The Express.
London, England, 1862-06-13 00:00:00

[Stamped, Id. Additional.)

TILE DOUBLE EVADER AND SUICIDE IN THE
BLAOKFILIARS.BOAD.

Yesterday afternoon Mr. W. Cartier, coroner for
Wad Surrey, opened an *airy at the Lord Macs Tavern,

Nelsonequann into the oireanatenose connected with the
Iran al James Joan liocirford, aged 35, When's* /look-
feed, aged serest, and Vastly liockford, aged four, whose
lildw bodies were diseerered in the second door front room
c *elbow" No. In, Bleabiers-road, late on Tuesday

he jury ham viewed **dies, which were eta' lying
In the room whams they yes dot discovered, returned to
the Lord Nelms, and the examinailea of WitGOIDO was then
provided with.
Mr. Jas. Wed Pewee. of No. 189, Blachfriers-road, shirt
collar emeneforiarer, mid—The wooed floor of my home
I had let to the homed Jan John Moe ford for the last
three years end eight months. Of late his two
daughters lived with hint, sad his sister, who kept hie
rooms for him. There vas no one else. Oa Tuesday
night, at hill-past 11. o'clock, I was in bed, when
there wee • knock at the door and • ring at the bell. I
got up, and OM proceed* to the frost door I found Koh-
-1 ferd's lath* eteliser, /do shift Web, and lib late wifes
Vaterh-larl. Some onioniation task plies, in come-
mimeo of .viola I idled 6 mike allow, whim I re-
galed WarleSS7 So *rip* to the seemed door. Ws
eke* 0 .00 /tisk fame, mas 46.
Imbed. B. cue ,thins pad then we Went * the
dee* of the frost room, hod 11101s1 it quite leek lad so
levy in the leek, the palm Aar bated it open 011 i
poker. The policeman tamed his balreeye into the
room, and in ea indent we saw the body of Modified,
sitting in • chair sad maniac bath, ia tepee ed pas of
the windows end facing the. doer. He lmed oody kis
browsers sad shirt on, and I at Door odic* Mood as the
latter. His trowams were not enbutheed, bat won
slipped down. He was quite deed, and the blood cm hie
shirt quite dry, es if IM had bees clod for some mod-
doable time. Dimity eftennuds I maw the *dies
of his two diegleless . lying ea the hearthrum.
The eldest wee as her flare,sad the younp6 on
her tat side. They were laid out quite etanight,
sad wens *my much discoloured, as if they had bees dead
few some lies A magma was mot for, and Dr. Heider.
90111, of Tddlrequere, embed I. a few nunetes, nothing
having bees moved until be came. I found no letter on
the bid*. Those wee only ea empty wine-ghee, and a
small book cd " Devise's? which Mn. harm bad led him.
There um a phial under the tab* and on • °hair dose by
I saw a oar,* knife, a carving fork, and • teacup, with •
little sediment in it, and • satedated reg. I saw the
children alive on Sunday morning, filter I returned from
char*, and they then seemed in emelliet health. Their
father was with them at the time. They were then cowing
In from the dame, and I sever sew them sada diva I
do sot recollect seeing the skeet at all on that day. My
belief is that the man died by hie own hand, and that the
children died from mina administered by him. There
were no marks of 'idiom, or injuries, or blood shoat
their persons. I radioed that the window blinds were
drawn down. I was prised when the key of the room was
taken float Machigird's pocket by the patemms.
name Oardever, X Its li•Uop.-policat sergeant,
oonoborated the evidence of the previous witness, as to the
state d the room whim he arrived at the house, a little be-
fore 12, ce Tuesday sight, *yin been sent for frost the
Stone's-sad *tics ; Wang the he bed searched Mooldisd's
pockets, and took from me • key which fitted the look as
the door of the zee* Me mid further that then were two
pillows ce the laserth-rog mar the bodies of the children,
arm which also was a greet triunity of blood ; and that I
.
• utensil Mesdiag neer the body et the maa woe a claw'
tity of what apeared to be blood. From the appearing@ el
the body, and -from the hot that there woo blood on the
carving ha, *taste Warred that the doomed bad
stabbed himealf with the fork its well as with the knife ;
that he Minded the woes& seer the bodies of his Widows;
and that subsequently he mewled to the chair c• which be
was sitting when the door was bodies open~ dintithes of
about four yards.
Thomas Boucher, parish countable end ooroner's dime,
proved that he was celled to the boons between 12 and 1
o'clock en Tuesday night. He produced • earring knife
sad fork which were them delivered te him by the
witsresi M well as a tossup which sustained soinePTilid 11M
a Ode sediment of • brows colour.
Sarah Mookfced, away respectable sad latelligent-loceing
young woman, said—l had been living with my brother
James for about Ave weeks up to last Sunday. I went to
take can of his house and children in consequence of the
death of his wits. There were two children Uterine and
Emily. On Tuesday night last 1 was at my father's, 13,
Granby-prams, Lower-marsh, sad had been there since
Sunday afternoon. I left my brother'sthout balflianithree
or four o'clock ee that dap, aadby as armogemeut I was not
to Mum saki be came to fetch a. When 1 left hero,*
he WM Sit spinet the window. and the children, who
