The Sun.
London, England, 1867-05-20 00:00:00

IdURDER IN NORFOLK.

On Friday morning last a deliberate murder was
committed on the estate of Sir Hansom Berneys, in
a small village called Barton Bendish, about eight
miles eastward of Downham Market. The deceased,
Benjamin Black, was about 55 or 56 years of age,
and had been on the estate all his life, and his
father before him. He had lately acted iu the
capacity of woodman, and was remarkable for his
quiet and unobtrusive habits. On Friday morning
last, about 4 o'clock, when iu bed, he heard the
report of a gu'i, and got up and went to a planta-
tion called " Barton Lays," frcrn which direction
the report was heard. The unfortunate man was
never afterwards seen alive. The body was dis-
covered by five labourers going to their work in
hoeing wheat near the wood in question. No time
was lost in giving information to the authorities,
and Superintendent Watson, of Downham Market,
was put in possession of the facts .9,0 far as they

are known.
The inquest was held on Saturday before Mr.
T. L. Reed, deputy coroner for the Hundred of
Clackclose, and a respectable jury, of which the
Rev. S. G. Read was foreman. After viewing
the body the following witnesses were examined :
Anna Black, sworn, said—l am the widow of
Benjamin Black, the deceased. Yesterday morning
at 4 o'clock we were in bed. The deceased asked me
if 1 had heard a gun, which I had not done. He
then dressed himself and left the house. I did not
see which ;way he went, but some time after I heard
the report of a gun. It was a loud report, and ap-
peared to me to be outside the wood. The report did
not appear to echo. It might take 20 minutes to
walk to the viood. The report took place in as
short time as he could get to the wood, but I did
not take particular notice. I did not see him again
alive. The deceased was brought to my house in
the course of the morning. I never heard him say
be was at variance with any one. He had money
in his pockets. Ile took his purse out the night
before. He had two half-crowns, a shilling, and a
sixpence, which he said he would send the child to
Finchain with to pay the poor rates, and said he
had money enough in his pocket to pay the men,
meaning the men working in the wood. I took
half-a-crown out of my pocket to make up Bs. 6d.
He handed me back 6d. He had a bag purse made
of " cartoon." lie put the purse in his pocket
before he went to bed. I have not seen the purse
since. He was always in the habit of going to a
wood called " the Lays' the first thing in the morn-
ing. He was a woodman, and had the care of that
wood.

Charles Kidd, of Barton Bendisb, saw deceased
on Friday morning at a quarter past four. About
half an hour after he saw him he heard the report
of a gun while he was in his master's stable.
Robert Wing, of the same place—l work for Mr.
George Read. I was employed hoeing wheat near
the Lays. Yesterday morning I was going to my
work about a quarter or 20 minutes past six. I had
to go through the wood. As soon as I got through
the gate of the first field, into which the wood gate
opens, I saw something lying, and when within 100
yards I saw it was a man. I had four other men
with me, who also worked for Mr. Read. We saw
at once that he was dead. I thought his nose was
bleeding until we moved him, when I saw he was
shot. His fingers were cold, but his wrist was warm.
He was bleeding. I saw blood drop from his face ;
I saw it running from his eye to his whisker, and
thence dropping on the ground. We found a pool
of blood under the head as large as my hat, some
fluid and some clotted. He was lying on his left
side, with his knees drawn up, his hat on, his head
upon the ground, and his face rather turned back
and upwards, his arms lying limp and useless. We
sent for Robert Clarke, Mr. Read's shepherd, who
brought a cart. I went into to the wood to search
for footmarks, and found in a gladeway a broken
bottle, having some hop leaves inside, also a piece of
paper like what is used to wrap sugar in, contain-
ing about two common charges, some of which was
spilt. I gave it to the police-ollicer Balls, who
came up to me afterwards. Near to the place where
I picked up the paper I found a fresh footmark ; it
might be five or six yards from it. It was the foot-
mark of a man, the impression not perfect, but the
heel and ball of the boot and shoe seemed to be
left. Th?, impression of square-headed nails was
visible in the mark left by the ball ; they were
middle-sized and square. We afterwards found
several trac,2s of footmarks, but none plain till we
got on the top of the hill in the wood, possibly a
furlong from where we found the paper and first
footmark. This footmark showed the heel, the
balls, and the toe, and resembled the footmark near
where the paper was found. Both were made by a
person going in a contrary direction from the body.
We saw no more footmarks in the wood, but we
saw a trail, as if some person in walking had
brushed off the dew from the grass. We followed
the trail to the opposite side of the wood, and thence
by the side of the edge bounding the wood. At
the corner of the field there is a gap over which he
appeared to have passed, and through a piece of
vetches cornerwise to a stile. This trail was con-
tinued by turning down under the fence, to the end
of which we went, and left it on that side of the
wood in the direction for Fincham. Clarke and I
then went back to the body the nearest way we
could. During my search I found some small pieces
of shattered paper by the side of the clap-post of
the gate and a ditch. I examined the paper, which
seemed like the paper containing the gunpowder.
The gate where the deceased was shot was off the
hinges, upon the spur of the gatepost, and not
fastened. When we first found the deceased his
watch appeared to have bee❑ half drawn out of his
pocket, which was drawn up with it, and the ring
by which the chain was attached was broken off,
and the chain laid loose on the waistcoat.
When we first found the deceased one of my
companions went into the wood to call Hubbard
Lingley, who is a nephew of the deceased, who was
working in the wood. My companion said, " Hub-
bard, come here." I saw him join my companion
in the wood, and after talking a minute they came
to the body. I think Hubbard Lingley said, " Oh,
my uncle ! my uncle !" I saw the tears run down
his face, and he wrang his hands. I heard him
mention the deceased's watch, but I cannot say what
he said about it. He also said something about
deceased's purse, but I cannot say what. He put
his hand into deceased's pocket, but did not take
anything out.. He afterwards said, " There is
nothing there; but my uncle always carried his
money with him."

Robert Clarke, of Barton Baldish, shepherd to
Mr. George Read, gave evidence corroborating that
of Robert Wing in every particular, he being his
companion in the researches through the wood.

William Cater, of Fincham, surgeon, was called,
and said—from information received I went yester-
day morning, the 17th, to view the body of Benja-
min Black. I found him lying upon a sofa in his
cottage, about 11 a.m. He was dead, and death
had resulted from a gun-shot wound in the left eve,
and from several shot wounds in the upper part of
the left chest. I cannot say for certain what vital
organ was injured, but deceased evidently died
from gun-shot wounds. Those wounds could not
possibly have been inflicted by himself. He appeared
to have died the instant he was wounded, without
even a struggle. I am of opinion that the gun must
have be: held 12 or 14 yards from his head ;if
it had been held from a short distance the shot
wonli have " balled " and would have entered
the head in a lump, instead of dropping the shot,
which caused the woui.ds in the left breast. I can-
not say, without 't.itaking a post-mortem examina.
lion, whether the shot entered the body in an
oblique direeti,n, as if fired from the ground, or
whether theot struck the body point blank, as they
would do, if fired from the shoulder. The inquest
wag then adjourned.

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