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Deo. 21, 1850.] &f> ^ Sril&fr. 917
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DEATH FHOM STARVATION. George Meaden, an...
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A BREACH OF PROMISE CASE. In the Court o...
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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.
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Murders, Suicides, And Murderous Assault...
Gaspard Costa , a foreigner , with the lower part of his face covered with hair , was brought up at Southwark police-office on "Wednesday , charged with threatening to murder an unfortunate girl , Julia Lester , with a long and sharp-pointed weapon , resembling a dagger , at a house in Alie-street , Bermondsey New-road , on Tuesday evening . On her asking him for some money , he said he should give her nothing of the kind , and she then said that she should leave the place , and was in the act of walking across the room towards the door , when the prisoner seized her by the arm , and while he held her with one hand , he hastily with the other drew forth from his pocket a knife , which he opened with a sudden jerk , and
exhibited a long sharp-pointed shining blade , and at the same time ejaculated that , if she did not stop with him all night , or attempted to quit the room , he would run her through the body with the weapon . She was dreadfully alarmed , and screamed out , as well as stamped on the floor , to apprize the people of the house of the situation in which she was placed , and , in her struggles , she got to the door , by which time the landlady of the house had ascended from the parlour , and she ( Julia Lester ) by an effort managed to unlock and unbolt the door , and also made a snatch at the weapon , which the prisoner still held in a menacing attitude , and seized it from his grasp , and ran down stairs and out of the house into the street . She then met a policeman , to whom she related
what had occurred , and returned with him to the house , and gave the prisoner , who was still there , into custody for threatening her life . ( The weapon was here produced , and appeared to be one of those long Spanish knives , with a horn handle , the blade of it shaped like a dagger , and sharp at the point ; it opened with a ierk , and had a spring to prevent its closing or shutting down again without the wish of the owner . ) The prisoner denied the statement altogether . He had gone into a public-house with the' girl , and while talking with her the poniard dropped on the floor . She picked it up , and , having refused to return it , a little scuffle did arise in trying to get it from her , but there was no threat used . ' Die girl still persisted in her statement , however . Mr . A'JBeckett said it would be much better if the foreigners
who came over here left such weapons as the one produced behind them , as they were more like daggers than knives used for such a purpose as that which the prisoner asserted the one in question was intended . The complainant had positively sworn that the prisoner had used the threats mentioned , and he should therefore call upon him to find securities to keep the peace for three months . George Hopwbod , a chessboard manufacturer in A nne ' s-place , Hackney , and Edith Hopwood , his wife , ¦ were brought up at Worship-street Police-office , on "Wednesday , charged with maliciously cutting and wounding a young married woman , named Jane
Parnell , with intent to murder her . It ajjpeared that the husband ofParnell was a sailor , and that while he was at sea she had been living with Hopwood . On her husband ' s return she went home to him , but he turned her into the street , and refused to have anything to do with her . At the same time Hopwood took back his own wife , with whom he was now living , and it was they , according to Jane Paruell ' s statement , who had made an attempt upon her life . One witness stated that on the evening of the 2 nd instant , while standing at her own door in Kanisay-street , she saw a man and woman struggling with another woman under a dead wall on the opposite side of the street ; the man had a dark mask
on his face , and the woman had also a mask , but hers had been torn off , and was hanging down-her neck . The woman attacked was flung to the ground , and the man was stooping over her , and appeared to be grasping her mouth , but she contrived to raise herself up by the woman ' s dress , and her assailants then both ran away as fast as they could , but during their flight past the gaslamp the woman cast a hurried glance back , and which showed her features to be those of Mrs . Hopwood . The injured woman staggered across the road to the witness ' s
house , and she then saw that it was Mrs . Parnell , whom she had just before left . Her chin was cut in several places , and several wounds in her throat , from which the blood was flowing down the front of her dress .. It was stated in defence that the whole was a trumped-up case on the part of theprosecutrix , arising from revenge and jealousy . Mr . Arnold said it was certainly one of the most extraordinary cases that had ever come before him ; and , the depositions having been taken by Mr . Vine , the chief clerk , the prisoners were fully committed for trial at the next sessions of the Central Criminal Court .
An old man . named Edward M'Manus , who lived m a lane off Stanley-street , Belfast , was murdered by his son , on Sunday morning . The old man was of a quiet , harmless disposition , but the son appears to have been of a very quarrelsome nature . He had come home from his work at a mill on Saturday afternoon , and abused his wife and sister ; and , owing to his violent conduct then , they resolved not to let him come in when he returned . This led to an altercation on his coming to the door at an early hour on Sunday morning , in the course of which he stabbed his father . The wound was so serious that the old man died the same evening . The son has been commuted for trial .
