The Sun.
London, England, 1829-11-21 00:00:00

CHESTER.

WILFLL MURDER AGAINST RIR. BURNE, Til SILK-

MANUFACTURER.

MANCHESTER, Nov. 19.—This mnin;Eqx at Ln
early hour an immense number of individual., were
congregated in front of the Crown Inn, Blackffiars-
- immediately cpposite to where the taLio, tu-
nate and fatal occurrence took place, for the pur-
pose of seeing the person brought there •.!ocharged with having comolitted the dre'7.otnl ty.,„
-
in Salford Fair on the Tuesday night, atet the;
utmost excitement appeared,,to prevail ar :
Inhabitants of Manchester enerall
~;„st the
t tenMr urne was conveyed eons o'clock in the mor"zilter, to
g:;,to 'earn
~
liar; re-
-6%tli:heliticNohfelptvillaecßeaihleey inquest.
hada
been consigned on the pro•ious
evening. At eleven o'clock the Jury, consisting of four
respectable men frcm each township, ußsembled,
with J. MILNE, Esq,, the Coroner, to snake in-
quiry touching the death of the unfortunate young
man, lhornas Foster, who ••i•as killed immediately
opposite the travelling t):eatre of Mr. Holloway, of
Liverpool, by a pistol shot, on the night of Tuesday
last. Previous to the evidence beimg taken the
Jury proceeded to view the body, which lay in an.
upper apartment in the house of the Crown Inn.
The body presented a shocking appearance ; the
head (an artery having been divided) was saturated
with blood. Nineteen witnesses against the prisoner
were summoned,-but nine only were found necessary
to prove the ease.

Thomas Connor stated, that he, accompanied by
a friend, was walking from the fair up the road leaf-
ing to Blackfriars-hridge, when he heard some per-
sons quarrelling on the opposite side, near to Hol-
loWay's theatre; he crebsed over, and had got about
half way when he heard the report of a pistol or
gun; he ran forward and perceived a man fall back
apparently dead; there were not many persons
about at the time, the fair was nearly over; witness's
ethripanion, Smith, seized the prisoner (Mr. Burn()
•:t*d With the assistance of witness,, gave aim ioto
the custody of awatehman.
Juror—Did the prisoner make --any attempt to
escape? Witness—Not at all; he delivered the
Pistol to the watchman, and acknowledged that he
had fired it.

Mr. Smith, the person alluded to above, corrobo-
rated his evidence.

John Willis, of Salford, nail-maker, stated that
about eleven o'clock on Tuesday night, nearly at the
close of the performances at Holloway's, he was
standing, with seven or eight other persons, oppo-
site the theatre, and perceived the prisoner quarrel-
ling with several persons about there; what the
quarrel arose from witness cannot bay.. He heard
the accused say to a person standing by that he
would shoot him if he did not fall back. The person
made some reply, when the deceased pulled a pistol
from his breast. The deceased, Mr. Foster, im-
mediately cried out don't tire, when the person Who
had previously spoken made another remark, which
witness did not hear, upon which the accused turnrd
round and fired.

Juror—Pray, did you see any • ens push the
prisoner ? Witness—l did not.
Juror—Nor use any personal violence towards
him ? Witness—No ; I saw no blow struck, nor
any disturbance, excepting by words. On the pri-
soner firing the deceased fell back, apparently wound-
ed ; the pistol seemed directed to the person who
spoke, and not the deceased. Mr. Cotterill, the de-
puty
_constable of Pendleton, came up, and assisted
in carrying the deceased to the Crown.
Several other witnesses were examined, who wet e
present at the time, and corroborated the evidence of
the last witness.

Samuel Smith stated, that on the evening in
question, the accused,- the deceased, and himself,
and several others, were stationed in front of 1161-
loway's Theatre; the deceased was somewhac be-
hind him. Did not know either the aecused.or the
deceased. The accused and witness had a few words
upon which he showed a pistol; when witness re-
menstrated with him on the impropriety of bringing
a pistol to a fair; the accused said he would shoot
witness if he interfered; and after a few words,
without any provocation, be took a pistol from his
side poe-ket and immediately fired at him ; the ball
passed his nose on the bridge, and struck hint on
the cheek bone, but did not materially injure him.
On the accused firing the pistol he said there was a
ball in it.

