The Sun.
London, England, 1869-04-20 00:00:00

YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION THE NORWICH MURDER.-SHEWARD'S
CONFESSION.

The Earl of Shaftesbury presided on Monday night, in
Exeter Hall, at the anniversary meeting. As usual the
large hall was crowded to excess. The Revs. J. Moor-
house, J. C. Harrison, W. G. Williams, M. C. Osborn,

and several other clergymen and employers were upon the
platform. Mr. W. H. Smith, M.P., and Mr. C. Reed, M.P.,
who had been announced to speak to the first resolution,
sent letters of apology, expressing the warmest sympathy
in the objects of the association, but excusing their
absence on the ground of expected important divisions in
the House of Commons on the Irish Church Bill. The
Rev. A. J. Murray having offered up prayer, Mr.
Shipton, the secretary, read a report, which gave a very
satisfactory account of the success of the society during
the past year in the increase of the number of Bible
classes in houses of business, devotional meetings, and the
reformation of many young men who had been brought
within the society's influence. The progress of the
work .in Ireland and on the Continent was also spoken
f as satisfactory, and it was announced that
I gencies' had been organised to promote the wort: in the
British provinces. The Rev. J. poorhouse delivered
Jan address on the motives furnished by the facts of
Christianity, to the cultivation of personal holiness, and
moved a resolution recognising the great benefits the
association conferred on commercial young men. The
Rev. J. C. Harrison delivered an address on the
opportunities of Christian testimony afforded by busi-
ness life ; and the chairman wound up a speech testi-
fying to the benefits the society had and was calculated
to confer.

LOPEZ AT HOME.

