The Press. — 1857-05-16 (London, England)

MAY 16, 1857.  fall. I saw the man take her away. While going to the station•house, Fox said, " I am only sorry I had not more of these things, or a revolver, and you would not have got away, as I did not mean to be taken." Mr. Andrews, surgeon, deposed that he found the deceased in a dying state, occasioned by a pistolshot wound, the ball of which had passed through the upper part of the thigh, making its exit at the back part of the thigh. The wound was caused by a bullet, according to the best of his judgment. She died in a few minutes after she was wounded, upstairs on the bed, from the hemorrhage. There was a flight wound on the fingers of the left hand. When the coroner had summed up, the jury, after a few moments' consideration, returned a verdict of " Wilful murder " against Stephen Fox. The prisoner was examined before the magistrates the same afternoon. The evidence was similar to that given at the inquest. When it was concluded the prisoner was asked what he had to say in answer to the charge. He replied :  Of course the reason why I did it was because she de. ceived me. I had promised her marriage, and she con• seated. I went to her house on Monday evening, but she was not at home. I left about nine o'clock. I went again on Tuesday at six o'clock, and she was not at home then. I went there again, and stopped till a quarter past ten, when she returned home. I went into the front room and asked her the reason of this unpleasantness. She said it was my own fault. I said, "Be it so." I said, " Give me a decided answer, yes or no, and I will leave you for ever." She said, " No, Stephen, I will meet you tomorrow (Wednesday) evening precisely at eight o'clock." She did not meet me, however. This morning at seven I saw her again. She said, " Stephen, forgive me." I said, " No, I can't.' I had kept company with her two years, and we never had a miss•word till last Tuesday evening.  The prisoner was fully committed for trial.—The third murder was committed at Wokingham. A man named John Blackwell, a shoemaker living in the town, had recently exhibited violent religious delusions, and the parish officers had determined to remove him to a lunatic asylum. On Wednesday night a man named Rance was appointed to sleep with him to prevent mischief. Rance agreed with two men occupying cottages on either side of Blackwell's that if he required assistance in the night he should knock loudly on the walls. Soon after midnight one of the neighbours was awoke by a loud noise. He went to Blackwell's cottage, and saw Blackwell standing over Rance, who was lying on the floor quite dead. Being frightened, he went into his own cottage, and shut the door, at which the maniac presently knocked, saying, " I have killed the devil, and I am the king of kings." Blackwell then went away, and was not found till Thursday morning, when he was seen kneeling in the street and praying in an incoherent manner. From the appearance of Rance's body, it seemed as if he had been first knocked down, and then bad received several severe cuts in the throat and hand. The maniac's own account of the matter before the magistrates was as follows: That man offered to be my protector, and wished me to sleep on. When I had a certain evidence in my mind that eternity was coming, I couldn't sleep. I got out of bed, but he pulled me back. He said," You feel warm ; " and I said, " I don't feel everlastingly warm." I had a presentiment that he was a devil, and I. determined to kill him. I struck him a blow, which almost levelled him, but the second did quite. I then got a knife, just as he managed to get the door open, and stuck him in the neck. The knife didn't cut, but I managed to hag and jag away till I had done the job. The prisoner was removed to the county gaol.