The Sun.
London, England, 1867-06-25 00:00:00

ders' Union, a dispute with which led to the notorious
Acorn-street murder, was the next witness. He

produced the books of the society, admitting, how-
ever, that nearly half the leaves of the cash-book
had been torn out. He proceeded—l tore them out
in January or February last. No other book has
been mutilated; and none have been destroyed.
The cash-book contains one false entry—" On
January 14, 1862, received of Mrs. Kenworthy
£3O 15s. 3d." The sum received was £24 15s. 3d.
I made the entry myself. The book containing the
false entry is an exact copy of the entries torn out
of the mutilated book except the Kenworthy item.
Tell me your reason for tearing out the leaves ?
—Yes. I entered the exact sum of £2l 15s. 3d.
in the mutilated book, and it did not correspond

with the book of Konworthy, the former secretary
of the union. I ought to have received from Ken-

worthy £3O 15s. 3d., and his wife paid me only
£24 lbs. 3d. The castings are wrong. The £6
was not accounted for in Kenworthy's book, and I
accounted for it in the re-copying. I copied nearly
100 pages in order to correct this mistake.
What was your object in this ? I wanted to make
it correspond with the other books.
Why ?—I knew that £6 had been paid by Ken-
worthy to me. He gave it to me to pay to William
Baylis in November, 1861.
What did you pay it for?—He was was ill at the
time he gave me the £6 to pay Baylis, but he did
not say what it was for. The payment does not
appear in the books.
If it was his duty to pay that money, why did
you take all this trouble to correct this entry 2—To

make the books correct.

Is William Baylis alive 2—No, he was killed. I
paid the money to Baylis at a meeting of the trade,

but made no entry because I was not then secre

tarp. It occurred to me to correct the books in
February last, when this commission was appointed.

I thought then it would make our case better. I
do not think so now. Kenworthy died early in

1862.

I burned the leaves I tore out of the old cash

book.

Then
.T ou were afraid of our seeing the original
entries ?—Yes.

Why ?—Because I thought you could find out the
wrong entry.

What did yon think we should infer from that ?
—That the 1.6 had been paid in a way there was

no explanation of. I did not consult anybody as to
the propriety of mutilating one book and making a
false entry in the other. I never mentioned this
until a few weeks ago I told James Corbidge, who
works with me at Chantrey works. I told him I
remembered Kenworthy giving me the 2,6 to pay to
Baylis the first night I officiated for him as secretary.
What happened before this ?—The Acorn-street
murder happened immediately after this. I paid this
£6 to Kenworthy on the 12th November, and the
Acorn-street murder occurred on the 23d Novem-

ber. Kenworthy never told me what the money

was paid to Baylis for.
Was it because you believed the £6 was paid to
Baylis for this murder you altered the books ?—No.
Did you think we should infer that was so ?—No.
But you did think it was singular you should at
that particular time have been asked to pay this
money to Baylis?—Yes. Baylis was a fender-
grinder. I did not know he had been employed to
do any outrage. I knew a fender-grinder named
Sibray. He worked for Mr. Hoole at the time of
the dispute between him and the Union, which re-
sulted in the Acorn-street murder. Sibray was
attacked and beaten. Ido not remember that Bay-
lis was proved to have done this.
Don't you know that this was proved on the trial
of Thompson for that murder ?—I do not remember
it. I never told the committee of the Union I had
tampered with the books.
Mr. Overend put into the hands of witness the
cash-book for Nov., 1861, pointing out that two
leaves were cut out. Who cut them out ?—I do
not know. I did not. I never noticed it before.
What, when you had been at all this trouble to
alter the other book, did you not refer to the same
date of this other book ?—No. The last entry in
this book before the leaves arc torn out is on the
sth of November. My writing begins in January,
18'12. The leaves cut out cover the very period of
this murder.
Can yoa at all explain how it was these leaves
were cut out?—No, I cannot; the book has been
in my possession ever since Kenworthy ceased to
be secretary, and though my entries begin from
the place where the leaves are torn out, I never
noticed their absence.
Do you know " Slipper Jack ?"—I believe I do.
I do not know his name or where he lives.
Don't you know that his name is John Aldham ?
—No. There is no member of our Union of that
name. I have seen " Slipper Jack" at the Napoleon
Inn, Green-lane. I never saw him with Wast-
nidge, the man who was blown up when the Acorn-
street murder occurred. I did not know Wastnidge.
I have seen him in company of Thompson, who was
tried for the murder.
From the entries you found in the book you
mutilated did you not think we might suspect Ken-
worthy of paying for the Acorn-street murder?—
Yes.—(Sensation.)
Was not thatthereason you determined to destroy
the book ?—(Af ter some hesitation)—It was.
Can vou give us any clue whatever to the dis-
covery of the Acorn-street murder ?—No. I have no
ground to suspect any particular person of commit-
ting the murder. I have found no entry in the books
to give me any such clue. I never heard until this
morning that " Slipper Jack" was suspected of the
murder. The £6 paid to Baylis was a larger sum
than it was usual to pay to any member of the trade.
Kenworthy never spoke to me of Wastnidge's viola-
tion of the Union rules. The offence of Wastnidge
was that he wentto work for Mr. H. E. Hoole when
the Union men had struck. Mr. Iloole's men
struck without the sanction of the Union, and the
Union required them to go back. They tendered
their services to Mr. Hoole accordingly, but
he refused to receive them back, and Wastnidge
came from Masborough to work for Mr. Mole in
the place of the Union men. It never occurred to
me when I took the books that the £6 paid to Baylis
was paid for the murder. I never inquired about it,
and do not know now why it was paid.
Mr. Sugg, who appeared for the Defence Com-
mittee, said Mr. Overend prosecuted in the case of
Thompson, and he, as the successor of Mr. Broad-
bent, had the briefs for the defence. He would look
into the matter.
Examination continued—Baylis was not receiving
scale at the time of the Acorn-street murder, and
had paid his contributions regularly. This made it
the more remarkable that Kenworthy should be pay-
ing him £6. I wondered at the time whether it was
paid in connection with the murder, but I never in-
quired, and never knew. I have known of no rat-
tening in our trade. We do not force our members
to pay their subscriptions. If they do not pay they
simply cease to be members. Except in connection
with the dispute which led to the outrage in Acorn-
street,l never knew of any person in our trade
beinginjured for acting in opposition to the Union.
Mr. Overend expressed his surprise that under the
circumstances witness had not inquired into the
reasons for the payment of this sum of £6.
Joseph Barker, secretary of the Saw Handle-
makers' Union, said—l knew something was to be
done to Fearnehough before the Hereford-street
outrage. Two months before I and Skidmore saw
Broadhead, told him Fearnehough was injuring our
trade by doing work for Slack, Sellars, and Grayson,
and asked if something could not be done. Broad-
head said he didn't know. We rejoined that as he
was doing us great injury we should not mind the
expense if his bands and nuts could be taken. Broad-
head said Fearnehough was an outlaw, and therefore
obnoxious to the Saw Grinders' Union. We have
been in the habit of rattening, but have done it through
the saw grinders. Not hearing that the bands and
nuts of Fearnehough had been taken, we went again
to Broadhead. He said the thing was in progress,
but it was difficult to do. I knew that Fearnehough
was working at Butcher's wheel, but thought he
could be rattened even there. At any rate, I knew
if anybody could ratten Fearnehough, Broadhead
was the man to do it. (Laughter.)
Did not you know it was impossible ?—No ; I
thought if I had had grinders working at Butcher's
wheel I could have got him rattened even there.