A GRUESOME DISCOVERY.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13288, 20 May 1905, Page 2

A GRUESOME DISCOVERY.

THREE CORPSES IN A BOX. NOVEL USE OF GLUE IX A MURDER CASE. (From Our Owx Correspondent.) LONDON, April 15. A discovery of a peculiarly gruesome and horriblo character was made the day beforo Yesterday. It apparently points to the ccrtaintv that a diabolically cold-blooded triple murder has been committed by a husband and fathel, who is now under airest charged with the ciime. Acting "upon information leceivcd"—to rso the custommy constabulary formula,— the police visited a furniture icpository at Kcral Rue, a northern suburb of London, aiul required that a "tin"—mo'io accurately steel—trunk, which had been stored thou, should bo opened On this being, done it was found to contain the mutilated and dismeint'ored bod'es of a woman and of her twin son and daughter. The histoiv of th» discovciy and of the events v.hicli led up to it h.is been very lucidly told by Mv Thomas Hannisler, the proprietor of tho ; repository:—"About eight weeks ago," he ] said, " a man c.illcd at mv office and lured two mcu and a hoise and van by the hoiu, not mentioning how long he would inquire them lie said he wanted the van i at a hou=e in Milton avenue, Ilarlesden. When the men cnlNl they were surprised to find that most of the furnituio had al"Pidy boon talion away. A few boxes only were left, and those tho man gavo instinct ions to bo i cmov ed lo a room o\ ov a butcher''' shop 111 Paddmgton Gicsu. While the mailmen wore unloading at Padtljngtgn the hirer of tho van said ho had a till tuink filled with chemicals and books, which lie would like stored "I will call some night,' ho added, 'to arrange witli you about the cost of warehousing.' _ " The man never called; neither have I nor mv man ever seen him again. The only clue we pos-essed as to liis identity : wa-, the fact that he profe-sed to be a chemist's assistant. About a week after tho removal, a woman named Mrs Gregory, living m Chippenham road. Paddmgton, callod, and said to me: 'You have removed the furniture of my son-in-low, Mr Deveieuv' I mentioned what had boon done, and she replied that Mi Dcvercu\ had sold his furniture before leaving liar-le-den. Then T told her tho tin tiunk which DovereiK had asked to be warehoused. Placing her hands to her head, and in a state of hysterical agitation. Mrs Giogory cucd; 'Oh, my God! my daughter is in that trunk.' Mi»'Oregoij then asked mo to open tiro trunk, but I could not do so without a magistrate's authority. She left to appeal to thp polic'e, and this afte'rnoon they look the trunk away. The spectacle which pies°nted itself when the trunk was opened was almost too horrible to describe. In it were found the dreadfully mutilated bodies of Mrs Dcvereu\ and her twin children—a girl and a boy,— aged one jear and five months. "To add to the horror of the sight the remains were cnca'cd in a thick cov ermg of glue, which the murderer had poured = over them so as to prevent any smell getting out. The trunk was most ingeniously constructed, being lined with matchwood, bctwoen winch and the tin melted glue had been poured, forming an absolutely airproof cover." As soon as tho police wore informed of the cihnc, Detective Inspector Pollaid was despatched to Coventry to who was believed to be Alderman Bird, a Coventry chemist, _ and living as a single man on tho picmhcs The arrest was olTected. It is stated that in addition to the two children found in tho box Deveicu\ had another child a bov aged four jcars, who is said to ho missing It is believed, hovyover, by Mis Gregory that Dovcreu\ some time ago handed him over to a family, and offered to pay fot his keep. As tho nionoy was never forthcoming, tho boy is said to havo been placed iq tile workhouse. As 110 trace of Mrs Deveioux's clothing can be found the police believe that the murderer sold the articles after the murder was committed. Dcvcroux is described as a man of 30 year;, dark", and of a pleasing appoaiance. i?., was anestcd at Coventry 011 T|iuisday night 011 suspicion of having murdered his wife and children, and aimed at 'Winosdon Station je c terday afternoon As Iho liain stopped he stepped out with an air of unconcern to the platfo:in. A small group of peoplo who hid expected his arrival, gathered lound and stared eagerly at the young, wolldus-od chemist, who was calmlv smoking a cigv ctte. Devereu\ looked coolly at. the cro,vd, and then, at the bidding of Detective Inspector Pol'ard, walked out of the ftatjon apd entered a four wheeled cab. There was a few moments' pause, while an oulinary tin trunk and unotlier box, brought from Coventiy. were carried to t]io cab and placed on the top, and then Doveieu\, Inspector Pollard, mid Detective 'prpceant Cole diovo off. looking something like a party letumed from a holiday. Sjoii afterwards the accused man was plaood in the dock, and Det-pctivo-iiinpoctoi Pollard proceeded to relate his grim story. The Tnspcctor said that as a lcstilt of inquiries .which he andiotber officers made about a v.opion reported to bo missing til that* neighbourhood ha went, he .mid, 011 Thursday afternoon to tfyo vyarohoufp of M. ISannistor, a furniture-remover, in J3ul|ei road, Harlesden, and thero saw a large tin trunk, strongly bound with a strap and padlocked and doubly sealed with red ,wa\ "I weighed it,"' said tho Inspector! "as fiom my inquiries I had ascertained that Devercux, v.tion warehousing jt. stated it contained chemicals and books. I Found it weighed about 2cwt. I shook it. and, finding . no vibration, directed Ssrgefint.-Colo and other ofiicors to cut the spals and undo the strq.p. I unlocked tho box with the kojs which I had brought.'" Deyereux looked steadily at the business-libs detective, ai)d listened attentively as he continued his story. "On lifting the lid," said Inspector Pollard, "I found another covering, consisting of lengths of wood, tightly fitted across the box and rimmed vvitfi jther pieces of wood, screwed down in sections, I Unwrapping a small brown paper parcel, the Inspector hold up tho screws for the three magistrates to sec. t " The wood coyering was glued and then sized," hd jdded, I " and from my csperienoo I should say that ' some chemical was used to preserve- tlie

