The Express.
London, England, 1847-05-15 00:00:00

THE MURDER AT AIRFIELD.

In our 'labile:num el yesterday we gave a hasty sketch of
the particulars, soder as our correspondent had been able to
ascertain them, of the colibblu.xlell and atrocious murder of
three persons. Mr. Jambes Wr.ith, aged 77 ; his wife, Mary,
aged 70 ; and their female servant, Caroline Ellis, aged 21,
who were killed about noonday on Wednesday, in Mr.
Wraith's dwellic.g house. We are now enabled to furnish
an account of the proceedings at the inquest whth was held
on Thursday, at the King's Head Inn, Mirfleld, before G. I).
Barker, E-q., the deputy coroner. We stated yesterday
that an Irish pot-hawker, named Michael M'Cabe;had been
apprehended by the police of the dbtrict on suspiciou of being
the murderer. After the jury had viewed tho bray, and re-
turned to the inquest room, M'Cabe was broughtbefore them.
He is • stout, athletic man, apparently between 35 and 40 years
of age. He paid great attention to the evidence adduced, and
asked several questions of the witnesses in • cool, uncon-
cerned manner' and corrected several statements by them
with respect to his own obwrvatious after his apprehension,
in which they were mistaken. The following witnesses were
called:
Joshua Green, a lad 13 years of age, living at Mirfield,
said, I worked regularly f.r Mr. Wraith, the deceased. He
was my great urcle. I used to work with him in the laud.
He came to my fatier's house to fetch me between 11. and
12 o'clock. I sow him, and he told me to go to his house.
When I went to Mr. Wraith's I went to the kitchen door.
I saw the kitchen shutters were partly closed. I saw some
blood running under the front d.m. I ran home and told
my mother. My brother and John M'Kinnell went to the
house.
John M'Kinnell: I am an innkeeper at the King's Head,
held. In consequence of wh it Mrs. Green said to me,
I went to the house of the deceased. I lifted up the window,
which was riot fastemd, and pushed open the shutters and
went in. I found the deceased Caroline Ellis laid on the
door of the kitchen. liar ,head was towards the door and
her net in an oblique direction towards the window. Her
face was much bloody ; a deal of blood was swimming about '
her on the fluor. I saw her skull was fractured, and the
brain protruding. I did not notice anything else at that
time. I then went along the passace towards the front
door. Mn. Mary Wraith lay on her hack upon the floor;
her head was towards the door and her feet towards the
kitchen. Her head and feu were completely covered
with blood. There was • deal of blood upon the
ground. There was also blood flowing under the
door. I observed that the had only one shoe on. She
laid about the centre of the passage, or perhaps nearer the
parlour door. I then went into the dlning.room. Mr.
Wr.Mh lay there upon his back un the right hand fide on
going into the room, with his feet rather towards the win-
dow. lie had his pocket-handkerchief in his left baud. His
face was completely saturated with blood, and there was a
pool of Wood upon the floor. I saw that he had had his
thrust cut. It was dreadfully cat. The handkerchief
was in his left hand. He had • razor laid across his
breast ; it wits shut. The razor produced is the identical
razor. The poker laid upon the floor on the left hand side
in going into the room ; the poker produced is the same.
The lower drawer was open ; the small drawer at the top
nest the window was also open. The silver pint upon the
table was also all bloody. There was a meat-pie partly
eaten upon the table—two knives and two forks, a
carving kuife, and one plate oo the table, and the other
plate on the floor under the chair; two Gcrman-silver
spoons were upon the table. The bleed upon the pint was
out at the time. A little beer at the bottom of the pint was
tainted with blood. I did not notice any blood upon
the knife at the time. This blood was near the

pint. I also noticed blood on oue of the spoons. The first
thing I did was to send for John Howarth, the constable. We
then sent for Mr. Watkinson, the surgeon. Everything re.
'named as it was till he came; Mr. He aartk got there first.
The keys produced and the penknife were laid upon • chair near
the detsca,:d. His breeches pockets were turned inside out.
—By the prisoner : What time did I come to your house ?
—I
can't say. I recollect a man coming with a basket, but
took no notice of him. It would bo about one o'claek at
noon. I don't know who the man was. I can't swear to

