Special to the Times, Tuesday, 10 January 1871
Hornsea Shocked by Death of Publisher
by Laurence Oliphant
The peace of the seaside town of Hornsea was shattered last weekend by the disturbing and confounding death of its sole journalist. Mr. Enoch Jokking has been the publisher, editor, and principle writer of the Hornsea Post for the last five years, and has been welcomed warmly into the heart of this friendly and God-fearing community. It was, therefore, a great shock to all when his body was found near his printing press, the room in disarray, a proof page of his next edition clutched in one hand, and no cause of death evident.
As Constable Boles, senior law enforcement officer of Hornsea Parish, investigated the case, the situation became more confusing. "The doctor said he was killed by lightning stroke," the Constable explained. "That happens from time to time, and I have even heard credible reports of such things happening on a day when no clouds or other sign of storm is in the sky, as was the case on Saturday last. However, to have such a thing occur when a man is inside a sturdy building, with absolutely no damage to the building, or the metal printing press so close to hand, it becomes difficult to credit."
Even before the doctor's dramatic diagnosis was made known, fantastic rumours had circulated that Mr. Jokking had been killed in a fit of anger in retaliation for certain articles he had published. Many of these rumours settled upon Sir Cosmo Cowperthwaite, whose grandfather, the Earl of Greyminster, owns an estate in nearby Goxhill. Sir Cosmo has been frequently present in the community in recent months, as his fiance is a guest at Lord Greyminster's country home, and their forthcoming wedding is to be held in the Goxhill village church.
In the weeks leading up to Mr. Jokking's untimely demise, the Hornsea Post had published a number of articles alluding to a railway accident with which Sir Cosmo was connected. Mr. Jokking's own father, the respected journalist Mr. Arthur Jokking, had lost his life in the railway incident. This unfortunate tragedy occured in 1851, and every inquest and inquiry had reached the conclusion that it was an accident which could not have reasonably been foreseen.
The articles illicted spirited discussion within the community. Mr. Harold Wakeling has lived in Hornsea his whole life. "I wasn't sure what it had to do with us," he said. "Except, of course, that Mr. Jokking's father had died in it. And I don't know much about what happened, except that several people seem to think there were irregularities in the inquests. Someone ought to look into that."
Mr. John Trott raises sheep near Hornsea, working the same fields his family have worked for many generations. "Sometimes disasters aren't anyone's fault. Maybe that engine wouldn't have exploded if they had done something differently, or maybe it would have anyway."
Mr. Clive Newitt is a gardener and has also lived in Hornsea his entire life. "Someone has to do something about those people," he said. "Blowing up trains and kidnapping children; it just isn't right! It's the big city living that does it to them, you know. The lives of working folks like you and me mean nothing to those people. That's why everyone says the Sir Cosmo did it. I don't rightly know if he did or not, or whether he had anything to do with this other business at the Grange, but that's what everyone's saying."
Mr. Charles Pickle is the librarian at the Hornsea Reading and Conversation Society's building. "Many people are saying that Mr. Jokking was murdered," he said, "and that it was Sir Cosmo who committed the deed. I can certainly understand why some might expect him to be angry at those articles in the newspaper, though I have never heard him so much as raise his voice in anger."
As if one death under mysterious circumstances were not enough, there has since been an unexplained death of a footman, Mr. Albert Collins, employed by Mr. Andrew Earwig, Esq. There have been even more troubling reports of a unexplained fire in one of the public fields north of Hornsea, bandits attacking people in broad daylight on the shore south of town, and a burglary and kidnapping at Goxhill Grange, the home of Sir Charles Fernly.
Attempts to reach Sir Charles, the respected and retired physician, or any member of his family for comment, were not met with success. The household was clearly in a state of disarray, and persons who identified themselves as being connected with the Home Office were turning all visitors away at the gate.
Such a furor has resulted that the Deputy Chief Constable for East Yorkshire, Mr. George Bland, has taken direct supervision of the investigation. "There has been a great deal of wild speculation about this incident," Constable Bland explained. "Such speculation is both unwise and premature. The coroner has not yet opened his inquest. We do not know the cause of death."
