The Miner and Workman's Advocate. — 1864-12-31 (London, England)

PIECTITION OF THE CHADWELL-HEATH MURDERER.-The execution of the wretched culprit FranCis Wane took place on Wednesday morning, at nine o'clock, at Springfield Gaol, Chelmsford. The facts connected with the crime for which the prisoner suffered will be fresh in the recollection of the public. He was oonvicted of the murder of a woman named Amelia Blunt; and it appeared upon the trial that the prisoner and the deceased had cohabited together for a considerable time, hut in consequence.of his ill-usage of her the deceased had left him and gone to live With ail old man named Warren, to whose son she was about to be married at the time of the murder. The prisoner had been repeatedly heard to utter threats that this marriage should never take place, and the evidence at the trial proved that he hid deliberately cut the throat of the unhappy woman while she was engaged inwashing, and then endeavoured to Make his escape. He was, however, speedily taken into custody, and the evidence was so conclusive against him, that the jury almost immediately found him guilty of the crime of which he was accused. Shortly after committing the dreadful act the prisoner appears to have been seized with remorse, and it was stated that he would have pleaded guilty if some of his relatives had not retained counsel to defend him, and on that account pressed him not to do so, but he evidently, from the moment of his apprehension, made up his mind as to what must be the inevitable result. Immediately after the verdict was returned the prisoner seems to have made a full confession of all the circumstances under which the crime was committed. With regard to the attual murder, he appears to have said that he expected the unhappy woman was to have been married on the following day, and he was determined that the marriage should not take place. He states that he watched -Until the deceased was left alone in the washhouse, and that he went quietly behind her, and she was not at all aware of his being there until he put his left arm round her neck, and then with a knife he had in his right band he, almost at the same instant, cut her throat. At the instant as he put his arm round her he states that the deceased turned round and saw him and with a look of horror exclaimed, "Oh, Teddy (tills was the nickname the prisoner was generally known by) -what do you do here ?" and, withoutsaying a Word in reply, he immediately cut her throat. She struggled for only a brief interval, and ' then fell forward into the position in which she was found by the old man Warren, who had gone to an adjoining public-house to fetch some beer for her. The prisoner seems to have always borne the character of an idle,drunken fellow, who would not work when he could. Re kas some relations who are pretty well off, but during the 'me he and the deceased cohabited together, he peen's to have subsisted upon the produce of her labour. To the under-sheriff he admitted that his sentence was a just one. The hour fixed for the execution was nine, and about half-past eight Mr. Gepp, the under-sheriff, arrived at the gaol, and proceeded. to the chapel, where the prisoner had been for some time previously engaged irk prayer. He was quite calm, and shook hands with the officials, and expressed his thanks to them for the kindness lie had redeived from them. Although the prisoner had deformed feet, he mounted the steps leading to the scaffold without any assistance, and when the drop fell he appeared to die almost immediately. There wan a considerable crowd assembled, but they conducted themselves in the most orderly and decorous manner.