The Warwickshire Herald. — 1887-04-07 (Birmingham, West Midlands, England)

THE MURDER AT HOXTON.  CLOSING SCENE AT THE TRIAL  CURRELL, the murderer of Lydia Green, was convicted and sentenced to death at the Central Criminal Court by Mr. Justice Grantham on Saturday. At the conclusion of the Judge's summinv.-up, The Jury asked for the plans and letters which had been mentioned, as well as the bullets and cartridges, and while these were being handed to them the prisoner stood upand held an earnest conference with Mr. Arthur Newton, his solicitor. The prisoner looked nervously anxious, but on the whole preserved his calmness very *ell. He watched the Jury from their seats out of the Court with a strangely psthetic look on his face; and up to that moment entertained a fixed hope that he would be-acquitted. The gaoler spoke to him, nod he left the dock with a cheerful countenance.  In half an hour the Jury returned into Court, as I the clock was striking six. The prisoner came to the front of the dock, and scanned the faces of the Jurymen closely; his face thea wore a painfully anxious look. The Jury had taken their places before the Judie re-entered the Court. The Jurors' names were called over, then the Foreman stood up —the prisoner's eyes were fixed upon his face as he ' rose—and in a moment more he had pronounced the I word "Guilty." The prisoner appeared appalled. He stepped hastily from the front of the dock backwards, and came into colli-ion with a warder—a row of prison officers had silently formed in his rear. He clasped his hands behind him, and with his lips slightly apart and eyes widely opened, stared at the Judge. In reply to the Clerk of Arraigns as to what he had to say why sentence of death should not be pissed, he glanced at his counsel, but made no attempt to speak. The Usher demanded silence while sentence of death was pronounced. Tne Judge said he waa boand to say the verdict of the Jury was based upon evidence which left no rea4onable doubt that the Foisoner was guilty of the crime attiibuted to him. Words of his would fail to convey his horror of the crime, and none should be uttered to aggravate the painful position in wbieh the prisoner stood. A crime more cold-blooded was rarely brought to light in a Court of Justice. Though it might be wanting in certain revolting and cruel I circumstances which had been sometimes disclosed in crimes of murter, yet because of the absence of motive, design, anger. and passion, the enormity of the crime was increased, and it would remain on record as one of the most heartless murders with which the pages or our criminal annals were stained. For a reason they had not probably far to seek, unworthy as he was of the poor girl's love, she remained faithful to the prisoner throush all the prime of her womanhood, and probably refused to marry him becauie ot his wayward life. The Jury bad done their duty, and it only remained for him to do his—that was, to pass upon the prisoner the sentence of the law; and as the anal words of prayer were uttered the prison chaplain, in a loud voice, said Amen."  The prisoner heard the sentence with a look of horror. A warder touched him on the shoulder, he turned, and was led below.