When asked if he had any suspicions about the case, Constable Bland answered, "It is not for me to say what may or may not have happened. The English legal system has, quite wisely, divided the duties of investigation and determination of responsibility between different entities. The police collect information and interview witnesses, if there are any. We present that information at the coroner's inquest. If the inquest concludes that a criminal action has taken place, we present our information at the trial, where a jury will decide innocence or guilt."
So the eyes of Hornsea and the neighboring parishes turn to the Coroner's Inquest, scheduled to convene the afternoon of Tuesday, 10 January. Everyone will be seeking answers in this puzzling and troubling case.
Excerpt from the diary of "Cousin George"
Tuesday, 10 January, 1871
After all the excitement yesterday, we were all hoping for a quieter day today. I was going to take breakfast in to Insp. MacGreggor. Salmalin took the tray and said that he would teach MacGreggor one of the healing mantras. He asked me to help Emily with the ladies' class and to look after Edward.
Wilhelmina had other plans. She said that our grandmother had visited her in her dream and warned her that I was in danger--in danger from my father. Not a very useful warning since I don't know who my father is. Wilhelmina seemed annoyed when I didn't know.
After breakfast and the lessons, we went back out to the smithy to try to finish Miss Chigwidgeon's wedding present. We had gotten several more of the brass pieces cast when Sir Cosmo came out to speak to us. He had received a summons from the coroner to an inquest. They need to determine the cause of death of Mr. Jokking. Not only do they want to interview Sir Cosmo, but they have also summoned Wilhelmina. And it turns out the coroner is Mr. Earwig, who everyone knows holds a bit of a grudge against Sir Cosmo.
Wilhelmina was upset because she didn't think that anyone knew she was here, instead of in London. She thought it best if she were to be seen arriving on the train today. Sir Cosmo agreed that that might not be a bad idea. So I was sent off with a carriage and a matched pair to catch a train closer to Hull.
While we were doing all of this, Mr. and Mrs. Frazer and Miss Whitnell went into town to interview the rest of the witnesses that Insp. MacGreggor has been meaning to talk to. Mr. Frazer had also been summoned to the inquest, to present MacGreggor's notes. MacGreggor has been excused because of medical reasons.
Apparently they learned some disturbing things during their interviews. There was at least one witness who claims that he saw Wilhelmina shoot Mr. Jokking -- and the witness even described the etheric pulse gun. Some other witnesses claimed to have seen Sir Cosmo and Wilhelmina (or at least a little girl wearing a black dress and a veil) going into the offices of the Post. This could be quite troublesome.
We already suspected that either Iota or Master Tandu had somehow altered the memories of some of the witnesses. Miss Whitnell hoped she could figure out a magickal way to remove the alterations. She was still working on this problem when Mr. Frazer came up with a technique that helped some of the witnesses to recover their real memories.
I knew nothing about this. I managed to catch the train that Mr. Balderstoke was riding (which turned out also to be the train that Rip and his wife were riding), and left Wilhelmina with him. By the time I returned to the manor, everyone else had gone into town to attend the inquest. I cleaned up and followed.
I'm glad I was late. Apparently they spent an hour selecting 12 men for the jury and discussing how the case would be conducted. Sir Cosmo was there with Lord Greyminster's barrister. Wilhelmina was dressed in the new dress the ladies had had made for her when we returned from the continent.
The town hall was quite packed full. Many people testified. All of the witnesses said that they saw someone dresses as a widow, accompanied by a small person dressed similarly with a black dress and veil. The one witness, Mr. Neligan, was quite certain he recognized Wilhelmina. Mr. Neligan is the town drunk, however, and he admitted that he had had quite a bit to drink that day.
One of the people who had given evidence before this was Deputy Chief Constable George Bland. Turns out each county has a Chief Constable who handles administrative tasks and assists the individual parish and town police departments. Yorkshire is so big, they also had Deputy Chiefs for East, West, and North Yorkshire. The troubling this is that this Deputy Chief Constable is related to one of the people who died in that explosion in Letchworth that some folks blame Sir Cosmo for. So Wilhelmina was worried he might be inclined to belief Cosmo had killed Mr. Jokking.
