Swansea and Glamorgan Herald, and South Wales Free Press. — 1867-05-18 (Swansea, West Glamorgan, Wales)

MURDER AND SUICIDE.  On Saturday evening, about eleven o'clock, the neighbourhood of Whitmore-mad, Hoxton, London, was thrown into consternation by a murder and suicide at the "Bridge House Tavern," Hoxton, under the following circumstances : It appears thst one of the victims, the woman, had about two days previously taken service at the above tafern as cook, and that late on Saturday evening, a man, believed to be her husband, came to the bar and asked to see her, but was told she was gone to bed. On this he asked to see the landlady, who complied with the request. Shortly after, however, the wife accidentally appeared, and the landholy left the man and woman together. Almost immediately two distinct shots were heard, and on the people in the house going to ascertain the cause both were found lying on the finer, the man quite dead. The woman was taken upstairs, but died a few minutes afterwards. It has been ascertained that the names of the dead persons are Henry and Elizabeth Fletcher, and that the man had deserted his wife and children, and that proceedings bad lately been taken against him by the parish authorities. The murderer hail yin-lidded himself with a brace of pistols to perpetuate his atrocious act.  The following additional particulars in connection with this sad event are from one of the London journals of Tuesday : •  It appears fruit statements made by the friends of the young man Fletcher, that he was always a man easily excited into a passion, and that he often acted upon impulse. He was also of a very roving disposition, and that fact often inducisl hits to go to sea when he could get an opportunity if doing so. Ile was very anxious to travel about and spend his time in foreign lands. His marriage with the deceased was always regarded by his friends as an unfortunate occurrence, and the reason for his infatuation, as it was called, could never be ascertained. Site was not pretty, and she hail received no education. All his connections were respectable. She was the daughter of a labourer, who died a short time ago. Although he was never heard to threaten his wife, yet there is reason to believe that the murder was premeditated, and it is supposed that the large horse pistols used in carrying out his criminal object belonging to a ship in the docks, and it is believed that he secreted the pistols, which are very large ones, about him before he came on shore. Inquiries have been made in every dire-ti, at for the purpose of ascertaining where he obtained the iron slugs that he USed in killing himself and his victim ; but although they are of a peculiar et tostrnetionont person is able to tell where they were procured. They look soil they hall been cut elf the end of an iron rod nearly half an inch in diameter. They are deadly missiles, and the one that the murderer lired into his own body passed completely through it in a straight line from the chest to the back. . . .  ..... The scene of the shocking tragedy has been visited by umbers of persons, and one time the roadway IT, front if tile house was so densely packed with people that It was impossible to pass. The family of the deceased woman have given way to intense grief at the untimely loss of their relative. Os Monday a strange scene occurred at the Heston dead-house, where the bodies of the murderer and his victim lie side by side. The mother of Ellen Fletcher and another female relative went to see her. When the another SIll,l, her deal daughter she burst out crying, and then, turning round, raised her arms anti rushed at the corpse of the dead mats with the intention of striking him on the head. Her relative said, 'Let the brute alone. Ho not mind hint." And a gentleman present rushed forward and caught hold of her by the sleeve of her dress and pulled her back. He then said, " How do you hope for forgiveness I" The woman immediately became quieted, and her arms sank down by her sidu At the inquest, held on Tuesday, the jury found "That the deceased woman had been wilfully murdered by the deceased man, who bad committed suicide whilst in an unsound state of mind."