The Sun.
London, England, 1846-07-07 00:00:00

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MURDER NEAR NOTTINGHAM.
Norriscrram, MONDAY.—A report reached this town on
Sunday evening that a man had been found a few hours
before murdered in Popplewick forest, distant eight miles
from the town of Nottingham. On inquiry at the village,
which is situate in a north-westerly direction, and adjoins
the ancient forest of Sherwood, it was found that information
had been given to the coroner that a body had been found,
and that he had directed a jury to be summoned immediately.
On looking at the body, which lay in a stable, little doubt
existed in the minds of all who saw it that a murder had
been committed. On the left cheek was a large gash, nearly
two inches in length and of considerable depth, from which
a quantity of blood had flowed, and filled the nostrils and
mouth and under the right ear; at the seat of the jugular
vein was a large incised wound, covered with blood. On
the right and left shoulder and breast were several severe
bruises, and some scratches ; but the latter may have
been made by an animal while the body lay upon the
ground. Popplewick is a very small village, and a diffi-
culty arose in viewing the body, as there is no surgeon
resident nearer than Bulwell, five miles distant. The
corpse was that of William Robinson, aged 34 years, a
carrier in the employ of Mrs. Smith, of Mansfield ; but how
he came by his death is at present involved in mystery. On
Saturday last Robinson set out as usual in the morning from
Mansfield to Nottingham, with his waggon and three horses,
and in the evening he left the Shakspere public-house in
the latter town, to return with his load of goods, in company
with an agricultural labourer, Henry Shepherd, of Calverton.
They set out from Nottingham at half-past six o'clock, and,
according to Shepherd's account, they went on the road to
the White Hart, at Redhill, four miles from Nottingham,
where they stopped to have a pint of ale. Having drunk
this, they drove as far as the seventh milestone on the Mans-
field road, where they both got out of the waggon ; it was
then about half-past eight o'clock, and quite light. At this
place Robinson set his dog at liberty, and, carrying his
jacket on his arm, lingered behind, saying he would put it
on. Shepherd drove the horses, and proceeded. When he
had got about a mile, not seeing Robinson, he stopped the
waggon, and shouted for him, and waited half an hour; he
then drove on to the Hut, frequently looking behind him
and shouting. On arriving at the Hut he had a pint of
ale, and told the people he expected the carrier ; after
waiting an hour, the landlord, Mr. Mealey, advised him to
go on to Mansfield, which he did, and arrived there between
two and three o'clock in the morning. He told Mrs.
Smith that he had left her servant behind him, and then
went and told Mrs. Robinson. Samuel- Townrow, a neigh-
bour to the carrier, was called up directly afterwards, and
requested by Mrs:Robinson to go and seek for her husband.
At five o'clock William Dove, framework-knitter, of Arnold,
and his two brothers were walking on the high road from
that village to Mansfield, and near the seventh milestone
they found a jacket and a whip, which they took up, and not
seeing anybody about, they carried them away. As soon as
they got into the forest, it seems they turned on to the foot-
path, which leaves the high road, and proceeded to the Hut,
near which place they met Townrow, and in reply to his
questions told him they had not seen anybody, but had found
a waistcoat and a whip; on showing the articles they were
-recognised as belonging to Robinson. Townrow then pro-
ceeded on the road, and 200 or 300 yards off, before he
reached the eighth milestone from Nottingham, he saw Ro-
binson's dog. The animal barked, growled, and ran as if he
wished to prevent Townrow going forward ; after a good deal
of caressing, the dog permitted him to go on, and he very
soon saw Robinson stretched on his back upon the road, with
his face covered with blood, and quite dead. He lay about
two yards from the centre of the road, and appeared to have
been dragged two or three yards. A pool of blood, from his
head, lay near him, and another pool about a yard distant.
The left hand of the deceased was covered with blood, and
his shirt-sleeves, which were turned up, were both besmeared
with blood, particularly the right sleeve.
Information was quickly conveyed to Popplewick, which
is about a mile from the fatal spot, and a constable pro-
ceeded to convey the body to his house, where the jury were
empanelled at half-past six in the evening. Robinson had
19s. in silver and 3d. in copper found in his pockets, and
some memorandums; but whether he ought to have had
more money about him is not yet known, and from the cir-
cumstance of his dog having kept the man at bay for a con-
siderable length of time, it is impossible to say whether dur-
ing the conflict the dog was not a very troublesome assailant
on behalf of his master. Shepherd was brought before the
coroner, and told his tale. On taking off his jacket two or
three spots of blood were found inside upon the lining, and his
shirt was very dirty on the right, sleeve and shoulder, and
on the wristband there was a little blood. He accounted
for these marks by stating, that they were made while fight-
ing with a servant-man on the preceding Thursday. It ap-
pears that for twenty-five years Shepherd has borne a good
character, and left his situation on the day he fought. His
master, Mr. Houghton, of Nuttall, paid him 3/. 155., the
balance of his wages. The manner in which Shepherd made
his statement, and the circumstance of his being lame, and a
much smaller man than Robinson, gave an impression much
in his favour.