Anyway, he insisted on testifying again, and he said that all of the witnesses had changed their story. They had all told him and the local constables that they'd seen Sir Cosmo at the scene. The Coroner asked each of them again who they had seen, and why they had said something different before. They all seemed to think that they had been confused about what day they were remembering.
That didn't sound like a very strong bit of evidence in Sir Cosmo's favour, but it was better than nothing.
They called Wilhelmina to the stand and she was more quite and shy acting than I've seen in a while. But the questions were fairly simple. They asked her if she'd been in the office of the Post Saturday afternoon, and whether she had used a device like the one Neligan described, that sort of thing.
Sir Cosmo's testimony was short, but dramatic. He was asked if he'd been in town that day, if he had been in the office that afternoon, if he had killed Mr. Jokking, if he knew who did it, or if he had had anything at all to do with a plot to kill Mr. Jokking. Of course he answered "no" to them all.
A coroner's inquest isn't like a full court trial, but apparently when someone might be accused of causing the death, that person is allowed to have a barrister present to cross examine the witnesses. Lord Greyminster's barrister had been doing that all afternoon. So he asks Sir Cosmo if he had any suspicions about who might have committed the crime, and Sir Cosmo said yes, "Mr. Proctor Xanthus." When asked why, he said it was because Xanthus had told him so that morning. Then, when he was asked if he knew where this man was he said, "Yes I do, he's standing right back there."
And he pointed back to a spot where Mr. Moody stood, holding an albino man who was manacled. This man didn't look exactly like Xanthus. He actually looked more than a bit like Sir Cosmo! I don't know where Mr. Moody and the albino had been hiding, but Mr. Moody knew when to appear so Cosmo could identify the suspect.
Now I had been elsewhere all morning, so I had missed a lot of developments. When Xanthus' spirit was removed from MacGreggor's body, the mystics eventually put it in a mystical crystal that Mrs. Godwin had with her. Turns out that a spirit thus trapped can be forced to speak the truth. So Miss Whitnell, Mrs. Cuthbert, Mrs. Godwin, and Sir Cosmo had questioned him this morning.
Then, Sir Cosmo had asked the witches to put Xanthus back in his own body, because he thought the best thing to do was to present Xanthus at the inquest as the culprit. Nanny Chigwidgeon had suggested they go one better. She had a spell that could alter someone's looks. She could make Xanthus resemble Cosmo closely enough that people would have no trouble believing he could fool people under the proper circumstances.
We knew, from our previous meeting with Mr. Moody, that he was connected with the Office of the Lord High Warlock. They problem is, not everyone out there knows such a branch of the government exists. Turns out Mr. Moody has an official title that doesn't mention that connection at all: Deputy Superintendent Guardsman of the Tower. Wow! When the coroner called him up that's how he introduced himself.
He explained that Mr. Xanthus was wanted in connection with several crimes in London, and that Mr. Moody had come to Goxhill parish when he received a report that Xanthus had been seen here.
So, they put Xanthus in the witness chair and swore him in.
At first he blithely lied about everything.
Then Nanny intervened. I had seen her earlier eating some fish and chips and enjoying a mug of ale outside the townhall. Now she was trying to get into a seat in the front row. I don't know how a seat had remained empty, the hall was so packed with people standing in the back and outside trying to listen, but there one was.
Even where I was standing, I could feel her gathering mystical power. I wasn't sure what she had in mind.
She tripped over the feet of one of the gentlemen sitting in the front row, and fell forward, so she had to catch herself on Xanthus' shoulder. And all the power went into him.
The next question the coroner asked was, "Why would Sir Cosmo say that you had confessed to this crime?"
And Xanthus answered, "Because I told him how I did it this morning."
No one in the hall looked more surprised at the sudden change of tune than Mr. Xanthus. It got worse. He seemed unable to stop himself from speaking the truth. He even tried covering his mouth with his hands.
And once the coroner got him on the subject of motive, well, it was all over. He was ranting hysterically about how much he hated Sir Cosmo and how he had plotted this and many other crimes to try to ruin Cosmo's life. They finally had to drag him away.
