The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — 1840-09-25 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

ANOTHER ATTEMPT TO MURDER NEAR BEESTON.  (From the Chester Courant.) In ail probability this county will speedily obtain a horrid notoriety for the commission of a crime of the worst description—we mean that of wilful and premedidated murder, as since our last publication, an attempt, at least, has been made to sacrifice another individual to the lust of plunder. The attempt was made in the immediate vicinity of the place where the murder of lienshall, as recorded in our last, was perpetrated. It has been long known to the police authorities of the county, that for a district of several miles round, there are numbers of ruffians to be found, who are ever ready to commit a larceny or a murder, as occasion may best suit. The individual whose life was in this instance placed in jeopardy, is Mr, William Bower, manager of some brickworks at Wardle, where he resides, and son-in-law to Mr. David Skellet, a master brickmaker, of Beeston. It appears that Mr. Skellet has a contract with Messrs. Jackson and Bean, railway contractors, and is engaged by them to do a certain portion of Work, his brick-kilns at Wardle being managed by his son-in-law, Mr. Bower. The latter individual was in the habit of going once or twice a fortnight to Mr. Skellet to obtain money to pay the brickmaker's wages, and the knowledge of this fact by some parties, it would appear, had instigated the murderous attack. On Tuesday evening last, Mr. Bower visited his father-in-law, though not in this instance to receive money to pay wages with, and returned home about half-past seven o'clock at night. On passing through Crimes-lane, a gun was fired at him from behind a hedge on the road side, the ball of which passed through his hat, about four inches below the crown, and carried it off a distance of several yards. Mr. Bower thus providentially escaped unhurt, and picking up his hat, he immediately hastened home, in a state of the greatest agitation of mind, and without any knowledge of the parties implicated in the murderous attack. It has been generally reported that a second ball was fired, but this statement turns out to  be incorrect. On the following morning, information of the occurrence was sent from Mr. Dumville, solicitor, of Tarporley, to Mr. Hill, superintendent of the poliee in this city, who has since been indefatigable in his exertions to discover the perpetrators of the atrocious deed, but hitherto without success. Indeed, we are informed that such is the terror exercised over the minds of the farmers and cottagers in the neighbourhood generally, by the lawless ruffians who infest that part of the countfy, that information in such matters is extremely difficult to be procured. It is stated, however, that two men, who are not supposed to be known, were overheard conversing near the spot, by a cottager living in the neighbourhood, about the propriety of getting into the field, or remaining by the road side. While Mr. Hill was engaged in searching some houses in the neighbourhood, he discovered in those three men, named Thomas Guest, William Huxley, and - Dean, some property belonging to the Chester and Crewe Railway Company, and they were, on Saturday last, committed for trial for stealing it. In the house were also found guns, which belonged to themselves. The investigation will be pursued with the greatest activly, and we sincerely hope that the perpetrators of the attempt on Mr. Bower's life may yet be brought to justice.