Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1857-02-16
Dr.. BurdeII's NIurder.

No. 81 Bond street, at the time OF She muir
der, occupied the entire second floor, the rest
of tie dwelling beng let 10 Mrs. Cunning
ham. The occupants of her portion of the
house were herself her two daughters, sixteen
and eighteen years of age her two sons, nine
and Ten years of age; one boarder and ledger,
Mr. Eekel; friend Of the family. Mr.. Snod-
grass; and ledger simply, Mr.. Daniel Ull-
man. and, at the time of ths murder, one
servant woman, second serving woman hav-
ing left two days before. The murder was
committed on-the night of Friday, the Both
of January. The servant. W oman was ordered
by Mrs. Cunningham about ten o'clock to go
bed. That domestic, aud the two little boys,
and Mr.. Snodgrass. slept IN the attic, or on
the fourth floor. Mrs. Cunningham and her
two daughters slept, on the night in question,
in room on the third floor; Mr. Eckel in
another room on the same floor; and Mr..
Ullman in the third room on that floor. Be-
tween ten and eleven o'clock all these persons
with the exception of Mr.. Ullmsn, retired to
their rooms for the night, and they all testify
that they were not disturbed by an unusual
noise, or any cry of murder. Four witnesses,
three of wnom were in the street, and one in
house opposite, state that at a quarter TO
eleven O'Clock, they heard cry of"murder."
Two of these witnesses testify to having seen
q person whose appearance corresponds with
that of DR.. BurdelI and wrapped in a shawl
such as he wore. enter his house only few
minutes before the cry was heard. One of
these witnesses, Farrell, was sitting on the
very steps when the Doctor entered his house,
heard the CRY and the fail of the body, and has
identified Eckel as a man who Immediately
atterward came to the door and warned him
off the step in menacing manner, and whom
he supposed toibe sent Tor thatpurpose by the
man DR.. Burdeln who had just entered the
house. Several other witnesses in passing
through Bond street between eleven and
two o'clock of that night. remarked peculiar
smell as Of the smoke of burning wooden and
leather. The atmosphere of the night was
damp and heavy, and smoke accordingly held
to the earth. Between eight and nine O clock
on the morning of Saturday. the next day,
DR.. Burdell's Office boy discovered the dead
body on the second floor, back room, near the
door, lying in pool of blood. The gas in the
room was yet burning the key in the lock on
the ontside Of the door. Mrs. Cunningham
family, with the exception of Mr. Eckel, had
al that time all breakfasted. Eckel on that
morning had left the house before breakfast,
to fulfill business engagement made the day
before Mr.. Ullman was only lodger never
had taken any meals in the house, and had
not yet risen. He had come into the house
on the night at II 2 o'clock and he testi-
| he'd that during the night he heard no noise.
| The testimony of the four witnesses who heard
the cry of murder at 10 A o'clock, not alone
fixes the time for the deed, as the GOODNESS
and rigidity OF the corpse and the dryness of
the blood with which its clothes had been sat
urated, proved in the opinion of the medical
men Then called in, that the murder had been
committed at about that time.
The time Of the murder having been estab-
1sabn IL n.
and Snodgrass testified that they were lust
about retiring or had just retired for the night,
added to their positive statement that they in
the house, and probably awake, had not heard
the cry of murder, which others in the street
and III house opposite had heard, at once
| cast suspicion upon them, and led to an in
vestigaton of their relations to the murdered
man. it being reasonably presumed that no
| person outside the house could have commit
ted the act, with the attendant cutlery and fall
of the body on the floor, without being heard
| by them, they must then have been awake.
| This hypothesis at the opening Of the investi-
| CATION took possession of the Curoners mind
and the primary, aud indeed the almost sole
object Of the thirteen days inquest, has been
to fix the guilt on these parties. What this
| proof amounts to we may now consider.
Within lew hours after the murder was
discovered on Saturday mording, Mrs. Cum
bingham gave information that she had, on
the evening Of the 2S'h Of October last, been
secretly married to DR.. Burdell, by the Rev.
Mr.. Marvine. her eldest daughter being one
witness, and the clergyman's servant woman
| another witness to the ceremony, which took
| place at the house of the clergyman. Mrs.
Cunningham produced at the Coroner's IN
| guest her marriage certificate, which cores
| pended with the register Of the Bev. Mr..
Marvine. The reverend gentleman, when
before the inquest, identified Mrs. Cunning
ham as the woman whom he had then mar
ried, but was unable to identify the corpse of
DIR. Burdell as that of the man, and this, too,
although his attention. either at the time of
the marriage or on the following day when
the man came to him for the marriage certi-
hcate, had been directed to the peculiar APP
| pearance of the mans whiskers, which then
| led him to thiak that they were false. The
elergyman's woman servant, likewise, was
unable to identify the man who was married
as the same whose dead body was before her.
The two servant women of Mrs Cunningham
testified, among other points, that DIR. Burdell
until last summer, some time preceding the
alleged marriage, took his meals in his house
which he occupied in part as we have stated
but since that time, and from the date OF the
marriage, had never taken a meal in the
-uOustI Hhu Eetubeu 70 eat articles Oh IOOQ ana
| beverages which she had sent him from her
table, had not occupied the same sleeping
apartments. and had not appeared to regard
or treat her as his wife. One of these servants
further testified that at period antecedent to
this an abortion had been produced upon Mrs.
Cunningham, and that since the time of the
/ alleged marriage Mrs. Cunningham and Mr..
| Eckel mot DR.. Burdel) had occupied cham
bers communicating by DOOR, and that from
| her observation as chambermaid, her opinion
was that the relations between Mrs. Cunning
ham and Mr. Eckel were of an intimate or
| criminal character.
1t further appears in evidence that Mr.. Cum
ningham died several years ago, and previous
| ly TO his death he had been unfortunate in
| business, had gone to California, and returned
| without improving his affairs; that, dying,
Mrs. Cunningham received a policy of ten
thousand dollars from policy OF insurance on
his life, and that she probably was not pos
! sessed OF other means that since Mr. Cum
nlngham's death she had lived in good style,
/ frequenting watering places, brought up her
family literally, sending her daughters to
fashionable boarding schools, and SO forth
and had not kept boarders or resorted to other
ostensIble ways of meeting the expenses of
living, of which the interest of such sum as
the life policy of ten thousand dollars must
have been very trlfing part Her first ex-
perience at boarding house keeping seems to
have commenced in Bond street, where she
had one boarder and lodger, aud one LOGGER,
DR.. Burdell not included.
| Mr.. Ecke is said TO have been formerly a
butcher, and at the time of the murder, as APP