The Express.
London, England, 1853-06-23 00:00:00

MURDER AND SUICIDE AT POPLAR.

On Tuesday morning a man named Francis Pick-
ing, • blacksmith and hammermao, who has been for some
time in the employ of Mr. C. J. Mare, the iron ship builder
at Blackwell, murdered his wife, and afterwards inflicted A
wound in his throat, from the effects of which he died yes
terday morning. Picking and his wife were a very dissi-
pated couple, frequently inebriated, and were constantly
quarrelling. They occupied a small room at No. 39, Evans-
street, Poplar, and their son, a lad about 16 years of age,
*Kin the same room as his parents. On Monday night a
rails took place for • violin at the Windmill, in Poplar.
This mie was got up by Picking and his wife, and to
paper announcing it described the violin to be "a fiddle is
full tune." On the way to the house where the raffle took
place Picking and his wife began wrangling, and the man
broke the fiddle. The consequence was that on reaching
the Windmill only six persons consented to become mem.
bees in the raffle, a circumstance which appeared to give
very great annoyance to Picking, who gave vent to his
feelings by oaths and curses. The wretched and nuke.
Innate couple reached home about 12 o'clock at night, and
went to bed very quietly.
On the fallowing morning, at half past five, a roes
named William Hislop, the landlord of the house, wile
slept in a room under the one occupied by the Pickings
knocked with a stick against the ceiling, as he was in the
custom of doing every morning to arouse his lodgers. Picks
ing returned the sigma in the usual manner by knocking
on the floor, but did not get up. At six o'clock l'ickinve
boy, who is in the employ of Mr. Hodges, an engineer is
Poplar, rose and called to his father, and after telling him
hour, asked him if he was not going to work. His
Stan replied " No, I have something to do first "—no
d making an anticipatory allusion to the dreadful deed
be was about to perpetrate, and which it is believed he had
premeditated on the previous night. The boy directly
afterwards left the room. His mother was then fast asleep,
and his father in bed by her aide.
At half-past ten o'clock • girl had occasion to call
epee the Pickings with some clean linen her mother had
washed for them. On opening the room door, which was
sot locked, the girl stepped into a pool of blood on the
Seer, and before her, en the bed, were Picking and his
wife, weltering in their blood. The girl screamed aloud.
Ma set up a cry of horror, which soon ►rought assistance,
and the house was almost immediately filled with people,
who flocked from all quarters of the district.
Mr. Giles, a surgeon, in Canton-place, East India-road,
was immediately sent for, and upon his arrival he pro-
nounced the woman to be quite dead. The unfortunate
creature had been murdered in her sleep. There was not
the least appearance of a struggle. lier throat had been
mat from ear to ear ; all the great arteries were divided,
end her death must have been instantaneous. Picking had
also cut his own throat, but not with the same determina-
tion and violence with which he had inflicted the wound en
his wife. He was a powerful man, with a strong muscular
SIM lad large hand, and it is the opinion of Mr. Giles, the
trargeon, that he never intended to deprive himself of life,
bet only to inflict a slight wound on his throat, and that
while doing so the razor slipped, and divided the trachea.
Mr. Giles and his assistant lost no time in sewing
up the wound in the throat, and while doing so
Picking, who was extremely feeble from 100 of blood,
Galled out, •• Don't choke me," and made an attempt to
drag the bandages from his neck. Mr. Giles gave direc-
tions that his hands should he made fast, to prevent him
repeating the attempt, and left his assistant and a police.
man named Puddeford, of the K Division, with the mur-
derer, with directions not to leave him for an instant.
His directions were strictly complied with in this respect,
and Mr. Giles visited him repeatedly in the course of the
same day, and again at midnight, and had some hopes of
saving him ; but at day-light yesterday morning unfavour-
able symptoms presented themselves, and at 5 o'clock the
patient expired. The razor with which he inflicted the
wounds was found on the bed. It was stained with blood.
Picking admitted to Mr. Giles, the surgeon, 'previous to
his death, that he murdered his wife, but did not state his
motives, or assign any cause for doing so. When the
surgeon was first called in the body of Mrs. Picking was
quite cold, and Mr. Giles has no doubt she had been dead at
least four hours.
Picking was in the receipt of good wages. There was an
abundant• of provisions and some money found in his room,
and he had 255. in hand at Mr. Mare's factory.
The bodies of the murderer and his wife now await a
coroner's inquest, which Mr. Baker has appointed to be
held this day.

CUSTOMS DUTlES.—Yesterday a return showed
that there are 22 articles on which it is proposed to retain
the additional duty of 5 per cent. The aggregate receipt 1
328,2621. it