The National Register.
London, England, 1813-06-06 00:00:00

THE NATIONAL REGISTER.

the sheets taken from his master's room, in a sheet pulled from his
own bed ; he had not been desired by any one to do so ; he said
that Mrs. Boner was still alive; he was the fir-t who made this re-
mark; it was not made to him : he said he must go to town, thougl.,
she desired him not to leave the house withent a man in it.
Williams, the groom, hat been in the service of the family since
December ; he was iu the hall when the footman put the sheets into
a sheet pulled froth his bed : witness does not sleep in the house, but
ever the stables. He w.ei in tile house till after twelve o'clock on
Sunday evening, sitting with the footman, and never saw him in
-better humour. Had never heard him say any thing disrespect-
ful of his master or misrri-ss, except now and then an angry expres-
sion at being outs' orked,---such as " D—n the old woman, she
sears me out." When the examination of this witness was finished,
begetil-to state a circumstance which he had just recollected.
Ile said that he saw the footman dabbling the sheets in the blood, at
the foot of the bed. Being pressed upon this point, he said that the
housemaid, who was in the room at the time, could tell more about it.
Susan Ciirnick being called, said, that she never was in the room
with the footman, as stated by the groom ; she said also, that the
groom had exclaimed, at the foot of his mistress's bed, withl a dread-
ful expression, " this comes of keeping company with Jews."
The groom, in answer to a question from the Coroner, said he
had not seen the butler (Dale) from the time he left the service till
yesterday (Monday).
W. Randall had been coachman in the • family for eight years;
slept over the stables; came to the house about half-past seven, and
went to call Nicholson; found him sitting on his bed-side ; almost
immediately heard the cry of murder from the female servants. It
was not long before he saw Nicholson come down stairs with bloody
linen, and wrap it up in a sheet in the servant's liad. rie footman
was a very quiet, goodifellow-servant, but used, when he had money,
to get drunk. The rest of the servants observed they could not have
handled the sheets as Nicholson did. Nicholson was very anxious
to go to London, and would have a horse. Coachman thought
Nicholson wild-looking when he went away, and appeared as if he
could not ride, though he had been in the dragoons.
Charles King bad been a labourer for seven years in the family ;
slept in Green-lane, Chiskimrst ; came to work at between five and
six on Monday moreing. The washerwomen were up ;he came to
the house about .2n minutes after six, got into the house by the laun-
dry, went into the hall, and found the trout door open. Philip was
then in bed ; he went to him and said, how is it you sleep with the
door and window-ehutters open? He answered, " I did not know
that they were open." lam sure he was in bed with his shirt on.
Williams, a washerwoman, came to the house about four
the morning. The hall windows were all open.
Philip Shillington, the gardner, got up between three and four
'clock. About tour o'clock observed the middle drawing-room
indow open, which he did not shut.
Philip Nicholson was then called, and asked what he had to state.
replied nothing but what lie bud said before the Lord Mayor.
The windows ef his bed-room were shut when he went to bed. No
irther questioas were asked (Whim, and lie was ordered into the
!ustody of Lavender. .
Mr, :!;mith. another witness, came over on the morning of the
ander, and saw the bodies and bent poker. He then went to the
iervauts hall and found a bundle, which he opened : it consisted
if two bloody sheets, the one fine the other course, which was
ihe most bloody of the two : they were wrapped in a third, which
was scarcely stained. He gave the two bloody sheets to a servant
called Sweetapple, to take to Mr. Bonar's room. A candlestick in
Mr. B's room was bent and broken. There was a small spot of
white paint on the poker.
Lavem;er, the Bow-street Officer, stated, that he arrived on
Aloeday about one ,o'elock : he found a pair of shoes by the side of
the footman's bed, which he compared with the traces in the anti-
room, and as he thought, the impressions corresponded with the
shoes : the shoes are not kllows ; a eight-cap was found on the
foottean's bed, with some stains, 3pparcntly blood.
Foy, of Marlborough-street, compared the shoes, which he
had found on Monday morning in a eioset in the servants'-hall, with
the toot-traces, and found they tallied : the shoes were odd ; one
common-heeled, and wore at the toe; the other with a spring heel,
as was the case with the shoes which Lavender found ; nitre was
blood both on the soles and the upper leather. He had just sliewn
them to Nicholson, who acknowledged them to be his and said lie
believed one of them had slipt off in the room from which he fetch-
ed the sheets. Foy found them together in the cupboard. Nicholson
had also acknowledged the night-caieand said he supposed the bloody
Mains came trots the blood on the sheets. .
The groom was called again; auti said hs found the shoes this coma-

JUNE t.

Ing, in the closet where be went to look for a stick to beat Mr:
Bonar's coat ; he saw they were bloody, and slimed them to King,
and then put them back again. King confirmed thisstatement.
The Cook, who made the servants' beds, and Nicholson's among
others, was called : she had seen the sheets in the custody of the
officers, and believed them to be the same with those which she had
put on the footman's bed.
The Laundry-maid did not recollect seeing any sheet on the floor
when she first went into her master's room.
The poker was then produced : it is bent in the upper part : it
has been new bitted, and seems never to have been in the lire : tLe.
other part is old, and a new top has been rivetteil on : it is a com-
mon kitchen poker, about two feet four inches long, and the bit
is about nine inches long.

