The National Register.
London, England, 1817-09-22 00:00:00

Oil) BAILEY.

FEPT.

Wednesday, the Sessions commenced before the Richt
Hon. the Lord Mayor, Mr. Baron Graham, Mr. Justice
' Holroyd, and Mr. Justice }lunetteh.
John Bend was indicted for stealing a ten and a twenty
pound note from his grandfather, William Howard, a farmer,
at Hillingdon, neat Vxbridge. The circumstances under
which the prisoner was apprehended are detailed in the fol-
lowing narrative, which appeared in some of the daily news-
papers the day before the trial :
In the hogiuning of last December a respectable farmer
named Howard, whose age on the day of his death was 91,
was murdered in his own house, within three tunes of Ux-
bridge. The situation of the House is peculiarly solitary,
liming surrounded with trees and fronted by a large lake,
where now and then a fishing boat is to be seen. The family,
which were almost the only inhabitants within a very exten.
si,e circuit, consisted of a venerable farmer, his graudson, and
an aged female servant. The fondness of Mr. Howard for his
grandson Bond, received no interruption from the moment of the
Meth of the latter, who was taught to look upon the property of
leis „erne Mather as his iuheritance. The old man had stock in
Are Bank, the dividend of which, Bondoisually received, and
paid to his grandfather. A few days previousto the nitirdcr,
he had received one of these dividends, amounting to 301. in
a ten and twenty pound note. On the lett of December
last, Bond, on his return from sonic occupation, found his
grandfather nearly dead. Near him lay a large crab stick,
upon which was a quantity of blood. The old housekeeper
was lying senseless on the ground. Bond immediately ran
to the nearest public house and described the murder that
had taken place, exhibiting all those symptons so natural to
a relative of the deceased. Several repaired to the house of
Mr. Howard. They examined the apartments, but 110 violence
hail been done to any part. It seemed to be the act of some
miscreant, who was either influenced solely by revenge, or so
horror !. crock at the deed which he found necessary to perform
before his object of plunder could be accomplished, as to ay
from his first iatention. There was, however, one remark-
able circumstance which excited suspicion against the grand-
son. The old man was in the habit of carrying the key of
his bureau in the left pocket of his breeches. The house.
keeper, was acquainted with lirs ways, and that there were
private drawers in the bureau whirl) COlllt/ he known to no
stranger. The old gentleman had received the 3UI. and be
elitist hare deposited it in one of those•secret drawers. If
the uature of the murder was revenge, the money must
be in the drawer, for it was locked. The suggestion was
attended to, the bureau was broken open, but no money was
to be found. Every eye was fixed upon the grandson, who
showed uo confusion. On the contrary, he agreed in the
general opinion, that the robber must be the murderer, and
that he could have been no stranger. He invited investicas
time, for the sake of his own character ; and for the blood of
his grandfather; lie called for a strict enquiry into the
dreadful ease. He was taken before a magistrate. The
housekeeper was called upon to tell what she knew. She
knew nothing, but that somebody canto behind her in the
kitchen, and struck her so violent a blow, that she fell sense.
less on the ground, and the fright had never left her since.
The person who struck her spoke, but was not seen by her.
A report previously existed, that the old man had a long
time ago made a will, in which he bequeathed all he was
worth in the world to his grandson, but that some cirenen-
stances had recently occurred whicb rendered it probable
I thatan alteration was meditated in the disposal cattle propel ty.
It is said, that the grandson skewed much impatience Neon
hearing this suspicion, and an inference tentavou: able was
then drawn front his conduct at the idea of *MTN keg any
disappointment. The Magistratedischarged hint; lint those
who were interested believed the case to be one of the vilest
in the whoie catalogue of murders. It was a siegeilar fact,
that the osl mates will was afterwards found.open. Upon
being react, the illtlerliallee was found to de /ohm upon his
grandson, who was rot iu possession immediately after his
discharge. Bond retitrnt d to the house, buried his grand-
father, and tired in the same solitary place. Months roiled
All, and still. no tidings of the mindere'. The agitation of
Uxorielee organ to subside, when a to w days ago it was re-
vived with the greatest violence. A gentleman sent to the
Bank two notes, one for 201. and another for 101. The Bank
were not idle upon hearing of the murder. The numbers
of the notes %emelt war e paid as Mr. Howard's dividend had
been taken, aiol the necessary ardor for *topping them issued.
'Those very notes for 2111. a oil lii. ',ere the notes eh had
been taken out or r. Howard's burean. The directors of
the Bank, with all that alacrity so lendable upon the circa-
sion,.traced the notes through about SO bands, and at last
(mine within .three miles of Uxbridge, and found them iu the
hated, of Bond. The grandson was immediately conveyed
to town. By the advice of an experienced Barrister, the
bill fur the rubbery was presented to the Grand Jury at
Clerkenwell; and after the examination of Is witnesses, it
was found a true bill.

