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4 THE LEADER. [No. 302, Saturday,
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>, STARVED TO DEATH. Sever AX. cases of ...
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POISON-MURDERS. The Staffordshire police...
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DRINK-MURDERS. This man Corrigau, who ia...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.
Wa3t Miscellanea. Prince Mensciiikofp, B...
causing the issue of a definite and bov . a fide advertisement for leaders for direct steam postal communication with Australia . Trade for the most part is prosperous , although th \& Christmas holidays have prevented it from being brilliant . A meeting has been held at Manchester of the creditors of the manufacturing house of Mr . James Cheetham , which suspended last week . According to the Manchester Courier , the liabilities wete stated t & £ \ 11 , 098 , the assets being , ^ 51 , 643 , and a committee was appointed to examine and report . A meeting has also been held of the creditors of Messrs . Newton and Scattergood , a firm connected with Mr . Cheetham , which stopped at the same time , with liabilities for £ 219427 , and assets estimated at .= £ 11 , 937 . In this case , also , a committee was appointed .
Another injury to trade is to be Jbnrtil m the strike of the spinners and piecers at Manchester , which still continues , though the funds collected fo * the turn-outs are so low that last week they only afforded a dividend of a shilling to each person . Nfcae of the operatives have resumed work at the mill of Mr . J . Clarke : a proceedingjvhieb . roused tke indignation of the others to so high a pitch , ttat one of the "knob-sticks" was hunted on reisu-ning tohisownhome , and his life was threatened . The chief offender was a man named Thomas Limerick . On being brought before themtagistrate , he attempted to establish an atibi , but failed , and vim sentenced to a month's imprisonment , with hard labour .
The annexed notification appears ia the Gazette * of Tuesday : — " The t * o-rds Commissioners of Her Majesty ' s Treasury , having certified to the Commissioners for 'tUe Reduction , of the National Debt that there was no surplus of actual revenue over the actual expenditure off the United Kiugdoni of Great Britain and Ireland for the year ended the 30 th of September , 1855 : " The Commissioners for the Reduction of the [ National Debt hereby give notices that no sum will be applied by them on account of the sinking , faud under the provisions of the Act 10 th o-f George IT ., cap . 2 T , between the 1 st day of January , 1856 , and the 31 st of Jfarch , 1856 . ¦ ' " A . Y « SPEARMAN , Comptroller-General . ** National Debt-office , Dec . 3 lst , 1855 . "
4 The Leader. [No. 302, Saturday,
4 THE LEADER . [ No . 302 , Saturday ,
>, Starved To Death. Sever Ax. Cases Of ...
> , STARVED TO DEATH . Sever AX . cases of the starvation of children by their parents have come before the magistrates within the last few days . One of these was heard at the Worship-atreet police-office , and presented most appalling features . Edward Harvey , a bricklayer , and Harriet Ray , a needle-woman , have for some time past lived together as man and . wife . In the course of June , 1855 , they resided at the house of a letter-carrier at Homerton , "lvliich they left , owing £ 1 3 b . 5 d . There were four children , two of whom ( William and Harriet ) were of the respective ages of seven and five : these , though the offspring of th . e man , were not children of the woman . It was observed that when the
man Harvey and the woman ltay liad their meals they would shut " William and Harriet out of the room , admitting them afterWal'ds to share the fragments , which they would eat eagerly , gathering tip the very crumbs from the plates . The boy was dreadfully thin , and hia bones were noticed by the landlady to be almost starting through his chest . In July , the man and woman were charged before Mr . Hammill with starving the children , and the former was sentenced to a mouth ' s imprisonment , the children being removed to the workhouse of tlie man ' s native place , Standon , in Hertfordshire . Mr . Christey , the relieving officer of Bethnal-green , said before the magistrate , on
Saturday , that ho carried the youngest in bis arms part of the way to the workhouse , and added , with great © motion , "I think I can see her now , as olio ran ¦ up the hill to the house . " Affcer awhile , the children returned to their father and liis mistress , and in the course of October tboy were taken by a . pjirl , about twelve years of age , supposed to bo their elder sister , to a school in Hackney , whore they remtanod three weeks , at the rate of a penny a-week , whioli was paid . The children were then renatu'kably clean , but very emaciated and woolc , and they scaroely ever spoke , They wer « frequently ohargocl W other children witb
stealing food from thorn , and it was evident they wero starving , Abput five or six weeks ago , Harvey hired lodgings at Brunawiok-atroot , Homerton . Hero tho former system of apparently deliberate starvation wai resumed ; but tho ahildren wore never aoen , as thoy wero not allowed to leave tho room m which thoy lived , Harvey and Hay were noarly aUvn-ys at homo The woman told the landlord , Mr . Platt , that eho was nbottfc to apply to Guildhall for a gift of ton BlulhngB , as she wos the wMo-vtf of a livoj . ymnn of tho Clothworfcers' Company , though she did not winh tho gontlomon thoro to know her husband was dead ; that Mr . Butlor , " * r . P ., was Tun- oouain , and that bIio *
had written to him several letters wibbout receiving an answer . She therefore requested Mr . Platt to direct a note for . her to Mr . Butler , that be might not know from whom it came . That the woman and her paramour were in distress appears evident ; for , during the whole of their time at Mr . Platt ' s , they only paid one shilling in rent , and on the 16 th . of November the man applied to the parish for relief , and received some , together with an offer to admit him and his family into the workhouse—an offer which was not accepted . Subsequently he was offered work , which would have brought in two shillings a-day , but he did not take it , nor did he communicate to the parish authorities the illness of his children .
