The Sun.
London, England, 1852-11-03 00:00:00

AWFUL MURDER IN DEVOASHIRE.

A most barbarous and shocking murder was cornmite d
at the village of Milton, in the parish of Bueltlatei Mo-
nachorum, on Friday night or Saturday morning lust.
This hamlet is situated about four rai!es south west of
Tavistock, and about ten mil's teem Plymouth, end the
person murdered is a Mrs. M..iry White, a v..itioat, shout
sixty years of age, who carried on a small huelcsteet
business, Felling tea, c if e, c indles, &c. The old lady
bore an excellent character for frugality and honesty.
She was last seen alive on Friday eight about eleven
o'clock, at which hour she was sitting up for a men
named William Glanville, who had gone to Tuvistock,
and from whom she expected to receive some lees. la
the course of the evening she had called upon several of
her neighbours to have a gossip, and about hulf-paet
ten she returned to her house. Shortly afterwards Glan-
ville brought her the lees, and after she had received
them he saw her no more. She lived in the house alone,
occupying the lower room of a somewhat miserable cot-
tage as her shop, and the ap-stairs room was her sleeping
apartment. In this room she had a large box, about
three feet long, and in this she kept her money, which
was believed by all her neighbours to be con iderable,
though no person has been as yet able to state the
amount. Mrs White, the deceased, was a smart, active
woman, and although about sixty years of age, she was
accustomed to milk one of her neigbour's cows, both
night and morning. On Saturday morning, therefore,
as she did not appear, about eight o'clock one of her
neighbours began to speak of its being odd that Mary
White had not come down; and shortly after nine one'
or two of them tried the door. It was found that the
door was locked, and that the key was not inside, where-
upon one of them got a ladder, and ascended to a win-
dow over the shop, about 12 feet high, and having cut
the fastening, opened it, and crept into the chamber.
He saw some one lying in the bed, the bed clothes ap-
parently undisturbed, and the person being to all appea-
rance in a calm sleep; but on coming close, and slightly
moving the clothes, he found that there was an im-
mense gash in the throat, and that the person had
either committed suicide or had been murdered. He
immediately returned to the window, and descended
into the street, but so horrorstrickee wits he with what
he saw that he thought it was a man, and not Mrs.
White, whom he bad known when living, but who was
so disfigured by the blood that was about her face that
he was unable to recognise her. This person, immedi-
ately he had come down, ran over to Mr. White's, the
brother of the deceased, with whom else her son lived,
and there stated what he had seen. Young White elms
over, with others, to the house, and a shoemaker, named
Westlake, came along with White and one or two other
men, and Westlake broke open the door. The party
found all below undisturbed. They immediately pro-
ceeded up stairs, and one of the wee went ferulad earl
pulled down the bed-clothes, and then a most awful sight
presented itself. The poor woman WEIS floating in a peel
of blood; her head had been almost literally severed.
from her body. e ds discovered th t
it was his mother. pa.-ren end that all tlae
Young White, on seeing her, said that
the money-box had had been (An few pence taken,
money, with the exception
other circumstances, led t
.a e forlt a
isn
supposed instrument,
bh
and this fact, coupled with
et foul murder hed beenso
Ibteewnabsroakt tenrwo
the conviction that
was found withthe but
must
nothing
petrated.whaSteevaerrch
could have bean
iwn at
is i c tine:
o b
secreted himself in th d
the murderer E, room,
behind the truckle bed, and that he had ob'ained
admis-
sioninto the cottage in the course of the
evening, while
the deceased was out. Information was itemedi •1 a"
sent to the coroner, Mr. A. Bone, and at eleven
on Monday morning a respectable lur„ o'clock
and evidence taken, of which in the above was
imPanerlud'
the principal facts that were
e_. we have stated
heated. The son of the
deceased, a stolid pereon, seemed
to regard the death of
his mother, under the circumstances,
u with, to say the
least, great calmness.
closely as to the quarrels that had occurred between
himself and his mother. It is a singular fact that the
son went to Tavistock on Saturday
for Merritt, and
asked him to come over to Milton,
as a woman had been
murdered, and it was some time before Merritt learned
that this " woman" was his own mother. In the course
of the day a man named Corner was taken into custody
on suspicion, but was liberated, there being no evidence
to warrant his being detained. The inveetigation Wll9
continued till seven in the evening, when, there being no
further evidence, the inquiry was adjourned till the 13th
inst. An application will probably be made to the Go-
vernment to offer a reward for the apprehension of the
murderer.

NEW RAILWAY.—A company has been formed for
making a railway from Darlington to Barnard Castle.
It is to leave the Stockton and Darlington at a short
distance west of the Darlington station, and, passing
Pierce Bridge, Gainford, and Newsham, c ill termir-:.a
in Galegate-street, at Barnard Castle. The length
be 16 miles.
NUMEROUS SUDDEN DEATHS.—On Saturday Mr. Wm
Baker held four inquests in various parts of his rlistri,,
upon persons who died suddenly. The previous day
many inquests were taken by
.him upon persons whc,-
deaths had occurred momentarily; and in the course of
the we Ac several similar case r, came before the coroner.
They were both old and young who met their deaths
under these circumstances. Some were found in bed.
and some on the time of the room they occupied,