A Worksop boy, who ran away from home to see the
camp of Lopez, writes his experiences to his mother. The
letter is dated Feb. 15. The following is the most inter-
esting passage : " When I wrote to you last I told
you that I was going to Paraguay. Well, I
have just returned, after having endured great
hardship. I arrived in Asuncion and Conxepsion,
the capitals of the before-named country, on the 7th, and
I saw the allied army ; and then went outside the city for
a league or two. As I went up in the steamer I saw all
the fortresses where the bloody battles have been fought,
and they were all in ruins. When I got to my desti-
nation, I saw that the cholera was raging there.
When we saw this, we knew it was healthy
in the mountains where Lopez and his army were. Well,'
I said, ' let us go there,' and my friends said, No, no ;
if we go there Lopez will make us serve in his army.'
I said, ' Well, we had better do that than die of cholera.'
Well, they consented, and we went about fourteen leagues
up the mountains, when an escort of Lopez's troops came
on us, seized us, and took us before Lopez, and I knew we
should be sure to have to work at either one thing or
another. Well, we had been working in the foundry for
four days without almost anything to eat. At first they
thought we were Brazilians, and all they gave us to eat
was a piece of dry hide and some herbs, and hardly any
water. I knew Lopez's wife was English, and one day
she came close past me, and I spoke to her, and she at
once told Lopez, and he let us enjoy ourselves as much
as we liked. We saw how they lived, and we saw female
battalions go through their drill and everything. Lopez i
bad been driven from every stronghold he possessed, and is
,now in the mountains. Where we were there is a THE CONVENT CASE.—In the Court of Queen's Bench,
'splendid plain for leagues, on which grows every- on Monday, Mr. C. Russell, on the part of Mr. Mellish,
-thing. Before he went to the mountanis he ordered who was absent from illness, applied for leave to move for
every family in Paraguay there, and they all went, a new trial in the case of " Saurin v. Starr." In reply to
and there it is, just like living in a town, but the the Lord Chief Justice, Mr. Russell said it would be
houses are different. All they have is a hide to sleep chiefly on the point reserved ; and the application was
under. The day we left Lopez, he ordered a small force acceded to; provided the motion was made this week.
to go round the country and to kill everyone that had not re
THE SHAM AFRICAN PRINCE.—At Marlborough-street,
gone to the mountains as he ordered them."
on Monday, James Manna, the sham African Prince, was
sentenced to six weeks' imprisonment with hard labour on
the charge of being in Mr. Johnson's house for an unlaw-
ful purpose. Mr. Tyrwhitt said he believed the prisoner
The murder and suicide which were committed at 33, went there intending to get possession of watches and
Fleet-lane, Fasringdon-street, on Saturday, has formed other valuable articles belonging to the family.
the subject of a coroner's inquiry at Bartholomew's CHARGE AGAINST A BANK MANAGER.—At the Mansion
Hospital. The name of the murderer is Leonard Tillett, ' House, on Monday, a case of considerable importance was
and that of his victim Harriet 'fallen, their ages being heard before the Lord Mayor. Mr. Samuel Greenway
50 and 39 years respectively. A woman, named Robinson, Finney, lately manager of the English Joint Stock Bank
the landlady of the house, 33, Fleet-lane, said that (Limited), was charged with having made, or concurred
Mrs. Talien lodged with her. She last saw her alive in making, divers false entries in the books of the hank,
at a quarter to twelve on Saturday, Tillett came to and with omitting certain material particu!ars, with intent
the house about a quarter to eight that morning, and to defraud. Mr. Lewis, who conducted the prosecution,
asked, "Are they gone ?' (alluding to Mrs. Talien and explained that the prosecutor, Mr. Lambert, had been a
Mr. Pickering, who had gone to fetch Mrs. Talien's son victim of the company to the amount of nearly £4,000.
from Holloway Prison.) He also inquired if a man The bank suspended payment on the 10th of May, 1866,
had not been in Mrs. Talien's room on the previous and the prisoner was no more or less guilty than the
evening. Witness replied in the affirmative, and he then directors of the company, against whom he should ask the
said, " I suppose he thinks he'll have her, and he shall if I bench to issue process. The company was in the first
let hims" He was quite sober at the time. Mrs. Talien instance called the South-Eastern Banking Company
returned at a quarter to twelve, aid went to her room, (Limited). The capital was £500,000, in 20,000
saying she would see witness in a few minutes. Shortly shares of each, and the first issue was
after Mrs. Talien's little boy rushed down stairs and 10,000 shares, on which £lO had been paid. The two pro-
exclaimed, "Oh, Mrs. Robinson, I think Tillett has killed motors—Mr. March, an accountant, and Mr. Walter, a
mother !"—William Smith, a detective attached to the surveyor—received a sum of £6,000 between them. The
Fleet-street police station, described the position in which directors were to receive £3,000 a year for the manage-
the bodies lay on the bed. He found a blood-stained razor ment of the business, with an additional sum if the divi-
open in the cupboard, which Mrs. Talicn's son told him had dends exceeded a certain amount. The prisoner had been
been lying near his mother's hand. 'Witness produced the the general manager from the first at a salary of -£1,900,
following, which he found in one of Tillett's pockets : to be raised to £1,500 in the event of the dividend reaching
"I, Leonard Tillett, have done a foul deed, because she 6 per cent. The substance of the charge was that the
turned on me, and took to Pickering, a married man, and accounts had been falsified in order that a 6 per
he used to go with her, and his wife knew it. So it is true cent. dividend might he paid, so that the directors
how this is done, and the Lord have mercy on my soul. So and the manager ints;bt reeel ea age ;ace-ease sr safes,
good bye to this world for Leonard Tillett, and God bless agreed upon. When the second report was issued, on the
everybody. Thisis the truth how it is done without a doubt, 30th of June, 1865, there had been actual losses and
for annayone knows him he is a villein (villain), but God expenses of trading amounting to £2,012; but, instead of
forgive him and let the world know what it was done for." that being carried to the profit and loss account, it was
—The daughter of the deceased woman, a girl 16 years added to the cost of establishing banks, by which means the
old, stated that her father, William Talien, was dead, directors were able to declare a 6 per cent. dividend.
Tillett came frequently to see her mother, who had often In November of the same year, before the issue of the
said she would not marry him. Tillett was jealous of a third and last report, the directors sent to Messrs. Thomas
man named Pickering, who lived in the house. She had and Co., stockbrokers, and asked them to give a credit of
heard Tillett threaten to kill her mother, and he said if £lO,OOO, to enable the company to purchase its shares.
her mother did not have him no one else should. Tillett That must have been done to deceive the shareholders,
worked in a coal-yard, and was a widower.—Alfred 'fallen and raise the shares to a fictitious value. That act
a lad of 15, said his mother, accompanied by Mr. and Mrs. alone rendered all the parties engaged in it liable
Pickering and Tillett, met him at Holloway Prison on to penalties. Nothing relating to this transac-
Saturday morning. They rode home in a cab, and had tion appeared in the books of the company.
some drink on the way. They all entered the room, and When the company stopped payment, on the 10th of
some beer and gin were sent for. They were all the worse May, 1866, the directors sent £lO,OOO or £12,000 in trade
for drink. Mr. and Mrs. Pickering went up to theirroom, bills to Messrs. Thomas, but that sum had since been
and Tillett sent him (witness) on an errand to Shoe-lane. recovered at the instance of the liquidators. The whole
He left Tillet and his mother together. On returning affair was concealed from the shareholders, and omitted
from Shoe-lane he found his mother and Tillett dead with from the next balance-sheet. Other details were given of
their throats cut. He had heard Tillet say he would do the financial transactions of the managers, and Mr. Lewis
for his (witness's) mother and himself.—Dr. Wilson, of added that the result of its trading during ten
Farringdon-street, said he had no doubt the wounds were months had been a loss of more than a quarter of a million.
inflicted by Tillet.—Thomas Pickering, an engraver, After several witnesses had been called, Mr.. Littler, for
corroborated the evidence of Mrs. Talien's son. The the defence, argued that there was no evidence of an at-
witness was questioned by the coroner and the jury as to tempt to defraud ; but the Lord Mayor thought other-
whether Tillett had any reason to be jealous on his wise. If the directors of a company trafficked in its
account, and he assured them that his relations with shares, even for the purpose of maintaining its credit, that
the deceased woman were only those of a friend, and that was a fraud. The case was adjourned, the prisoner being
Tillett must have been labouring under an hallucination, admitted to bail in one surety in £2,000, and himself in
—John Barret, the potman at the George, a public-house £2,000.
in Fleet-lane, stated that Tillett was drinking there on
Friday, and in the course of conversation he said, " I have
a nasty job on hand, but I don't know whether it will
come off till night."
The jury returned a verdict of wilful murder against
Tillett, relative to the death of the woman, and a ver-
dict of felo de se as regards the death of the man himself.