After 10 o'clock a person came into the room, and stated
to the coroner that a woman residing at Colonel Coape's,
which is within sight of the place where Robinson was found,
had just sent word that at the very hour which Shepherd
bad described as the time he left Robinson, she saw three
men in the forest scuffling together. The lateness of the
hour, and Colonel Coape's house being nearly a mile and a
half distant, prevented a messenger being dispatched for
her at that time, but directions were given for her to be
summoned for the next day. The circumstances being al-
together involved in mystery, and of so serious a character,
the inquest was adjourned to this day (Monday), at 3 o'clock
in the afternoon. A post mortem examination of the body
will in the meantime take place, and a rigid inquiry will be
instituted. •

THE LATE MURDER OF THE
POLICE-CONSTABLE.
DAGENHAM, MONDAY EVENiNG.—The painful interest
manifested in the fate of the unfortunate victim of the hor-
rible and atrocious murder, the main particulars connected
with which appeared in The Sun of yesterday, had, during
Sunday and throughout the whole of yesterday, considerably
increased, and a large number of the inhabitants from Rom-
ford, Ilford, Barking, Chigwell, Hornchurch, and the sur-
rounding villages, visited Dagenham for the purpose of view-
ing the scene of the assassination.
Immediately after the conclusion of the inquest on the
body of the unfortunate man Clarke, on Saturday evening,
an active search was instituted by the police in the corn
field belonging to Mr. Collier, where the murder was per-
petrated, for the purpose of ascertaining what had become
of his hat, which up to that period had not been discovered.
In consequence of this circumstance, it was generally sup-
posed that the deceased must in the first instance have been
assaulted, and then followed his assailants to the field where
he was found murdered. Although the spot and the adjoin-
ing fields were minutely searched, it was not until Sunday
evening that the hat was discovered. It was then found by
a labouring man, named Thomas Palmer, lying amongst the
wheat, about twelve or fourteen yards from the spot where
the body had lain. At this particular part of the field the
wheat had not been at all disturbed or trampled upon, show-
ing, in the first place, the ruffians must either have knocked
the deceased's hat off with so powerful a blow as to have
sent it such a distance, or that that they must have thrown
it there. The former supposition is strengthened by the
circumstance of the hat not being injured in the slightest de-
gree, and and also that, when found, the deceased's handker-
chief was in it.
On the receipt of intelligence of the outrage at Scotland-
yard, two of the most active officers of the detective police
force were sent down to Dagenham, and, after viewing the
place where :the murder had occurred, and making them-
selves thoroughly masters of all the circumstances which
had up to that period transpired in connexion with it, they
proceeded with some of the local constables to visit Romford
and the surrounding villages in search of the suspected mur-
derers. During Saturday evening the various public-houses
and beer-shops were visited by the police in plain clothes,
and their occupants subjected to a scrutinising inspection, it
being believed that in the desperate struggle which had ap-
parently taken place, some of those engaged in it must have
been wounded. Although the topic of conversation in nearly
every instance was the circumstance of the murder, and
what had been done at the inquest that day, still nothing
transpired which actually tended to fix suspicion on any one
beyond the person alluded to in this journal of yesterday.
The search was continued throughout Sunday and yester-
day, and although up to the period of writing this no one
had been apprehended on the charge, still several notorious
characters living in this part of the county of Essex were
under the strict surveillance of the police.
With reference to the causes which had induced the mur-
der, it is the' opinion of every one residing near the spot, and
