The herald., 1894-12-05
A LONDON MURDER MYSTERY.
Many AristOcratic Families In
vOlved in 1t.
The Crime at First Attributed to
Jack the Ripper.
Scotland Yard Detectives Finally
Traced 1t TO 3 Nephew OF
Prominent Member OF
ParliAmeat.

By the Associated Press.
LONDON, Dec. 4.-The detectives Of
Scotland Yard are busily at work ferret
ng out the bottom facts in sensational
murder mystery which involves. in>
directly, a number OF the most aristos
cratic families OF England. On Novem-
ber 26.h last, tie Associated Press an
nounced exclusively that q mysterious
murder had been committed In Ken
sington, q populous western suburb Of
London.
The body OF a comely, well.dressed
young woman, named Dawes, about 80
years old, belonging to the unfor rtunate
class. was found in q much frequsuted
thoroughfare on Holland Villas road,
Kensington. A hssty examination Of
the body showed that her throat had
been cut from ear to ear. The police at
fret were completely at fault, aud some
OF the London newspapers raised the old
cry of Jack the Ripper" although
there was little or no ground for 80 do
ing. Suspicion centared upon .
young man OF excellent family
named Reginald Llewellyn Bassett
Saunderson, nephew OF the famous
Col. E. ]. Saunderson. the Orange leader
and member of parliament for North
Armagh, O magistrate and Q deputy
lieutenant and the son OF Llewellyn
Traherne Bassett Saunderson, esq, .
justice OF the peace OF Dublin county,
Ireland, who married Lady Rachael
Mary Scott. third sister of the Earl of
Clonmel. One of Reginald Saundsrson's
aunts is Ladv Edith Caroline Monok,
wife of the Hon. Henry Power Charles
Stanley Monck, Oldest son of the fourth
Viscount Monck. Another OF his aunts
is Lady Maria Henrietta Fitzclarence,
whose husband 10 the brother Of the
Earl of Munster and Q grandson Of
William w.
The young man, it appears, 10 only 81
years old, tall and handsome. . most
pleasant converBationalist and an expert
at football, rowing and swimming, But
young Saunderson was far from being
strong minded. He was sent to school
for the protection and education Of
gentlemen OF weak intellect, at Hamp-
tonwick. Saunderson, according to the
police, left that institution November
26th, saying he intended to attend divine
service at O local church. But he Was
mot heard Of again until he appeared at
the house of relatives at Belfast, some
time after the murder.
The theory of the police is that Saun-
derson, after leaving Hamptonwick,
came to London and met the Dawes
woman. The evidence which directly
connects Saunderson with the murder
is the fact that by the dead womAn's
side the police found knife and .
cherry wood stick, which were eubse-
quently identified by the pupils OF the
institution at Hamptonwick as having
belonged to Saunderson. The police
were soon in possession of the following
facts:
For months past the English news
papers have been dsvoting much space
to the trial of O man named James CAM
ham Read, hanged this morning, q
married man at one time employed ~ .
clerk at the London docks, who Was
charged with the murder at Southend,
England, on June "a. last, OF . young
woman, Florence Dennis, with whom he
had been on intimate terms. Saun der-
son, it seems, was deeply impressed by
the accounts Of the trial which he read
in the newspapers. He would eagerly
peruss every thing on the subject and
seemed to brood over the case.
The police, it eeems. first got on the
track OF Saunderson in Belfast and took
him into custody. But while the pris-
oner was being conveyed to Dublin en-
route to London he escaped, but was re-
captured yesterday at Killeshandrs,
near Armagh.
There are several points in the story
of the Kensington murder mystery
which are yet unexplained. Was the
unfortunate woman who met her death
in the Holland Villas road a chance 40.
quaintance of Saunderson or had he
known her for some time?
The general opinion seems to be that
she was an accidental acquaintance
with whom the prisoner met alter his
arrival in London, and his mind having
become completely unhinged from
brooding over the details OF the South.
end murder, he felt impelled to kill the
woman and 80 cut her throat and fled,
leaving the knife and walking stick
behind.
Saunderson arrived four or five days
ago at Nabilla, the residence of Mrs.
Kate Jones, q widow, two miles from
Castle Ssunderson. the residedce of
Colonel Saunderson. 1t was remarked
he had very scanty outfit. He looked
i'll and was very reserved.
The master of the sch ool at Hampton
wick states that in vie W. OF 'Saunderson's q
probable going to Canada to start farm
ing, he was allowed to take part in the
gardening at the school. and the knife
found by the side OF the murdered wo.
man was one he had ussd for pruning
purposes.
1t has trsnspired that one of the
places visited by Saunderson was
Moncktown. While there he wrote an
unsigned letter in which he admitted
his guilt. This letter fell into the hands
of the Scotland Yard authorities and
was one of the clues that led to his ar
rest.
The 1O0-Mils Road Record.