Police Sergeant Abraham Nott began to gather evidence as soon as he arrived at the scene, having quickly concluded that Lee was the main suspect. “I observed a large coagulated pool of blood in the hall, along with a blood-soaked chair cover that was partially burned and had an odour of oil. Nearby, I found a hair comb and candle wax on the floor by the skirting. There were bloodstains on the skirting.”
Based on this evidence, it was deduced that Miss Keyse had been attacked in the hall and her body then moved into the dining room. “In the dining room, I discovered the candlestick and its stopper on the table, with bloodstains and fingerprints on its side. There was a candle wax stain close to where the deceased lay. The lamp was on the table, still burning when I arrived. It is partially filled with oil.” This suggests that Miss Keyse did not remain downstairs for long after Jane retired at 12:10, as the lamp had little oil remaining.
Eliza and Jane had earlier seen the candlestick on the floor, indicating that someone must have placed it on the table. “There was a substantial amount of charred paper, emitting an odor of oil, on the armchair, floor, and sofa. A heap of partially burned paper and old letters was found under the sofa. The carpet and floor beneath were soaked with oil. Oil was also present on the stairs. The bedroom furniture had been set on fire. The curtains and canopy of the bed were burned, and the left-hand bedpost was scorched. The bell pull was down. I discovered a partly burned match and a piece of paper. The deceased had the scent of oil. I present other carpet pieces that reek of paraffin, one from the dining room and the other from the fourth or fifth stair. I found that the sofa in the deceased’s bedroom had been ignited. I found matches similar to those found on John Lee.”
Arson had clearly been attempted to eliminate all traces of the murder. “If the dining room walls had been made of lath and plaster, the house would have been beyond saving. However, the walls were constructed with stone and knobs, with each piece of wood spaced eighteen inches apart, making it difficult for the fire to spread.” William Walling Gasking, landlord The Cary Arms.
“There were five separate fires (four started individually): one in the dining room (which spread to) the honeysuckle room, one in the hall on the chair cover, one on the third stair, and one in the deceased’s bedroom.” “The bell pull was untied, but there were no signs of violence on it.”
Nott did not suggest why the bell pull had been carefully unhooked. It could have been part of a cover-up plan that was never fully executed. “I removed four gold rings from the deceased’s fingers, and there was a diamond ring in her bedroom.” Theft could not have been the motive.
At a later stage, a diamond ring belonging to Kate Farmer was examined but did not match Miss Keyse’s ring. “I discovered a broken window in the dining room, the one opposite the dining room door. Outside, I found bloodstains on the woodwork and a piece of broken skin on the glass. Six frames were broken. There was some broken glass outside the window and a significant amount in the dining room.”
Nott was certain that the glass had been broken from the outside, contradicting Lee’s claim that he was trying to let smoke out. “I observed no signs of forced entry into the house.” Nott believed that the murderer must be a member of the household. The injuries had been inflicted with great strength, and Lee was the only man in the house. “There were blood spots on the kitchen door and on the colonnade outside the front door. Some blood was found on the inside and outside of the door handle leading from the hall to the colonnade.” The blood on the kitchen door could have been from when Lee went to get Gasking, but blood on the door to the colonnade? Was it when Lee followed Jane, or was it evidence of a third party leaving the house?
“PC Rounsell showed me a knife he had found in a drawer in the pantry. There was a streak of blood running down from the top inward, and a spot of blood on the outside.” Nott was confident that the knife found in the drawer, which appeared to have been wiped clean with earth but still had a trace of blood, was the murder weapon. “When the bed is lowered, there is only a 2.5-inch space between it and the table, making it impossible for a person to walk around the end of the bed without going sideways and touching the bed, which would have awakened Lee.
In the right-hand corner of the pantry cupboard, I found the empty oil can, which had blood stains on it. There were also blood stains on the funnel.” Whoever had attempted to set fire to the house and the body had to access the can of universal oil, kept in a cupboard behind Lee’s bed. Aside from requiring knowledge of the house, Nott was certain that no one could have passed by Lee’s bed without disturbing him.