the pawner. I did not see the prisoner that I know of.
H. J. Watkinson said, I am a surgeon, residing in Mir-
field ; went to the house of the deceased, at about ten
minutes past two o'clock. I found the three bodies exactly
in the position and erudition described by Mr. M•Kinnell.
The wounds upon the three bodies were nearly similar in
character. The (lectures of the stun bad, in my opinion,
been caused by &blunt instrument. The instrument mu-t
have bees used with very great force. The fractures of the
jaw were also prolueed by the same instrument. I should
any all the trammel upon the body were produced by the
Mlle instrument ' • repeated blows must have been given.
The throats had been cut with a sharp instrument drawn
from the left to the right side. Part of the wounds upon the
head and face were, in my opinion, inflicted first, and the
throats cut afterwards. It is not possible for any of the
deo seed persona to have inflicted the wounds. They must
have been inflicted by others, and very great forcemeat have
been used. It is poesible that the throats may have been cut
with the knife or razor. There is no question that the whole
of the deceased persons must hare been murdered by some
person or persons.
Hannah Hallam, of Mirfield, single woman, said: I live
near the house of the deceased J. Wraith. My house is near
the road side leadietz to his huuse. His house is not far from
it. The prisoner called at my noose at one o'clock yesterday
hawking pots. He had • basket of pots with Man on his
head. He came up the 'All in a direction to our house and
Mr. Wraith's. He stopped a few minutes after the clock
struck one; he talked to me a..d my mother; he maid that
he would go to a few hour e, cell at Mr. Wraith's, and then
go home. He then asked if we wanted any pots, and I said
no. He then went away in a direction towards Mr. Wraith's.
Richard Green, superintendent of police at Dewsbury,
said-1 found the prisoner yesterday in the custody of
Howarth and Leadbeater' two constables, at the Shoulder
of Mutton, about five o'clock. I told him that in consequence
of some information that I had received I must search him.
On one of his stockings I found something which I took to
be blood; they were very wet at the time, but only about
the feet were to. I examined his foot both on the toes and
the top of his foot, and there were uo marks there that blood
could spring from. I told him there were marks of blood
upon his stockieg, and he said he could not t:11 how that
could be. Hie shoes are so much in pieces that the wet
stockings might be accounted fur. The prisoner made a
statement to me. Soon after four o'clock he raid
to me, " I wish to tell you how it was that I
was at that house where the murder has been committed. I
am a pot hawker; the people at that house know me well;
I have often sold them pots, and yesterday, sometime &sneer
as I can think, about one o'clock, I went to the back door
and it was shut; I knocked, but no one answered; I
waited a little while and listened at the door and could
hear the trampling of feet on toe chamber floor. I knocked
again • second time, and I could hear some oae coming down
caws. I waited • little while longer, and I tappi d the door
• third time ; I then heard some one crossing the floor as
if going to the fireplace in the kitchen. Then a man came
to the door, unlocked, and opened it. I said, "Do you
want anything in my way to-day ?" and the man said " No,
we don't want anything. [Prisoner—l told you he said,
No sir.] I saw his face. He seemed a tall, good-looking
man, about from 25 to 28 years of age. Then I asked the
prisoner how he was deemed, and he said he had a jacket on
with fustian sleeves in it. I asked him what he had on
his head, cap or hat, and he said : " I don't know whe-
ther he had anything or nothing on." He stood with
the door in his hand about three inches open, about
three minutes. I saw a deal of blood on the floor. I
felt alarmed and thought he wee going to knock my head
off. I went up • class to M'Kinnell's, a public-house near
to this place. I called there to ask if they wanted any
pots. They seemed to be at dinner, and said they wanted
none. Prom thence I went to a lit:le house about 400 yards
away. I there received some rags which I had left in the
morning Lwe there talked about Irishmen being great
rogues. From there I went to Charley Fliiit's, a house in
Robert-town. They told me something very serious had
happened at Mirfield. I said that I was there and
had seen something. I asked the prisoner how long
a time it was from his being at the place where the
murder was committed to getting to Charley Flint's, and
he said about an hour. I said, " Did you tell no one what
you had seen before that ?" and he .aid, " No, I did not ; I
did not leant to expose the house • I thought they were
killing fowls to be ready for Mirfieleleast, although I heard
very serious groaning In the house at the time, and I
thought the strange man who opened me the door was wait-
.ing upon the woman of the house who might be very
rly. I asked him how long he had lived in this neigh-
. turhood, and he simmered about three weeks or a month,
and that he lived in Huddersteld about ten years previously.
The Deputy-Coroner, ou being informed that there was no
further evidence in attendance, said that it would be desira-
ble to adjourn the inquiry to • distant day, and that in the
meantime the police should use every exertion for the detec-
tion of the perpetrators of the crime. He also gave directions
that the stocking timid on the leg of McCabe, which was
stained with blood, should be submitted to the examination
of an analytical chemist, with a view to ascertain if the stains
were those of human blood.

The inquest was then formally adjourned to Thursday, the
27th inst., on the understanding that if necemarr the jury
should be called together at an earlier date. McCabe was
removed in custody.