Juror—Was the prisoner perfectly sober at the
time 1 Witness—Apparently he was ; and he re-
ceived no provocation for so unwarrantable an act.
On the ball being fired, I ran, with the blood
trickling dow►► my face, to fetch Mr. Lavender,
whom I met opposite the British Volunteer, its
Deansgate; he came back with me, and took the
pri,oner to the Town-hall.
The watchman who took the prisoner into cus-
tody, stated that the prisoner offered him ten pounds
to allow him to escape; but that he said he only
wanted the pistol from him, which the prisoner
gave up.

Robert Heslop, captain of the watch, produced
the pistol, which he received from the watchman
shortly after the occurrence. He examined it at the
tine, and thought from its appearance that it had
recently been fired.

Stephen Lavender, deputy constable of Man-
chester, spoke to taking the prisoner into custody,
and said that the prisoner had stated to him that be
had regularly carried a pistol with him in conse-
quence of his living distance from the town, and
that he carried it for protection. Witness knew
that the accused was robbed soma time since, and
that the thieves were transported.
Mr. Cotterill, deputy constable of Pendleton,
stated that he assisted to carry the deceased to the
Crown, and that deceased never spoke after his
falling in the street from the effects of the pistol-shot.
Several other witnesses deposed to the fact, and
that no provocation was given to warrant the pri-
soner firing.

The CORONER then summed up the evidence in a
very complete manner, after which the Jury, with-
out hesitation, returned a verdict of—" Wilful mur-
der against Thomas Burne."

On the verdict being returned, the prisoner was
brought into the Inquest-room, and the evidence
was read over to him; after which the Coroner, in
addressing him, remarked, thut a more clear ease
of murder never, timing the whole of his official
life, came before him ; and that he felt it his duty
to commit him to Lancaster to take his trial at the
ensuing Assizes.

The-prisoner bowed, but made no reply. He is
a good-looking man, and much respected by all who
knew him ; it was a mistake in stating that the
prisoner had a wife and family—such is not the fact;
he is a single man, and a silk-manufacturer, now in
business in Spring-gardens, Manchester, and late a
partner in the extensive house in the silk trade of
Messrs. M‘Kinley, I3urne, and Co. of this town.
At the conclusion of the Inquest, the prisoner
was conveyed in a post-chaise to Lancaster Castle.
The body of the unfoJunate young man (Foster)
who has thus met a most melancholy and premature
death, was removed at six o'clock this evening to
the house of his father, in Long Mitigate, Man-
chester, for interment.

FEMALE A FFECTIoN.—A sweet young lady
came to our house the other day in breathless haste, and,
with looks full of agitation, asked hoW we were all? My
sister replied that we were well, upon being satisfied of
the trntlt of this assertion, the young lady seemed relieved,
and told the following tlvout she had the preceding night.
" 1 dreamed," said the young witch, " that your brother
tphf rocerveea:i.ffilerno;,nwhtleteumnontottiitgo
last sight of his corpse,
fvleerl lie
length the funeral day came, and by the intervention ref a
JOSEPH. had. bred dead lbutlwtabsoudgelintLbtaidlegpoineeasttoireg.et the
upon
groutpot °n d
friend, the coffin was opened. I looked and saw that it
was really JOSEPH'S pretty black eyes; I fainted anti fell 1
would do I offered them nits .27!tlur (her brother) fur
fully resolved
to be buried with him, and in this agony I awoke. 01
hiß7tnirci.:7lletrui ittnntgoo
.ksetereApntlg,
itlialiiis,ta
i)II
nay heart beats yet.' I was told the story atter I came
home, and so prOIHI of it was I that I carrot.belp cffering
it for publicity.-- Glasgow Free Pmts.