The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1881-07-09 00:00:00

BRIGHTON RAILWAY TRAGEDY.

THE INQUEST.-SECOND DAY.

On Saturday (2nd inst.).Mr. W. E. Baxter, Coroner
for the Eastern division of the County of Sussex, re-
sumed the inquest (which had been opened on Wed-
nesday previous) at the School-room, Balcombe, on the
remains of Mr. Frederick Isaac Gold, whose body was
found fearfully mutilated in the Balcombe Tunnel on
the London, Brighton, and South Coast Railway on
the previous Monday evening (27th ult.)
Mr. T. A. Goodman of Brighton, represented the
widow and relatives of the deceased; Mr. Brewer
(Messrs. Norton, Rose, Norton, and Brewer) appeared
on behalf of the Railway Company; Chief Superin-
tendent Williamson watched the proceedings on
behalf of the Criminal Investigation Department;
Captain Luxford, Chief Constable of East Essex,
represented the county. Mr. James Terry, Chief
Constable of Brighton, and Mr. H. Anscombe, Station
Superintendent of Brighton, were also present.—We
give the following report of the day's proceedings,
which we take from The Times of Monday:—

Mrs. Ellen Elizabeth Chart, of 9, New-road, Brighton, the
proprietress of the Brighton Theatre, said she knew no one
named Lefroy, Mapleton, Lee, or Coppin. She had not re-
ceived a letter from any person bearing either of the names,
and had no appointment on Monday last. The theatre was
closed on that day, and she was at a picnic at Bramber.
William Frederick Frinks, residing at 26, North-road,
New-cross, said he was a ticket-collector in the employ of
the London, Brighton, and South Coast Railway Company.
He was one of the ticket-collectors at London-bridge
-station on Monday last at the departure of the two o'clock
express to Brighton. He knew Mr. Gold as a season-ticket
holder, and previous to Monday had seen him on several
occasions. He saw Mr. Gold quite eight minutes before
the train started on Monday. He was walking up and
down the platform with his hands behind him. He had on
a tall hat, with rather a broad brim, and was dressed in
black. He had a newspaper in his band, but witness did
at see any stick or umbrella. Witness had been through
the train examining the tickets. About five minutes tel two
he said to Mr. Gold, "Are you going by the two o'clock,
" Mr. Gold replied, "Yes, my lad; I will get in in a
moment." He then turned back from where witness was
standing, and got into a first-class smoking compartment
in a composite carriage. It was the third from the engine.
Mere were six seats in the compartment, divided by arms,
and 31r. Gold sat down in the centre one facing the engine.
Witness closed the door, but did not lock it. Witness then
walked away, and stood facing the rear of the train by the
next compartment to that in which deceased was. About
three minutes before starting time a young man walked
up the platform hurriedly, and passed the nrst-class smok-
ing compartment. He got as far as the centre of the next
carriage, in which there was a young lady. Two men were
standing at the door, which was closed, talking to her. He
turned round sharply and was in the act of °locoing the
first-class smoking compartment, in which Mr. Gold was
sitting. He could not get the door open, probably on
account of the spring. Witness opened it for him, and
examined his ticket. It was a first-class single express to
Brighton. Witness closed the door and stood opposite to
the compartment until the train started. The compart-
ment was empty when Mr. Cold entered it. When the train
started Mr. tiold was still sitting in the centre seat facing
the engine, and the young man was sitting in the far
corner with his back to the engine. These was no one else
in that compartment.
By the Coroner: The young man was between sft. Sin.
and 51 t. 9in. He wore a light overcoat with pockets at
the side, and had his left hand in one of the pockets. He
wore a hard felt hat called a billycock. I did not notice
his trousers, nor whether he wore a watch-chain. The over-
coat was unbuttoned, and he had a dark coat underneath it.
It was a dust coat. The coat produced is the one the man
wore, and be took the ticket [rem the upper pocket on the
right-hand side. The pockets in the coat produced are all
in the same position as those in the coat the man wore. it
is of the same colour, texture, and material. It appeared
as though it had been worn many times. The coat was not
new. I did not see that he had any gloves. He was a long-
featured man, had a long neck, and when he was opening
the door of the smoking compartment I noticed rather a
drooping forward of the head. He was a thin man. Ilis
complexion made me think that he had been abroad. He
was rather sunburnt and sickly-looking. I should say lie
was from 24 to 26 years of age. He had a black moustache,
and there was a little tuft of dark whiskers at the side of

the face, otherwise he was clean shaved.
The Coroner: Was that like him? (Photograph shown to
witness). I should not say it was like the young man.
It looks too broad across the shoulders. The neck in the
photograph is too thick. The moustache is something
like his. It gives me some idea of the man. Supposing I.
saw that as a sketch of the man, I should say the lace was
like him, but not the neck. There were not more than 14
or 15 passengers, as far as I could see, in the whole train. In
the second-class compartment in the composite carriage
there were two gentlemen and a lady. In the first-class
smoking compartment there were two gentlemen—Mr.
Gold and the man I have previously spoken of. There was
nobody in the next first-class compartment. The remaining
second-class had one gentleman between 40 and 43 years of
-age. I think the train started about a minute late. The
cost of a first-class single express ticket is 12s. 3d. I think
' I should recognize this young man again if I saw him.
There was something peculiar about him in haying such
long features and such a long neck. I noticed his hair was
dark, similar to my own. It was not very long. I did not
notice what boots he had. Ithink Mr. Gold was in the act
of taking his hat off when the train started. He had his
hand up just as the train started.
By Mr. Goodman; I here were lights in the train. There
was nothing unusual in Mr. Gold's appearance that day.
the Coroner: The near door of the smoking compart-
ment was not lucked. I cannot say whether the other was.
By Mr. Brewer: As the young man came hurriedly up
the platform he seemed to be looking into all the carriages
Ile dm 110 L go hcynoa where the younv, lady was, hut then
retreated, looking into the carriage windows as he did so.
By Mr. Goodman : Ile looked into the second-class
windows as well as the first.

