The Tamworth Examiner and Working Men's Journal. — 1874-12-19 (Tamworth, Staffordshire, England)

CONFESSION OF FOURTEEN MM. DERS BY A MANCHESTER MAN.  The following horrible story reaches us from Mexico. It is published in the Toronto Weekby Globe of the 27th Nov., having been furnished by a ccerespondent of the New York Times :—Mazatlan, Mexico, Oct. 22.—An Englishman named Tom Adams, who, for the past eight or ten years has owned a low tavern and dance. house in this place, and gained general notoriety as a desperate character, died on the 15th instant from the effects of a pistol-shot wound received in a fight several Months ago. Just previous to his death, when assured that his doom was inevitable, he sent for Captain Ver. plank, the American commercial agent at this prat, and intimated that he had some important die. closures to make, which he desired should be given publicity in the Eastern States. Capt. Verplank having cemented to comply with his wishes, and to take down whatever statements he had to make in writing, the dying man unburdened his conscience by confessing himself guilty of fourteen murders, all but oae of which were committed in the United States and Canada. Adams commenced his narrative by stating that his proper name was George Worley, and that be was a native of Manchester, England. He commenced his career of crime by murdering the second mate of the American ship Cultivator, in the Liverpool Docks, about the year 1854. After this deed he went to Canada, and roved about through those prods ces for two years in pursuit of robbery. In the year 1855, at which time he was known by the name of Orton, he was engaged as a sailor on the lakes. While lying in the American port of Oswego, he murdered a man whom he understood to be a painter, by throwing him over a bridge. Be met his victim in a drinking saloon, where he went to collect a bill of the proprietor, and followed him until the opportunity was favourable, when he struck him down with a slung-shot, and disposed of the body in the way mentioned. After this, Adams returned to Canada, and assumed the name cf Townsend. With two secomplioes, he commenced a campaign of robbery, d rcrpetrated four murds 3 in the country west of Tcronto, ending with the killing of a sheriff a few miles west of Ni-gare. river. That country then became too warm for him, in consequence of the offering of large rewards for his arrest, and be escaped on board a schooner passing through the Canadian canal to the American port of Toledo. From this port he went to Chicago, and committed three murders in that place during the same summer. One of his victims was the captain of a vessel, whom he followed from the St. Charles saloon; another was a German saloon-keeper, whom he killed in his -bed at night in his place of business, which was situated near a railroad depot; and the third was some man unknown to him, whom be murdered after leaving a brothel. After ',hese crimes he was arrested in Chicago, tried and convicted of a burglary, and served a term of three years in the Illinois State Prison. On obtaining his rclease Adams went to New York, where be remained about one year, during which time he committed two murders, both of his victims in that city being men unknown to him. One was a countryman, whom he enticed to the outskirts of the city, and obtained about 2000 dole. on his body. After leaving New York he was engaged in a series of robberies through the Southern States. He returned to Baltimore and murdered a prostitute in that city. Subsequently be committed a murder in Louisville and one in Memphis, but of the names of his victims be had no knowledge. Adams left New Orleans about the time of the breaking out of the war, and went to Vera Cruz. From thence be went to the City of Mexico, and came to Mazatlan about ten yeare ago. Since his sojourn here he was widely known and generally feared, his place being one of the most notorious rendezvous of desperate characters on the misfit. He finally met his fate at the hands of a Spanish gambler, named Gonzales, in a drunken quarrel over a throw of dim. He leaves between 15,000 and 18,000 dole, in cash, or its equivalent, as the result of his career of atrocious crime, which be has willed to a sister, supposed to be his only living relative, who resides at Sheffield, England. The legatee needs to be devoid of any superstitious scruples to receive and enjoy such a legacy.