Moray Memories: Murder on the Elgin Turnpike

READERS of the Elgin Courant and Courier were in for a grave shock when they picked up the first edition of 1834.

“It is our painful duty”, the newspaper stated solemnly, “to commence the labours of the new year by having to record one of the most horrible murders which has ever been committed in this part of the country.

“On the evening of Saturday last, betwixt five and six o’clock, an honest and industrious labourer of the name William Ritchie, residing in Longbride (Lhanbryde), was most inhumanly murdered on the turnpike road between Elgin and Fochabers.”

Ritchie had been employed in Elgin all day “trenching ground” at Lesmurdie Cottage, which belonged to a Captain Stewart.

He was violently attacked while walking back through the dark winter evening to his family home in Lhanbryde.

The labourer was found not long afterwards by two men who were alerted by groans coming from a roadside ditch. But although he was still breathing, it was already too late. After a few short gasps, Ritchie died.

The Courant reported: “The men alarmed the people residing in Barmuckity, from where they proceeded with a horse and cart to the place where the body lay for the purpose of conveying it to the toll house until a medical person could be procured to examine it.”

A Dr Stephen was found and, after visiting the toll house at Waukmill (near the roundabout where KFC now stands), confirmed that Ritchie was dead.

The body, by now “accompanied by a great concourse of people”, was then brought to the courthouse in Elgin town centre.

Here, we are told, the procurator fiscal, Alex Brown, “addressed the assembled multitude, requesting them to co-operate with the officers of justice in endeavouring to detect the murderer.

“After despatching parties to all passes of the county, Mr Brown proceeded with Sheriff Cameron to examine several persons, but nothing further was elicited than that a tall person had been seen walking backwards and forwards near the spot a few minutes before the murder was committed.”

Near the site of the murder, which took place on the old turnpike road between Elgin and Lhanbryde – or Longbride, as it was referred to by The Elgin Courant and Courier.

Four doctors convened in the courthouse to examine the body in more detail.

Their report stated: “It would appear from the dreadful fractures the skull received that this horrible murder was committed by some powerful person, considerably taller than the object of their attack.

“The wound was quite horizontal and must have been inflicted before he fell to the ground, as although the body was found in a small ditch, about six inches deep, the upper part of his clothes were not in the least soiled.”

The search was now on for the figure who had been seen loitering on the road.

Mr Brown made a public appeal for help in locating “a man dressed in a whitish short coat or jacket, dark pantaloons and flat blue bonnet, who speaks in the Highland accent and in a rough voice, who was seen standing on the Turnpike Road, leaning on a stick or bludgeon, and was spoken to near the place a very short time before the murder was committed.

“It is of the utmost importance for the ends of justice that he should be found and brought forward.

“The public, and particularly all constables and officers of the law, are hereby called on to aid and assist in seizing and apprehending any suspicious characters, and particularly any person they may find answering the above description, and to intimate the same to Alexander Brown, Procurator Fiscal for Elginshire.

“A reward of TWENTY POUNDS will be paid to anyone who shall lodge the guilty person in any of His Majesty’s jails.”

Early the next morning, Mr Brown and Sheriff Cameron went to the crime scene but, we are told, found nothing. The murder hunt would span Moray in the following days, but still fail to yield any definite leads.

Ritchie had left a wife and two young children, and his death is said to have shocked all sections of society.

The Courant reported: “Her Grace the Duchess of Gordon, on hearing of the murder on Sunday, immediately forwarded a pair of blankets to the widow, and his Grace, while passing through Longbride on the following day on his return from Elgin, went into the cottage of the widow and gave her a guinea, and told her he would see her taken care of.”

Finally, six days after the murder, the search for the killer led to an army deserter called William Noble being apprehended.

Noble had been imprisoned in Elgin jail for theft and, on the expiry of his term, was due to be tried by court martial. However, he had gone AWOL, and had since been seen wandering around Moray seeking work.

On the day after the murder, Noble had taken on a job at Muirside Farm in Brodie. However he appeared to be in a very unsettled state and, just two days later, had suddenly disappeared.

The authorities were informed that Noble, who seemed to answer the description of the man on the road, had upped and gone in suspicious circumstances.

The widening search led the procurator fiscal to the military base of Fort George. Here, at what appears to have been an identity parade, he collared Noble, who had re-enlisted under a different name.

The suspect vehemently denied knowing anything about Elgin, and claimed to have never visited the town.

