Brighouse & Rastrick Gazette. — 1887-01-08 (Brighouse, West Yorkshire, England)

MURDERER BURNT TO DEATH. A despatch in the New York World says: The house of John G. Swilling, near Carnesville, has been burned down. Messrs. Popham, Eskew, and other citizen got to the spot m before the fire had reached the victi inside, consisting of a husband, wife, and three children. They could plainly see that all had been brained by the bloody axe which lay across the foot of the bed, and that the fire was only for the purpose of concealing the more diabolical crime. The only other inmate of the house was Frank Saunders, and he, it seems, had escaped and spread the alarm of fire. He was arrested, and during the day the threads of the tragic story were drawn together which established him as the murderer and incendiary. Frank Saunders was sentenced to the chain gang for six months for misdemeanour, and Mr. John G. Swilling and his brother, George Swilling, paid him out on condition that he should work it out. Saunders lived in the house with John Swilling. He had made several attempts to get away from fulfilling his contract, but the Swilling brothers brought him back each time. A few days ago John Swilling came to this place and sold a bale of cotton. Swilling's house was a four-room cottage, with two adjoining bedrooms. In one slept Mr. Swilling and his wife, with a three-months-old babe between them. On the trundle-bed slept the two elder children. The adjoining room was occupied by Saunders. Saunders was meditating another effort at escape, and knowing that Swilling had the cotton nnney in his possession determined to secure it. After midnight he stole in, with an axe in his hand, and dealt two murderous blows at the heads of the sleeping couple. He brained the children in a similar manner and, according to his own confession before the jury of inquest, to better hide his horrible deed he took a kerosene-oil , can and poured the contents on the bed upon which Mr. and Mrs. Swilling were dying, then set fire to the house and waited until the roof was nearly ready to fall in. He then ran about one-fourth of a mile to ! the house of George Swilling, brother of the murdered man, and told him that John Swilling, his wife and children were burning up in their beds. George ran up to the house, and only reached the scene in time to see the roof fall in on the lifeless forms of his brother and family. Saunders WM at once suspected. In the meantime Saunders bad made his escape, but he was caught five miles from the scene going in the direction of this city. He was taken back before the coroner's jury. By this time 300 indignant citizens took the prisoner from the officer in charge, and lie confessed having done the terrible deed. The murderer was burned to death on the scene of his crime. The crowd was quiet, but determined. They told him that the only mercy he could expect was that which he had shewn to others. Before he was cast into the flames be confessed his guilt.  At the Hertfordshire Quarter Sessions at Hertford onNionday morning a letterwas read from Lord Salisbury resigning the office of chair Man, which he has held for many years. " All hope of the safety of the steamer Cymro, of Cardiff, has now been abandoned. The vessel left Newca.stle-on-Tyne on the 3rd of December for Genoa, and it is supposed that when crossing the Bay of Biscay in the recent storm she foundered. She had a crew of 26 hands all told.  While drunk a ocatman nao. of age, fell into the Leeds and Liverpool Canal near Preston. Two friends were with him, but were too drunk to rescue him, and he was drowned.  A singular fatality has occurred at Whit ."-Id, near Manchester. A married couple :mined '4i '-rd, put to bed their three children—John Henry, aged. 8 years; Mary, 6; and Annie, 2—and, after making up the fire, went to Manchester on a shopping visit. On returning shortly before midnight they were alarmed to find the home full of smoke. They rushed upstairs, and found that their three children were all dead, having been suffocated by dense smoke. A large piece of 'coal had fallen from the gra_te and set fire to the carpet and a sofa. which aad smouldered witbout-buritiuginto