LAW AND POLICE.

THE CITY OF LONDON T.RAG_EDt

ANOTHER IRISH MURDER.—Scarcely had the
Prince left the borders of Tipperary when another murder
was committed. On Saturday morning, as some people
were driving into Limerick, they discovered in a ditch by
the roadside at Phillipstown, near Cappawhite, the body
of a respectable farmer, with his head beaten in. His
name is not known. He is about 40 years of age, and
apparently in good circumstances. There is no evidence
of the fact, although it is reported that the murder was
agrarian.

THE HALFPENNY POSTAGE PATE. Mr.
Edmund Yates, of the General Post Office, on Monday,
had an interview with the chairmen and other members
of the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce and Tradesmen's
Guild on the subject of a proposed postage for printed
matter. Mr. Yates afterwards saw the proprietors of the
leading local newspapers upon the same subject. In the
course of the day he was enabled to collect a large amount
of valuable information, which will be embodied in a
report to be presented to the Postmaster-General and the
Treasury.

VICTOR HUGO ON THE ENGLISH ARISTOCRACY.—
The following is the preface to Victor Hugo's new novel,
" L'Homme qui Rit :"—" In England everything is
great, even that which is not good—even the oligarchy.
The English aristocracy is au atistocracy in the true sense
of the word. There has been no feudalism more illus-
trious, more terrible, more vigorous. It must be said
that this feudalism has had its hours of usefulness. It is
in England that this phenomenon—lordship— may best be
studied, as it is in France that we must study the pheno•
menon—royalty. The real title of this work should be
`The Aristocracy.' Another book which will follow
might be called ` The Monarchy.' And these two books,
if it is permitted to the author to accomplish his task,
shall be followed by another which will be entitled
"Ninety-thrce."

THE FATAL ACCIDENT TO ME. DEUCE, Q.C.—
Tbe inquest on the body of Mr. George Druce, Q. C., wh.,
WAS killed while riding on Wednesday last, has been held
by Mr. W. Carter, at the deceased gentleman's residence
in Denmark-hill. Mr. Wilkins, of the Clayton Arms,
Kennington Oval, said he saw the deceased riding his horse
round Kennington Oval on Wednesday morning. After
galloping round several times, the deceased took
his right foot out of the stirrup, and he then fell back-
ward on to the ground. No person spoke to the deceased,
or advised him to throw himself off. The deceased was
at first quite insensible, but in about ten minutes was
able to say, " Druce, Denmark-hill." Mr. William Bean
having deposed that the deceased had died of con-
cussion of the brain, the jury returned a verdict of
Accidental Death.