But, says the Courant, “Mr Brown requested a sergeant to examine Noble, saying he would find the letter D branded under his arm, which proved to be the case.”

The arrested man languished for four months in the old Tollbooth at Elgin while the case was being prepared against him.

DEATH SENTENCE FOR WRETCH FOUND WITH ‘THE MARK OF CAIN’

THERE was consternation when it was discovered that, by means of a rope made out of a ripped blanket, and a willing accomplice on the outside, Noble had managed to smuggle in a chisel.

The outcome for Noble was heavier leg irons, an extra guard and a set of handcuffs at night.

Commenting on the breach of security, the Courant wrote: “The identity of the mystery person who risked heavy punishment by standing on Elgin’s cobbled streets to pass up the chisel to the prisoner will never be known.

“Pity, because though we cannot approve of his cause, we must admire his spirit and loyalty to his imperilled friend.”

The wheels of justice kept grinding away until, on May 5, Noble was escorted to “thole his assize” at Inverness Circuit Court.

A thousand people gathered in Elgin and silently watched his departure by coach in the custody of a jailor and sheriff officer.

Noble’s youth – he was only 20 – and handsome appearance had awakened a feeling of sympathy in the crowd.

The accused was leaving to fight for his life.

The Courant reporter of 182 years ago wrote: “We could see that he (Noble) was making an effort to appear cheerful, however there appeared a slight tremor on his lips.

“After he got himself seated, he turned his head to a direction where he heard a bustle amongst the crowd and saw his father endeavouring to get over to him.

“The old man, who had not seen him since his committal, appeared very much affected and said, ‘Willie, give me your hand’.

“Young Noble extended both his hands to him as he was handcuffed, and seeing that his father was crying, said: ‘Never fear, father’.”

Further editions of the Courant described the eagerness with which the people of Elgin awaited the result of Noble’s trial, and the sensation the verdict caused.

Among the witnesses were the two men who found the dying Ritchie, as well as several others from the farm at Barmuckity who returned with lanterns to the murder scene.

Another witness, Jessie Smith, a servant at Fernyfield, said that when she came down the road towards Fochabers, she met a man standing still and looking towards the toll where the Innes road turned into a public road.

He was carrying a long white stick in his hand and whistling. As she passed, he commented that it was a wet night.

When asked in the courtroom to identify that man, she pointed to Noble.

A declaration by the prisoner was read in which he admitted that he was a deserter, but denied all knowledge of the murder.

On the afternoon of the killing, he alleged that he was at his mother’s house. He added that he suddenly left the farm in Brodie because he had been seen by a man called James Scott who knew he was a deserter.

Noble claimed that he did not hear of Ritchie’s death until he was examined in the court house at Elgin.

The legal counsel for the prisoner rounded things off by making a powerful speech on his behalf.

“For an hour Noble’s life hung in balance while the jury deliberated,” the Courier stated. “But then by a majority verdict, and with a recommendation to mercy, the tribunal of his fellow-men found on the wretched youth the mark of Cain.”

The jury’s recommendation to mercy appears to have received scant consideration from the judge, for we are told: “His Lordship then put on the black cap and proceeded to pass sentence on the prisoner.

“He warned him not to lay for one moment the flattering unction to his soul that he could be reprieved, but to prepare himself for eternity by humbling himself before Almighty God, and seeking for forgiveness.

“He earnestly besought him to seek for peace from God, to set about the great work of repentance, and to prepare to enter a new and eternal scene of existence.”

Noble heard his death being ordered in a state of stupefaction. He would be “publicly executed on Saturday, May 31, in the common place of execution in the town of Elgin”.

For more than three weeks, the 20-year- old lay in the old Tollbooth, which is thought to have been somewhere in the vicinity of where Costa Coffee now stands.

According to the Courant, “a favourable change took place in his conduct” during this time, “and he appeared to pay particular attention to the religious instruction paid to him”.

There had not been an execution in Elgin for more than 70 years, and the event drew quite a crowd – but not as large as had been expected. In fact, some made a special point of leaving town for the day.

The Courant stated: “We cannot sufficiently admire the praiseworthy conduct and good feeling of the inhabitants of Elgin on the occasion of the last sentence of the law being put in force by the execution of William Noble.

“We are quite sure there were not 200 of them present to witness the melancholy event, and the half of that number were boys.

“The other proportion of the spectators (and there were not 500 altogether) were persons from different parts of the country, and they all behaved in the most quiet and becoming manner.”