Ill , however , they were , from sheer want of food ; and on Sunday week the man asked Mrs . Platt where the parish doctor lived , as he thought two of his children were dying . Thia was the first complaint of illness that had been beard . Being informed of the address he wanted , the man left the house , and Mrs . Platt entered the room in which the children lay . She found them covered with something thin . On looking at them , their appearance was so " awful "• ( to use her own language before the magistrate ) that she screamed with horror ; " and , in relating these
facts at the . police-court , she burst into tears . Her statement thus proceeded : — - " Their eyes were fixed , and the boy ' s were glaring ; . I said , ' These poor children are quite dead . ' The woman replied , ' H " o , -1 don't think they are dead ;* and she said it without a tear . She said , 'They ate their suppers last night quite hearty , and went to bed well ; they were about all the previous day . ' But I told her , * It is astonishing if these children were upon their legs at all yesterday . Wh y not mention their illness to me , and I would have done anything for them ? ' She said they were not ilL "
In the meanwhile , Harvey Lad reached the house of the parish doctor , Mr . " Vinall , who at once accompanied him back , and found that the girl was already dead . " The little boy , " said Mr . Vinall in his evidence , " was still alive , not very cold , unconscious , and in a dying state , I Could feel no pulsation , but he-was gasping . I got a little stimulant , some egg in a small quantity of brandy , between Ma lips , but he could not swallow it , and died before he could be laid down again . Both the man and the woman were in the room at the * time , but I don't recollect that they made any particular remark to me . The clxildren appeared to meas if in a natural sleep , they were lying face to
face , and were in such a dreadful state of emaciation that my first impression was they had died from starvation . " The room was dirty , but " " not absolutely filthy ; " it contained one chair and a bedstead . Previously to their arrival at the house , Harvey observed to Mr Vinall , " If they die , I shall say they have been starved to death . " He added that he had had an offer to go into the Union ) but that h . e did not want to go . After the death ' of the children , Mr . Vinall told their father that he wpuld be likely to get into trouble ; and another medical gentleman said to him and the woman Ray that they looked too well themselves to justify the appearance the children presented . That the
boy and girl died , from starvation only , was rendered in some degree doubtful by the results of the post-mortem examination . Of the state of the boy ' s body , Mr . Viuall said : — " The vessels of the head were rather fuller than usual . The heart , liver , lungs , and kidneys were healthy , as in fact were all the organs , but the stomach exhibited patches of inflammation and had ecohymose spots about the coats of it , and I found a fishbone in the bowels . My conclusion ia that death was caused either by long deprivation of sufficient food or from poison . I have no other reason for suspecting poison than those little spots ; and it was a remarkable fact that both ohildren should die so near
the same time . There was very little blood in the bodies . I believe the starvation was sufficient to oause death without any hurrying additional cause . The girl was equally emaciated , and the appearance she presented was much the same . In tlio bowols of tho girl I found a piece of wood , about half-an-inch in length and pointed at one end , which tho man said must have been taken in some oatmeal they had had before . " He also said thoy had had a fish , by whioh ho accounted for tho proflonco of the fish-bone in the boy ' s intestines . Mr . Harris , nurgooin , as well as M <\ Vinall , was not convincod that poison had ndt been used .
A state of fierce excitemoub against Harvoy and Ray has boon roused amongsfctho poorer inhabitants of Homorton . Several followed tho couple as thoy wore being oonvoyod b y tho polioo from tho Hucknoy station to Worship-street . Four constables surrounded them , but proved a vory poor protection against nonrly two thousand enraged puratiers , who at ono time made n rush at the prisoners , nnd triad to throw them into tho oanal in HaggorHtono-fiolda . Tho police escort , however , waft increased , and a cab was at length Hocurod . Harvoy and Rny wore remanded for a wcolc .
lho faots , in many rospoots , wero singularly like thoHo in tho case of Harvoy nud Ray . Tho man , when tho ohil < l was near its death , borrowed a tub of his
landlady , to give it a warm bath , and he fetched medical advice . The landlady entered the room , and found the child lying thinly covered in a draughty place , and dead . A pool of blood and matter was on the pillow at the side of its face . Charles and Sarah Butler , a young couple , about twenty-three years of age , have been examined at the Southwark police-office , charged with causing the death of their infant son , Henry , "by cruel treatment , and by neglecting to afford it proper nourishment . The parents allege that the child ' s habits -were dirty . Alfred Jenkins , a journeyman tallow-melter , has been sentenced at the Mansion-house to six weeks ' imprisonment as a rogue and vagabond , for deserting his wife and three children , and leaving them-destitute The attractions of another woman appear to have been the cause of the desertion .
