Chase, Capture, and Arrival of Muller, for the Murder of Mr Briggs, in a Railway Train
The clue to the murderer of Mr. Briggs was obtained as follows:—A little girl, the daughter of a cabman, was playing with a small card box, such as jewellers put small trinkets in, and upon exhibiting it to her father, he remembered the name of the jeweller with whom the chain of the late Mr. Briggs had been exchanged, and upon questioning the girl, she said that Franz Muller had given it her four days ago. Muller, who is a German, a tailor’s cutter, had previously lived at the house of the cabman. The police were immediately communicated with. On the box being shown to Mr. Death, he at once identified it. Mr. Death then accompanied the cabman and the police to a cottage at Bow, where Muller had lived, and upon seeing a photograph Muller had given the child, he at once recognised the features of the man who changed the chain. The cabman identified the hat found in the railway carriage as the one he had purchased for Muller about four months ago. Inquiries were made, and it was ascertained that the suspected murderer had sailed for New York, on board the Victoria. Inspector Tanner and other officers immediately started for New York, to await the arrival of Victoria. The Victoria, after a passage of forty days, arrived on the 24th of August, when Muller was arrested, and the missing property found in his possession. After certain forms were gone through, Muller started for England, Sept. 3rd, on board the Etna, and arrived at Queenstown on the 15th.
On Friday evening, September 16th, Muller arrived at Liverpool. Upon landing he was taken to the central police-station, Liverpool, and there remained till seven o’clock on Saturday morning. To avoid the crowd Inspector Tanner took the prisoner to Edgehill station. He was taken to a private room till the arrival of the nine a.m. train from Lime-street, when he walked between Inspector Tanner and Superintendent Wide to the carriage. When the train moved off attempts were made at groaning, but cries of “Good bye, Muller,” prevailed. At twenty-five minutes past three o’clock on Saturday afternoon the Liverpool express train drew up to the ticket platform at the London and North Western Railway, near Camden Town. Muller was taken to Bow-street police-station, and the charge formally entered against him by Inspector Tanner.
What a consternation there has been,
And time has swiftly gone by,
What great excitement has been seen,
Since the ninth of last July,
In Eighteen-hundred and sixty-four,
When Thomas Briggs was slain,
And found welt’ring in his crimson gore
Upon the railway train.
When Muller did the dreadful deed,
He flew across the main,
But Justice followed him with speed,
And brought him back again.
It was to New York, in America,
That wretched man did sail;
And justice for one moment,
To find him did not fail.
They followed the Victoria ship,
Unto Columbia’s land,
Determined, if ’twas possible,
To take that wicked man.
While the ship was on the ocean,
The stormy winds did blow,
She could not get a headway,—
A murderer was below;
The passengers did oft remark,
We all must rest assured;
There must something dreadful have been done,—
A murderer is on board.
On the twenty-fourth of August,
The Victoria was espied,
And the officers of justice,
On board her quickly hied;
All things were planned so cleverly,
Just as it ought to be,
That Muller had not the least chance
From Justice for to flee.
They soon had him in custody,
All on the raging main,
And found upon the murderer,
Poor Briggs’s watch, ’tis plain;
Although the crime he did deny,
When the property was found,
The murderer was landed
Upon America’s ground.
In New York he was examined,
Then in the Etna, o’er the main,
They brought the wretched murderer
To England again.
News flew like wind the country round
Franz Muller had arrived,
They ran from every quarter,
To behold him they did strive.
Conversations on the murder,
Has by thousands taken place;
Though the circumstances are as clear
As the nose upon his face:
His flying to America,
Across the ocean wide,
They found on him poor Briggs’s hat
And the gold watch besides.
Franz Muller now is landed,
Once more on England’s ground,
A verdict of wilful murder
Against him has been found.
He has caused great consternation,
Great agony and pain,
And he must answer for the deed he done
All on the railway train.
H. DISLEY, Printer, 57, High street, St. Giles, London.