The Sun.
London, England, 1864-06-18 00:00:00

Melancholy Suicide.

An inquest was held yesterday afternoon at the Bridge
House Hotel, London-bridge, before Mr. Payne, on the
body of Mr. Wm. Sloman, aged 40, of the Ship Hotel, near
the Dockyard, Woolwich.
Lucy Hetherington, the chambermaid at the above ho4el,
said she supplied deceased with pen, ink, and paper, which
be used in writing several letters to his friends, which were
found in deceased's coat-pocket by the coroner's officer.
When the door was burst in deceased was in a state of coma,
but spoke to her, and died shortly afterwards.
Mr. Lacy, surgeon, Woolwich, deposed to making a post-
mortera• exlmination, and said he found that deceased died
from opium pills, the box which they were in being also
swallowed, to evade traces of his having committed suicide.
Decetised's head was peculiarly formed, and the brain was
found in an excessively diseased state, indicative of unsound
mind, The brain when touched almost crumbled to pieces.
Mr Prest, of Hicilt-street, Woolwich, brother-in-law

to deceased, deposed to Mr Slozian being of an excit-
able temperament. He appeared to have been very much
annoyed at the recent polio prosecution, and had never
been right since.
Lieut. Brown, R.N., residing with the deceased, was also
examined.

Inspector Unveil, of the Woolwich police, said the de-
ceased was recently summoned to the police-court on four
offences. He (witness) had nothing to do with it, except
the summonses being taken out in his name. Sergeant
Seymour was the chief witness, and deceased was fined 40s
on one count, the others being dismissed. He entertained
no personal enmity towards Mr Sloman, and had always
been on friendly terms with him. Deceased's trade had
lately fallen off. His music-hall had also been closed lately.
The letters were then produced, and their contents showed
that deceased was in a very disturbed slate of mind. The
following is the letter to his wife :
"Dearest Wife,—l show the strong love I bear you and
my darling child by no longer casting a shadow upon the
brightness of your life by my presence. I feel sure your
strong sense and pure heart will guard our pure, good child.
Be careful of hollow friends, and if, in the deep mysteries of
the great world I am about to enter, I can in any way com-
municate with the earth, it will be to my darling wife and
child. Oh God guard and protect you and Lilt. Never fall
into drinking, I know its curse, and feel its baneful effects.
Oh ! Christ, who died on Mount Calvary—thy end, 0 Lord,
was better; but mingled with much love in thy grief. In
my end, 0 God, I desire to find pardon, trusting the Divine
mercy of a kind, long-suffering God. Ohl Nelly, pray for
me sometimes. I feel my good child will often think of her
poor heartbroken father, and she will pray for my soul.
Oh God, the bitter cup of life is full."

Fn a letter to Mr }larrington the deceased expresses his
gratitude, and says,—

,6 I am killed by polieo villany. Oh I --- and --, I
leave you both to God's judgment. Oh! bad wicked men,
you have killed me."

In a letter to Lieut. Brown, he says :
" Great Heaven I hear my cry for mercy. Oh I God,
Pardon my hostile, bitter enemies. Oh I brutal you
ingrate Oh !—, why such swindling deceit ? Oh I
brute—oh : cruel perjurer, --, why perjure yourself to
injure me, who have so often kindly treated you ? Oh I foul
man, thy end will indeed be miserable. I will not curse
thee, —; but you must all feel in your own minds the
misery your falsehoods have brought upon me. You have
destroyed my life, and to God I leave your punishment.
--, you base conspirator, you have joined with --- to
destroy me to exalt who—why, dirt and filth, which my
house would never hold."

In one of his letters he speaks of his wife thus :
" Oh I God, where is her equal in great goodness and
virtue ?"

Mr Reed, clerk of the local board ; Mr Barnett, surveyor;
and Mr Harrington, Mr Brown, Mr Prest, and Mr Pid-
cock, he requests to be
"Kind to my darling, pure wife."
To Mr Vincent he says :

" Dear I Dear Vincent, my honest boy, I am going—my
heart is broke by the villany of -- and -- They had
their plot laid with the tailor -- to dishonour my house,
which I have tried to keep up so respectable. God bless
you I God bless you !—your heart is good and may God
keep it so.—Good bye. W. S."

In another letter he says :--
"Oh I that Dr. Butler was alive to see fair play. God in
mercy bless all who knew me. I ask them to deal honest in
their judgment of poor William Sloman, whose whole heart
was with the working classes. To the common honour of
all I ever knew I beg their help to my poor dear wife. She
is good and virtuous—God bless her."
Of his private affairs he says
cc
My debts are to Barclay, Vickers, Bass, Edwards, &re.,
in all about £9OO, The lease of the improved property is
worth £B,OOO, with furniture and fixtures. The stock is
worth £2OO. I have only one child—my darling Lille. All
is now darkness, and nay soul is eager to take its flight.
Grant, oh I God, mercy to thy ungrateful servant; pardon
my enemies, and save all I love. Heaven bless my wife and
child. They are both too good to linger in Woolwich, where
I have suffered so much,"
The Jury returned a verdict of—Committed suicide whilst
labouring under temporary insanity.

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