A whole family has been murdered in Wales in a
way which recalls De Quincey's account of the murders in Ratcliffe High- way,—years ago. On Monday last an assassin appears to have entered the premises of a labouring man, named Watkins, living in a cottage at Llangibby, near Newport, in Monmouthshire, and to have murdered Watkins, his wife, and three children, of seven, five, and four years. The husband and wife were mur- dered in the lower rooms, being first clubbed and then having their throats cut, and the children were stabbed up-stairs, either to suppress evidence, or in a mere thirst for slaughter, such as De Quincey proves Williams, the murderer of the Ratcliffe Highway, to have entertained. The house was then ransacked for property, and finally set on fire. A Spanish sailor, named Garcia, has been arrested for the deed, and the circumstantial evidence against him seems strong. He was seen near the place, he had been scratched in some struggle, and he had articles of female apparel in his possession, which ho had not when dis- charged from prison on the previous Tuesday. He had been confined there for housebreaking in the county. It seems pro- bable from their disappearance that the murderer took off and either sold or wore his victim's boots, and this may lead to complete identification.
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