Among the throng is thought to have been a group of pupils from Anderson’s School in Forres. The youngsters had been brought to Elgin on a trip organised by their headmaster, who no doubt thought the spectacle would impart a worthy moral lesson to his young charges.

SOCIAL UNREST PROVOKES SYMPATHY FOR YOUNG LABOURER

A JOURNALIST from the Courant gave a detailed account of what took place.

He wrote: “In the morning we ascertained from the jailor that Noble had slept soundly for five or six hours – so soundly that although the jailor entered his cell at about 3 o’clock, he never awoke, nor was aware of the presence of anyone.

“At six o’clock the jailor again entered the cell with the Rev Mr Cole, when he appeared as though he had just awakened.

“About nine o’clock he ate a large biscuit, an egg and drank a cup of tea for breakfast. During the forenoon he ate four oranges and some lozenges, and having solicited a glass of wine, it was given to him.

“The Sheriff being present, he drank his health, and that of the jailor, with the greatest composure.

“The Rev Mr Cole again visited him and remained during the last hour of his confinement; and we are happy to say that Mr Cole was highly pleased with the fervent prayers which he put up for mercy at that time.

“Precisely at two o’clock, we entered the cell when the blacksmiths came to take off his irons.

“On their entering, he arose from the bed on which he usually lay and placed himself in such a position as to afford them every facility, and in less than a minute they had taken them off. He then shook hands with them all and wished to be left alone, which was complied with.

“The jailor informed us that on our leaving the cell, he proceeded to dress in the clothes furnished to him, and tied in two bundles the articles he intended to give to his father and mother.

“He then proceeded down after the jailor and shook hands with a prisoner as he passed his room.

“The provost, the magistrates, the procurator fiscal, the sheriff, the Rev Messrs Walker and Cole and others were present when he entered the courthouse.”

We are told that the Rev Walker handed Noble a hymn book and he joined in singing the 51st Psalm: ‘Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy loving kindness’.

The reporter continued: “On Mr Walker’s commencing prayer he rose up, but by request, again took his seat.

“Seeing, however, that all the rest continued to stand, he again rose and said, ‘I can stand perfectly well’.

“During the prayer, which was most impressive, and most of twenty minutes in delivery, he stood with the greatest ease – without betraying the least weakness or symptom of agitation.

“We observe that when Mr Walker entreated that ‘the Lord be merciful to that being who before another hour must be in His Presence’, he slightly bowed his head and moved his lips in a token of assent.”

At the conclusion of the prayer, the hangman was brought in. Believed to be called John Scott, he had been procured from Dundee at a charge of £12, exclusive of travelling expenses.

The Courant continued: “On his appearance, Noble looked earnestly at him, which caused him to tremble to such a degree that he had great difficulty in fixing the straps used for holding down his arms.

“The executioner was even afraid to speak to Noble, and asked Mr Shepherd, the precentor, to ask if the straps were too tight. Noble answered they were not tight enough and he wanted them much tighter.”

The group then proceeded through the council room to the scaffold, which was erected at the west end of the jail.

The Courant reporter wrote: “On Noble’s arrival at the scaffold, he placed his hand on Mr Cole’s shoulder and said he thought this was a favourable opportunity of addressing those assembled.”

In his very last moments alive, the young labourer is said to have made the following speech: “Take warning, all you who witness me in this situation. Beware of drunkenness and Sabbath-breaking, for it was from these causes that I came to this situation.

“Obey your parents and seek the Lord. I forgive all those who were witnesses against me. I die in peace with all men. May the Lord Jesus Christ bless you all. Farewell.”

He then turned his back to the crowd and the executioner placed the rope round his neck.

The Courant recorded: “He did not accept a handkerchief or anything to drop as a signal. He said he would tell when he was ready.

“In an instant the drop fell, and his heart could not have beat three times when he died without a struggle.”

William Noble’s trial and execution had unfolded against a backdrop of falling wages across Britain for agricultural workers, as well as a rise in social unrest as industrialisation continued to gain momentum.

Later, during that year of 1834, the Tolpuddle Martyrs would famously be sentenced to seven years’ transportation for daring to form a trade union.

All of this meant that a section of the Moray population were strongly disposed to sympathise with Noble, believing him an unfortunate victim of circumstance rather than a murderer.

That is why The Courant’s printing of his confession immediately after his death proved so sensational.

Noble had allegedly delayed admitting the murder beforehand because “he was afraid that those who witnessed the execution would exult over him if they knew the cruelty which he had practised.”

