The Sun.
London, England, 1864-02-19 00:00:00

MURDER AT BIRMINGHAM.

At midnight, on Tuesday, police-constable Pat-
rick Golden, was on duty in Dartmouth-street, Bir-
mingham, when he heard the•report of a pistol a few
yard off, followed by a deep moaning. He ran
towards the spot, and found a young woman lying
in a pool of blood, her feet being in the gutter, and
her head towards the middle of the street. He
lifted her up and recognised her as a young woman
who was lately married to a young man named
George Hall. He found a wound on her face, from
which the blood was flowing freely. The young
woman was at once conveyed to her mother's house.
She was quite insensible. A bullet had shattered the
jaw, and, passing the neck, had lodged in the ver-
tebrae. A surgeon removed por ions of the fractured
jaw, and did everything in his power to alleviate
the sufferings of the woman, but gave no hope of her
recovery. The next stage of the tragedy developed
itself au hour afterwards. Police-constable W.
Dromage was on duty at Hockley-hill shortly after 1
o'clock, when he was accosted by a man having two
pistols in his possession, who told him that a short
time before a relative of his, named Geo. Hall, came
to him in the Wellington Inn, and asked him to take
a glass of brandy with him, as it would be the last
he would ask him to take. On being asked what
he meant, he replied that he had shot his wife,
and handed him a couple of pistols; and hav-
ing taken off his brandy he left the house with
the landlord to go home to his father's. The man
gave the pistols to the officer who accompanied him
to Hall's father's house in Birmingham. Oa arriving
there they found Hall sitting on a sofa in the same
room with his father, mother, sister, and brother,
and the landlord of the Wellington Inn. The officer
claimed Hall as his prisoner, and charged him with
having shot his wife with the intention of murder-
ing her. The prisoner quietly said," It is true; I
did," and gave himself up to the officer. He was not
at all excited, but, on the contrary, was perfectly
calm and collected, and even gentle ire his manner.
On coming away from the house, he shook hands
with all his friends, and said, " Good bye; I hope
we shall meet in Heaven." The pistols were per-
fectly new. One of them had been discharged—the
other was loaded, but had no cap on, On the charge
being drawn, the shotticg was found to consist of a
conical ball. The prisoner was brought before the
magistrates on Wednesday ; and oa a medical certi-
ficate being produced stating that the young woman
was in a dangerous state he was remanded until Sa-
turday. He is by trade a stamper, and was employed
in a workshop in Vyse-street. It appears that the
prisoner and the young woman were married last
Christmas-day. Before the marriage the prisoner
told her that he had furnished a nice house in good
style and that they would enter upon it after their
marriage, He, however, went into lodgings, and
his wife was so angry at this that she left him in
nine days and refused to live with him till a house
was provided. This greatly exasperated the priso-
ner, who gave way to an extreme fit of jealousy.
On Tuesday night he called at the place where his
wife was living in Princes-street, and demanded
the earrings and wedding-ring which he had pre-
sented her at their marriage, saying he was going
off to Liverpool. After some words they parted. In
two hours afterwards the prisoner called for his wife
at his mother's house, and they went out together
between 9 and 10 o'clock, and walked about for
two hours, talking over their affairs. The sequel
hae already been told. The young woman died on
Wednesday night at a quarter'to 5 o'clock, after
suffering fearful agony aggravated by an unsuccess-
ful attempt to extract the ball.