The Sun. — 1824-10-09 (London, England)

THE BECKENHAM MURDER..  ON-TrA L.L.—Yeste rday Thomas Coombs was brought up for a final examination, charged on suspicion of having shot James Morgan, at Langley Park, the seat of Emanuel Goodhart, Esq. on the rith of August last. There were on the Bench, besides L. B.A LLEY, Esq. before whom thechargeagainst the prisoner has been so carefully investigated, a number of other Magistrates of the county. Mr. Goodhart attended, as also did the whole of the witnesses against Coombs, to the number of 25. 'The prisoner, on being placed at the bar, looked considerably better in health than he did on the previous examinations ; and his conduct in Horsemonger-lane Gaol, since his apprehension, was described by Mr. Warlters, the Governor of the Prison, to be extremely correct and decorous.—Mr. ALLEN now directed that the depositions of all the witnesses in the case should be read over.—The evidence, which is of great length, and which has been minutely taken down by .Mr. Staples, the Clerk, was accordingly read aloud by that Gentleman in the presence of all the parties.—Hall the head constable, and Glennon the officer, who have been so active and zealous in the dinharge of their duty in this case, stated that there were some more witnesses present, whose evidence against the prisoner was of great importance.-William Keywood, a labouring man, residing at Hayes, in Kent, then deposed, that on Wednesday afternoon, the 6th inst. he went into a field, belonging to Mr. Goodhart, on a farm caned Stone Farm ; as he was standing under a tree taking shelter from the rain, he perceived the butt-end of a gun under some hushes. He proceeded to examine it, and for that purpose drew out the charge, which consisted of shot and slugs, which charge he immediately afterwards returned into the . gun. Witness having a knowledge of the murder that had been committed in Langley Park, instantly took away the gun to Mr. Goodhart's house, and gave it to Glen. non the Officer, who happened to be down there at the time. George Lyon, Mr. Goodhart's gardener, stated, that when the last witness brought the gun to his master's house, he immediately recognised it as having belonged to the deceased, James Morgan, and was stolen from the seed-house in Mr. Goodhart's garden, on the night of the oth of May, when the hot-house ie the grounds was robbed of eleven pine-apples. It will be recollected, that on the morning of the 10th of May, the prisoner offered ten pine-apples for sale at the shop of Mr. James Stock, in Orange-court, Kennington-lane, which circiinistanee ultimately led to his apprehension.—The gun was here produced, an also Identified by Mr. Tyler and Mr. Green, two farmers of Bexley, who stated that it was the same gun they observed in a wood called Westwood, near Shooter's Bill, hidden under some leaves, but which they left In the place where they first had seen it, in order that they might apprehend the person who came to take it away. However the gun was removed from that spot in the course of the night, and was not heard of since, until the witness Keywood picked it up in the manner described.-111r. Goodhart examined the gun, and stated that he was convinced it was that which he had fre. quently seen in the possession of Jas. Morgan, his late unfor.' tunate under gardener. The charge was now ordered to be taken out of the gun by the Magistrate, when a piece of:pakg• ..t.s divvy. yr 42'. _ and exhibited the name of " Watkins" legibly marked in print. --Glennon now stepped forward, and stated that he had taken some pieces of paper from the prisoners person, as well as from his late lodging, which, lie said, he felt a desire to compare with the wadding taken out of the gun. One of the pieces of paper thus compared exactly corresponded with the piece of wadding in the place torn, and had printed upon it " Tobacconist," underneath the name of Watkins. This circumstance, the Magistrate observed, was another strong feature in the charge against the prisoner, who was then fully committed to the next Assizes at Maidstone for trial, for the wilful murder of James Morgan ; and all the witnesses were bound over to prosecute.