There were only a few more people to testify. Sir Charles told how Xanthus and his cohorts had tricked him into inviting them to his home, then taken him hostage and used his home to commit their crimes. He confirmed that Xanthus left the house on Saturday afternoon and did not return for several hours.
The jury returned a verdict of Willful Murder. Mr. Earwig referred the prosecution of the crime to the circuit court. And then it was over.
We were back at Goxhill Manor in time for dinner. We spent the rest of the evening out in the smithy, trying to finish the present.
From the correspondence of Mrs. Gytha "Nanny" Chigwidgeon
Dear Jason et everone,
Whot a life, all kinds of thins going on, what with walkin machines and evil twinnes, I shall have a story or two to tell you when I gets back. Make no mistake.
I helped Old Mother Hempseed do the rounds, visitin the shut inns and old folks. There was several people feelin peeky who'd had a fluence on em from the wizzard mentioned in the prevyously last letter. Hes the one whot liked to change souls from one body to tother. We sorted them out an everyone's nun the worse for where.
There's this v. tasty breadd fried fish they have here thats v. cheap. Fish is v. cheap cause we're righte on the ocean so theyve got fish in bundances.
The coroaranor had a enquest because of one of the people the wizzard kilt. Well, him and his crowd done it, at any rate. It was v. enertayning. I was lucky enough to get a seet right in the front row where you could see everthing. The wizzard's assosiate confessed all. It does a heart good to see someone whose gon so far astray decide to make a cleen breast of things an confess all. And with hardly any prompting or coersion, either!
Namaste is getting v. exciting as her happy day approaches. The ladyes of the village had a nyce tea with biskits and scones and these little sandwitches. Probably wood of been better without the marmalade and the spices, but they say she likes em that way.
Rip and his young bride arived tooday. They are stayin in the manor with the lord and Namaste and all the ducs and counteses and such like who have come in for the wedding. It was good to see him after so long, all grown up. I think he's nearly as tall as you, Jason. His wife, luvly girl named Bala, is already specting, so Namaste will have a sister or brother quite soon. I should say another sister or brother, cuz she's already got one called Fong. They have some funy names in London, I must say. Still, theyer both v. luvly and so sweet, too.
Had a bit of trouble to cleen up with more assosiates of the wizzard. A fella and a woman who was hidin out in the inn, plannin to crash the wedding and claim the groom was already marryed. Its all a lie, of corse, and not a v. good one, at that. Still, wood of put the reverend tween a rock an a hard place if we hadn't sorted em out, first.
The evil twinn was involved with em, too, though I havent figured out what his roll was to be. Hes the spittin image of the prodjetee witch and might of caused us some bother. Still, not much harm done. The weddings in the morning. Still have lots to do, so I better get to it.
Lots of luv,
Mum
P.S. Tell Granny she wuz righte, you can make someone think theyre somthing they arnt and have some good come of it. I'll tell her the hole tale when I gets back.
Special to the Times, Wednesday, 11 January, 1871
Willful Murder Verdict in Hornsea
by Laurence Oliphant
A coroner's inquest in the seaside town of Hornsea has returned a verdict of Willful Murder, and remanded a suspect into the custody of the police.
The deceased was Mr. Enoch Jokking, publisher and editor of the local newspaper, the Hornsea Post. Mr. Jokking was found in the offices of the Post on Saturday evening, his lifeless body lying his printing press, the room in disarray, a proof page of his next edition clutched in one hand, and no cause of death evident.
Rumours had circulated throughout the district that Mr. Jokking had been killed in a fit of anger in retaliation for articles he had written about Sir Cosmo Cowperthwaite, grandson of the Earl of Greyminster. These allegations were a particularly devasting blow coming, as they do, on the eve of Sir Cosmo's wedding.
The town hall was packed, with many more interested townspeople gathered outside the building, trying to listen to the proceedings. The Coroner, Mr. Andrew Earwig, Esq., quickly empanelled a jury. Sir Cosmo, expecting an official accusation to be laid at the inquest, was accompanied by a barrister, Mr. Christopher Beazley.
