The Sun.
London, England, 1860-04-19 00:00:00

SHOCKING MURDER IN BIRMINGILAX

At nine o'clock yesterday morning a most brutal
murder was committed in cold blood by a young
man named Price, who took the life of his sweet-
heart, the servant at a small inn in Deritend, kept
by a Mr. Jackson. The Birmingham Post, in a
second edition, thus describes the catastrophe
About twenty minutes before nine this (Wed-
nesday) morning one of the most deliberate and
cold-blooded murders which has ever stained the
annals of crime was committed by a young man, a
shoemaker, 24 years of age, named Francis Price.
It appears, from inquiries made on the spot, that a
young woman of some personal attractions, named
Sarah Pratt, also 24 years of age, had for some time
lived as general servant with Mr. and Mrs. Jack-
son, of the Swan Inn, Deritend. For three months
past the murderer has been paying his addresses to
her; but it is clear that his attentions were not
acceptable to the girl. However, he persevered, and
at an early hour on Monday last he went to Mr.
Jackson's before the master and mistress were up,
and seeing Sarah Pratt cleaning in the bar he endea-
voured to lift her over the counter, no one else being
there at the time. However, she eluded his grasp,
and he left the house. Soon after eight o'clock this
morning he was met by police-constable Evans,
nearly opposite the place where the murder was
committed. The officer had known the prisoner
for some months past, but although they conversed
together for a few minutes, neither in speech
nor behaviour did Price give any indication of the
dreadful act he evidently had in contemplation. A
few minutes after the murderer went to the house
of an old washerwoman named Holmes, who lives
in a court a short distance from the Swan Inn.
Telling her that he wculd give her 55., he sent 'her
to Mr. Jackson's to say that her sister wanted to
see Sarah Pratt. This had the effect of bringing
the unsuspecting victim to Mrs. Holmes'. Of
coarse what passed between the parties cannot at
present be known, but just as the mistress of the
house had reached her door she met the murderer
Price rushing out. Looking in, great was her
horror at seeing the young woman she had just
fetched lying literally in a pool of blood on the
floor. Calling out ' Murder,' Sergeant Millard,
who was not far distant at the time, came up, and
seeing the horrible spectacle, ran off to Alcester-
street station. Inspector Hobbs instantly sent
for Dr. Jordan, of Bradford-street, who immedi-
ately attended, but life was extinct. A young
baker (Mr. Thomas Powell), .whose bakehouse is
near the court, hearing the cry of ' Murder,' ran
up to the spot, and saw the murderer rushing from
the scene of death. With praiseworthy alacrity Mr.
Powell at once pursued and overtook Price in Brad-
ford-street. and though naturally nervous lest the
murderer should have any weapon with him he took
him into custody, and conveyed him to the station.
Here, on being searched by the officers, a nearly
new and extremely sharp shoemaker's knife, smeared
with blood, was found upon him. The prisoner,
considering his age, possessed the greatest possible
amount of coolness and self-possession, voluntarily
admitting that it was jealousy which prompted him to
act as h i had done. Deceased, he said, had that
morning positively refused his addresses. When
searched, he had about him photographs of himself
and of the deceased in morocco cases. Just before
leaving Alcester-street for Moor-street station, re-
ferring to the dreadful deed, he said, I did it, and
know I shall be hanged for it. I did not think of
it five minutes before.' The unfortunate young
woman's head was nearly severed from the body."
Price was taken before the magistrates yesterday,
and remanded until Friday.

THE DOUBLE lIIUBDER NEAR

NANCEESTER.