ATTEMPTED SUICIDE OF NICHOLSON.
Near one o'clock, when the Coroner (Mr. Martyr) was reading
over the depositions to the several itnesses for their assent and
signature, an alarnewas excited that Nicholson had cut his throat.
He had been in the custody of two officers. of Bow-street, and
of the City, and had been permitted by them to enter a water-
closet in the passage leading to the servants'-hall ; the moment that
he was released, he cut his throat with a razor, which, it 'appears,
he had concealed in the front of his bseeclus. The gash was so
deep and dreadful in appearance, and he bled so copiously, that it
was supposed he could not live many minutes. The wound was so
large,. that an hand might have been inserted in it i the head seem-
ed almost severed from the body. Fortunately, Mr. Roberts and
Mr. liot, Surgeons, of Bromley, were in attendance ; and the lat-
ter Gentleman immediately rushed forward, and stizieg the gushing
arteries with both hands, and, with gredt presence of mind, con-
trivet'. to stop the blood with his mere grasp and pressure, till more
regular means could be applied. An express was sent to Mr. Ash-
ley Cooper, who arrived in three hours ; and it was the opinion of
this Gentleman, as well as of the surgeons of Bromley, atter the
dressing of the wound, that the man would recover. At seen
o'clock on Wsdnesday evening, he was in a favourable state. lie had,
for some hours, been able to speak. though he had said'very
he would make no confession, nor give any explanation, but per-
sisted in declaring his innocence. To a question put to him by Mr.
Angersteiu, jun. in the presence of Mr. Bonar, whether he had
any concern in the horrid murder? he looked in the face of the en-
' (piker, whom he seemed to know perfectly, hut moved his head
slightly as if denying all knowledge of it. He appeared calm and
composed during the whole period that he was sensible ; but there
was a fixedness and determination in his countenance, from which
it may not unfairly be interred, that lie would, if possible, repeat
his attempt at suicide. Very stlict precautions, however, are very
properly observed to prevent such a result. lie lies down envelop-
ed in a strait-waistcoat, his arms being likewise held by two per-
sons, one on each side of him ; his head also is kept in a steady pos-
ture, to prevent any motion which he might make to open or
increase the wound. An officer of Bow-street and servants are al-
ways in the room to watch him. Mr. Bonar was there during the
whole of the night. As he had stated that he was a Catholic, a
respectable Gentleman, a Priest of that persuasion, was sent for,
who was at the house the same afternoon : but Nicholson had made
no declaration. He states -that his parents were Irish, his father
a Protestant, his mother a Catholic : he pretends to be in doubt
as to the place of his birth, but says he has lived chiefly in Ireland,
where he was brought up, and where his friends live. His accent,
according to the statement of a Gentlemen of the family, and the
domestics, is decidedly Irish. He is a man about the middle
height, not bulky, but well fixed and muscular. Ills countenance
bears in it a decided resolute character, but his features are neither
nnfavourable nor unpleasiug. His age is t 9 years.
The Jury, after a long and patient investigation, found a verdict
against Philip ^Nicholson, for the Wilful Murder of Mr. and Mrs.
Bonar.
We apprehend, that one passage in the evidence before the In-
quest is not stated quite so clearly as it appeared in delivery. It
refers to the remarkable fact, that each pair of shoes, those found
on Monday morning, by Lavender, by the bed-side of Nicholson,
and also the pair discovered in the closet by Foy on Tuesday, were
all of them bloody. We re-state this circumstance, because we
learn that there has been some misapprehension as to this striking
feature of tire case.
The poker, of which the appearance is so peculiar, may be seen
at the Office in Bow-street. The inspection- of it may perhaps
tend to produce further facts confirmatory of the present general
Opinion as to the author of the murder, and iu corroboration of the
verdict of the Court of luqueit.

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NU-NE 6.

THE NATION

This monster has recovered the use of speech, but neither the
Catholic Miuistcr, nor his medical attendants, have induced him to
open his lips, except to own " that he has been a great :darner." He
lies on a truckle bed in the butler's room, adjoining the pantry.
'wherein two men and a police officer are in constant attendance.
He passed the night of Thursday in a very tranquil state, and t're-
greatly dozed, but it was observed, that he opened his eyes at all
times. when any mention was made by those about him of the mur-
derous weapon used, or any allusion to the badness of his temper.
He eyed attentively every stranger, and particularly noticed one of
the coachmen, who went into his room after the funeral with a silk
bat-band. Mr. Eylett, the surgeon, who sewed up the wound, re-
marked particularly his determined conduct at the moment ; lie ne-
ver winced, nor made an inclination to retract from the operation.
He lies constantly on his back, with his head raised by pillows, and
so fixed is it, that lie cannot move so as to give the arteries any play ;
or, in other words, to prevent their motion connecting them again.
kr. Conant, the Magistrate, arrived aboat ten o'clock, oil Fri-
day, at the house, and investigated the proceedings as far as they
went: hilt nothing arose to give any further aloe to this horrible
' transaction. We might mention here au idle report of two men, of
onspicions appearance, belug seen in a gravel pit at a very early
baits. in Cie morning of the dreadful.transaction, but which we could
lot trace to any authentic source. The Catholic Clergyman has
never been alone with the culprit ; his right arni, and left thigh,
betray evident marks of having received violent blows in sane
way! missing his blow with the poker, which fell upon himself, is
suppor-ed to have inflicted the latter &nixes. Whether he really
meant to rob the house or not, cannot be ascertained, but one
thing is certain, lie gave no indication of such an intention, for
even the gold watches, suspended at the head of each bed, were
not touched ; indeed they still remained in the same situation yes-
terday. The Clergyman who has visited him says he is not an Irish-
man, but a native of Chester.
On Thursday evening, Mr. and Mrs. Bonar were interred iu a
new raised vault at Chisleburst. •