size. No smell aroso the box \vqs opened. With much pressure wc forced up I ft pjrt of this wooden lid, and under^that i we found, glued strongly together, sy cover- |- jng composed of a table-cloth, bed-qui|J, Bnt) some other substances. Qn lifting that," said the Inspector, speaking i|i a rafher loyrer tone, "I ptttdown my hand and felt a child's head. Wo removed the rest of tho covering, and found in tho trunk tho bodies of n woman and two infants, twin children, one year and cloven months old. I cflimmuncated with the Coventry police, and went there last night. I saw Deveieux detained (hare. "At noon to-day I saw him at Coventry Police Station, and in the presence of Sergeant Cole I told liirn mo were polico officers; that we had been making inquiries about, his wife and children; and I said, ' I found you sold your fife's and children's clothing to a womni 1 . at Harlesden,' aud I told him what T had found fit Mr Bannister's. T paid that Dr Robertson, tho divisional surgeon, had seen the bodies a (id \vas unable to certify tho cause of death until ho had made a post mortem examination, but that lie hud forrjied tho opinion that the deaths had occurred by poisoning.'' ' It may also be addfd here thai the tlircp bodies bear no marks of external injury, apart from the fact that that of lire Devcreux had to he doubled up to be placed in the trunk. Inspector Pollard added that Devereuv having been cautioned, answered:

'Yerv well; I wish to make a statement, bqt will do so later." Dcvereu\ was charged with the murder,s at Harlesden Polioo Station, and made, -aid Inspector Pollard, no reply He had l efoie this made a statement in writing, in the presence pf Seigcant Colo. Tho In'pcctoi, haying finished his story, handed tho statement to the magis trains, but it was not Toad nut. It is understood that Dctorenv details his move ments from tho time he left Harlesden on about February 10, but says nothing about the clime. When tho question was put to him whether he wished to ask Inspector Pollaid anything, he looked quickly at tho cleik iivl replied, "No, sir" Tltb magistrate* remanded him until ne\t, Tlnipclay morning