The Sun.
London, England, 1864-07-14 00:00:00

The Murder on the North London Railway.

The excitement created by this murder is growing daily
more and more intense. The railway company has offered
£lOO reward for the capture of the murderers, in addition
to the £2OO offered by the Government and Messrs Robartes,
Lubbock, and Co. Fresh bills were circulated yesterday
giving a description of the person who changed the chain
belonging to the late Mr Briggs, and also of the chain and
signet ring which he took away with him. The police believe
that the man is already known to them, and they ere fol-
lowing him up with great perseverance. The man is described
in the police bill as being about 30 years old, 5 feet 6 or 7
inches high, with a sallow complexion and thin features.
He is a foreigner, and is supposed to be a German, but speaks
good English. He wore a black frock coat and waistcoat,
dark trousers, and a black hat. The chain which he carried
away is a square oval, secret link, gold Albert, with a knot
pattern twisted key, and a swivel seal. The ring is a plain
gold signet ring with an oblong white cornelian stone,
bearing an engraved head,
The following is the history of the discovery of the chain
—On Monday morning about 10, a gentlemanly looking
foreigner, apparently a German or Swiss, entered the shop
of Mr Death, jeweller, 55, Cheapside, and asked to be shown
some gold Albert chains. Mr Death's brother showed him
several, and he at last picked out one of the value of £3lss,
which he seemed to fancy.
At the same time he took appa-
rently from his waistcoat pocket a chain, and asked Mr
Death what he would give him for it, Mr Death examined
it, and found it to be anade of 15 carat gold. He put it in the
scales and weighed it, and told the man that its value was
£3 10s. The man then said he would take in exchange a
chain of the same cost. Mr Death took one from the win-
dow, which was worth £3 55., and showed it to the man, who
said that it would suit him very well, asking what he could
have to make up the other ss. Mr Death showed him
several second-hand signet rings, from among which he
selected the one already described, and tried it on his
finger, leaving it there. The chain was packed in a paper
box and delivered to him, and he quitted the shop imme-
diately afterwards, At the time the man called upon him
Mr Death had heard nothing of the murder, but on subse-
quently reading the description of the missing chain in the
newspapers he was particularly struck by its closely coin-
ciding with that of the (Alain he had taken is exchange, the
circumstances of the missing hook confirming his:suspicions.
Ile immediately communicated with the authorities at
Great Scotland-yard and at Bow lane Police-station, and
Inspector Kerressey at once proceeded to Cheapside and
took possession of the chain. He then took it to the
daughter of the deceased gentleman, who unhesitwiegly
identified it as having belonged to her father. Inspector
Kerressey immediately made a report on the subject to Sir
Richard Mayne, and exertions aro being made in all
directions to discover the person who eetchanged the chain.
The police aro confident that they are on his track, and that
a very short time will elapse before he is captured. There
now appears to be some reason for supposing that a second
person, already known to the police, was implicated in the
murder. This person is also being closely followed up.
Mr T. li. Walker, the manufacturer of the hat found in
the catriage, has been interrogated by the police, but he can
give no clue whatever to the person to whom it was sold.
, The incident of the changing of the chain somewhat com-
plicates the matter. The man who called on 51r Death may,
of course, only be a confederate of the murderer. He seemed
perfectly collected in his manner during the transaction,
but it was noticed that ho endeavoured to keep his counte•
nance concealed from the person who was serving him. No
watch was shown by him at the time, and from the ease
with which he withdrew the chain from his pockete acit. did
not seem to be attached to one.
ealsosteh seemed
shoppforldau,isy-
careful to a void appearing as it
to
he
entered
from the
purchase
y
when
chain
the
shopman did so, and he objecte
of
greater
u of e
the than h
honest purposes, moving awly i
left in exchange. A close ex-
aminationmagnifying glassi failed to va
chain
thet onew with
h h e a
de-
tect the slightest trace of blood upon it, andlrons the dirt
ustill adhered to the links it did not
sceaietrned by
toh
have been eineebnwgashed . The chain and watch must
therefore have been wrenched from the person of the de-
ceased before any blood was shed. The encounter which fol-
lowed was probably caused by the endeavours of the de-
ceased to secure the thief. the discovery of the chain also
,cons to do away with the somewhat prevalent theory that
the outrage was not committed for the sake of plunder. It
has been said that the murderer left behind the diamond ring
worn by the deceased, but it shouldle remembered that it is
no easy matter to wrench off a well-fitting ring from the
finger of a man who struggled for life so bravely as the de-
ceased gentleman appears to' have done. Again, the fact of
exchanging the chain for another, instead of selling it in the
usual manner, seems hardly to point to the professional
thief, and the ring chosen by the man bears a head of
very peculiar character which would render its identifica-
tion easy. All these circumstances tend to make this ex-
traordinary case still more mysterious, and a plentiful crap
of fresh theories to account for the murder has sprung up,
one of which may be mentioned from its singularity—that
the outrage was perpetrated by a maniac.
A rumour was prevalent yesterday that a foreigner living
in Soniers- town had been apprehended on suspicion, but
there is not a word of truth in the statement. It is true that
Somers-town hes been well watched for the last four or five
days, but the same may be gaid of every eistrict in the me-
, troptllis,