The Sun.
London, England, 1839-06-06 00:00:00

EVENING EDITION

THE MURDER IN PRINCE'S-

STREET.

The inquest Was resumed last evening, and a number of
witnesses examined at considerable length. The following
is the only importaat evidence given before the Jury
Thomas Chi!man, police constable, 75 C, said, I was
on duty in Old Compton-street, about 10 minutes past 12
o'ckick, on Tuesday morning. Y heard a rattle spring, snd
ran to the spot as quick as possible. I saw several persons
standing in front of Mr. Westwood's 'shop, who said, " po-
liceman, the house is on fire," The door was open. I saw
a constable, No. 95, one woman, and two men standing
near the door of the middle room, from which smoke was
issuing. I entered the room as fir as the bed, when I
discovered sou, fire but no fiAme ; the smoke obliged me
to come out, and I told the other const,ibl,:. to fetch a fire
engine. I can the servant, Maria Pretty on the stairs, she
waaentirely dressed, and was standing with two men. She
had her nightcap on ; I do not know whether she had her
stockings on. I asked her for some water, and she took
me down stairs, and I procured a pail of water, which I
threw on the bed-_a third pail of water extinguished the
fire—and then one of the men went in and said " Here
is a body.' I felt for it, and found it lying with the feet
towards the door and the head towards the bed--the body
was removed to the middle room. There was no signs of
lift,. The servant girl came into the room and looked at
the body of her master, and said " Poor dear fellow ; I had
Rot left him him half an hour."

Here this wi 11CS5'S evidence was interrupted by the ar.
rival of Mrs. Westwood, the widow of the deceased, who
was brought into Court in an arm-chair. She is extremely
advanced in years. She was dressed in deep black, and
gave the following evidence. About ten o'clock on lon-
day night I wished my husband good night previously to
my going up stairs to bed. A little after eleven o'clock
Nir. Gerard, the lodger, came in. About half-past eleven,
whilst in bed, I heard a scuffle, which alarmed me in
about a quarter of an hour or twenty minutes I heard some
one go out at the street door, I cannot say whether there
were one or more persons. Afterwards I heard no noise.
When I heard the scuffle I thought all was not right. It
caused a good deal of noise, but it did not last more
than a minute and a half When I heard the
door open and shut I thought there were thieves
murdering my husband. I got out of bed immediately,
and on opening the door I smelt fire. I then went on the
landing, and heard my husband groan two or three times.
I then opened the lodger's door, who was in bed, and I
think asleep. I called to him, and afterwards proceeded
up stairs to my servant's bed-room, achom I found asleep.
I told her to come down stairs, and see what had happened.
I followed her down stairs as quick as I could. I opened
the street door, and gave an alarm. I found the street
door shut on the spring. The young man Bannister, who
assisted in the shop, is of very honest and sober habits.
After stating that the house had been robbed before, and
that a man of the name of Redding had been executed for
the offence, the witness said a great deal of property
was stolen, gold and silver watches, and chains of the
value of 2001. were taken from the premises. On the
night my unfortunate husband was murdered, none of the
watches that were under repair were stolen: this I heard
from the shopman. The bureau was robbed, in which the
robbers found the key of the iron chest ; the latter they
could not open, because it had a secret spring, but the key
was taken away. Four gold watches and seven chains
were in the bureau, but they were not taken away.
Frederick Juhn Owen, of No. 38, Silver-street, Golden-
square, being sworn said, about a quarter past twelve
o'clock on Tuesday morning I was passing by the de-
ceased's house, when I observed two men, one at the door
and the other came out of the house. I thought I knew
one of them, and I was going to speak to him, but he ap-
peared to shun me; he was not the person I knew. Both
the men went away together in the direction of Charing-
cross; they were dressed in dark frock coats, and I did
not see that they had any bundle. I should know one of
them again ; one was about five feet eight inches in
height, the other about five feet five. The short mail
came out of the house.
Inspector Jarvis, of the C Division, examined the pre-
mises, and after stating that he saw a sash weight about
a foot and a half long and au inch and a half in diameter,
which was found in the passage, produced a knife which
was lying at the top of the drawers on a newspaper, on
which there were two or three spots of blood ; he also pro-
duced a pair of spectacles which belonged to the deceased
—one of the glasses was broken, and there was marks of
blood on the other. There were no marks of blood in the pas-
sage nor in the middle room ; there were in the inner room,
near the bed, under which the blood had flowed. My opi-
nion is, that the deceased was attacked either in the bed-
room or at the door of it. I examined the house all over,
and there was no appearance, either at the front or back
of it that it was foredaly entered.
Tne witness here produced a short apron with pockets
like those worn by toll-keepers. It was found on the shop
counter, and belonged to no one in the deceased's house.
A young man named George Robinson, residing in
Crown-street, Soho, who had entered the deceased's house
when the alarm of fire was given, and who had taken away
the deceased's hat instead of his own, was examined by
the Jury at great length, as it was considered strange,
that having immediately discovered his mistake he did not
claim his hat until yesterday. He had a mark on his face
which he said was caused by a burn received whilst endea-
vouring to extinguish the fire, but a surgeon who was in
the inquest room said he thought it a graze and not a
burn.

The witness Owen, who said he saw two men near the
deceased's door about a quarter. past 12 on Tuesday morn-
ing, was recalled, and he stated that he thought Robinson
was the man whom he saw come out of the deceased's
house at the time above stated. What appeared extremely
singular was, that Robinson said he did not discover that
his face was burned until the day after the shocking
catastrophe.
George Spendelow, engine-keeper to the parish of St.
Ann's, Westminster, said he was called to the fire, and
heard some one say he had got a wrong hat, and that it
was better than his own. Robinson was that person ; and
he said when he first saw the body, " That is not Mr.
Westwood, he appears too young." When the body was
turned round, Robinson said, " Oh, yes, it is Mr. West-
wood."

The inquest was adjourned until nine o'clock on Friday
morning ; and the Coroner, at the suggestion of the Jury,
ordered Robinson to be detained in custody.