The Sun.
London, England, 1846-08-22 00:00:00

THE DAGENHAM MURDER.

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The adjourned inquest on the body of Clarke, the— mur-
dered policeman, was remmed on Thursday, at Dagenham,
and disclosures were made which will probably lead to the
detection of the murderer.

The suspended policemen, Batfoy, Farns, Kimpton, and
Hickton, appeared and swore that their former evidence was
false, so far as regarded their statement that on the night of
the murder they had seen police-sergeant Parsons on duty at
eleven o'clock, two o'clock, and six o'clock; that they made
that statement at Parsons' own request, who, in point of fact,
was not on duty, and he had not accounted for his time.
To make the suspicion thus raised against Parsons still
stronger, a man named Henry Clements, a sale porter and
hawker, residing at Romford, deposed that a week after
the murder, being at the Lion, at Romford, he went into a
room where sergeant Parsons was sitting, absorbed over a
newspaper, which contained an account of the finding of
Clarke's body, and then he heard him exclaim, in a state
of apparent abstraCtion, "Poor fellow, I wish I had not done
it now."

Parsons had stated in his evidence that he was on duty all
night; and on being now confronted with the parties who
made this new and astoundinz revelation, he declared that
all they had said was false, that he was actually on duty, and
that he adhered to his statement.

Under these circumstances the Coroner further adjourned
the inquiry for three weeks.
Of course a strong sensation has been produced in the
neighbourhood by these disclosures. The detective force at
Dagenham have orders to keep the suspended men in a state
of surveillance, and not to permit Parsons to be out of their
sight, or to permit any communication between him and the
constables referred to.

The next sitting of the Coroner is likely to produce im
portant results.

THE LATE MURDER. AT THE

GUILDHALL COFFEE-HOUSE.
The unfortunate young woman, Susan Tolliday, was
the daughter of James Tolliday, a whitesmith, residing
in Maye's.yard, Castle-eden, in this town. The deceased
was the eldest child, being about twenty-one years of
age. She left Cambridge fourteen months since, when
she went to London and entered into the service Jf Mr.
Walters, of the Guildhall Coffee-house, King-street,
Cheapside. John Smith, the murderer, was distantly
related to his victim through his wife. It appears
that he was a man of violent passions and of intem-
perate habits. A great degree of intimacy existed be-
tween Smith and the deceased, consequent upon their
relationship, though frequent quarrels took place
between them. About six weeks ago, the deceased
had arranged to pay a visit b her friends in Cam
bridge, but instead of coming, she. addressed a letter to
her mother, in which she stated that she could not
come until she had received another month's wages, as
she had lent some money to "John" and he had not
paid her. This was the last communication her parents
received from her. Last Sunday morning a messenger,
dispatched by Mr. Walters, brought a letter to de-
ceased's mother, stating that she was very ill and not
likely to live, and that unless her friends immediately
hastened to London they would not see her alive again.
Her eldest brother, an industrious well-conducted
young man, who hrs worked for Mr. Finch of this town
for many years—suspecting from the tenor of the
message, that his sister was dead, pressed the man to
tell him the truth, but the messenger declared that when
he left London she was still alive. Not the slightest
hint of the murder was given to the wretched woman's
friends, nor did a suspicion of the horrid fact cross their
minds until the Monday daily papers arrived containing
the particulars of smith's examination and of the
Coroner's inquest. Mrs. Tolliday and her eldest son
left Cambridge on Sunday, by the ....ix o'clook evening
train:- The particulars we have been able to learn of
the family of the deceased are as follows:—The father
came originally from Histon, where there are several
branches of the same family located. He is a man between
fifty and sixty yearsof age, and has all his lie been subject
to fits, which have prevented his being employed in his
trade, and he eatas v. subsistence by carrying water and
eollecting manure. His wife, a very industrious woman,
takes in washing and goes out as a charwoman, and
although there are seven or eight young children, they
are spoken of by th..ir neighbours as always being cleanly
and neatly clad. The eldest son, as we have said before,
works for Mr. Finch. There is a niece of the old man's
living in Barnwell, and another married woman residing
in King-street ; and a nephew is an ostler in some livery
stables in town. The unfortunate deceased was a girl of
prepossessing appearance, and bore a very goad character
for steadiness and industrious conduct among her neigh -
bours.—Cambridge A dverti,er.

