The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette. — 1861-10-08 (Dorchester, Dorset, England)

SHOCKING MURDER AT 111U3TON.  A murder was committed on Saturday morning at Billiton, in Staffordshire. A tradesman in Churchstreet was deliberately murdered in Ibis own house, arei big premises were plundered and fired. The victim was a Mr. John Ilagott, who carried on busineu as a tailor and clothier at the corner of Stafford-street. At about ,4 o'clock in the morning the family of Ur. Beard, of that street, was disturbed by hearing voices in the aide passage of their house, and thinking it was her brother returning Lome' Miss Beard went down with a light. In the pusagethe stumbled upon aome bundles of cloth and men new garments. Her brother happened to be coining down the street at the salllB time, and be AIM three men carrying a bundle. Information wee at once conveyed to the polio* station and it was soon discovered that Mr. Bagott's house, situate opposite to that of Mr. Beard, had been entered. The officers found a little gas burning in the small sitting-room on the ground floor, numerous bottles and drinking-glasses on the table, and the body of a man lying with his head on the fender, in front of the fire, with a poker acrosshis throat. His face WAS covered with soot, and the policeman at first thought that the body was that of • 'burglar, but on turning on the light it was found that it was the proprietor of the house. He had been dragged to the ground and held down in the position in which he was found till life was extinct. Mr. Itagott was a bachelor, 45 years of age, end though poesessed of considerable property, lived alone. Hie habit, wore somewhat ecoentno. lie always carried the keys of his upper rooms and the day's receipts of his shop about with him, lie had • banking account both at Dudley and Bilaton, and the promisee in which he lived and thew* adjoi ll il ig belonged to him. He had been known to produce as large a sum £lOO. which there was reason to believe hail been secreted in out, of-the-way pram., like the seeking of • bed, or beneath a "quarry"- or steno of the floor. Of all this the murderers men to have been aware, for the pockets of the dead man's trousers had been torn open with much violence. His keys were all laid upon the table, but the motley was taken away. The burglars had forced open the doors of the upstair roontil with a heavy coal hammer. In a similar manner aceesa had been had to the drawer* and the 01.111 box, and the bed had been tossed over. There is no means of ascertaining the amount of booty that the villains had found. A fire of paper and linen had been made in the grate, and the embers had fallen out upon the carpet, which bad ignited. An inquest was afterwards held on the body of the murdered man, awl the evidence of the surgeon, who made the post morfcm examination, went to show that death I.lllllt have resulted from the pressure of the poker on the throat. The deceased was of very intemperate habits, and on the evening preceding the murder west home very final, and to this Mecum stance is attributed the feet that be had not gone to bed at the time the hoe.e was broken luta. The "wanted" man is now in custody. lie was arrested on Wednesday forenoon, and his name is David linurdrick. TI,. police seem to have been so , close upon his track that lie "ran to earth," put himself In communication with his friends, and afterwanls with a solicitor. The result wee that the solicitor informed the police of the willingness of limadrick to sunender This he did on Wethresday morning, and after a brief examination before the magistrates, he was remanded to Stafford Gaol.  •