At the Old Bailey on Wednesday, Mr. Amino opened
lie plc:Him:4, and Air. Alley stated tilt ease to the Jury ;
it appeared principal y to turn upon the prismier having
been in the possession of a ten cud a twenty pound Bank
of England, note threugh the hands of ilk grand,on, and
which ware not found among the effects at the time of the
murder, but subsequently tweed to the hands of the pri-
soner.

Elisabeth Randall was the housekeeper to the deceased :
she lived at Hilluigdou ; the family consisted of the deceased,
herself, the !trisoner, and a young 01311 of the name of tyres,
(1.1 ilie day of sitt:
• o'clock ; saw Ayres that evening about six o'clock ;
went to nalk the cows afterwards and bronchi home the
milk ; no perswi was at tonic lint witness and the deceased ;
Ayres might hive been about hall au hour out, but she is lint
CC& taiii ; witness and the deceased were sitting below stairs
by the fire ; he was Cicala the door and she was sideways;
she lighted a candle for him to smoke his pipe by, and set it
Upon the table ; it was dark, being the Ist of Derember;
,he remembered hearing the door open ; either push open or
wilatelt, and expecting it was the sei vault boy, she was not
Sale, but thought she said," is it you Tom meaning the ACC-
ant boy; she had iio hat Mer spoken, or attempted to speak,
oats she received a blow upon her head; she received several
wows, and lost her senses ; heard a violent groan, and thought
it was hum the old aentleman ; he ails iii his hist year; never
'.t :lily body t. at could have given the blows t John Bond
w pi isoner) did speak, last witness cannot say bow lung
.er sloe received the blow; the pi isoner used to receive the
',Hey hue the deceost d ; site it .ti :eel' the piisonet pay the
i. rinsed lus div lit, n Its,' which lit alwas paid very truly;
4114 •u gave titt motley to the old man whew, he Came
MOM`; a c'ltce;aell well 10 Coll up the 111311eV very curiously,
and put it lobo his pr.eate draiNer iu the burr' tt ; he kept the
key in his left band bunks pocket in a purse, 'there Le

SEPT 2?.

,ed to keep his change he was very regular in keeping it
witness described.

Cross-examined by Mr. nollanti.—Knew the prisoner from
.is birth. lie was the son of Mr. Howard's daughter; the no•
ier ot•the prisoner laved at Hillingdon; the prisoner is about
years of age, and had been with his grandfather since the
.ge of Ili; the deceased was very fond of the prisoner, ssho
as very attentive in return ; the old gentleman had said that
•a had provided for the prisoner to the amount of 2301. The
eceased had said that he meant to increase the legacy by
;ving him the interest of 4001. in the three per cents , the pri-
•ncr was a careful man and never wanted money; the (b.-
:awl idle, ed to pay the prisoner• his yearly wages at old Mi•
iaelluas-day. In consequence of the blow, the deceased died
ii the following day at two o'clock, but was never sensible:
.1; prisoner wished Ins grandfather to keep his wages till he

%Wed it the witness was several days insensible. [Herr
paper model of the bureau was produced, and the witness
.plaineil where the deceased kept his money.]
Re•exaonued by Mr. Arabin.—The conversation about ai-
ling the will tout place only a few days before the murder;
.! alteration wa, to be in the prisoner's favour.
Thomas Ay re, was servant to the 'leceaseil; lie left the house
out toIX o'clock on the e% ening of tile murder; the prisoner
.1 gone to Mrs. Whyinan's, about a hundred yards distance
ant roar o'ciock, prisoner was alone; all WAS safe at home