Mr. Rutter, county coroner, continued the inquest
upon the bodies of William and William Edward
Scholes, at the Packhorse-inn, Irlams-o'-th'-Height,
on Tuesday.
Mr. James Ashburner, surgeon, of Pendlebury,
said that, with the assistance of Mr. Birks' another
surgeon, he had made an inspection of the bodies of
William Seholes and William Edward Seholes. He
found them laid on their backs in a bedroom upstairs,
and life appeared to have been extinct not less than
eight hours. On the neck and face of each there
were marks of violence. He first proceeded with
the examination of William Edward Scholes, and
he found some indeLtations on the back of the left
hand, breaking the skin, as if done by the firm
grasp of a person with the nails ; and islere were
similar marks on the chin and kft side of the face.
Under the left angle of the jaw there was a punc-
tured wound, apparently made with a penknife,
about an inch in depth. It had not injured any
main artery, but had wounded a vein. _He also
found a similar stab wound in the right eye ball,
and a clot of blood at the back of it, as large as
the eyeball itself; and between the scalp and the
skull, on the back part of the head, there was a
slight extrava§ation of blood, about the size of a
shilling, caused most likely by a blow or a fall.
The brain was somewhat congested, and the veins
contained air, which was the immediate cause of
death. The lungs were congested. There was no
other internal disease. The wound in the neck was
the cause of death. He next examined the body of
William Scholes, the father, and found that there
were marks of violence upon the throat. The face
was livid, and blood oozed from the ears. The
brain and lungs were congested. The cause of
death was strangulation, producing suffocation.
When he first went in the morning he found Sarah
Eliza Scholes in bed in the same room in which the
bodies lay. She was struggling a great deal, and two
men were holding her down. By his directions she
was removed from the room to the workhouse.
Mr. E. B. Birks, surgeon, Pendleton, corroborated
the evidence of Mr. Ashburner, and said that for
upwards of 20 years he had frequently attended
Sarah Eliza Scholes for epilepsy, which had so
weakened her mental faculties as to render her of
unsound mind. He had seen her in many of those
attacks, and sometimes she was very violent. She
was sometimes very difficult to manage after a fit.
Mr. Scholes was a very infirm old man—asthmati-
cal and dropsical—and a very little in the way of
suffocation would destroy life in him. He had
generally to stop on going up stairs to take breath.
The son was a very delicate man, with a large tumour
on his throat, and incapable of much resistance.
County Police-sergeant Lee, of Pendlebury, gave
evidence of facts which have already been published.
He said the knife which he found on the mantel-
, piece had three small blades and one large one.
The larger and one of the smaller ones appeared to
have blood on them. He also found on the bed a
nightcap belonging to Sarah Ann Scholes, the
strings of which had been broken, and there was
blood about the cap. He examined the bedroom
door, in consequenee of Joseph Scholes's statement,
and found that it had been broken open, and that
there were marks of violence on the inside. The
key of the bedroom was missing, and he was
searching for it when Mr. Birks found it in an old
pie-dish on a chest of drawers. On Sarah Scholes'a
dress there were several spots of blood.
Police-constable Dixon said he took Sarah Eliza

Scholes to the Stafford workhouse in a cab in com-
pany with one of the Stafford police: It was as
much as they could do to keep her from hurting
herself or them. He remained with her till ten
o'clock the same night, when he was relieved by
another officer. About three o'clock in the after-
noon she appeared very sensible, and, recognising
him, said " You are the policeman from Peadle-
bury. I have seen you pass our window many times."
Ile replied "I was by your house last night between
eleven and twelve, and I neither saw nor heard
anything ;" and she answered "Yes, it was done
about twelve o'clock. They came home about
eight o'clock and caused a disturbance, and I went
up stairs into my bedroom. After a while they
came up and they got on to my bed; then I got up,
and they thrashed me with a stick. I seized my
brother by the throat, and he fell down ; then I
seized my father, and he fell on him, and then I
fainted, and fell on the top of them both." She
seemed quite collected whilst making her statement.
Mr. Charles Smethurst, of Ellor-street, Salford,
said that he saw Joseph Scholes being taken along
Chapel-street to the Salford Town-hall on the even-
ing of Wednesday last, and knowing him, he fol-
lowed. It was about 7 o'clock. He had a cut on
the head, He (the witness) promised Mr. Superin-
tendent Taylor that he would call at old Scholes's.
It was 20 minutes to nine o'clock when he arrived at
irlams-o'-th'-Height. He knocked at the back door,
and no one answered, and he then opened the door
and stepped inside. He called out
Sarah Scboles three or four
' times and the;:.answered, " Who's
there?" from up stall::
He asked to see William
Edward, and in a very excL+edll,..° voice she said
,
ds ,
of voice he saw her atc she
he was not in: Shortly afterw_
Williame
the back door, and in the same kina
asked what he wanted, and said again that
award was not in. She seemed excited, but v,:2:101:1
she saw who he was she became milder. He had
known the family from a child, and William Ed-
ward had told ni2.l
- • he had been obliged to be severe i
f
with his sister because 9 her stupidity, and that

he had to thump her.
The Coroner, in summing up, told the jury that
if they believed the story of the woman, that she
acted in self-defence, then it seemed to be a case of
manslaughter, though he could not advise them to
say that she acted in self-defenee ; but to h, a
of murder it required that there should be delibera-
tion, and it did not appear that there was any de-
liberation in the case. It mattered little, however,
which verdict the jury returned, because in either
case the woman would be put upon her trial.
There would be ouffiGiOnt eTidence, he thought, to

convince a jury of her insanity, and then she would
be kept in custody during her Majesty's pleasure.
After some deliberation the jury considered there
might have been provocation, and returned a verdict
of manslaughter against Sarah Eliza Scholes.