THE HORRIBLE MURDER AT A COLLIERY THREE YEARS AGO.

West Coast Times, Issue 334, 18 October 1866, Page 1 (Supplement)

THE HORRIBLE MURDER AT A COLLIERY THREE YEARS AGO.

The cause celebre, known as . the " Wigan colliery murder," was again the subject of judicial investigation, at the Liverpool assizes on Monday, the 13th August, and the mystery and complications which have surrounded the crime led to every part of the 'court being filled to overflowing, and excited the most intense interest

Two prisoners, Thomas Grime and Thomas Walton, were each, indicted for the offence ; Taut the trial of Grime was first proceeded with. He was quietly and respectably dressed, and during the trial was attentive and watchful.

The case for the Crown Avas opened by Mr J. B. Aspinall, Q.C., who stated that the deceased man, James Barton, •was an engineer employed at a colliery, called Balkhouse Pit, between Chorley and Wigan. He was last seen aliA*e on the night of the 2nd of January, 1863, when he Avent, as was usual with him, to take his night turn at minding the fires of the pumping engine attached to the colliery. At eight o'clock that night the old man Avas seen in the cabin "belonging to the colliery, but at a quarter to three or three o'clock next morning, Avhen one of the jnen came to work, he could not be

found. Search was made everywhere, but unavailiugly. During the search a muffler belonging to him was found in the cabin, and it was noticed that it was burnt, but no suspicion was excited by the circumstance at this time. When the funiaces were looked at to see if they required firing up, some appearances were noticed, and when further investigations were made later on at and near the first furnace, unmistakable signs' of portions of a human body having been consumed there were disclosed. Witnesses could speak to traces of blood, portions of flesh, and bones, which could be identified as human bones, being found there, as well as buttons and other indestructible portions of a man's dress ; and the jury would no doubt be satisfied that these were portions of the body and dress of the man Barton, and that he had been murdered on the spot. A reward was offered for the discovery of the murderers, , but^ a long time elapsed without any result ; and it was not until a year or so ago that some circumstances arose- which led to the apprehension of certain persons, who had from time to time been brought before the present tribunal, but had not yet been tried ; and for various reasons it had been thought desirable that the prisoner, who was associated with Grime in the present indictment, should be tried, separately from him. During the coiirse of the investigation against these other persons, it became necessary to search a can*d in the country, in order to discover a watch which it was known Barton had with him at the time he was murdered. This search caused a great deal of talk in the neighborhood, and ultimately coming to the knowledge of the prisoner's brother and father, who lived at Chorley, they recollected ihat the prisoner (who had come home ibout five o'clock on the morning of the nurder) had been dealing with a watch which, as far as J;heir memory went, corresponded in all particulars with the watch, which kad been taken from the nurdered man. The evidence with respect to the watch would be, that the ; prisoner arrived at Cliorley about 5 a.m. )n the 3rd ;that he had a watch : that his watch was shortly after pawned, nther by the prisoner or some other • >erson, in the name of John Walton ; hat this pawning took place on the 7th ipril ; that the prisoner got into some ' rouble after this, aud was seni to ; irison ; and that before he went away ; le told his brother that he might have he watch if he could get it out of pawn. There was some difficulty about this, is the ticket was lost ; but ultimately it vas.released, and spld ty the prisoner's n'othev to a person named Akers ', and ifter the circumstances transpired reative to the searching pf the canal, the prisoner's brother and father, after consulting together, thought it advisable :o get the watch back from Akers and aand it over to the police, which was lone. Meanwhile the prisoner had aeen sent to Dartmoor, where he was serving a term of penal servitude for mother offence when he was arrested ■or this crime. The learned counsel •cad several statements made to a police officer named Peters by the prisoner, and •ef erring to the murder of Barton. ")ne of these was a very cirmmstantial account of two men — Thompson and Seddon — and the" prisoner going "to the Balkhouse Pit. Barton ,vas in his cabin, and while the prisoner md Seddon stood at a little distance, Thompson struck Barton on the head svith a crowbar.. Barton groaned. Thompson said, " He's not dead," and save him another blow, after which Barton never moved. Thompson then carried him by the legs as far as the stokehole, and then, assisted by Seddon, put him into the fireplace. Thompson said, " I will chuck about ten shovels r>f slack upon him," which was done. The prisoner said iie trembled all the time. They then escaped, and the prisoner said he arrived at Chorley about Eive o'clock. His father asked himwhere he had been, and warned him to •'keep out of that Thompson's company." In another confession which was read, the prisoner described a man called " Stipper as helping Thompson with the murder ; and in a third statement he mentioned that Thompson had before broached the question of murdering old Barton, whom he suspected of having accused him of poaching. The learned counsel said that in all these statements the prisoner, though he admitted being present at the murder, very carefully abstained from saying that he even struck any blow, or took any personal part in the. outrage ; but he ( Mr Aspinall) submitted that if the prisoner accompanied the murderers, and shared in the common object of comjnitting the murder, even though he did nothing with his own hands, he was equally guilty. , Evidence was then adduced as to the identity of the watch ; as to the finding of the muffler, torn and partly burnt, on the floor of the cabin ; as to the finding of a crowbar under the seat of the cabin ; as to the marks of blood on the bricks outside of the cabin ; and as to the finding of burnt bones amongst the ashes under the furnace. The bones comprised a skull, ami thigh and arm bones ; and small lumps of ashes were cemented together with what Dr Edwards, analytical chemist, prououueed to be blood. Then the buttons, buckles, and shoe nails which were found were described. The pri&oner's brother detailed the circumstances alluded to by Mr Aspinall with respect to the watch : and Peters, the police-officer, narrated the facts' attending the confessions made by the prisoner at Dartmoor, the confessions themselves being read. ' Mr Pope, for the defence, urged that the confessions made by the prisoner should be regarded with the greatest

suspicion, as his diseased imagination might have led him to glory in a great crime. The conclusion he asked the jury to come to was, that the prisoner was an involuntary witness of the murder ; and, if so, however reprehensible his conduct might have been in not interfering to protect the murdered man, he could not be considered as an accomplice. The jury, after a brief consultation, brought in a verdict of Guilty. - The prisoner exclaimed, ." I am as innocent as a child !" The learned Judge, in sentencing the prisoner to death, said he was as clearly convinced of his guilt as if he had seen him commit the act. Though he might not have struck the blow himself, he had evidently accompanied some persons with the combined intention of committing the murder. A more cruel and barbarous murder had never been proved in a court of law. The prisoner was then removed.