The first witness was Constable Dennis Boles, who explained how the body had been discovered. He described the state of the Hornsea Post offices and the position of the body. He explained how he had sent a junior Constable to Goxhill Manor to request the assistance of Inspector Simon MacGreggor, who he knew to be staying as a guest of Lord Greyminster.
The next witness called was Dr. Thomas Cogger. The coroner asked Dr. Cogger to describe the physical state of the body. He reported the Mr. Jokking had no obvious puncture wounds, no broken bones, and no sign of any external trauma serious enough to cause death. The body was marred with burn or scorch marks at several locations, most notable both wrists, both ankles, one hip and several on the torso.
When asked if he had seen wounds such as these in previous cases Dr. Cogger replied, "Yes, I have. When I examined the body of a man who had been struck by lightning." He then went on to explain the burn marks on the hip corresponded to where metal coins in the pockets, while other corresponded to metal buttons on the deceased waistcoat, his watch, and his watch chain. "The lightning causes the metal to temporarily reach extremely high temperatures," the docter explained. "which burns the skin of the victim."
When asked about the wrist and ankle wounds, Dr. Cogger answered, "While passing through the body, the surge of electricity causes damage which is distributed evenly across the width of the organ or body part in question. However, the ankles and the wrists, being both narrow and densely packed with bone, often shows more visible signs of the damage which is otherwise two subtle to observe in the other tissues."
The third witness called was Mr. Benton Frazer, Senior Evidence Clerk with the Metropolitan Police Detective Department. Mr. Earwig explained to the jury (and the audience) that Mr. Frazer was there to give evidence in stead of Insp. MacGreggor, who had been subsequently injured and was confined to a sick bed. Mr. Frazer would also give testimony from his own observations of the location where the body was discovered.
Mr. Frazer gave an extremely detailed description of the room and its contents, as well as the position and state of the body and the contents of the dead man's pockets. Though he had a sheaf of notes, he barely seemed to consult them, instead reciting the facts in an impressive display of an orderly and thorough memory.
The most important facts Mr. Frazer observed were the following: someone wearing a dress of black crepe and a dark veil had been in the office and had operated the printing press. Someone with a distintively shaped foot had trod in some ink and left an impression of his foot on the floor. The proof sheet whose contents had created much speculation among the townspeople had most likely been printed after Mr. Jokking died, and the sheet placed under his body so as to appear to have been clutched in his hand at the moment of death.
The fourth witness called was Mrs. Frazer (nee Ruth Sinclair), the notorious Naturalist. Mrs. Frazer had assisted her husband in examining the offices of the Hornsea Post. She had also assisted Constable Boles in delivering the unpleasant news of Mr. Jokking's death to his fiancée, Miss Farnsworth. Mrs. Frazer's evidence was delivered in a style as sparse and exacting as a scientific monograph.
Next a number of persons employed at businesses neighboring the Hornsea Post office were called. Nearly every one recalled seeing a person dressed in a black crepe dress and a dark veil which completely concealed the face entering the offices at or about the estimated time of death. Some also noted a child dressed nearly identically in black and a veil accompany the widow. Some witnesses also remembered seeing Sir Cosmo in the vicinity at various times that day, though none had seen him enter the office.
The last of these witnesses was Mr. Patrick Neligan, a retired seaman. Mr. Neligan testified that, after a day of over-indulging in ardent spirits, he had taken shelter in a small space in the attack of the building which housed the Hornsea Post. He admitted that he was often in the habit of sleeping off a state of inebriation in this location as it was dry and warm.
He claimed that sometime after he had taken shelter in the attic space, he heard an argument in the office of the Post. Mr. Jokking and another man were arguing about an article to be published in the next edition of the paper. Mr. Neligan testified the Mr. Jokking was reluctant to include something in the article, while the other man was adament that it should be published.
From his hiding place, Mr. Neligan could see there were three people in the room below. Mr. Jokking, a man he did not recognize disguised as a widow, and a child dressed similarly to the second man. The argument continued for some time. Finally, the "widow" and "orphan" took their leave. Except that the child stopped in the doorway.
