The Sun.
London, England, 1856-06-30 00:00:00

THE. RUGELEY POISONINGS.

STAFFORD, JUNE 28.
It will aff }l'd some satisfaction to the public to be
made aware of the fact that since the execution of the
notorious criminal William Palmer, certain facts have
become known which leave very little doubt that shortly
before his execution the prisoner virtually made an ad-
mission that he was not only guilty of the murder of the
unhappy man, J. P. Cook, but also of those of his wife
and brother.
There appears to be little doubt that but for the ex-
traordinary privilege that was granted to the culprit of
having his relations, and indeed almost any one he de-
sired
to seehitn, continually with him, and even to the
most enreaeouable hour', his brothers and slater, and—
Mr. Smith, his solicitor, not having left the prison tintiV
half-past 12 o'clock on the very morning of his exech-
tion, the plisorer Avotill have had better opportunities
for tlinking senior sky of his position, and the result would
perhaps have been that he would have made a full con-
fession. From first to last his relations professed an en-
tire belief in his intioceuce, and it will be readily under.,
stood that tuis was annulated to-induce a man like Pal-
mer to persevere in a course of deception.
It appears that the Rev. Mr. Goodacre, the chaplain
•of the pri=on, had kept h joharnal of everything that bad -
occurred between hirus,elf arid the prisoner. This jour-

wk.]. was of a-private nature- and no one was allowed to
see it but the visiting justices. Only a small portion o
the contents of this journal has been made public, but
this is quite sufficient to surp,rt the statement that the
wretehed man did virtually snake a confession of his
guilt shottly befUre his execution ; and other portions of
the journal would, if they were wade public, entirely
confirm this statontent. _

Although, g9nerally speaking, Palmer exhibited a
good deal of firmness during his confinement at Stafford,-
it would seem that occasio: alit' he exhibited violent pa-
roxysms of grief, and at times he was in a most de-
pressed and melancholy condition ; and this was paid--
cularly the case when any allusion was made to his wife
or his brother Walter. Early on the morning of the
Friday, the day preceding the ex,,cution of the prisoner,
the chaplain bad been c•mversing with hifn in a most
serious manner, earnestly icnpres,ing upon him the short
oPrimi of existence that remained to him, and urging

the vital necessity, in his then position, of evincing
sincere repentance of the crimes he had committed
in this world. The prisoner appeared a good deal
affected. He was lying upon the bed in his cell,
arid he cud tenly raised himself up, and, addressing the
chaplain, said, "Then it will not be enough to save my
sent to confess to this murder (Cook's), but I must also
confess to the murder of my wee and my brother." The
chaplain, amazed at the observation of the prisoner, in-
quirsd of him whether he was to understand that he
admitted heaving committed those crimes. Palmer made
no reply, but heaved a deep sigh, thrust his head tinder
the bad clothes, so as to.coneeal himself from observa-
tion, and burst into aflood of tears. •We believe it may
he stated in the meat ,po-itive manner that the prisoner
made other admissions of a still stronger character, but
the authorities of the gaol do not feel justified in allow-
ing them-to be made public without the sanction of the
visiting justices. •
TI a interest taken in this remarkable case appears to
have very far from subsided in the neighbourhood wherethe
crimp was committed. Auumber of strangers almost daily
visit Rugeley, and the late te,idenceof the prisoner, that of
his mother, and the grave of p )orCook, are the chief objeute
of attention. Two yew trees mark the spot where lie the
mouldering remains of the murdered man, and they
have been so stripped of their branches by curious visi-
tors that the parish officers have issued a notice that
legal proceedings will be taken against any person de-
tected in committing damage.
To-day (Monday) and to-morrow there will actually be
special trains for Rugeley from the Potteries, and what
is called the "bleak o-nintry," for the express purpose of
enabling persons to visit the scenes of the murder !

The Obseiver states that the twelve tradesmen who

formed Pal-ner'. jury have inetuorialised the Lords of
.the Treaiury for koine compensation being allowed them
br the loss they sustained in being kept away from
their respective businesses during the protracted trial
of Palmer at the Central Criminal Clurt.

THE ILK!,BY MURDER.

It has already been stated in The Sun that a man
sanded George Holmes, a farm labourer, is deta'ned in
custody, at Otley, on suspicion of having been concerned
in the murder of Mrs. 111‘linight at Ilkley. Holmes at
present stands committ d, on very clear evidence, for
trial at the ensuing Yorkshire Assizes, on the charge of
robbing a young girl under the following circumstances :
On Friday, the 20th just., four days atter the murder
of Mrs. M‘Kitight, Martha Ashby, aged 14, residing at
Ilkley, was proceeding from Ilkley to Burley on foot
about half-past four o'olock in the afternoon. When near
the Ben Rhydding Lodge the prisoner overtook and en-
tered into c eaversatien with her. Having walked about a
mile on toe road together the prisoner asked her it she
had any money ; to which she replied that she did not
carry money with her when passing along the road.
Prisoner then said he would kiss her, and afterwards
polled her up a bye-lane or occupation-road between
Mount Stead and the toll-bar. She attempted to scream,
and he knocked her down, paced one hand over her
mouth, and with the other grasped her threat, until she
became insensible. How long she remained in a state of
unconcsiou-iness she could not tell, but when she re-
covered prisoner let her get up, and he then ran away
across some fields. She then found that her pocket had
Feel tui ned inside out, and the contents, ls. 6d. in silver
and 6-1. in copper, gone. She hastened to the toll-bar,
and told the keeper of the outrage committed upon her.
Information was speedily conveyed to Mr. Smith, super-
intendent constable of Otley, who received from the girl
a re in eta description of the ruffian. From that description
Mr. Smith at once suspected Holmes, who has long borne
a bad character. Mr. Smith went to Hawkeswortb, and
took the prisoner into custody the same evening. When
cmfronted with the prisoner, she at once recognised him
as her assailant, who now, as before stated, stands com-
mitted for trial for robbing her. Certain suspicions arose
in the course of the cross-examination in the above case,
which tended to implicate the prisoner in the Ilkley mur-
der. It was clearly proved that he had been seen in
the vicinity of the Cow Pasture about the time of the
lady's murder. In answer to several questions on this
point the prisoner first positively swore that he was in
Bradford on that day ; he afterwards corrected himself,
and acknowled that he was near Ilkley ; but he did not
farther criminate himself. A. man, who has worked with
Holmes, stated that he saw him at the Cow Pastures at
Ilkley on the day of the death of Mrs. M‘Knight, and
that when be approached him the prisoner turned away
his head to avoid being recognised. Mrs. M`Knight, be-
fore she left Ben Rhydding on that morning, had re-
ceived several letters, which she placed in her dress
wicket. Alter her body bad been discovered, and after
Holmes had been seen proceeding towards Ben Rhyd-
ding, the envelopes of those letters were found scattered
upon the footpath. The chain of evidence against the
prisoner on the charge of murdering Mrs. M'Knight is
still far from being complete, but these attendant circum-
stances .have some little weight in the Boale of evidence.
Mrs purse has been traced to a neighbouring
town, and it is expected that before the next examination
the parties in whose hands it has been deposited will have
been induced to part with it for the consideration of the
rea ard. In the meantime it might defeat the ends of
ju-tice to state further particulars. The detective officer
sent from London to investigate the case at Ilkley has
left in search of a gang of gipsies who were near the town
on the day of the murder.

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