The Sun.
London, England, 1854-06-29 00:00:00

THE MURDER NEAR LEICESTER.

LEICESTER; Tuesday Evening.--Great excitement pre-
vailed in this town last night, 'owing to the arrival of
Chief-constable Goody er with a tnan in his custody, named
George Frederick Ashton, charged on suspicion of being
the person who shot Mr. James Adcock, farmer, of
Ashby Shrubs, on the Hinckley turnpike-road, on the
17th inst. Ashton is a short, thick-set man, apparently
about thirty years of age, and has, during the last five
months, been delivering lectures. in Leicester and an
adjoining village on phrenology and other "sciences,"
according to his advertisement, one of the more promi-
nent being " head reading," i. C., a written character
from a phrenological examination. He appears to have
been extensively patronised in this branch of his " pro-
fession" by simple-minded females, and amongst those
who consulted him was the sister of the murdered man.
Ashton seems to have had a tender paseion for Miss
Adcock, which was not altogether repulsed, as he was a
visitor to the farm at Ashby Shrubs both before and
after the murder. To this it is said there was some ob-
jection on the part of the deceased ; and what led the
-police to suspect Ashton as being the murderer has been
his extraordinary conduct since the fatal occurrence.
According to his own account, he was at Nottingham
'on the night of the murder, and is able to prove that
such is the fact ; but before leaving Leicester on-that
evening he told a barmaid at an inn which he frequented
that he was going to Birmingham• He does not appear
to have been seen by any one in Leicester till Sunday
evening, when he was at the same inn, and the murder
being the subject of conversation, he took part in the
discussion. The next morning he invited a gentleman,
with whom he had not been on terms of intimacy till
the previous evening, to take a drive in a dog-cart to
Market Bosworth, on condition that they should return
in the evening, the road to that place being the identi-
cal spot where the murder was committed. According
to appointment, he had the dog-cart at the inn door
at three o'clock ; but, instead of going' to Bosworth, he
drove to Wigston' a village lying in exactly the con-
trary direction, nad what business he had there, beyond
callingiat a public-house, his friend was unable to ascer-
tain. He then took a circuitous route to Ashby Shrubs,
and when he arrived at the farm-house he said, " This is
the place where the murdered man lived," and giving
his friend the reins he jumped down and went in. 'After
waiting a few minutes he beckoned his friend in to have
some gin and water. They afterwards drove on towards
Bosworth, and when they arrived at the Park Ashton
said he should not return that evening. This caused
his friend to express *great surprise, as he had made ar-
rangements to be at home that night. They spent the
evening at the Dixie Arms, and the following day (Tues-
day) they seen to have rambled about that part of the
country until the evening, when they found themselves
-at Kirby Muxloe, the nearest village to the spot where
Adcock was shot. As they emerged from the lane Ash-
ton told his friend that they were near the place, and
he would drive him to see it, which he did, and passed
on to the road-side inn, where the alarm was first given.
After having something to drink, and lighting cigars,
they returned over it again, and reached Leicester at
the close of the evening. At present it does not appear
how he spent Wednesday; but his conduct had attracted
the notice of the police, and for the next few days he
was missing, until Mr. Goodyer, with Superintendent
Burdett and Sergeant Wetherall, apprehended him at
Northampton, where he had announced himself to de-
liver lectures.
The main point to clear up is, where did he spend the
Saturday night on which the murder was committed. He
asserts himself that he was at Nottingham, and this is being
strictly investigated ; and, in order to do so, a remand was
applied for by Superintendent Burdett when the prisoner
was today brought before Colonel King and Mr. Stokes
and granted till Friday next.
The coroner's inquisitiou was resumed to-day at Braun-
st one, before J. Gregory. Esq. The men who fir: found
the body and the brother of the deceased were examined.
The facts embraced in the testimony of the former have
already been published, and the evidence of the latter did
not throw any light on the melancholy affair, except as
to the neckerchief and handkerchief thd deceased had
when he left home, and he gave it as his opinion that he
did hot take more than 6s. with him. It is now gene-
rally believed that he had no money on him when the
murder took place.
The jury, without the least hesitation, returned a ver-
dict of wilful murder against some person or persons un-
known,
As-the cab containing Ashton left the county office for
the gaol, after examination before the magistrates, it was
followed by an immense crowd of people.