"She turned to face Mr. Jokking, and she pulled back her veil," Mr. Neligan replied. "She was a red-haired child, with the most angelic face. But her words sound more like the product of the Devil, you'll pardon my saying."
When asked what the child had said, Neligan answered, "She said, 'You'll never publish those lies again!' Then she pulled this metal thing from a pocket, pointed it at him, and hurled the Hammer of Thor at him."
Mr. Neligan went on to explain that the Hammer of Thor is a term common among sailors for a type of ball lightning that sometimes plagues the rigging of a sailing ship when caught in the storm. "It can kill a man faster than you can say it," Mr. Neligan explained, "if he's got in the rigging when the Hammer of Thor appears."
The Mr. Earwig asked several questions trying ascertain what the device was that Neligan had seen the child use. His description remained unclear, but he was adament that whatever the object was, it had caused lightning to engulf and kill Mr. Jokking.
Mr. Earwig next asked if Mr. Neligan recognized the child. "I don't know her name," Mr. Neligan said, "but she's sitting right there." He pointed to a small child, dressed in mourning, who was seating in a chair in the second row of seats.
Mr. Beazely cross-examined Neligan, making particular inquiries as to how much alcohol Neligan had had to drink before witnessing this event, and why, instead of reporting the murder, he had gone to a local tavern to partake of even more alcohol. Mr. Neligan's answers did not inspire confidence in his testimony.
Apparently intent on being thorough, Mr. Earwig called the child to testify. The child answered questions meekly. On the day in question she was in Kensington, where she attends Lady Ottoline Cornwall's Lyceam and Gynocratic Mission.
The somewhat infamous school for girls, run by the eccentric daughter of the late Earl and Countess of Cambourne, may be familiar to the reader. Certainly Lady Ottoline's fierce advocacy of suffrage reform and labour reform has been covered many times in this and other periodicals.
Witnesses who were called subsequently confirmed that the child, who is a ward of Sir Cosmo Cowperthwaite, had not arrived in Goxhill Parish until the day of the trial, several days after the death of Mr. Jokking.
Other, less scrupulous publications have chosen to identify the child by name and to dwell unnecessarily on her testimony. It is this reporter's opinion that her answers were guileless, while considerable doubt exists to the accuracy of Mr. Neligan's observations. We therefore see no reason to invade the child's privacy further than this troubling affair has already done.
Finally, Sir Cosmo was called to the witness stand. When asked if he had murdered Mr. Jokking, he answered with a firm and resolute "No." When asked if he had planned the death or Mr. Jokking, or had encouraged others to harm Mr. Jokking, or had threatened Mr. Jokking in any way, he also responded in the negative. He was asked if he had any prior knowledge that harm was going to come to Mr. Jokking, or that any one was contemplating causing harm, he again responded in the negative.
When Mr. Earwig attempted to dismiss the witness, Sir Cosmo's own barrister rose to his feet and insisted on cross examination. Mr. Beazely asked if Sir Cosmo had any suspicions, after the fact, of who might have killed Mr. Jokking.
"Yes, I do," Sir Cosmo answered. "I believe the murder was committed by Mr. Proctor Xanthus."
When asked why he believe this, Sir Cosmo said, "Because Mr. Xanthus confessed as much to me this morning, at Goxhill Manor."
The statement caused quite a stir in the crowd, which required some moments for the Coroner to regain order. When asked who this Mr. Xanthus was, Sir Cosmo explained, "He is a man who believes that I ruined his father. He has attempted to exact revenge upon me before this. He is also, I understand, wanted by the police in London in connection with a number of murders and has been implicated in the kidnapping of two of the sons of the Duke of Balmoral."
Finally, when asked if he knew where Mr. Xanthus could be found, he declared, "He is standing right there. The man in manacles."
All eyes in the hall turned toward Sir Cosmo pointed. A man, of such palid and colourless complexion one can only assume he is albino, indeed stood at the back of the hall, manacled and shackled and in the company of another man dressed in a military uniform.
