The Sun. — 1851-08-02 (London, England)

COLERIDGE.) CHARGE OF WILFUL MURDER..—This was the day for the trial of William Rowe fur the murder of John Bunker, and the court was thronged with people anxious to get a sight of the prisoner. The trial lasted two days. The Clerk of Arraigns delivered the abstract of the indictment as follows:—!' William Rowe, you are indicted for the wilful, murder of John Bunker, at the parish of Brixton, on the 4th of March last, by tying and fastening a rope about his neck, thereby strangling and suffocating him. There are other counts in the indictment varying the charge. Are you guilty or not guilty? The prisoner, in a firm voice—Not at all guilty, my Lord.  Mr. COLLIER, on the part of the Crown, stated the case. The deceased, John Bunker, was eighteen years of age, and a farm servant, living with a Mr. Rowe, a wealthy farmer of Halwell Farm, in the parish of Brixton, in the county of Devon. Mr. Rowe has a house and farm-yard. In the farmyard opposite to the house is a stable, on the opposite side of the yard where the carts. aro kept, On the other side of the yard aro some pent houses and shippen. Immediately outside the yard runs the public road, and to the rightof the road is an orchard called Pond Orchard. On the 7th of March last, Bunker, the deceased, got up at his usual hour, was sent upon an expedition to carry lime, baruessed his horses to the cart, lit his pipe, and proceeded on his journey. He was at that time in perfect health. The family of Mr. Rowe consisted of himself, an old man of eighty years of age, two some John and William, William being the prisoner at the bar; a daughter, Jane; a female servant, Hannah Couch; tour boys— Bunker, eighteen years old; Vincent, fourteen; and two other little boys, James and Stevens, ten years of age. ' Bunker started off at' about a quarter before six; between ten and eleveno'clock he was found in the orchard dead, stiff, and cold. He was found tied to the centre limb of the tree. A rope was fastened round his neck, and also round the branch by a single half-hitch knot. The knot round his neck was called a bowling knot. He was found with both his legs on the ground—one under the other, and resting on the ground, and both his hands on the ground. He was found in a sitting posture and almost, but not quite touching the ground—and he was stiff and cold, indicating that ho had been suspended for some considerable time. His hands and legs were on the ground, and it seems almost impossible for him to have strangled himself without a very determined resolution to keep his hands in front of him, for he had nothing to do but put his hands on the ground and free himself from the pressure of the rope. There was no fall from a height, which might have dislocated his neck or produced sudden insensibility. It is not likely or probable that he would have been hung up higher and slipped down, for this was an old apple-tree, covered with moss, which shows where the rope was tied round the branches, but which presents no indications of its having been tied higher up, and slipped down. The crown of the boy's head was about a foot from the fork of the tree. The legs where he was hung hardly touched the ground— one leg was under the other, the right leg a little across the left leg; the right leg was lying upon the ground, and the knees just touching the ground. The horse and cart were found fastened to a gate in the road near the orchard. The boy's cap and whip were found at a little distance from the tree. Some blood was seen on his hand and also on his temple, where there was a severe blow, such as -would have been produced by a fist, and would have produced insensibility; There were marks of two or three other blows on his body. There were patches of road dirt on the knees of his trowsors and on his hands, indicating that he had been down on his hands and knees. The grass in the orchard was short and would not receive the -print of footsteps, or make any dirt upon the clothes. The apple tree was covered with, moss. There was the mark of a rope round the centre limb; and also round the fotk of the tree. The moss indicated that on the side of the tree where Bunker's body was found the moss seemed to have been pulled upwards, and on the opposite side to have been pulled downwards. There were some excrescences, or " nobs, on the tree, to which human hair like that of the deceased was found attached. The hair was found lower than where the head was found, which, with the marks on the moss, went to indicate that the body (whether before or after death) was drawn up from the ground, and suspended to the tree. There wore no marks of blows on the boy when he left the farm. He went away at a quarter before six, and between half-past six and seven o'clock screams were heard by three witnesses at Chittlebarne. All the witnesses described the sounds as shrieks or screams which a person would utter in a violent struggle with another, or which a lad would raise if being violently ill-treated. It was quite clear that there was a violent struggle going on at that time and place, for all the witnesses thought the screams proceeded from the wood, or from Pond Orchard, which was in the same direction. It was an unfrequented neighbourhood, and they had been unable to find out that a struggle was going on anywhere else. The shrieks did not last but a few seconds—not half a minute. Two unbroken eggs were found in his pocket, which might have been put there to suggest the idea of the boy's having committed suicide; but from the position of his hands he might have removed the pressure of the rope by merely putting them forward. The medical evidence stated that there could be no