“Lee’s bed was within nine feet of the pool of blood, and there was a two-foot open space in his door through which sound or smoke could pass.” “My experiment of lighting a fire in the dining room aimed to prove not only that the flames’ light could be seen from the pantry but also that the smoke could be smelled so strongly that one would soon suffocate.” “Two blood-stained towels were discovered behind the pantry door, and a third was found in the scullery.” The towels had been used to wipe hands covered in blood.
“Lee stated that he had changed his socks because his others were wet and he had thrown them down in the kitchen. ‘I could not get on my boots before I put on the dry socks.'” Lee must have committed or covered up the crime in his stocking feet as the wet socks he had taken off were soaked in oil and had a few of Miss Keyse’s hairs on them.
“In Torquay, I searched his coat and found blood on the inside of both arms, and the left arm smelled of oil. The jacket and waistcoat had no blood on them. The trousers had spots of blood on both legs. There was blood on the left breast of his shirt and on the right waist. Socks found in the kitchen smelled of oil. They had two or three hairs on them. The prisoner had letters on him, a key (to one of the garden gates at The Glen), some change, a penknife, and matches familiar to those used in the house.”
“With PC Rounsfell, I lifted the carpet in the hall. Two pieces were nailed across the passage doorway. The top piece smelled of paraffin oil and had stains of blood. A slipper and a partially consumed stocking were under the carpet – it must have been lifted to put them there.” Although this wasn’t deduced at the time – the slipper and stocking most probably came off while the body was being moved. The body was found with one stocking on. They must have been noticed later and hidden separately. This suggests that the legs were dragging along the floor – therefore, the body was surely being moved by just one person and not two.
“Next to the pool of blood was a piece of newspaper dated 20th Dec. 1881 – there was a blood stain mixed with earth on it. Also, a second piece of newspaper with blood on it – as if an instrument had been wiped on it. This was found under the carpet.” The knife must have been rubbed in earth and then wiped on the newspaper.
“There is a chiffonier in the hall, twelve feet from the pool of blood. This had two cupboards. There were various bloodstained fingerprints. One cupboard had a great quantity of newspapers of different dates. The stone knife sharpener was found on the hall table. A second knife was found in the passage outside the prisoner’s room. The hatchet was found in the dining room, covered in blood splatters.”
“The fire in Miss Keyse’s bedroom had been burning for ten or fifteen minutes. The fire in the dining room must have been burning an hour before that in the deceased’s bedroom.” So Miss Keyse had gone upstairs, probably at about 12:30 am real time, got into her nightclothes, partially drank her cocoa, and was in the middle of folding her day clothes when she was disturbed and came downstairs with her candle.
Did she drop her candlestick in the hall, where there was a candle grease stain, and it was dragged or taken through to the dining room, or did she disturb something in the dining room – drop her candle and was attacked while trying to get back upstairs?
Dr. Thomas Stevenson, Royal College of Physicians, detailed the forensic evidence for the prosecution:
“Recent mammalian blood on the hatchet. The knife (a table knife) had been rubbed against some hard substance, and there were scratches on the blade. Detected a small amount of blood among the dirt or earth. I am of the opinion that the knife, in the hands of a powerful man, might have been capable of producing a deep wound on a person’s throat. One piece of paper torn into two pieces was smeared with recent mammalian blood, the smaller having it on both sides and the larger on only one side.
Recent mammalian blood also on a female nightdress which smelled strongly of smouldering oil, smears of blood on the right sleeve, which was rolled or tucked back after having been stained. The outside of the sleeve was extensively stained with blood near the shoulder and over the shoulder blade behind. The left sleeve has smears of blood to a lesser degree. The interior of the dress is free of blood.
A man’s shirt (a check cotton shirt) is also extensively smeared with recent mammalian blood on the front and on the left side especially. Not much on the back. The right sleeve is bloodstained chiefly between the elbow and the wrist, on the under surface where it had been rolled back. The left sleeve is torn and free from stains except for a small spot near the shoulder. The blood was chiefly in smears, but some spots – behind the right shoulder, some of it may have trickled and run. The shirt had been worn a lot and had the odour of burnt oil. The socks (striped, cotton) were slightly damp, smelled of universal oil, and had earth on them. Two long hairs on them, uncut, like a woman’s head of reddish tint and similar to those of Miss Keyse given to me by Superintendent Barbor in size, structure, and colour. Found some other hair like the rest, but grey and finer. Also found some vegetable fibre, probably from a mat. ‘I have examined the lock of hair produced. It is hair of a woman precisely like the hair I found on the socks. The tint is peculiar for an elderly person.’ There was a minute trace of blood – cannot tell the kind or date.”