It took several minutes to restore order again. The man in uniform identified himself as "Deputy Supertendent Guardsman of the Tower Moody." He explained that he had come to Hornsea on a tip that Mr. Xanthus, who had several outstanding warrants for arrest, had been seen in the vicinity. He explained further that Mr. Xanthus and several co-conspirators, had taken Sir Charles Fernly and his household prisoner. Mr. Moody and other officers of the Crown had tracked them to Sir Charles' home, Goxhill Grange, and after a fierce battle, had captured Mr. Xanthus.
Mr. Moody reported that among the Mr. Xanthus' gang were several other notorious criminals wanted for equally horrific crimes. Finally, he said that a number of electrical devices, inventions of Sir Charles, had been tampered with or used by Mr. Xanthus during the course of their stay at Goxhill Grange.
Mr. Xanthus was called to the stand. The first thing one notices about Mr. Xanthus is his skin the color of ivory and his eyes red as blood. Once one looks past that, a strange familiarity of his face begins to nag at one's memory, until finally one realises that his facial features bear an uncanny similarity to Sir Cosmo's.
At first Mr. Xanthus denied everything, answering all questions glibly and with open contempt of the legal proceeding. Then, a strange change came over him. As if an irresistible impulse to brag, so common among the habitual criminal, had taken over. He admitted that he had killed Jokking. He explained how he had planned this crime with several others. How they had taken Sir Charles prisoner. How they had plotted to ruin Sir Cosmo's reputation.
When asked why, he began to rant in the way common to the most diseased of the criminally insane. He claimed to be the son of the Marquess Dearingford. He further claimed that Sir Cosmo had destroyed the Marquess' reputation, framed him for various crimes, and finally killed him in a duel.
His ravings became less rational. Eventually he was removed from the hall.
Finally, Sir Charles Fernly was called to testify. He confidently identified Mr. Xanthus as the man who had taken he and his servants hostage. He confirmed that Mr. Xanthus went into town on Saturday afternoon before Mr. Jokking's death, disguised as a widow.
He further testified that Mr. Xanthus had been much interested in an electrical apparatus in Sir Charles' laboratory which could have been easily modify to deliver a fatal electrical discharge. Finally, he testified that Sir Cosmo was at the gate of Goxhill Grange at the time of Mr. Jokking's death. Sir Cosmo sought an interview, unaware that Sir Charles was held prisoner inside his own home. He was therefore miles away from Hornsea at the time of Mr. Jokking's death.
The jury took only a few moments to return its verdict of Willful Murder, and recommend that Mr. Proctor Xanthus be remanded to the court on suspicious of the crime.
This author feels compelled to observe the following facts. The last Marquess Dearingford died without any children. He was accused of a number of crimes, including several murders during duels, in 1836-38. At which time Sir Cosmo would have been a small child.
The Marquess fled the country rather than face trial. He was believed to have lived in hiding in Eastern Europe for the next thirteen years. When the Dowager Marchoness lay on her deathbed in 1852, the palace granted a temporary stay on the warrants so that the Marquess could attend on his dying mother and settle her affairs.
While in England, the Marquess was implicated in several petty crimes which may have been attempts to revenge himself upon those he believed had betrayed him. His was found, dead from a single gunshot to the head, on his estate the morning of 11 June, 1852.
A number of names of possible killers were whispered in rumours, including Sir Cosmo, though the motive remained unclear. It is difficult to imagine a young man of 22, recently graduated from Oxford and in mourning over the untimely deaths of his parents, besting the Marquess in a duel.
A coroner's inquest and police inquiry both exonerated Sir Cosmo in 1852.
Today, in Hornsea, a coroner's inquest has again exonerated him, while indicting a vengeful madman who has been the cause of much pain and misery. One can but hope that this is the final chapter in a tragedy that started twenty years ago. When Sir Cosmo stands at the altar with his bride, this author will be wishing them only happiness and prosperity.
Front page of the Echo, Thursday, 12 January 1871
Justice Denied: Hornsea Inquest Accuses Madman
by Richard Hawkesworth
The Coroner's Inquest has rendered its verdict in the death of Mr. Enoch Jokking. A madman with the unlikely name of Mr. Proctor Xanthus stands accused under a convoluted argument, while the man toward whom all evidence pointed before the inquiry walks away a free man.
