THE PETONE MURDER TRIAL.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XXXVIIII, Issue 12247, 25 March 1897, Page 2

THE PETONE MURDER TRIAL.

BOSHER FOUND GUILTY AND SEN- , . TENCED TO DEATH. TBE CLOSING SCENES OF THE TBIAL. (N.Z. Times.) The jury withdrew at 6.15 p.m. on Tuasdky, af t<?r an exhaustive summing up by his Honor, occupying four hours and a qnarter. A crarod,«f people hung about the precincts of the court, surrounded the doorways, and ocoupied even tho re|port9rs' bench, greatly to the inconvenience of the prase, while the body of thb court waß packed with mor. id and curious folk, eagerly waiting for a chance to see a fellow creators condemned ti death. All day long the crowds had baen waiiieg -packing into tho body of tho court bbueath the gallery, crowding in in big gronpß at either of the side door* and up to the dock, listening some of them to the address"! of Mr Wilford, but the majority idly gjsz<ng : 'at the pr'smer, wHo sat in the .centre of tbe dock fo lowing his oouriEol'fl earnest appeal with the closest interest, only the upper portion cf his head visible above the rail as he restsd in his ehair with' a Btal wart warder standing by hia fide Boshei's manner bad become more anxious to tbo3e who looked at him closely, but at a first glance there was nos visible eny trace of nervousness or emotion, except the vigorous and regular blinking of his small doiply-3et ejes, and' the occasional kni t : ng of his brows. The pesple packed into the place behind the dock wore content to gape and stare at the bick of the prisoner's head above thera ling, and in the ladies' gallery all those who craned over to look at the spectacle below wera directly above Bosher, and oould diEcern him plainly, and could also sea tbe nairow s'airway by .which che man ascended eaoh day to face those who were trying him for bis life. And outside in tha corridors a^eaoh of tho Bide doors a line of men and women ttood on tip-toe paf ring over each other's heads through the half-opened doors atthtf.iprroner as they might gaze at aca^td tion. In knots outside tha courtroom were witnesses and many residents of Petone, and as they sat on tbe benches, or even on the stone steps leading to the main enti ance to the bu:ldiag, they reconnted the oft-told tale of. the horror Tvhioh bad stattled the quiet township that memorable morning in august, or speculated a« in the Ve3ult of the trial, while a c»b o?,two, an express, a taker's cart, and so on, be'okentd.the employment of some of thcs3 in the motley throng.

So the dosing sceneß were enacted. The prisoners counsel had said his Ust word, fis judge, with calm and remorseless logic, had weighed the facts outlined ia evidence, and the. jury had gone to tbeir room to decide the fateful issue.

, Tae atmosphere of the court was suffocating, and evWs few miuutes when a policeman was seen ilcowing his way through one 'of the • doora with some message, the orond would flock in, '.expecting that he brought some tidings from the jmyroom. The people numbired doutois, clergymen, lawyers . and tradesmen of every deßorip:ion, with a' fair sprinkling of couit lcafnr?.

After a retirement cf 4 hourß and 50 minutes, the- jury r taraed at 11.10 p.m., A pin drop could be heard in tha crowded conrt when his Honor resumed his sea* on the bench, and when the registrar a ked tie momentous question, " Gentlemen of the jury, what say you ? Ara yon aureed upon yonr verdict f Do yon find the prisoner guilty tmUfcf or not guilty ?" the silence waa paihf al in its intensity. The accrued, who again been placed at the bar to hear the verdict, was, for the moment, not thbbgbt bf, bnt those who remembered to steal a glance in his dir jo tion saw a sight never to ba forgotten. His face, strained like that of a hunted animal, depicted the terror ef his soul and -the intensity of ths tortura and suspense he was undergoing. His f»ce, naturally; ruddy, was as pale as a woman's.: '

The foreman made answer— ' Guilty 1 ' A sound as. of the indiawiog of breith went round the court, and then nil was silent. The prisoner, stood as still as a moulded statue, and when the registrar aakei the customary question — *' Stephen Bosher, prisoner at the bar, have yon anything^ say why sentence Ehould not be tfrbnoriaoed upon you ?" he pul'edhiinself together, and answered in a loud, cloir voice —

" Iho only thing I have to say is that Ihree or f >nr witnecsss came to me before I was arrested and said—' Bosher, if the police trouble you we ars here to see that you git justice. You were at the store at 20 minutes past B.' That statement was eignedny three or four witnesses 1 , and was told before Miss Beece at my house, lhoao witnesses gavo very contrary evidence, and if those witnesses had spoken the truth and their evidence brought forward, there would be a difference. It is a curious thing for people to come in the witness box and swear falsely. Tbe witnesses who made false statements I can leave to their own consciences and their own God."

The prisoner then ceased speaking, and the court crier in a quavering voice called the following injunction — " all manner of persons are commanded to keep silence whilst the judgment of death is being { pronounced on the prisoner at the bar on pain of fine and imprisonment " His Honor then assumed the black cap, and, struggling with his emotion, pronounced the sentence— " Prisoner at the bar, for the crlme^ upon whioh you have been convicted you shall be sent to the Terrace Gaol, in the oity of Wellington, and there hanged by tha nesk until yon are dead, ab a date to be fixed " The prisoner was then removed. His Honor, turning to the jury,thanked them fpr having done their duty. He was satisfied that they bad returned a verdict I according to thsir conscience, and they might leave their benches without the slightest fear of having done anything but jastic9. Tbe jury were then diEcharged from further attendance, but before they left tho box Mr Bell, rising in his sea', said he wonld like to tell the jury of one f*ct which would lighten their minds. A t'n of pepper had been bought from the Joneses' by tbe man who had just bsen sentenced, as an entry in old Mr Jones', book had shown, and that was evidently the tin which had been fonnd oh the table, as it could not be found in Boshei's house.

The judge then left his seat, and the crowded court slowly emptied,