were in good were with ha I have not seen either
him or them since.
Mr. Janice V. Henderson am a surgece, and se-'
detest to Dr. Evans, of Trinity-mem% Soethweek. 1 have
two diplomas, but am not refaredi.. On Tuesday eight I
accompanied poliervimpector and Sergeant Gardner
to the house 189, Blackfriars- ad oe going to the so
coed-hoe frost roam I found • man seated is a chair and
quite dead. There was blood about the lower part of hie
body, whichlsed flowed from two openings by the left side of
his savel. They were evidently stake. aid were close toge-
ther, and the bowels
petstrolandiag. probed the
wounds, one to the Of about two Indies,
whim the instrument into the cavity of the
abdomen through the integumeets. The length of the
wound was one inch and an eighth, and the carer* knife
produced would produce exactly such wounds. There was •
third and similar wound about an inch and • half above the
navel, but no blood had flowed from that. All them wounds
were such as a man might inflict upon himself. There were
also about 14 small punctures, but they did not penetrate
the skin, and could not have been made with the carving
fork—more likely by the point of the knife. Yesterday,
assisted by lb. Evans, 1 node a post-mortem examination
of the body, as them wounds alone might not have caused
death. I then found that the upper wound had penetrated
to the extent of four inches, and had cat, bat not perfo-
rated, the Mternal coat of the stomach. The two lower
wounds met in the cavity of the abdomen, main between
the Intestines without outting them, but severing the iliac
ye* No other important vessel was injured, but that atom
was sutheleat to cause death, and doubtless did so. When
I drat saw the body it was quite rigid, and I concluded
be had base dead for two days and two nights.
At the same time I saw two ehildren lying on
the door, as hes been described, with taped to the cause of
whom deaths I could then come to no cooclusion. I have
shoe opened their bodies ; first that of Catherine, the elder,
which exhibited as external injuries. I opened her head,
chest, and *done* The lungs and liver were slightly I
congested but other** healthy, but the heart was quite!
oaten& The abdomen was quite healthy. The stomach
I took out and tied at both ends. Subsequeetly I opened
it and found it to meta* food and air, but I have not bed '
suet time to analyse its cnotents. Them was no smell
about it. There was nothing remediable about the mile
of the eyes, but the brain and all the membranes were snuck
ccometed and loaded with blood, for which there were no
external marks to account. There were no marks of pus-
sure on the throat, and I cannot with certanity meant for
the elate of the brain, which might arise either from
or suffocatioe. I could not detect the smell of opium=
stomach ;it is not always easy to detect it. I noticed the
two pillows on the floor by the side of the &Oldies, and they
might have been pressed on the hoes of the child's, so as
to muse death, but I cannot say °that it was so. It le
mere speculation that the child may have died from the
dhoti of opium, but a phial was found on the floor sear 1
the bodies which may have contained opium. It tasks of
opium, and I think it bad bed • preparatioa of opium in it.
was another phial on the drawers containing • very
small quantity of a brownish liquid, which seems to be
methylated sprits of opium. If this had bees need the
knee of time would have destroyed the smell of the opium.
The post mortem appeonmem on *opium/a child were the
same as cm the elder, except that the loop and brain were
mach more congested. The domed' was full of partially
digested food, but there was so senaturel smell shout it.
Both stomachs are Mill is my pommies. I saw the nap pro-
duced by the oak* It contained ceder oil with • brownish
sediment. There was no smell, except of the oil. My opinion
is that the children were poisood, but death might
be produced by the compression of the Atom over their
tams before the poem had time to ed. The bleed was fluid,
but it would remain so after suffocatioo as well as after
poems. If there be opium in the contents of the stomach
I shall detect it ea analysis ; but even then I shall not be
able to show that the pillows were sot used to prod*, eel*
ogees after the administration of the potent., lam quite
satisfied the children did not die from Wand maim

The Corm; here asked the jury whether there was not
quite endleient evidence before them to .but out all doubt
that the man had end canoed the death of his children, and
then killed lied/ ?
The jury at ewe accieiessei la this view of the ass e, apse
white
The Carew, inquired farther, whether the mamas so fat
was sot ndlcient in warrant the areehiskee that, whether
pekoe serisdnieistered ee use, the Maths si the 'hiltless
were sot eneeti by sfernsties—a anielinion whisk ennee
nms.sri to follow epos the tiodlog of two Fellows so dose
bWodict
The Pre esteemed to ha of *eke that some ef Keck-
&Teri rebtleenehmehl be wild. men that, is partiewlee, hie
Alec Swab aimenl4, be farther • with
the vim of oho the state at Ifoakford's la
I emequesce of this