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Old 11-02-2012, 05:13 PM
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Default Shilbottle Miner Murdered 1874

MURDER AT ALNWICK.
The usually quiet town of Alnwick; where crimes of a serious character are exceedingly rare, was startled on Saturday night by the report that a man had been murdered. The facts are these :—James Wilson, aged 21, of Bebside Colliery, near Bedlington, and who had just joined the Northumberland Militia as a recruit, was drinking in the FIeece Inn, Bondgate Without, Alnwick, on Saturday night, with William Buglass, aged 38, a pitman at Shilbottle Colliery, near Alnwick, and others. A companion of Wilson had a knife in his hand, and was cutting a cane. Wilson asked for it, and it was given to him. Some altercation seems to have been going on, and Wilson said that if anyone interfered with him he would put that (the knife) into him that night. Upon this he began in a threatening, though somewhat jocular way, as it was understood, to point the implement towards some persons present, and among others to Buglass. " I've given him a bit of a ‘prog’ in his jacket," Wilson said, and Buglass exclaimed, "I'm stabbed." The latter was induced to go out and see a doctor, but when he got as far as between Bondgate Tower and the White Swan he dropped on the flagging, and was carried into Dr. Candlish's surgery, where he died about twenty minutes after the act. Both were, it is alleged, the worse of drink, but no provocation, it is stated, was given by Buglass. Wilson was immediately apprehended by Mr Tait, one of the Alnwick constabulary force, and was taken to the lock-up. Buglass: has left a wife and 6 chïldren.

TEE PRISONER BEFORE THE MAGISTRATES.
The prisoner, James Wilson, was brought before H. Lisle, Esq., J.P., at the Court House, Alnwick, on Monday forenoon, and was remanded till Saturday. The knife which he threw away shortly after stabbing Buglass was found on Sunday evening, in the ground behind the offices of Mr W. T. Hindmarsh, solicitor, by P.C. Tait.

THE CORONER'S INQUEST.
An inquest was held on the body of William Buglass, before Mr T. D. Smith, coroner, at the Queen's Head Inn, on Monday afternoon, when James Buglass said : I am a miner, and live at Shilbottle. I identify the body which the jury have just viewed as that of my brother, William Buglass. He was a miner, and 38 years of age. He was a particularly quiet, inoffensive man.—Thomas Snowdon said: I am fireman at Bebside Colliery. I came here with James Wilson on Saturday to join the Northumberland Militia, which Wilson had himself joined three weeks since. I have not done so yet, as the doctor was not at home. On Saturday night we were at the Fleece Inn. I went there with Buglass, whom I first saw and got acquainted with that day, when I was with Wilson in some of the public houses of the town. I don't know which. Buglass told me that he and Wilson were well acquainted. Wilson was down at Shilbottle Races in August last, and stopped at Buglass's house until the week's end. When we went into the Fleece Inn, three or four men were in the room.
When Wilson came in all was peace and quietness. Two men belonging to the town had a fight, but neither Wilson nor Buglass had anything to do with it. One of the men who were fighting was called Taylor. Buglass was not quarrelling with anybody, and both Wilson and he were sitting quietly in the room when I went out to the back door. I was out about five minutes, and when I came back Buglass had been stabbed. They told me he was stabbed, and said, "James Wilson had done it." Wilson was standing, in the middle of the floor, and he did not deny it. Buglass and Wilson were the only ones he knew. Taylor had then left; he had left before I quitted the room. I saw a knife in James Wilson's hand before I went out. We each had a cane stick, and he was cutting that before I went out, but he was not flourishing it about when I was in. I was in Wilson's company till he was taken. We remained in the house five or ten minutes after Buglass was taken away. The knife belonged to me ; he had asked me for the loan of it. He got it from me about two minutes before I went out of the room. He kept it himself, and after he left the house he throw it away. He came out to look and see where they had taken Buglass to. He changed his mind, and when he threw away the knife he was making his way to catch the train. I persuaded him to come back over again, to see if we could see or hear anything of Buglass. I had intended to go home that night, but I bad not seen the doctor, and therefore intended to stay a day. When we came to the Tower we met a policeman, and a man in plain clothes, and the policeman said that Buglass was dead. The officer took Wilson into custody. From the time I heard Buglass had been stabbed till the time we met the policeman, half-an-hour had not elapsed. Wilson was not sober, Neither he nor Buglass was exactly sober. The knife produced is the knife Wilson used.
(The blade was 3 1/2 inches in length). I was present when it was found yesterday by P.C. Tait. I asked Wilson why he had done it. He said " he could not tell; he had no intention of doing it." This was be- fore he heard that Buglass was dead. When we came to the Fleece Wilson left our company to seek lodgings. Buglass was going to seek us lodgings in the town. He put the knife in his pocket directly after he got it from me in the Fleece. He was generally very peaceful in disposition.—The Coroner read a note from Dr. Candlish (who had made a post mortem examination) stating that Buglass had "died from a sharp puncture in the right ventricle of the heart."—The inquest was adjourned.


The Newcastle Courant, Friday, April 3, 1874
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