the deceased slept the police therefore earns to the
conclusion that rubbery was not the motive for the then-
ittal of the crime,or that the assassins had been alarmed
before they were enabled to ransack the house and secure
the valuables it contained. Further investigation
has proved the correctuessa of the last conjecture
and shows that the murder had been premeditated, and
arrangement' made of the most determined character
to carry the base design to a suceessfel issue. The
hands and feet of the deceased were tied with pieces of
cosnuion cord. Little notice was taken of this at first,
because it was thought the cord might have been found in
the room by the murderers. To-day, bowever,it has been
ascertained that the miscreants must have brought the
cord, already prepared with slip knots, with them. A
silk handkerchief was found tied over the poor creature's
mouth. This was also thought to belong to the house.
Soli, however, is not the case—and from certain marks
upon it, this article it is believed, will be of niaterial
assistance to the police in tracing the perpetrator" of
the brutal outrage. But the roost important piece of
evidence to establish the premeditation of the crime is
a rather formidable cluh.head bludgeon, which has been
found by the side of the washstand in the room. This
weapon had been cut from • beech tree, and the knots
had been carefully cut off, while • piece of clothes line
sufficient to go rouud the wriet several times, had been
fastened to the handle, to prevent it being wrested
from the grasp of the person using it. A violent blow
(rein this instrument would have caused instant death.
No doubt is now entertained that the murder was
committed between 11 and 11 o'clock at night, and
that the assassins were disturbed by the slamming of
the schoolmaster's gate a heit he returned home shortly
before midnight. It is believed, too, that the perpe-
trators of the crime were two strange men who had
been seen lurking about the neighbourhood ever since
Friday last, They were seen by several persons, all
of whom agree in their descriptions. (Inc of these
men went to the schoolmaster's house, the same
evening as the murder was coiumitted, upon some
frivolous matter; but although the most active steps
have been adopted to trace them since the occurrence,
up to this evening the police have not succeeded in
their efforts. It is thought by sonic that the attempt
at robbery waa intended to have been made at the
residence of Mr. Aleock, NP., situated only a few
yard.' distance from the Rev. Mr. Tajlor's homer,
which, in fact, stands upon the hon. member's ,
grounds.
A discovery of considerable importance has been
made. A small, box, now empty, but supposed to bare
contained jewelkry, has been found in the room where
the murder took place. The box is the property of one
of the female servants, who is at present absent
with the family. Sergeant Robinson has communicated
with her, and awaits with souse anxiety to be informed
whether the box has been robbed of its contents, or
whether she could amount for the articles it usually
contained.

A person has come forwsrd, wbo states that be saw
the unfortunate woman alive at ten o'clock on the
night of the murder. This sets at rest a suggestion
that the crime. was committed early in the evening.
Mr. Harris, the surgeon of Reigate, bas been in.
structed to make A po,t-uiorteni examination of the
body, and arrangements hove been made for holding
an inquest. Meanwhile lbw sensation throughout the
district is very great, and as fact after fact transpires,
great indignation is expressed towards the perpetrators
of the terrible crime.

METROPOLITAN SCHOOL CHORAL SOCIETY.
On Saturday, June Bth, the annual concert of this
society was held in the Crystal Palace. The week bad
been extremely unpleasant and stormy, bet fortunately
Saturday wu an iniprovement on the preceding part of
the week, which induced a great number to attend. At
10 a.m, the children began to arrive, and it wu an
interesting sight to see the various schools aseemble,
some having come by rail, and ',Any by vane and other
conveyances. All! a.m., the time axed for the morn-
ing's rehearsal, the children being seated in the Orches-
tra, Hr. G. W. Martin, the conduoter, stepped on the
platform, and was received with loud cheers. The per-
formance was excellently carried out, and elicited great
applause, from many hundreds, who had already reached
the palace. But though this was an admirably executed,
it only gave Owe to • better, for by 3 p.m., the child-
ren, 4,000 in number, and 1,000 tenor and bass voices
lied seated themselves ready to commence. The sub-
joined is the programme of the pieces sung.