Northern Times. — 1857-11-11 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

DOUBLE  MURDER AND SUICIDE.  On Friday evening the particulars of a diabolical atempt at double murder and suicide of the assassin, were received in the metropolis., the facts of which are a. follows :—A man named Henry Feather_ $ One had Le n for the last five years and a half in the employ of Mr Passmoro, a farmer at E tat Down, near Barnstaple, North Devon, as farm servant, and was always conselered a mild, inoffensive man. A short time back, ho . ever, from some uueeplain deem, Festherstone imbbed a no'ion that one of the female servants had entertained opinions and maaiessted feelings of an unkind character towards him. So impre red was he with this idea that, without any notice whatever, he sought en interview with his employer, 'intimate 1 that he intended b quit his service, and demanded payment of the wages then doe to him. Mr. Paesmore enquired the reasonof his determ.na ioa, to wh ea he h.d eo strangeiy arrived and Featherstone reelied teat the females hid treat d him badly, and he woul I no longer as.ociate with them. Mr. Passmore, after some remoestrance, paid him £32 23, and Featherstone left the premises. Suesequengy, whi'e tee hons:keeeer and another female were sitt'ng qn'ely at work in the kitchen, they wee fearful y alarmed at hearing t .e report of firearms from the outside of the house, followed by the breaking of the windows of the room in wh ch they ware seated, and simultaneously a number of shots flew shoat them in all d rectioas. They screamed aloud for assistance, when Mr. Paramore aid some friends whom he was entertaning, and who had heard the report, rushed out with lights into the garden. They made a minute search, but, were unah:e to discover any one. They found, however, a j .cket, which was at ones recognised as having belonged t 3 Featherstone, end in the pockets of which were some loose shot:, gunpowder, aid a bag of percussion caps. Suspicion immediately !deed itself upon Featherstone, who was known to entertain a feeling of hatred towards the two females, and a most a live march was ialleved without delay; nothing, however, was hesr.i of him. On the following day a further and more rigal se arch was merle in the garden, wren a large horse pistol was found outside the window, apparently dropped just where fired. The police were made aCq7l4lll:ed with the circamstances, and means were takes to apprehend Featherstone. Their ends were ineffectual, bat, as Mr. Tamlyn, a gentleman reAding in the neighbourhood, was amusing himself in Knowles Wood, he discovered the body of a man suspended by a piece of new rope from a branch of an oak tree. He could tut see his face as a " comforter," had been drawn, cap-like, over it. He gave an alarm, (having first ascertained that the man was dead) and the deceased was cut down. The " comforter " being removed, the deceased was identified as Featherstone. A most nnusnol course was adopte i before the removal of the bcdy, it bong taken to a private house and deposited in the room where a man lived wit's his wife and family. At the inquest which was forthwith held bebre the district coroner, the above facts were deposed to; and, in addition, ,t was proved that the deceased purchased the pistol and ammo Aden on the day before the attempt at murder was made, from Mr. Frayne, of Barnstaple, and amongst ha effects six £5 notes were discovered. Alt the witnesses deposed that when deceased was la t seal nothing unusual was noticed in his demeanour, and the corner, on leaving the case to the jn-y, remarked that all lea had heard of the facts led him to believe Out the deeeesed was in his Hest state of mind when he committed the d ed. The jury then ratir.A, -• the following verdict —" Teat the deceased died by his own lamed, he not being at the time in h's right senses, mini, memory, and understanding."