1960-08-13 — Page 9

MURDER

IN TRANSIT

STUDY OF CLASSIC

CASES WITH A

THE CHINA MAIL, SATURDAY, AUGUST 13, 1960.

CHAPTER 5 IN A

He had been violently attacked, and robbed of his watch and chain, before being flung out of the carriage. Next day he died."

27fathoms down

-and ROLEX Oyster still

runs accurately as ever.

SINGLE THEME

The wrong hat-and how it hanged the first

of the railway killers...

THE heyday of the railway carriage murder in

Great Britain lasted almost exactly half a century-from the 1860s up to the 1914-18 war.

The governing factor, of course, was opportun- ity. There could not be any railway carriage mur- ders until there were railways and railway carri- ages. There could not be as many railway carriage murders after the general introduction of the corridor train.

So the notorious monsters of British railway lore naturally congregated in a narrow compass: Lefroy 1881, Parker 1901, Dickman 1910.

Each of these three can claim boarding 3 suburban stopping hle own pre-eminence in this train at Hackney, found the un- carriage they had modern method of assassination occupied within a closed and circum- entered in a disturbed state.

blood There was

OT the scribed and swiftly moving box.

But an earlier name holds cushions. blood on the handle of the offside door, and blood still pride of place.

Franz Muller did it first.

- on one of the windows.

DRAWING

by

JACK

WHITSETT

by Edgar Lustgarten

previous stations where that

train had stopped.;a

It proved to be Mr Briggs, chief clerk to a firm of London

Iankers,

He had been violently at- tacked, and robbed of his watch and chain, before being flung out of the carriage. Next day

he died.

THE HAT...

The respectability of the victim and the brutality of the criminal contributed to public sense of shock and out- rage that worked upon the police continuously like a goad.

normally Their

Jonathan Matthews went Inbo the box.

'1

Matthews was a cabman, who had known Muller he told the court-for something like two years, Mulier one day fancied a hat that. Matthews had bought at Walker's; asked Matthews to get one for him; Matthews. obliged, and Mujer afterwards Palliation, "I was conductor of a coach, and left it, without any- That often wore the hat.

were "Andor that you imprisoned?"

Muller, a young Germani tailor seeking work in London and latterly been employed and was currently hand up.

E

INDIFFERENT

constituted, at any rate: a start.

In a murder for gain, impe- curiosity equals motive ca element carrying no weight Yes, that was the Bat that whatever by itself but extremely one they were showing him; serviceable to a prosecution that brim, merino, striped lining — has got other. concrete, points. that was the hat for sure. to make against a men.

Against Muller they had got plenty.

His lodgings were in the Hack- ney district, near to the local line and cn Saturday, the 9th July, he had been out till 1 am strenuous Early in the morning of exertions were redcubled and Monday the 11th, he was trading days of Intense Mr Briggs's watch chain at a after several investigation, they possessed Cheapside jeweller's. On the 151h he took or meant to take Hardly more than a minute sufficient material to pounce. or two later, railwaymen spotted Signs, at first few, had steadily a final leave of England, and an elderly man lying insensible multiplied that pointed as one sailed for New York. Iine, beside

between in the direction of Franz Muller.

A BODY FOUND It was a Salunday the 9th of July, 1864-which saw the ugly precedent established.

That evening two passengers

North London on the

Somebody's personal belong- ings reposed, farior and aban- doned. on the seat.

"Guess you didn't catch daddy young enough, hey, mom?"

the

track

JURY ROOM

KEEP ουτ

One more question...;

Is be a Democrat or a Republican?**

A British Crossword Puzzle BY THE WAY

12

18 19

+

FO

13

14

105

16

117.

22

23

24

26

ACROSS

1 Knocks off balance (6)

5 Plate of fish! (5) -

8 In which cowboys weren't

mounted? (5)

9 Act of disowning (8)

10 Bring on to a committee? (5)

11 Imitate the Swiss (5)

12 Sir Carol? (4)

13 Transactions of distributors,

maybe (5)

16 Rises bigh (6)

18 Stretched one's neck (6)

20 Vilon in a penny paper (5) 22 Played by Jimmy Edwards **** (4)...

23 Once-popular anklets (5)

25 Recoil from pain (5),

26 Subtly suggested (6)

28 They're often in a belfry (5)

27 Ready for battle (6)

29 He may be a bookworm (8)

29

DOWN

1 Inadequately nourished (8)

2 Words written in prison? (8)

3 Cup bearer, perhaps (4)

4 King of pianists? (7)

5 Withdrew from association

(7)

6 It's not so hot in jail (8)

7. Buttonhole area (5)

by Beachcomber

LLOW me to elucidate the business. If the

A whole

Flying Volcano is rejected by the Americans as unworkable, we can buy it from them es

a

non-independent non-deferrent, and give it to West Germany without arousing Russian picions.

The more non-deterrents there are the less encouragement will be given to the manufacture of counter-deterrents.