ten v. itis •ss w.ntont, saw nobody about the house ; he left
master and mistress silting by the kitchen tire, the candle
ss boo king upon the table ; he left she door upon the latch ;
ha returned about an hour after, and saw a stick called a
swinging, lying in the room. Witness thought the stick was
on the top of the bacon rack, where it was usually kept, when
he went out ; a stranger coming in might have seen it; it was
considerably above the head ; these was blood upon it when
he saw it ; when he went out, he went to the canal bridge,
about a hundred yards from the house, and met William Mer-
cer, and went wsth him to the Trout public •h ; he saw a
person dressed like a millwright ; be was quite a stranger ;
Ms seemed comiug front Howard's house; witness spoke to
him, because he thought the mass had missed his way; he
said, "Hullo mate, you have missed your way ," the man went
over the canal bridge, but he did not speak to witness ; in
about a quarter of an hone after witness had got to the
Trout public-Louse, the prisoner came it.; that was a quarter
before seven ; the prisoner said, `• for God's sake come, for
somebody has almost killed the old lady and the old man ;" he
spoke loud; we went several of us over to Mr. Howard's
Douse ; I saw them both sitting in their chairs ; they could not
speak ; they were both very bloody ; the blood came front the
old gentleman's nose and mouth; there was a great deal lying
noon the (loot ; the prisoner got some brandy, and rubbed the
old gentleman's forehead ; the old man said, " Don't John, it
is so cold ;" he said a few words more, but witness could not
naderstand him : prisoner and witness helped the deceased
up to bed; the deceased never spoke afterwards, but died the
a 'at day, about three o'clock. IVitaess wmut for Mr. Curtis, the
dictor.

Cross-examined by Mr. Bo'' and.—The prisoner sent him
to the doctor; the lane where he met the man only leads to
and from Howard's home ; the man walked through some wa-
ter to keep as fir from witness as possible; there was a board
to go over, but then the man must have passed close to wit-
ness ; the prisoner never went to bed at all, but did all lie
could to recover the old man; prisoner always endeavoured to
please the deceased if he could; prisoner was very active to
discover the 'mutterer.
Witham Mercer corroborated the evidence of the last wit-
ness, with respect to meeting the man in the lane, and as to
what passed at the public house, and also as to the situation of
the parties at the Louse of the deceased. lie further said, that
when the caustic was found it was broken.

Joseph Allen was churchwarden of the parish, went to
'caret' the deceased's house between sevcu and eight on the
night of the murder : the prisoner was there, and asked wit-
ness to go up stairs ;rad search the bureau; witness asked pri-
soner if he knew where ~he lock and key were? it was a pad -
luck ; the lid attic bureau was open ; prisoner said he (lid not
know where the lock and key were ; they were afterwards
tumid in the well of the bureau mixed with some papers; no
force had been used ; witness sear: lied all the drawers as far
as he then knew, but having seen the bliredll since, it was not
all searched at that mahogauny model of the bureau
was produced, and the witness pointed out what part he did
not seal ch.—The prisoner said nothing about the secret
place ; wiint•ss did not know that all the bureau had not been
sem ehed till the 4th of August last.
Mr. harm; lirahaur here interrupted the progress of the
trial, and idler consulting with the other Judges, declared to
the Jury, that there was nothing in the present ease which
could be Ovourlit home to the prisoner. If there was any
charge against him, it must be fur having taken the notes from
the bureau sin the very night of the murder, but on Ala point
there was no e%idence whaler er, and it would bettirnissible
for the July to liad the prisoner guilty of having taken the
notes without judging lulu guilty of the murder. The evi-
dence which had been given respecting he bureau %vas rather
in favour of the prisoner, for it was clear that no search was
made as the time. nor for a considerable period afterwards,
~nd the utmost upon this case that the evidence could prove
was that the prisoner at a subsequent period had possession of
tae notes. lint this would only tend to spew that, he might
;:are abii•ed Isis trust as an executor, in appropriating to his
own use what he ought to have accounted Mr to the residuary
legatees. lie should be sorry that any thing should go abroad
to the prejudice of the prisoner, which was eertamly not ef-
ie,-ied by any thing that hail transpired, or that was likely to
1- inspire in the course of the vial beyond the supposition of
iving acted impropells in the appropriation at the notes, but
vs en on that voila there was nothing else intended to be 'hewn
tLau that they had been in his possession.
The prisoner was immediately acquitted.