The Sun.
London, England, 1846-08-12 00:00:00

SUPPOSED MURDERS.

OXFORD, AUGUST 10.—The neighbourhoods of Wood-
stock, Sturdy's Castle, and Jackley, have been thrown
into a considerable state of alarm in consequence of the
discovery of the skeletons of three human beings, in a
pit on the right hand side of the Banbury turnpike-road,
and within fifty yards of the Sturdy's Castle public-
house, and which there is every reason to fear are the
remains of some unfortunate fellow-creatures who have
been basely murdered and then buried there by a gang
of gipsies who used to infest that part of Oxford-
shire, three of whom are now in Oxford Castle,
two under a conviction of murder, and the
other of sheep-stealing. Our readers will at
once know to whom we allude, viz., to James
Biddle and Isaac Sheriff, who were condemned at the
recent assizes for the murder of Mr. Mobbs, but whose
sentence has since been commuted to that of transporta-
tion for life, and Skerry, who turned Queen's evidence,
but was afterwards transported for fifteen years for
sheepstealing. The discovery of the human skeletons
arose under the following circumstances :—When Mr.
Walker, the governor of Banbury Gaol, and Morgan,
the constable of King Sutton, were bringing Biddle,
Skerry, and Sheriff to Oxford Castle, and on arriving
within a short distance of the public-house called
Sturdy's Castle, Biddle suddenly exclaimed (pointing to
the side of the road as well as his handcuffs would
let him), " There lays dead men's bones." Mr.
Walker asked him what he meant—how dead men's
bones came there ? Biddle appeared somewhat con-
fused, hut replied,in a jesting manner, " Oh, they were
killed in the war," and said no more. The officers, on
their return from Oxford, repeated the conversation to
the landlady at Sturdy's Castle, who remembered that,
about eight years ago, a person disappeared from that
neighbourhood under very peculiar circumstances, and
had never been seen or heard of by his friends since—
the person's name was Hicks, the son of a small farmer
residing at Jackley (a village about a mile and a half
from Sturdy's Castle, and that he was the owner of some
cottages and land at that place. He was a
very eccentric character, and preferred a roam-
ing life to that of a settled one. He at
last took up a regular vagabond's life, wandering about
the country with a gipsy tribe, of which Biddle and
Skerry formed a portion. Every half-year they were to
be seen encamped in the neighbourhood of Sturdy's
Castle, and it was on these occasions only Hicks used to
pay his native village a visit, for the purpose of receiv-
ing his rents for the lands and cottages. Something
like eight years ago
he paid his half-yearly visit as
usual, but since that time he has never been seen or
heard of, and his brother has taken to the property.
C led to
The circumstance under which he disappeared, and the
to Oxford pl
astle, h
company he was known to kee coued wit Biddlthee's
persons we re employed to dig
declaration on his way
opinion that he had been Basel
opinion for the sake
of the rents he had been recelving,
to by Biddle, No steps were
taken to ascertain the truth of Biddle's declaration until
onto side of the road, about a foot
snout Friday t last,he
5p
spot
when some
pointed
when, horrible to
relate, the skeletons of three. human beings were dis-
covered in a hollow place, which was many years ago
used as a saw pit,
and a half under groun Many of. the bones are quite
perfect. A medical gentleman residing in the neigh-
bourhood has pronounced them to be those of a woman
and two men, and from the state they were in they must
beenchoalvleected
thereseveral
together
and
under lock and seal, waiting the issue of a coroner's
inquest., when, it is to be hoped, that some further light
will be thrown on the affair.
l py; ee adr s• They were carefully
a box, which is now

FIRE IN TEE SOUTHWARK BRIDGE-ROAD.--Yester-
day forenoon, between ten and eleven o'clock, a fire broke
out upon the premises in the occupation of Mr. James Har-
court, a corn-dealer, carrying on business in Norfolk-street,
Southwark-bridge-road. It commenced in a building termed
tit t not. before
two-thirds of the racks in the
a stove, in which a large number of cane ribs were under-
going the process of dying. The firemen and the men em- ,
, after some trouble, in ex-
itriiilnbu
o ieNdiss.
i eo,rineng thestchoen consumed,
flm aetnd, b
e
premises
sa, succeededb
several gross of cane
a sack having been left hanging over a coke
building destroyed, and the roof pulled off. The outbreak
was caused by
stove. Mr. Harcourt was uninsured.
ACCIDENT ON TEE ilivEß,--Yesterday morning, as two
brothers, named Gregory and George Parscns, and a man
named Pate, were rowing up the river in a small skiff.
Near Battersea they ran foul of a sailing-barge, by which
their skiff was upset, and all three were thrown into the
water. By the exertions of the people in the vicinity, Pate
and George Parsons, who were found clinging to a thwart of
the boat on turning her up, were rescued ; but Gregory Fla-
gons was drowned. The btAIY Wag not found.