The Express.
London, England, 1868-12-05 00:00:00

6iIBIIKTILD SURDS" AND 1033311 Y.

Yesterday afternoon Mr. W. J. Payne, the
deputy onasltt Ted aa laveetigation at Us vestry-
tlkyair-etreet, onelydows, reepeetang the death of a
penman whose body wee disohered is the
wider ciroupstssoss of so mysterious ehareetern7ra,

they gave rito to ea satogatios id mortar.
Inspector Demon represented the Cc
Pollee.

Poliemeoastable George lirolden, 189 lir, maid be saw
the deed body of the &mused lying at the bottom of
Battle-bridge-Maim flat was at • quarter to three
harlot
last Friday morniag. His bead wee leaning
the the bottom step of stairs. His feet were on
LI;Iliali canieway. A man paused Steele called witness's
attention to the body. The clothes were wet. When
the tide to in, the causeway is completely covered over.
Battle-bridge-stain are at the bottom of Mill-lane,
Tuley-street. The body of the deceased was worm
when witness was called to Ms. He had bean dead halt-
'--hear. His omit wan buttoned.

Did yen rennin the body when you got a good look
at it P--Yes. I had men him trying to force an entry
into the Roebuck public-honee in Tooley-street. Hs had
been drinking; that was at half-paid 10 on Thursday
night week. I urged him to go away ;he did so. At 12
o'ckick I saw him standing outside the Green Man, in
Tooley-street. He was speaking to a young woman.
Do you know that woman 1.--No. They went away
together.
In what direction P—in the direction of Mill-lano. I
never raw him alive afterwards.

Da you know who the woman is?—No. I have not
been able to And her. The police have need every effort
to ascertain who he was, but they cannot discover.
Coroner —Did you search his body—were his clothes
good P—Tes; be wore a brown overcoat and tweed
trousers, • white collar and a yellow tie with a black
stripe through it. On his lett hand he wore a ring. He
was 6 feet 7 inches in height. He had brown hair and
Male eyes. He had brown whiskers and a beard all round
his chin. In his pocket were a pair of brown kid gloves.
He wore a black hat. His boots were laced. There was
no card or letter in his pocket. At half-put 10 o'clock,
when I saw him, he wore a gold chain. It was a large one.
When I was called to see him dead in the morning the
gold chain was gone. When I saw the gentleman during
the evening in company with the orange girls ho wore his
great coat open. The gold chain was a large one, and
hung acroselis walatersat.
Police-sergeant William Hunt. 111 V. said that at
twenty minutes to one o'clock on last Friday morning he
saw the deceased standing in the centre of Morgan's-lane.
A young woman wearing a black fall had hold of his arm.
It was dark, and he would not be able to describe her
dress. Morgan's-lane led into Mill-lane. Three young
women followed the deceased. He looked like the captain
of a ship. He might have been an engineer.
Did you beer any words 7—Not then. I walked up,
and the other three girls stopped. There had been words
about a ball-sovereign, which the deceased had dropped
from his pocket. When the girls picked it up they had a
row. One of the girls was blind of one eye. Witness
found the gentleman dead in the river.
Mies Elizabeth like, barmaid at the George, Tooley-
street, said that about half-past 11 o'clock on Thursday
night week the deceased entered the house. lle was about
forty years of age. He had a young woman leaning on
his arm. She wore a fall. Witness could not recognise
her again. They had not been in the house ten minutes
when three other girls forosved them. They called for
cooper and ale. The woman with the fall drink with the
other girls. The gentleman talked to all of them. They
were all strangers to witness. She bad never seen them
before, and she had never seen them since. The gentleman
wore a large gold chain. It had three large lockets on it.
Were the girls on friendly terms with him ':—Yes; the
young woman in the till put her hind into the gentle-
man's pocket. He did not drink. The girls all wore hats
or bonnets.

Dui you ever see those girls selling oranges at tho foot
of London-fridge No, sir; I think they were all loose
women. They all left the house toirether. I never saw
them after, lie had the guld chant when he left the
hou • e.

Mr. William Smith, landlord of the Roebuck, Tooley-
stied. said that at 0 o'clock on the night in question the
deer med enteird his house. He was am-impanied by
three young women. They all remained in the house for
an hour. Witness tried to get mto concer-aGni ; but he
failed to do so, for when he trisd the deceased became
reserved.
John Squires, coroner's officer, said that he ha.l
marched the body of the deceased. In the pneket he found
the half of a return ticket, " London-bridle t.. Lee." On
the inside of the bat there was the 113111 e, Bulesbrotk,
maker, Lee." Witness went to Lee, where he was Vila the
deceased was not known. In the pocket was a King's Col-
lege ticket, bearing the words "P. Conlsen, $2." Witness
went to the hospital, where they said, "He gave the
name P. Coulson. 10. Broadwall, Lambeth." Upon going
to that address the people there said that they did not
know him. The /* rice at Lee say that they do not miss

any one.
Mr. Charles White, surgeon. raid there was a sortof

abrasion on the left shin of which seemed to
show that he had grazed it against the iron of the steps.
Some veers ago the deceased had lost the left fore finger.
and the left thumb was cut off. His death had resulted
from drowning.
The Coroner said—One thing is certain, the de:eised has
not given his right name at the hospital.
Police-constable Clements, 5•5 M, said that L sew the
deceased in company at half-past nine o'clock i the
night in question. with the young woman in the fall.
He knew her by sight She was a woman
of the town. lie did not kuo.v that for
a fact, but he believed that she was one. She and the
gentleman then went into the Roebuck, its Tooley-stret•t.
The young woman shortly afterwards came out, and said,
'• I have been robbed. Those live orange girls that fol-
lowed us in here robbed me. They have taken my
locket and money ; but I will not charge them with rob-
bery, for lam afraid." She then walked away. Wit-
ness went into the Roebuck. He saw all the orange girls
and the gentleman in the hones. The landlord had a
AIM of gin and water before him. Witness said to
"Do you allow these things in your house People
to be robbery and all that. A young woman says she lost
her things here." The landlord said "No ;" and witness
said, "Turn them all out." Thegentlentanaud the orange
girl, were all turned out. Witness said to him. " You
had better go away from those girls. or else they will tub
3 w" After he hail chatted t. the girls he left them.
The Coroner said that one thing was certain, the de-
ceased gentleman hail been treated with violence. He
had been robbed by the orange girls iu WIIO3O company
he war, for what hail otherwise bet.s.smo of his gold
watch i• He could well understand why a gentleman
going to a hospital in orderto avoid confiding acts to his
medical attonlatat should give a wrong name. The
deceased had critical', committed that act. All clue
to him was at present lost, but he (the coroner)
believed that when the facts of the strange affair appeared
in the newsparers the deceased's relatives would be cer-
tain to hear of them. Other witnesses, no doubt, would
also tome forward. The persons who had robbed the de-
ceased had evidently done so on the top of Battle-bridge-
stain.. The pristine who did so may have thrown the
gentleman into the water, where he was drowned. He
should, therefore, adjourn the came for furtherevidence.
Mr. Smith, the landlord of the Roebuck, said that he
wish, d to state that the money and brooch which the
young woman in the fall had stated she had been robbed
of were found ou the floor of the house after the gentle-
man and the orange girls were turned out.
The proceedings were then adjourned.