The Sun.
London, England, 1862-03-05 00:00:00

ASSIZE IN TEL LIGEN CE.

OXFORD CIRCUIT.—OXFORD, March 4.
CROWN COURT.
(Before Mr. Justice Crompton.)
MURDER OF A GAMEKEEPER.

John Hall, labourer, aged 33, was charged with
the wilful murder of Stephen Moulder, gamekeeper
to Lord Dillon, on the 20th December last.
The case commenced at 9 o'clock in the morning,
and occupied the whole of the day, and was not
brought to a termination befoto 7 o'clock in the
evening. A great number of witnesses were exa-
mined, and several of them were subjected to a long
cross-examination, but the facts themselves lay in
a very small compass.

Sergeant Pigott and Mr. Sawyer conducted
the case for the crown, and Mr. Staveley Hill and
Mr. Harrington for the prisoner.
On the night of the 19th of December last, two
gamekeepers of Lord Dillon's, named Stephen Moul-
der and Thomas Curds, were watching a coppice
known as Shears-coppice, part of Lord Dillon's
estate at Ditchley. They commenced between 10
and 11, and remained there till between 12 and 1,
when they heard some one in the coppice. They
proceeded there, and saw two men coming across
the ride. They followed them along the ride, and
when within ten or twelve yards of them one of
the men turned round and deliberately fired at the
keepers, the result of which was that Moulder re-
ceived almost the entire contents, and fell to the
ground, dying instantly. Some of the shots also
struck the other keeper, Curtis, but did not injure
him. The man who fired the gun ran off imme-
diately he had done so, and Curtis, believing it to
be Hall, called out, " Jack, Jack, I know thee."
The man swung himself over a gate and got away.
The other man who was in company with him
was a labourer named John Tuckey, who was
captured by Curtis, after a scuffle, Tuckey
calling out to his mate to come to his assistance.
Tuckey was taken into custody, when he gave up a
ramrod which Hall had dropped and he picked up.
It was proved in evidence Hall and Tuckey had
been together on the 19th of December drinking at
various public-houses, and about 11 o'clock at night
went to the house of John Maycock, brother-in-law
to Hall, where the latter asked Maycock for his
short gun which he had to repair. The gun was
fetched, and loaded, and Hall and Tuckey went
away in the direction of Shearscopse, where the
unfortunate occurrence took place. At a public
house where Hall, Tuckey and others had been
drinking on the night of the murder, Hall used some
angry language towards the keepers, and said he
should not mind shooting a man. Certain footmarks
were traced from the gate, where the man who fired
the gun had made his escape, to the turnpike road,
and these being compared with the boots taken off
Hall's feet, corresponded most minutely.
The jury returned a verdict of wilful murder, but
recommended the prisoner to mercy on the ground
that they believed his firing the gun was a momen-
tary act, and that he only meant to disable the
keeper, but not to kill him.
The Judge said he quite concurred in the ver-
dict, and could not see how the jury could safely
have come to any other conclusion. His lordship
then passed sentence of death in the usual form,
and said that the recommendation of the jury should
be forwarded to the proper channel.

MIDLAND CIRCUIT.—NORTIZAMPTON,;March 4.
(Before Lord Chief Justice Cockburn.)
ATTEMPTED MURDER OF A GAMEKEEPER.
William Patrick, 24, labourer, Arthur Artheston,
48, weaver, and Henry Clarke, 35, weaver, were
indicted for the attempted murder of William Issitt,
a gamekeeper, in the employ of Viscountess Hood,
at Barton Seagrave, on the 30th of January last.
All the prisoners pleaded not guilty.
The jury convicted all the prisoners, and they
were each sentenced to ten years' penal servitude.