Can it play the bagpipes? READ that the octopus, "

offered 17 electric shock instead of food," retreats hastly. This experiment may lead to the discovery that you or I behave in much the same way. It has also been discover- ed that an octopus "makes more limited use of information about position than we do." Tell it that it is in Bayswater Road and must go to Kilburn, and it will to probably react very slowly the information, and may even end up in Norwood, utterly exhausted. But it is a good leamer." and can be taught to classify objects, so that "vertical and horizontal axes have a by peculiar status, not shared oblique axes" I am more glad than I can say about that. Another rehearsal "BIRD thou

+

never wert,"

14. Of various kinds as graded quoted the stage manager

(B)

15 Not the first supporter (8)

18 Does some meddling (7).

17 Forecast sounds doubtful (7) 19 Is he never well-behaved? (6) 21. Grow from seed (5) 24 But it has a forward line (4)

Try

as Rustiguzzl alighted on the wrong side of the stage. her with a crane." mumbled the producer. "Everywh a fairy queen, whispered the Hbrettist. Meanwhile the chorus of fairies was singing "She comes,⠀⠀ she comes, our queen, as a wisp of thatledown is watted across a meadow." When the thistle down camioned into a cerdbound tree and not it rocking the chorus filtered and even the

YESTERDAY'S CROSSWOED—Across: 1 Nudist 6 Satan. 8: conductor stitied his bandier-

Lest, 3 Stalin. 11 Agile, 12 Fodder, 14 Beer., 16 Linen. 18 Tress. 18 chief into his mouth to choke Bend 20 Out-let. 24 Clear. 25 Tidled, 28 Teem, 27 Lanes, 28 Be his laudate

pent Down: Nest. 2 Deaf 3 sid. Frender. 5 Startle, 6 Tall-end. all w

7 Needing 10 Lopes, 18 Stanell, 14 Between. 15 Escorts. 17 Inked the en

19 Butter. 21 Lims. zå Time, 23 Edit

will be

These paints, however; might be explained and blunted. But the Crown held one tangible and visible piece of evidence that was much more difficult to account for or ride over.

A hat.

THE LINK

Three articles ha been recovered from the blood smeared carriage. A bag and a stick were identified as Mr Briggs. But a hat- though initially assumed to be his-was not.

Young Mr Briggs knew that the moment he set eyes on It, "My father's hat was altogether different," he said.

What had happened was plain as a pikestaff in the confusion and haste the murderer had talcen his victim's hat and left behind his own.

The effect of this was force fully summarised by the Solicitor-General,

"If you can discover, with cer- tainty, who wore that hat" - the jury, fascinated, following counsel's pointing finger - “on that night, you will have the murderer."

Could the Crown say, "with certainty," that that bat was Muller's? The maker's name- "H. Walker, Marylebone"-led to nothing.

A link between that hat and Muller

was not forged

un

Because I couldn't pay the

fine."

A

Sergeant Parry holds up an official-looking paper. "Were If Matthews can be trusted you not tried before a jury?” and relied upps, then the Solicitor-General's words "you will have the murderer.”

"Simply for a spree?"

:

the

Matthews Bees that experienced defender, throws a spree." he pleads. "But they But Sergeant Parry, Muller's Sergeant knows. "It was only down the gage as he begins to made it out I stole things...." cross-examine, "My object is to discredit this witness." he says.

י

Sergeant Parry had achieved his immediate objective; no ana Matthews - 1 characteristic surly London cabby- answers can deny he had discredited the the Sergeant's early questions witness. But it was not enough

to save Franz Muller, with B rough indifference. Could he swear to the linings of his own hats? No, he couldn't, Could he swear to his own hata in any detail. No, he couldn't,

Couldn't swear to his own hats? Matthews shrugs his shoulders, impudently relaxed.

He Jerks abruptly into watch- fulness, however, when Sergeant Parry mentions a £306 newand that has been offered for the discovery of the murderer. Yes, he won't deny having heard tell of that.

"Have you been insolvent?” Parry asics,

"No." Matthews replies, "Were you once in business?"

"Yes"

"Why did you give it up?"!

JUST A SPREE

"Towed money," he says, "and I wasn't able to pay.”

"And still owe it now," says Parry, and still can't pay

"Yes,"

"Do you expect a portion of the rewards?"

The Crown had lost the battle; they survived to win the war.

100

Could it be put down to pure coincidence that Muller, arrest, had bad in his possession a bat inscribed with the stamp of Mr Briggy's hatter?

That the latter swore It exactly corresponded to a hat that he had actually made for Mr Briggs save that it had been cut down to excise the customer's name?

That a woman well-disposed to the accused. thought the hat from the railway carriage was ane she had seen Muller wear, and which he had told her. Matthews got for him?

NOT THREE Coincidences? One, perhaps possibly two; but surely not all

three.

And when they learned, as e culminating touch, that Muller left behind him at his London odgings a hat box bearing the mark "H. Walker, Marylebone. the jury could hardly be blamed "If I'm entitled to it, I should for reaching the conclusion that expect it," Matthews zxwls. the long arm of coincidence had “Then you do expert it." Parry been wrenched clean from its exclaims. "Were you ever in socket. prison?"

This unexpected coda takes the cabman by surprise,

4 was

young, and it was just A saree," he says in

NEXT WEEK: DEATH BY: TELEGRAM

-(London Express Service).

THE "SPACE" AGE!

"Quick now, Corporal, just before- he

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