THE POPE AND THE LOTTERY. —A letter from
Florence says : " Thanks to Pius IX., lottery gamblers in
Italy have just made a great hit. On Sunday last, the
11th of April, 1869, Pius, ninth Pope of his name, cele-
brated the fiftieth anniversary of his first mass, which he
said at the age of 26. The last number also corresponds
in the lottery-player's guide-book with the word mass,'
as well as with ' money.' Nothing could be clearer to all
those who had cash to stake and faith in the usual rules,
and hundreds, perhaps thousands, of persons played upon
the numbers 11, 69, 9, 50, 26. In the Florence
weekly drawing of Saturday last all those numbers
came out of the wheel. It was what is called a Dane—
tba,t is to say, a gain on the whore five numbers. Those
who had backed them all to come out won sums enormous
in proportion to the trifling ones they had staked, and the
gains of those who had only backed four or three of the
numbers were also very great. Incredible stories are
current of the fortunes made by indigent players—for it
is the poor who chiefly support the lottery. There is no
doubt that the Government has had to 'make very heavy
payments to winners. It is an old belief with numbers
of persons in Italy that Pius IX. has the evil eye, and in
this instance the Italian Treasury may well share that
opinion. But what goes out to-day comes back to-morrow,
for nothing stimulates the Italian propensity to 19ttg4.1
pliwing gat Ulu al/011111A hit a this kincl.".4

FALL OF A Music HALL. —The New Adelphi
Music Hall, Union-street, Oldham, opened a few months
ago by the Oldham Philharmonic Society, has lust fallen
a complete wreck. Friday night was fixed for the benefit
of one of the artistes. It was expected there would be a
crowded house on the occasion. It having, however,
been ascertained from an examination that the build-
ing was unsafe, the managers very properly decided not
to allow the performance to go forward. The building is
calculated to hold 2,000 people. On Monday morning
while the musicians were collecting their music the east
wall gave unmistakable evidences of its unsoundness.
They therefore rushed for the outside. They were only
just in time, for the lessee was caught on the head by
by some of the falling building. He is
not seriously hurt.
The east wall is completely down to the ground, and the
roof and galleries are also destroyed. The cause is the
undermining of the foundia.tiona, while excavating for the
adNiciasktmliugulgq,,

The following is •the text of the confession made by
Sheward a few days since :—" City Gaol, Norwich, 13th
April, 1869, 2.45 p.m.—The voluntary confession of
William Sheward, under sentence of death in the above
prison.—In the year 1849, November, I placed a box of
motley, having 2400 in it, in Mr. Christie's possession, for
him to take care of for me. In the year 1850, to June
1851, I drew from that box £l5O, during which time my
wife wanted me to bring the box home. Mr. Christie
asked me if he might make use of the money. My wife
seemed determined to fetch the box herself. I knew he
could not giveit to me. On the 14th June 1851 Mr. Christie
asked me to go to Yarmouth to pay £l,OOO to a captain
of a vessel laden with salt, to enable him to unload on
the Monday morning. On Sunday morning, the 15th, I
was going to Yarmouth on the above errand. She (my
wife) said, You shall not go ; I shall go to Mr. Christie
and get the box of money myself, and bring it home.
With that a slight altercation occurred ; then I ran the
razor into her throat. She never spoke after. I then
covered an apron over her brad, and went to Yarmouth.
I came home at night, and slept on the sofa downstairs.
On the Monday I went to work ; I left off at four
o'clock p.m., and went home. The house began
to smell very faint. With that I made a fire
in the bedroom, and commenced to mutilate the
body ; kept on until half-past nine p.m. I then
took some portions of the body and threw it away,
arriving home at half-past ten. That night slept on the
sofa again ; went to work again the next day ; went home
in the afternoon, about four o'clock, and did the same—
the same night again. On Wednesday went to work
as usual, left off early, and went home—carried some
more portions in a trail basket to another part
of the city. Thursday, work same, and returned early.
The head had been previously put in a saucepan and
put on the fire to keep the stench away. I then broke
it up, and distributed it about Thorp; came home and
emptied the pail in the cockey in Bishopgate-
street with the entrails in. I then put the hands and
feet into the same saucepan in hopes they might boil to
pieces. On Friday I went to work, and went home early,
and disposed of all the remains of the body, hands and feet
included, that night, because I knew I should not be able
to be home on Saturday until late. On Sunday morningl
burnt all the sheets, nightgown, pillow-cases, and bed-tick,
and all that had any blood about them. The blankets, where
there were any blood, I cut in small pieces and distributed
them about the city, and made off with any that had any
appearance of blood about them. The long hair, on
my return from Thorp, I cut with a pair of scissors into
small pieces, and they blew away as I walked along. I
also state I never saw or knew my present wife until 21st
June, 1852—twelve months after the occurrence. I
hereby give authority to place the above facts to the Home
Secretary and Baron Pigott, but I request that this may
not be published at present. Taken in the presence of the
undersigned, this 13th day of April, 1869. (Signed)
WILLIAM SIIEWARD ; Godwin Johnson, Visiting Magis-
trate ; Robert Wade, Chaplain of the Norwich City Gaol;
John Howarth, Governor of the said Gaol. "