The facts of the case are simple. Mr. Enoch Jokking, crusading publisher of the weekly Hornsea Post acted upon the courage of his convictions to publish articles revealing the questionable past of Sir Cosmo Cowperthwaite, baronet, railway magnate, erstwhile inventor, and grandson of Lord Greyminster, landlord to half the population near Hornsea.
These articles caused great consternation at Goxhill Manor, home of Lord Greyminster and part-time residence of Cowperthwaite. The articles recounted Cowperthwaite's past misdeeds in chilling detail: Nearly fifty innocent people killed when a radical train engine of his design exploded. A political rival killed in a duel which mysteriously is never prosecuted. The sons of one of the most noble houses in Britain abducted by persons said to be acting under his orders.
On Saturday last Mr. Jokking was found dead at his place of business. The circumstances were suspicious to say the least. A number of witnesses could place Cowperthwaite at the scene of the crime at the time of death.
The first thing the constables did upon finding the body was send a man out to Goxhill Manor. However, they did not arrest Cowperthwaite, in fact, it seems they did not even question him. Instead they asked one of his house guests, who happens to be employed as a clerk in the London police department, to assist in the investigation.
Over the next two days more evidence came to light that seemed to implicate Cowperthwaite. An Inspector came out from London and began questioning people. The problem was, he wasn't investigating Mr. Jokking's murder. He was investigating the murder of Mr. Charles Wroth. A death in which Cowperthwaite is also implicated.
Attempts to speak to local officials for comment met with no avail. The local Justice of the Peace had no time to hear the complaint because he was hosting a party in honour of Cowperthwaite's upcoming marriage. The local Coroner (a former business partner of Cowperthwaite) claimed to be looking into it at the same time that his wife and children were attending parties honouring the suspect.
It began to appear as if there would be no investigation at all. If the Deputy Chief Constable for East Yorkshire, Mr. George Bland, had not intervened, perhaps none would have occured.
At the inquest a number of witnesses were called to testify. Men and women who, just days before, had stated unequivocally that they had seen Cowperthwaite at the scene of the crime, now claimed they had seen a widow enter the building. The sole eye-witness to the death itself had changed his story somewhat, though he still clearly identified a member of Cowperthwaite's household, Miss Wilhelmina Moriarty, as being present at the scene. Readers may recall the name "Moriarty" has been linked with many heinous crimes in the past, including some of the most horrific murders of the century.
This last testimony was thrown out when the young woman in question said that she had been at school in Kensington at the time of the death. Her story was confirmed by Cowperthwaite himself, yet little other evidence was provided to counter the damning testimony.
Finally, Cowperthwaite named a culprit, Mr. Proctor Xanthus. The culprit was even produced, and when questioned, there was a dramatic confession. In his confession he claimed to be the son of the late Marquess Dearingford, who just happens to be the political rival many believe Cowperthwaite killed in a duel years ago.
He confessed to the crime, and explained how and why he murdered Mr. Jokking, but he also claimed that one of his accomplices was "a Devil Monkey." Clearly Mr. Xanthus is insane, and under proper questioning can probably be induced to confess to anything.
Other testimony, from people whose credentials were far from certain, indicated that Mr. Xanthus is wanted in connection to a number of crimes in London. That he had taken a local citizen hostage and terrorised an entire household. All of this evidence was accepted by the inquest seemingly without question.
Yet when the Deputy Chief Constable tried to raise the issue of witnesses changing their testimony, the objection was summarily dismissed.
George Pennifeather's death was dismissed as an accident, even though a man who had made threatening remarks the day before his death had fled the country after. Enoch Jokking's murder has been attributed to a madman who seems incapable of planning a shopping trip, let alone a complex scheme of murder and misdirection.
The poisoning of Mr. Charles Wroth, moments after an argument with Cowperthwaite, is still under investigation.
One must wonder, will justice be denied yet again?
Proceed to Machination
Contents this page copyright 2005 by Gene Breshears. All Rights Reserved.