The trousers presented exhibit greasy stains and carry the scent of universal oil. On the inside left thigh, there is a bloodstain and several smaller ones nearby. The main stain appears to have been diluted with water. Near the seam, there is a bloodstain that seems to have been sponged. Towards the back, on the left side near the waistband, there is a double stain, as well as some others in the pockets and near the button.
The empty can produced contained universal oil, either paraffin or Alexandria oil. There are blood marks on the can. Paraffin preserves the freshness of blood stains, so it is difficult to determine their recency.
Dr. Chilcote and Dr. Steele conducted the post-mortem examination:
“On Monday, 17th November ’84, I conducted a post-mortem examination with Dr. Steele. The skull was fractured in two places – one was an incised wound on the back of the head, and the other was on the right-hand side. These wounds were inflicted while the person was alive. The throat was severely cut, with the jugular vein and all the arteries being severed – even the bone was notched. The right foot of the deceased was burned, as well as other burns found on the body. There is no doubt that the body was burned after death. There were no internal injuries, and death was caused by the blows to the head, either of which would have been sufficient to kill. The blows must have been inflicted by a blunt, round object, like a hammer. I do not believe the hatchet was the weapon used, as the wounds seemed smaller and rounder. It would have required a great deal of force to produce such blows. The throat was cut with a knife after the blows to the head. The garden knife may have caused the injury if a significant amount of force had been applied, but I believe it was probably a larger one. The wounds could not have been self-inflicted or accidental. The body and nightdress smelled of paraffin oil. The deceased had been dead for three or four hours when I first examined the body. Therefore, the estimated time of death was between 1:30 am and 2:30 am. There were no signs of a struggle.” – Dr. Herbert Nicholls Chilcote
“The deceased could not have inflicted the wounds. The blows may have been inflicted with the hatchet presented. The heavier end of the hatchet nearly fits one of the wounds. There are numerous bloodstains on the hatchet. There were three wounds on the head.
One was at the back of the head, an inch long through the scalp, but the skull was not fractured there. Another was on the top of the head – the scalp was divided, and the skull was fractured and depressed. The third wound was on the right-hand side – a large, square-shaped wound – the scalp was divided, the skull was fractured, and bone fragments were driven into the hair. The hair was lacerated. That wound was fatal – she could have only lived for a short time after sustaining that wound. It must have caused immediate unconsciousness.
The most serious blow to Miss Keyse’s head would likely have produced convulsions – hence the cutting of the throat? To put her out of her perceived misery?
The throat wound could have been inflicted by the garden knife. There are stains on the blade of the knife. There was a very extensive wound on the neck, starting from just below the left ear, crossing the throat, and ending past the center on the right side. All the muscles, arteries, the jugular vein, windpipe, and gullet had been severed. Even the vertebrae had been notched. I believe the wound was made when she was not quite dead. I think the wounds to the head were inflicted first; otherwise, there would have been more spurting and splashing of blood from the neck wound.
I think her throat was cut from the left side. Nearly a quart of blood had flowed from the body – almost half of its total blood. The right foot and leg were burned. The left leg was not extensively burned, but there was a hole burned in the stocking. The thighs were burned, and the abdomen and chest were even more burned. The sides and back showed some burning, but the head and neck were not burned at all. The hair was not even singed.” – Dr. William Stott Steele
“Lee spends a great deal of his time at the police station reading. At times, he is inclined to engage in conversation, but he has said little or nothing relevant to the circumstances of the crime. He sleeps well and does not appear despondent. The only time he showed any signs of agitation or distress was when he was brought out of his cell and charged with the additional crime of arson. He then trembled greatly and seemed as if he might stagger as he returned to his cell. He was pleased when he saw a sketch of himself.” – Devon County Standard