However, the paper claimed that the 20-year-old had written the document on the eve of his hanging. Whether its ornate style is really the work of a young soldier and farmhand is questionable.

Judge for yourself.

CONDEMNED MAN’S CONFESSION HELPS COURANT CAPITALISE ON SCOOP

I, William Noble, prisoner here, whose days are near on end, wishing to die in peace with all men, give this my last speech and dying declaration, and I earnestly hope that it will be read with attention, particularly with the young and rising generation, that they may reap profit from my sad experience.

“I acknowledge in the most public manner that I am the man who murdered William Ritchie, and that the judge, jury, witnesses and others who were the means under the direction of an Almighty God, who never slumbers or sleeps, all acted honestly and justly of convicting me of the offence.

“Now, my young fellow creatures, who are entering on life with many pleasures before you, let not any of the allurements of this world or the gratification of your passions allow you for one moment to deviate from the paths of rectitude and virtue, for I can assure if you give way in the least degree, there is every possibility that you will go on step by step.”

The Courant was certain of the importance of its scoop.

It wrote: “When we think on the whole of the circumstances connected with this melancholy transaction, we cannot but admire the working of that Almighty providence which induced the unfortunate criminal to confess his guilt, for had he persisted in his innocence, the calmness he displayed even in his last and trying moments must have rendered it doubtful whether he was guilty or not.

“If we except a heavy respiration or two upon his entering the court house, there was not the slightest symptom in his whole conduct which could have induced anyone to believe that he had been guilty of such a deed.

“When the hearts of all present were melted by the impressive prayer delivered by the Rev Mr Walker, William Noble never shed a tear, neither did his eye for one moment lose the brightness. Yet there was no levity in his conduct.

“Such was the end of a fine-looking young man, nearly six feet high, although not yet twenty-one years of age. Had he been brought up in the fear of God and properly educated, he might have been a most useful member of society, for his natural parts were of a superior order, although applied to bad purpose.”

The gory details of the murder were also outlined for the first time.

The Courant wrote that Noble “stated to us that he came upon the road with the intention, as he had no money.

“Several people passed him, but he had not a fit opportunity of attacking them, as owing to the straight line of the road, he could see other persons at a distance who might have been able to come up before he could effect his object.

“When William Ritchie overtook him as he walked slowly, he asked him was he going far.

“Ritchie answered he was going to Longbride, and they walked together for about 20 yards before he knocked him down on his face near the middle of the road.

“On our asking how the murdered person was found in a small ditch at the side of the road, he affirmed he had lifted him in his arms and placed him on his back so he might be able to search his pockets with greater ease.

“On asking if he had struck the deceased more than once, he declared he had only given one blow with the stick, but after he had placed him in the ditch, he thinks he kicked him twice with his heavy shoes.

“At any rate he was certain that he stamped heavily with the heel of his shoe in Ritchie’s neck for the purposes of stifling his groans while he was searching him.”

But Noble’s alleged confession did not stop there. Besides the murder, he also admitted several other crimes.

The paper said: “Amongst other things, Noble confessed that he was the person who laid a match to the gunpowder at the Spynie Hospital quarry on the morning before the murder was committed.

“The report of the explosion was heard many miles distant, but fortunately nobody was near at the time it took place.

“He also confessed that he stole a watch in Huntly and sold it for a price to a person in Keith whose name he did not recollect, but he described the person.”

In addition, the Courant had a special offer for its many readers still eager to learn everything they could about the murder and the murderer.

The paper stated: “There are many other circumstances connected with William Noble’s life, which we believe it is the intention of one of the clergymen who attended him to publish in the form of a pamphlet.

“Those wishing copies, which will be accompanied with a lithographic profile, will please give in their names at the Courant office as early as possible, that we may have some idea of the number that may be required.”

After being left to hang for half an hour, Noble’s body had been cut down and was quickly burned within the precinct of the guardhouse.

The whole process was carried out so quickly that, the Courant reported, “before 6 o’clock in the evening the scaffold was removed, and no one would have known that such an occurrence had taken place.”

However the story of William Noble and William Ritchie continued to live on in people’s imaginations for many years to come.

A beech tree sited close to the scene became an eerie symbol of the gruesome murder on the Elgin to Fochabers road.

A strange custom soon evolved whereby locals would throw a stone at the tree’s gnarled trunk whenever they had to walk past.

To neglect doing so could bring bad luck, it was said, or worse.

When the sinister memorial was finally removed nearly a century later, it is said that a large ‘bing’ or pile of several thousand stones had formed around its roots.