Northern Times. — 1859-06-04 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

HOUSE OF LORDS —YEBTEILDAY. Their lortlShips met this afternoon for the purpose ©f s wearing in- peers.  II01)-SE OF COMMONS_YESTERDAY. The Speaker took the chair this afternoon at two o'clock, and the swearing-in of members, was continued. Amongst the members sworn to-day. were Mr. Roebuck, Mr. Bright, Mr, Milner Gibson, and Mr. C. Gilpin.  • MURDER .A T EDBURE LEDBURY, Thursday- Afternoon.-- To-day -John Isaac Jones, the clerk in Mr. Masefield'S office, who has been arrested on:the charge of the murder of Harriet Baker, Mr. Mase.field's office-keeper, and whose body was set on fire by her murderer, .was again brought up for examination. The same 'six magistrates by whom' the investigation was. opened presided to-day, assisted by. Mr. William Money Kyrle and Colonel Grey, also magistrates. Mr. Piper; solicitor, conducted the prosecution.; and Messrs. Gregg mid Sons defended the prisoner. Mr. G. Masefield was the first witness. He denied that the bailiff Freeman was at the office, and should not think' it possible that he knew where the- money was kept. It was ". a fabrication as: diabolical as the murder that he (witness) had a brother, of bad character, in indigent circumstances who, had lately been about Ledbury. He' had relative who was not independent of him and the world."' In reply to Mr. Gregg, Mr. Piper said that there were now some eight or ten mote witnesses to-be examined. Joseph Playstead, a neighbour,' who was one of the:earliest in the house after the discovery of the murder, deposed, amongst other evidence, that Jones was the first person who, during the confusion incident to' the discovery, approached Mr. Masefield's drawer, and said, " There has been a robbery here." Jones made a circuit to approach the drawer. William Griffin, surgeon, deposed that when he was called in to the murdered woman, he saw, near the chips that had been broken off the drawer from which the money had been taken, two postage stamps. He picked them up, and placed. theM on the desk. They were penny stamps. William Masefield, son and articled clerk to Mr.- G. Masefield, deposed that he had about £2O in a drawer in a desk, situated near to his brother's desk, a drawer in which was forcibly opened. His money was not disturbed. John Palmer, clerk to Mr. Smith, solicitor, of Ledbury, deposed that on the night of the day on which ithe first inquest was held, he was, at about ten o'clock, in, the Plough Inn, when Jones came in and said that if the house had been broken into the day before it was, there would have been a much larger booty Prisoner had two glasses of brandy at the Plough. John Brown; a tailor, of Ledbury; depOsed that the'prisoner.had been a customer of his, and owed £4 ss. It was. on or. about the let of last April that the prisoner paid him £1 17s. That was the full amount that was owing to him by Jones. By arrangeMent with Jones, the latter was to pay him quarterly. To afford- time for the arrival of the coach, due about this time, by which several witnesses were expected from a distance, the inquiry was here, at about one o'clock, adjourned for an hour. On the return of the court at two o'clock, Albert Todby deposed that he was a grocer, of Ledbury, and the prisoner was one of his customers. On the 14th of April he (prisoner) paid him £1 63 3d, due to the end of March. Prisoner now owed him £1 Os 3d. William Hampton, the manager of a boot and shoe shop kept by Mr. Chandler, deposed that the prisoner owed his master £1 is 3d. At Christmas, Jones paid all the money then due—viz., is Bd. Charles- Cooper, master of the union workhouse at Birmingham, and who had been so since July 10, 1855, recognised the prisoner as John Isaac Jones, who was first adthitted into the workhouse on the 10th of Nov., 1855,-as a destitute person. The order of admission stated that he was destitute, belonged to America, and was an attorney's clerk. 'Prisoner remained a pauper in the workhouse until the 22nd of August;. 1856. After some other witnesses had been examined the case was adjourned: