THE LATE MURDERS.
POLICE-OFFICE SHADWELL.
Monday afternoon, a man named Thomas Knight was brought, in a post-chaise, to this office, from Godalming, in Surrey, where he had been detained by Lord Middleton, on suspicion of being concerned in the murder of Mr. Marr, and family, and underwent an examination before the Magistrates.
The circumstances of suspicion alleged against the prisoner were, that on Saturday-se’nnight he came home in the evening, to his lodgings, apparently very much dejected; ---that he took off his smock-frock, and began to wash and dry it before the fire;--- that it had upon it stains a good deal resembling blood, but the witnesses did not state that positively:—and that on the morning following, he left his lodgings early, and did not tell his landlady where he was going. The account which the prisoner gave of himself, was, that he was a Portsmouth man bred and born. He came to London about six weeks since, and remained in the service of Messrs. Sims and Co. rope-makers, as a hackler, until Saturday se’nnight. His wife having been ill for a considerable time, he determined to go down to Portsmouth, where she then was with her father, and bring her up to town. On the evening of Saturday se’nnight he went to the King’s Arms public-house, kept by a Mr. Edwards, to get paid his weekly wages, which amounted to 12s. He remained at Mr. Edwards’s until about eleven o’clock, drinking with some of his fellow workmen; he went home to his lodgings, and soon after went to bed. He was not dejected; on the contrary, he was rather merry in consequence of the liquor he had drank, and laughed with his landlady, who bantered him for keeping such late hours at night during the absence of his wife. Next morning he arose about half-after seven o’clock, and went to Mr. Dodd the overseer of Mr. Sims’s works, and told him that he was going down to Portsmouth to bring up his wife; and requested he would take care of his tools until his return. He then went to the King’s Arms public-house, in hopes of getting 1s. 6d. which Mr. Edwards owed him, and he remained there a short time with some of his workmates. He then left the public-house, and walked about Shadwell for about an hour, when he met two men named Quin, father and son; and he went with them to a wine-vault and had some gin. He remained with them until ten o’clock on Sunday morning, when he started for Portsmouth. He arrived at Portsmouth on Monday evening, and rode only 12 miles of the journey. He remained with his wife and child at Gosport until Thursday morning last, when they all set off together for London. On Thursday night he arrived at Petersfield, where he slept with his wife and child. The next day, when he was walking through Godalming, he was apprehended by two officers, on a charge of which he protested to God he was as innocent as an unborn child. He said, the reason why he did not tell his landlady of his intention to go to Portsmouth, was, because he owed her 3s.; and having only 12s. in the world, he was afraid she would insist on being paid, if he told her he was going to leave the lodgings, with which, had he complied, he would have been unable to bring home his wife.
The prisoner underwent a very minute and rigid examination, but he was consistent in all his answers, and adhered to his first statement. His accounts precisely corresponding with the evidence given, upon which the warrant for his apprehension was founded, except the statement of his landlady, relative to his dejection, and taking off his smock-frock to wash, the Magistrates expressed their belief, that this man had no connection with this melancholy affair; but remanded him for farther examination, in order to be confronted with the witness examined on behalf of the charge.