The Sun.
London, England, 1837-07-20 00:00:00

DREADFUL CIRCUMSTANCE.

Yesterday morning a considerable degree of excitement
prevailed in Surrey-street, Blackfriars•road, in consequence
of a man, named Chamberlain, residing in that street, hav-
ing stabbed his wife and mortally wounded her, and after-
wards destroyed himself. Chamberlain is a French po-
lisher by trade, and, with his wife and two children, occu-
pied a lodging at No. 22, in Surrey-street. About a month
ago a distant relative of his died, and left him upwards of
1,0001. Since the property, however, had come into
Chamberlain's possession, he and his wife were in the habit
of drinking to great excess, and this produced such quar-
rels between them that the landlord of the house, annoyed
by their repeated disturbances at. all hours of the day and
night, gave them warning to quit. Yesterday morning,
agreeably to this determination on the part of the landlord,
a bill was placed in the window of Chamberlain's
room of " lodgings to let." Chamberlain, who had been
out at the time, on his return, evidently under the influence
of liquor, expressed dissatisfaction on finding that lie would
be compelled to leave the house, and in the excitement of

the moment he drew out his watch and flung it through the
pane of glass which contained the bill, and it fell into the street.
The watch, however, was subsequently picked up and given
to his wife, and sometime afterwards Chamberlain, uncon-
scious of what he- had previously done avith his watch, ac-
cused his wife of depriving him of it for the purpose of
pledging it. This she denied, and an altercation took place
between them, during which a woman lodging in the next
apartment went into the room where they were, and endea-
voured to pacify them. Chamberlain was at that time in a
violent rage, in the midst of which he seized a table knife,
and, running towards his wife; plunged it with despe-
rate force into her back. As he stood 'considerably
above his wife at the time, the knife passed in a slant-
ing direction down the blade-bone, and the point entered
a portion of the lungs. The unfortunate woman imme-
diately fell to the floor, bleeding profusely, which the fe,
male, who was with her at the time, tried to stop, by placing
her hand over the orifice of the wound. The moment
that Chamberlain had stabbed 'his wife he walked coolly
down stairs, calling out that he had stabbed his wife, and
he passed out into the street, where he still continued eja-
culating that he had murdered his wife, and that he wanted
to give himself up into the hands of justice. He was
shortly afterwards taken into custody by a policeman of
the M. Division, and conveyed to the station-house in the
Southwark-bridge road. He had not been long in the
lock-up place before he fell into a sound sleep, but pre-
viously to which he was searched, for the purpose of de-
priving him of anything by which he was likely to attempt
self destruction. Ile however, contrived to destroy him-
self in the course of the day, and he accomplished
the act by taking a piece of tape from his left
arm, which had been bled a day or two previously,
and strangling himself. There was another man in the
same cell at the time, but Chamberlain had made so little
noise in effecting his purpose that the fact of his death
having taken place was not known until a considerable time
after it had occurred, and too late to attempt resuscitation.
The deceased's wife was still alive at a late hour yesterday
evening, but the medical man. who is attendant upon her is
of opir,iOn that the wound which has been inflicted on her
neck is of such a dangerous nature .as to preclude the hope
of her recovery. At the period of the altercation which
occurred between the parties, and which led to the above
catastrophe, it appears that the unfortunate woman was
under the influence of liquor, for she was known to some
females living in the same house to have drank off two
glasses of rum and Shrub a short time previously to her
having been stabbed.

" BELL'S LIFE IN LONDON."—FuII Particulars
of the Public Opening of the London End of the London and
Birmingham Railway, with its arrangements, from Euston-
square to Box Moor, Fares, Trains, Town Omnibusses, &c.,
will appear in Bell's Life in London on Sunday next, July 23,
accompanied with an Engraving of the Grand Entrance at
Euston-square. Price of Bell's Life in London, Fivepence
Office, 170, Strand.—Bell's Life in London of Sunday, Au-
gust 6, will contain a full and original Account of Goodwood
Races, with an accurate Engraving of the splendid Waterloo
Shield, value Twelve Hundred Pounds, presented by Lord
George Bontinck.

When his late Majesty William IV. went first in
state to Parliament after he had ascended the throne, Queen
Adelaide and a number of distinguished Ladies assembled in
the garden facing St. James's Palace, overlooking the park.
After the Royal procession had passed, the public recognized
her Majesty, when a general cry of " The Queen, the Queen,"
followed by loud cheers, ensued ; on which her Majesty took
the Princess Victoria in her arms and placed her on the wall,
Which seemed to say, " Behold your future Queen." On
which thousands rent the skies with their voices, and many a
heart breathed out, " God bless you both."—From an Eye-
witness.

The town has been for some days inundated with
the most unfavourable reports as to the health of Sir Robert
Peel. If they are either altogether erroneous or much exag-
gerated, we Shall be happy to sec them contradicted.