By the Coroner: Neither Mr. Gold nor the young man
took any notice of one another. The man with Mr. Gold
was looking out of the train on the off side when the train
started.
Mr. Thomas Winter, residing at Blencowe-house,
Brighton, but staying with his family near Morley for the
summer, produced a plan of the cottage in which Mrs.
Ann Brown resides, near the line at Morley. It was on a
scale of 1-16 of an inch to the foot. He had made the
measurements on the plan with the assistance of Mr.
Nathaniel Voyce, jun., of Hurley. The distance of the
cottage from the railway where a train coming from Lon-
don is first seen is rather longer than that at right
angles. The line in view at right angles is 399 feet, and
the train view from the cottage 249 feet. Since Wednesday,
from both inside and outside the cottage, he had seen
several trains pass. His experience was that everybody in
the train could be distinctly seen. If two men hail been
struggling in an express train it would certainly have at-
tracted his attention. The line was on a level with the
eottage floor, and there was .an uninterrupted view of a train
from the footboards upwards.
By Mr Brewer: The part of the line which could be seen
was over 750 feet from Morley station.
-

Mr. Thomas Bond, Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons
and assistant surgeon and lecturer on forensic medicine at
Westminister Hospital, said: In accordance with instruc-
tions from Chief-Superintendent Williamson, of Scotland-yard,
I have made a post mortent examination of the body of lir.
Gold, assisted by Dr. By ass, of Cuckfleld, and Mr. Hall, of the
Sussex County Hospital. The body was that of a large-framed,
well, nourished man. Decomposition had commenced, but had
not gone very far. The body had not been opened and had not
been interfered with, except, that the skull-cap hail been re-
moved and a piece of skin about the size of a half-crown had
been taken from underneath the right ear. On the knee, just
aleove the kneecap on the inside, was a jagged, penetritting
wound exposing the bone: It was much blackened by sonic-
thing which appeared to he black grease. There was DO
effusion of blood around this wound. Just above the
wound there was a large brown patch witkout any effusion
of blood. Those appearances were probably caused either
after death or at the time of death. On the right knee
there were two superficial abrasions, and on the inside of
the right thigh there was a bruise two inches long. Those
bruises were accompanied by an effusion of blood into the
tissues around. On the left hand there was a deep cut on
the inside of the ball of the thumb extending down to the
bone. On the inside of the last joint of the thumb there
was a jagged cut, also down to the bone. On the inside of
each of the four fingers there was a deep cut close to the
las: joint. When the fingers were flexed the cuts all
corresponded, and appeared to have been done with one
sweep of a knife. There was a slight abrasion on the
wrist and contusions on the inside of the arm. On the
right hand there was a very deep cut extending almost
round the thumb, very nearly severing it. At the junc-
tion of the thumb with the wrist bones, opposite the last
joint of the thumb, there was also a jagged cut to the
hone. There were abrasions and contusions on the back of
the hand, and on the back of the forearm there was a
severe contusion. On the face there was a curved, jagged
incision, extending from the lobe of the right ear down to
the side of the lower jaw, across the body of the jaw to
the left side of the face. This cut followed the lower body
of the jaw, at the upper past dividing the skin, only just
grazing the bone at the angle of the jaw, and underneath
laying bare the muscles which form the floor of the mouth.
On the right side of the neck, half an inch below the
beforemitettioned cut, was a superficial incision an inch
long. On the fruit of the chin there was a superficial cut
an inch long dividing the chin only. On the left side of
the face a cut, two inches long, extended from the angle of
the mouth across the cheek to within an inch and a half of
the left ear. This cut divided all the tissues down to the
mucous membrane of the mouth, including the muscles of
Iqvuusaraterdeoefp
ianneisiionuchabboeultowar,l and
inch
membrane thareallfealcitaol
thaer e cuAt,
membrane of the mouth. Just above these two cuts there
and a half long, also dividing the tissues down to the mucous
was a lineal abrasion of the skin extending from the cheek
to the lobe of the ear, and • slightly wounding the ear. On
the bridge of the nose there was a slight contusion. On
the inner side of the left orbit there was a jagged wound a
n.
quarter of an inch deep, and large enough to allow the in-
sertion of the top of the little finger. There was an eate
sive effusion of blood into the eyelid awl around it. On
the right side there was a contusion on the eyebrow, and
half an inch above t on the inside there was an oblique
incision half an inch long, extending nearly to the bone.
Just anave this cut, towards the left temple, there was a
severe contusion about 2iii. lone and about an inch and a
half wide with a good deal of effusion of blood. Dr. Byass
had divided the scalp over the top of the head in the usual
way to remove the skill-cap. Exfentimg beckwards at
right angles hoist Dr. Byassai cut there was a jagged cut
3i"• long. The tissues around- were much stained by in-
filtratien of blood, owing to the dependei t position of the
cut, but the edges of the cut showed no sign of effusion Of
bleod into the tissues. This. cut, like the cut on the knee,
I think, happened after death, or at the moment of death.
On turning back the scalp and taking off the skull-cap, I
found a fracture of the hone extending from the vertex
forwards and downwards to the right, through the parietal
bone, and through the right wing of the sphenoid bone,
thence inwards to the body of the bone. The periostenm
was torn through, but there was ne evidence et mamma-