The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-03-24 00:00:00

cy and sedition

Staffordshire riots

as proceeded with again on Tuesday, and

DERBY, MONDAY, MARCH 20

CROWN COURT.—(Before Mr. Baron Gurney

, ged 26, William Bland, aged 39, and
21ias John Holmes, alias Starbuck, alias Jack,
i for the wilful murder, on the 30th of Septem-
r last, at the township of Stanley, in the parish of Span-
n, in this county, of Martha Goddard. They also stood
indicted for a burglary, accompanied by violence to the
person. _ .

Samuel Bonsa

John Holm

Mr. Serjeant Clarke opened the case for the prosecution.
That a murder of a very horrid description had been com-
mitted would not be disputed. The only question then would
be whether these prisoners or any of them were the men.
The deceased was a maiden lady of good family and property,
living with her sister in a large house at Stanley-hall, six
miles from Derby. without any domestic, and they employed
somebody in a neighbouring village to do work for them as
occasion might require. They were ladies of very eccentric
character, living in separate rooms, taking their meals sepa-
rately, and seldom even speaking to each other. The sur-
viving sister was not in a fit state to be called to give evi-
dence, being in fact too weak in her intellects so to do. She
was, however, in the neighbourhood, and might be called if
the prisoners or any one of them should desire to call her.
The learned counsel then proceeded to give an outline of the
case. The three prisoners were seen, be stated, about two
or three o'clock, in a road which was between Stanley and
Heap, about five miles from Heap, with three bundles. They
were afterwards seen going into Hulme's house with a bog.
This bag was afterwards found to contain a variety of articles
of ladies' apparel, many of which would be identified as the
property of the deceased. The deed was done on the night
of Thursday, the 29th. On the Saturday following, Bonsall
and Bland were apprehended. Hulme, who had been away,
returned on the Sunday night, and went with a boy and got
up the bag from the garden wherein it 'had been buried, and
they proceeded on their way to Leek, in Staffordshire. When
at Amber-gate, Hulme hid it in a sough. Each of the pri-
soners bad made a statement. They had each admitted
having been at the house joining in the robbery, but each
had sought to cast upon one of the others the actual murder.
Hulme bad been examined at Leek, in Staffordshire, and the
before Sir H. Wilmot. The learned counsel then
They had taken with

ned thi

aw upon the subject,

eavy staves and a crowbar, as well as a razor-
one of them had just sharpened. From the
t appeared that there had been

risoners

resistance on the part of the deceased lad

evidence, and then say whet,

at the prisoners were the men who had conjointly
the barbarous and horrid deed.

en adduced as to themelan-

miscreants had left th

n whic

the followir

voluntary confession of the
read

land was

,nt in a

lful murder. I was
e outside ; I mean, on the outside of the
ed. Samuel Boman began to

I am innocent of the

arge of

ere the lad;
,s off, and g,

them to me. This John Sweep,
e goes by the name of John Starbuck—
stand on one side, and let me take the
was a' bit of a ladder to get up to them.
aid, They have nailed a piece of wood on
ere here before.' Samuel Bonsall went up

Starbuc

tilled it

came down, and t
!Eh. As soon as

h at

and said,

I could u

John S

inside, and I and 1

t in. Ti

. Samuel Bonsall and John Starbuek
stairs. I did not offer to go up. John
I did not , unr, . '

aid. cort

gs into

g he would

e several chests opei
vas. They g