As a gentleman , named Tanley , was passing along the south side of the ornamental wafer in St . James ' s park , on Sunday afternoon , he saw a female lying in one of the plantations , apparently asleep , but on going up to her he found ttiat she was senseless and foaming at the mouth . He immediately obtained assistance and conveyed her to the Queen-square Lodge and gave her in charge of Lott , one of the gate-keepers . On recovering herself a little she said that her name was Coe , and that she lived at No . 7 , Grosvenor-cresccnt ; that while walking with an acquaintance of hers , a laundress , by the waterside , they had a slight quarrel , upon which her companion knocked her down , kicked , her in the back , and then stabbed her with a penknife in the arm ; after this she produced from her pocket a bottle containing
some fluid , which she compelled her to drink . This rendered her insensible , and . whilst in this state she was robbed of 4 s . 10 d ., and her wedding-ring . She was taken to the Westminster Hospital , where she now lies in a dangerous condition . A maiden lady named Kellaway , about sixty-eight years of age , who has been living at Sherborne for some time , committed suicide on Sunday morning , by jumping out of window , between thirty and forty feet from the ground .
Deo. 21, 1850.] &F> ^ Sril&Fr. 917
Deo . 21 , 1850 . ] & f > ^ Sril & fr . 917
Death Fhom Starvation. George Meaden, An...
DEATH FHOM STARVATION . George Meaden , an aged beggar , died of starvation at his lodgings , St . Jolm ' s-buildings , St . Anne-street , last week . He had been at one time a shoemaker , but want of employment had reduced him to mendicancy . His landlady having missed seeing him for some days , and , becoming alarmed , she went to his
room , and iound him lying on the floor in an exhausted and almost insensible state . She went immediately to his wife , from whom he had been separated , who came and administered some warm coffee which appeared slightly to revive him . He -was then left for the night , and at nine the next morning Dr . Payne , of Tachbrook-street , Belgrave-road , was sent for , who pronounced him quite dead . The room where the poor man . died was of the most miserable description . A piece of rag , which had once been a mattress , but was now more like a heap of dirt , was in one corner , and the man , with scarcely any covering , upon it . He was in appearance a complete skeleton , evidently arising from a total want of food . An inquest was held on the body on Saturday : —
< The coroner having had the facts placed before him , directed the body to be taken to the workhouse , and a post-mortem examination to be made by Dr . Payne , which was done , and he stated that he found no mark of external violence . On opening the body the whole of the viscera were bleached and bloodless , and in the stomach were two quarts of liquid like water . The intestines were perfectly empty , the liver white , the heart flabby , and all the great vessels bloodless ; indeed , he did not think there were two ounces of blood in the whole body . There was considerable effusion of water on the chest . All these appearances clearly indicated a great deprivation of food—that he had died from starvation . "
The jury returned a verdict that the deceased , George Meaden , died of starvation . The child of a poor man , named John James , who lives in a wretched room in Charles-street , Boltonstreet , Portman -square , upset a pot of boiling water on itself on Thursday week , and was so severely scalded that it died next day . At the inquest held on the body , the father gave a sad picture of his own condition . He had no regular work it appears for two years . Three years ago his wife died leaving him with the charge of five young children , two of whom died shortly afterward . He went out in search of work and food at six in tho morning , and did not return till midnight . Sometimes he earned a shilling , sometimes not more than a sixpence . In his absence the children were left to take care of
themselves . The consequence was that one of them had been scalded to death . The jury returned a verdict of accidental death .
A Breach Of Promise Case. In The Court O...
A BREACH OF PROMISE CASE . In the Court of Common Pleas an action for breach of promise of marriage was brought , on Tuesday , by Mr . Frederic Strange , an ivory-merchant in Hattongarden , against Mrs . L » yde , formerly Miss Mnry Ann Pope , tho daughter of a respectable tailor and woollen-draper in the same locality . The defendant pleaded that she did not promise ; that the plaintiff was not ready and willing to marry ; that a reasonable time had not elapsed before he brought the action ; that the plaintiff had not requested her to marry him ; that she had not refused to do so ; and that the contract was broken off with the leave and
licence of the plaintiff . Mr . Knowles , Q . C ., and Mr . "Woolmcr were counsel for the plaintiff ; and Mr . Sergeant Byles and Mr . Lush for the defendant . Mr . Knowles , in stating the case , said the court would admit breach of promise of marriage was a very serious injury , and although actions of this kind , where a lady was the defendant , were generally met with ridicule , ho could not for the life of him understand why the same attention should not be given to them as to actions brought by ladies , the loss in most cases being the- same , and the injury to the plaintiff's feelings certainly not being less . In the present case the parties had been acquainted for a
considerable time . So long ago as 1845 an attachment existed between them , and it was understood that they were engaged ; but Mr . Pope alleged that his daughter , who was in her twentieth year , was too young to marry . Still the parties saw each other frequently , and about a year ago matters returned to the old footing ; and from that time the parties treated ewh other as lovers . Mr . Popo had a country-house at Enfield Cha . sc , nnrlat Christmas last ho had a party there , to which Mr . Strange was invited ; and on that occasion he offered himself to the young lady as her future husband , and was accepted . On Now Year ' s-day Mr . Strange ' s brother gave a party in