REMARKABLE SUPERSTITION.
The following astonishing narrative of superstition is
abridged from the Patriot, which describes in the letter
of " A Parishioner," headed "A Woman Sold to the
Devil," and addressed "To the Very Rev. the Dean,
the Right Rev. Fathers in God, the Very Reverend and
the Reverend the Prebendaries of Westminster":—

On Friday night a large number of the thieves, pros-
titutes, and other blackguards residing in the vicinity of
Westminster Abbey, collected in the churchyard along-
side that venerable building. They began to congregate
soon after eleven o'clock at night, and, by midnight, the
number assembled is estituriter 10 have between one and
two thousand. They continued together, shouting,
swearing, phying, aed fighting, until nearly two o'clock
of Saturday inorning, when they dispersed in the most
uproarious manner. On inquiring into the cause of the
tumult, it was ascertained that a report had gene abroad
that one of the prostitutes infesting t)e•fieiglf.ou,heod
of the Abbey had sold herself to the I )evil for 4.4, 6d. on
the Tuesday nieht previous, arid had engaged to ratify
the bargain, and deliver herself over to his Satanic
Majesty, in the etwehyard, by the side of Westminster
Abbey, on Fri lay, at niidn gilt ; and the assembly had.
taken place to see the bargain consummated.
The various tales current since then among the in-
habitants in the vicinity of the Abbey, caused the writer
to make inquiry of the agerta of .the City Mission, who
visit those disteista ; and lir, Grads' the idea is universally
entertained that the poor girl had so sold herself, and
that the Devil was and is actually on the look-out for
her. Several declare that while the people were as
sembled in the churchyard waiting for him, and the girl
had gone out, her room was illuminate-I with a most
unearthly flame; that, after the clock had struck twelve
the flame gradually vanished, and left b9hind a smell of
brimstone of the most horrid kind.
One of the City Mission agents in his visitation met
with the unfortunate girl who has INen the cause of all
this hubbub, who is still suffering much fear and per-
turbation of mind. Site narrated to him very artlessly
the actual occurrences that gave rise to the alarm and
confusion of the district. She is a young woman, re-
siding with her sister near the Abney ; they both pos-
sess some claims to beauty. The elder one had gone to
Tothill-street, on Tuesday night, when a gentlemanly
man beckoned hot. He sail lie had been watching her
for two hours, and ached her if she could take him some-
where, and she offered him to go to her room ; he said
he had only 4s. 6d. in his pocket, which he gave
her. He had
he bereonseonall4 only two orie threemust
go
minutes
whenin bed,
im-
mediately. She was suprised, and. offered to get up
and light a candle for him to see to dress ; he said
"No, I can see as well in the dark as the light." He
asked her if she knew who he was: she replied, "No."
He asked her to shake hands, and then said; in a tone
that alarmed her, " Do you know what you have done?"
She replied, " I have done no harm." He then said,
"I am the devil: you have sold yourself to me, and in
four days you shall be in the Church-yard, and I will
fetch you." Ile then went off. The sister told the tale
to others, and it spread abroad with additions, until it
was in every ones mouth, that the bargain was to
consummated at the Abbey at midnight, and the multi-
tude assembled as stated above.
It. has been said that the darkest spot in a room is
that directly under the table on which the lamp stands;
and oh, Most Reverend Sirs! how truly da:k is the spot
on which the shade of Westminster A.ibq rests!

HIGHWAY ROBBERY.—About seven o'clock en Satur-
day evening last, as a commercial traveller, named Bailey, represent-
ing the firm of Messrs. Edgington and Co., tarpauling makers,
Borough, was proceeding al ,fig the high road, near Berkhampstead,
in a lour-wheeled chaise, four fellows, wearing short frocks, and
having the appearance of navigators, suddenly emerged from behind
a hedge, and darting into the road, one of them stopped the horse,
two others seized Mr. Bailey, whilst the fourth employed himself
in rifling his pockets, and took therefrom his pocket-book and some
gold and silver; but fortunately not to the amount that was pro-
bably anticipated, Mr. Bailey having made a rethittance to London
in the early part of the day. The fellows finally effected their
escape across the fields.

THE LATE SIR -CHARLES WETTIERELL.—Wednesday
evening, at three o'clock, Mr. Dticllow, one of the coroners for Kent,
and a jury, composed of gentlemen residing at or near Aylesford,
held an Inquest on the body of the late Sir Wetherell, which lay
at Preston Rectory. Several witnesses were examined, including
Mr. Itudge, the valet to the deceased, who was with him at the time
of the accident, the driver of the vehicle, a female who was on the
road, at the particular time, the medical gentleman who was present
when he breathed his last. The evidence corroborated the state-
ments which have already been made public, and which proved that
the fatal injuries sustained by Sir Charles were sole the result of
accident. The jury returned a Veriii,A in ace, malice lib the medi-
cal testimony given, which was to the efUct that Sir C. Wetherell
died from the effects produced by a concussion of the brain, the re-
sult of the accident on the 10th lust, Mr. Beach, clerk to the de-
ceased, was hi attendance. The remains were removed from Preston
Rectory on Ilpiursday afternoon, and arrived at Berkeley-ntate at
flint o'clock,