of the police themselves, that the deceased was mistaken for
Police-constable Butfoy, K 140, who was his predecessor on
the same beat, or Sergeant, Parsons, who has rendered him-
self obnoxibus to some of the notorious characters in the
neighbourhood by bringing them up frequently before the
Ilford bench' of magistrates for drunken and disorderly con-
duct. A short time since one of the gang suspected of
having been engaged in the murder was brought up to
Ilford, charged by Parsons with having stolen a quantity
of hemlock, but the prosecutor not appearing, he was on that
ground discharged. He was then charged with having a
quantity of brass and metal in his possession without being
able to account for it. The magistrates in consequence
of there being some pewter pots belonging to publicans
in the neighbourhood amongst the metal, inflicted a small
fine, and advised the accused to be more careful for the
future.
On the morning of the murder a woman named Page,
who was present at the inquest on Saturday, but was not
examined, residing in a cottage a short distance from where
it took place, states that about three o'clock she was awoke
by the violent barking of her dogs in the yard, and on lis-
tening to it •she heard a cry for help ; but the continual bark-
ing of the dogs prevented her from hearing anything more
distinctly.
Whilst the constables were busy in reference to the murder
on Saturdaayn,otihnefor constable,rmation of thereceivedas same
bydivtihseionr minnacipedal
officer of
George Hall, aged 20, belonging to the Ilford station, having
been killed. The unfortunate man in this instance, who had
only been four months married, had been on duty all day on
Friday at Fairlop Fair, and at two o'clock on Saturday
morning was returning on horseback from it, when his horse
shied, and threw him on his head. He was assisted by a
brother constable, named Corbyn, No. 100 K, who had been
on duty with him, to Barking side, whence he was removed
to his residence at Ilford. Mr. Allison, a surgeon attended
him, and found a dreadful fracture on the left side of the
head, under the ear. He continued to attend him until half-
past twelve o'clock on the same day, when he died. An in-
quest was held yesterday by Mr. C. C. Levis, the coroner,
at the Rose and Crown, Ilford, on the body, and a verdict of
" Accidental death" was returned. The deceased had been
on duty from eleven o'clock on the Friday morning, and was
supposed to be asleep when his horse shied.
Up to the time at which our reporter left Dagenham last
evening, the murderers had not been apprehended; and it is
understood that an immediate application will be made to
Government to offer a reward for their apprehension.

MURDER AT KINETON, WAR

WICKSIIIRE.

1 LEAMINGTON, MONDAY EVENING. -- Another murder,
which at present is involved in as much mystery as that
which occurred at Berkswell, in this county, some months
ago, is just reported here, as having been committed close to
Kineton, a, market town lying between Banbury and Strat-
ford-upon-Avon.
The occurrence has caused the greatest consternation in
the town and neighbourhood, where the deceased (William
Chater) was well known, being a blacksmith and machine-
maker, aged 53, residing at Cornbrooke, near Kineton, with
a decrepid mother of above 80 years, who had been confined
to her bed for the past ten years.
An inquest upon the body was taken before Mr. George C.
Greenway, coroner, this day, at the Swan Inn, Kineton, when
we gathered the subjoined particulars :
Samuel Adkins, landlord of the Pose and Crown, Kineton,
said—On Tuesday, the 30th of June, there was an Odd
Fellows' feast held at my house; some of the members were
there on the following day. The deceased, William Chater,
came about half-past twelve o'clock on the Wednesday, and
stayed half m hour, during which time he had some bread
and cheese.‘"fie then left, and returned about six o'clock in
the evening, when ho joined the company in the club-room,
who were drinking ale and porter. About nine o'clock he
went into the yard, and remained there about half an hour, .