return , and in the evening Mr . Strange and Miss Pope went together to the theatre , the young lady being entrusted by her parents to the guardianship of her intended husband . The following letters from Miss Pope to Mr . Strange were given as evidence of the state of her affections . It will be seen from one passage in the letter , " I like not saying much in a letter in case of a breach of promise , " that the lady was never very much in earnest : —
" My dear Sir , —As you expressed a wish to hear from me , I have much pleasure in informing you , if it will afford you any gratification to know , I reached here safely this afternoon , without encountering my dear papa , who had not made his appearance in Hattongarden when I left , at twelve o ' clock . When I arrived at the Shoreditch station I found I was just too late for the Enfield train ; so , by way of making the hour pass as pleasantly as I could , I regaled myself with threepennyworth of Pune / if with which I sat down by the fire and much enjoyed , thinking , at the same time , it was preferable to a scene in H . G . I understand from mamma my absence was very much lamented last night , and from ,
the description of the party I do not think I have any cause to regret yielding to your persuasions . I hope you did not again measure your length in the road last night ; it is quite necessary you should be roughshod here , for it was a case of slide with me all the way from the railway . I hope you were agreeable at the Old Bailey to-day , not but what I am sure if I were in your situation I should be ten times more troublesome . I heard in the omnibus to-day the woman was acquitted that murdered her child , and that the judge gave a beautiful address . Do you not wish you had been there ? I shall tire you with my scribble , so will conclude . Hoping that this will find you better . than when I left you , and accept my kind regards , a , nd believe me , " Yours affectionately , Mary Ann Pope . "
" My dear Sir , —I was much pleased at receiving yours this afternoon . It was what I hardly expected after the parting , but I do not k , now what possessed me . I felt cross . I thought you noticed it . They upbraided me after you left for not seeing you safely off the premises , but suppose it was my innate modesty that deterred me . I mentioned the all-important subject to papa on Sunday morning . He did not raise any objection , but will tell you more about it when I see you . I like not saying too much in a letter in case of a breach qfpi'omise . Mamma
thinks it will look rather particular absenting myseli from church ; for , if I understand you rightly , it isjwhat you wish , as Mr . and Mrs . Edwards will be here , and , unless you particularly wish me not * I should prefer going , as it does not appear to me like Sunday , unless I am at church once in the day . I must hurry this-, as / it is nearly post time—seven o ' clock p . m . Anticipating , the pleasure of seeing you on Sunday , believe me to be , " Yours in sincerity , Mary Ann Pope . " Chase-green , January 17 , 1850 . "
Unfortunately' for Mr . Strange , that Sunday visit never took place . A few days afterwards she wrote to tell him that it would be as well if lie could postpone his visit till Tuesday . Her reason for this change of mind is thus given : — " Papa will be in town on that day , and should you feel disposed we shall be able to accommodate you ; and on Sunday Mr . and Mrs . Edwards and a friend will be here , and it will be out of our power so to do . "
This expected " friend , " we suspect , was the gentleman who succeeded in supplanting Mr . Strange in the affections of Miss Pope ; for we are told that , on the Monday evening , the very night before the visit of the accepted lover was to take place , a large party was given at Enfield Chase , at which a Mr . L \ de , a young merchant from Glasgow , who had formerly been a suitor of Miss Pope , made his appearance . Whether he had been invited by the parents to this party , from which Mr . Strange was strangely absent , and break the
with a view to revive the old flame , up new flame does not appear . At all events , he made good use of his time ; lor , as we learn from the evidence of Mary Joyce , who officiated as cook at Enfield Chase , aitor Mr . Strange called , on the fatal Tuesday , Miss Pope went into the kitchen and said " What shall I do ? Do not think I am very wicked for keeping company with two lovers at the same time . " On Wednesday Mr . Lyde again spent the evening with Miss Pope , and on the following day she addressed the following letter to Mr . Strange : —
" My dear Sir , —You doubtless expected a reply to yours ere this , but since I saw you circumstances have transpired which has placed me in a most painful position towards you , and obliges me to terminate all futthcr communications with you . I will be candid with you , and tell you the cause—the return of one who I for ever had a sincere attachment to , and avowedly assert thatno other inducement could ever have supplanted you in my affections . The event has caused me many , many hours
of reproach and unhappiness ; but with my present feelings I feel bound to relinquish you , and know I am acting rightly in coming to this determination , for I never could have been happy . Don ' t tliihk harshly of me , for I feel my situation most acutely , and will give you afuithrr explanation if you wish it . As nothing has been said between you and papa , I do h"pe it will not make any difference in our f ' riendHhip . 1 hope you will not rrfuso accepting a purse I have made for you , a 3 a . small jicknowkdginent of the kindness I have received from you , and believe me to be , Klill your friend , 41 Mauv Ann Pop is . " Chase-green , Jan . 20 , 1850 . " Only two witnesses were examined for tho plaintiff—his brother , a surgeon in Hatton-garden , and
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Dec. 21, 1850, page 5, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_21121850/page/5/
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