Poison-Murders. The Staffordshire Police...
POISON-MURDERS . The Staffordshire police are making diligent inquiry into the appropriation of the sum . of money possessed by Mr . Cook a little before his death . This sum could not have been leas than £ 1 , 000 , but only £ 15 Can now be accounted for , A few days after Mr . Cook's death , Mr . Palmer , as it is now , ascertained , paid away four £ 50 notes . Mr . Cook frequently stated that he would leave the turf , and he dissuaded
others from going upon . it . Ho -was generally unfortunate : Mr . Palmer , on the other hand , was for the most part lucky , and Mr . Cook bad the greatest reliance on his friendship and judgment . -Mra . Palmer , in ¦ whose corpse Professor Taylor , of Guy ' a Hospital , has already discovered traces of arsenic , was a ward in Chancery ; and it was only at her earnest solicitation that her guardian and the Master in Chancery could be induced to consent to her xnarri \ ge .
The researches of th « local constabulary are being aided by Mr . Field , late of tie detective police , London . Cook's betting book has not yet been found . It is thought , by legal men , that , notwithstanding the facts against him , Palmer will be very likely to escape on his trial . At present , he is under suspicion of having killed sixteen persons , among whom the late Lord Gteorge Bentinck is mentioned . Great annoyance has been created by the fact of Palmer having , by the secret agency of same traitor in the camp , seen a letter directed to Mr . Gardner , the attorney for the prosecution , by Professor Taylor , stating that lie had not been able to detect in Cook ' s stomach any trace of mineral poison .
The coffins containing the remains of Ann and Walter Palmer have been opened at the Talbot Inn The body of the latter presented a most appalling spectacle . The limbs and face were horribly distended ; pne eye was open , and the mouth , partially gaping , gave the semblance of a ghastly grin . A fearful stench spread through the room ; and it was found necessary to relay a portion of the floor where some of the foul matter had dropped , as no amount of washing of washing or plaining could remove the stain , or the bad odour .
A case of poisoning in France is related by Galignani : —The Court of Assizes of the Oise , tried a man named Robillard for attempting to poison his "father . The old man , who possessed some little property at Royaucourt , divided it some time ago between his two children , the prisoner anct his daughter , on condition of receiving a life-rent ; but ho gave the daughter the larger portion , and thia irritated the son bo much that he frequently abused and threatened his father . On the 30 th of September last , Robillard had a violent quarrel with his father , and afterwards went to Montdidier to purchase a quantity of oil of vitriol . On his return , he showed lus wife the vitriol , and told her
that a drop of it would be enough to kill any ono . On the 18 th of October , - \ vhilo at work with another mnu near his father's house , he said that he must give a drop of something to drink to tho old innn , nn < l ho went into the house Ho returned in a few minuton , and said that ho ha < l given his father " something that was rather strong , " nnd at the time showed < i bottle , Tho man went to tho house , and old Robilliml told him that his son had attempted to' poison him , but that fortunately lie had not swallowed all of what ,
he had offered him ; nt tho same time ho complained that ho suffered greatly from burning hi bin mouth and throat . Tho boh wan shortly aftur arrested , ami his blouHQ was found to be burnt by drops of vitriol . After a while ho coixfoKfiod that ho had given noun ? ut tho poison in brandy to Iuh father . Tho jury acquitted tho prisoner on tho charge of a-tto ' mptod poisoning , Viufc convicted him of the losaor oflonoo of hawing caused what tho law calls " malady and woiuuIh , " byunul > - stance administered by him ; and tho court nontuiu'ed him to flvo years' impriiwnniotit .
Drink-Murders. This Man Corrigau, Who Ia...
DRINK-MURDERS . This man Corrigau , who ia now in custody on a char ^ o of murdering hi « wifo , ia in a vory donpandmK utulo . On the evening of Friday week , ho wrotu tho subjoined lettor to hia wifo ' a sjbbor-iu > lnw , who ia talcing euro <> 1 tho children in Solby-wtroot Kiwt , ButUual-groon : --" House of Detention , Friday Afternoon . " Doar JBotny , —With a broken hoavt I write to you
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Jan. 5, 1856, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_05011856/page/4/
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