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THE NORTHERN STAR. _ , April 28, 1849.
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£$e -metropolis.
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Health of Loxoos duhikq the Week.—The de...
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&f)e iUrontncc*.
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CAUBRinGKBHinB.—ALLEGED CASE OI? SUICIDE...
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St'CKino.
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Dublin, Mosday.—Influx op Paupeeism in t...
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THE STANFIELD-HALL MURDERS. EXECUTIo"Fo ...
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* An account of die execution appeared i...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.
The Northern Star. _ , April 28, 1849.
THE NORTHERN STAR . __ , April 28 , 1849 .
£$E -Metropolis.
£$ e -metropolis .
Health Of Loxoos Duhikq The Week.—The De...
Health of Loxoos _duhikq the Week . —The deaths registered during the past week were 1 , 089 . The excess on the weekly average of spring is considerable , and amounts to 126 . The epidemic disease exhibit an increase on the average , the two numbers being 248 and 198 , but it is important to observe that most of the fatal complaints in this class—Beasles , scarlatina , cholera , typhus—have produced this week a mortality scarcely exceeding the usual amount . Smallpox was fatal to eight children and four adults , while the average number of persons of all ages who died of this disease is twentyone . The deaths from diarrhoea and dysentery were _to-ntv-three . or nine more than tho average ; only
« ue is _' ascribed to cholera . The excess of mortality is ascribed to hooping-cough , bronchitis , and phthisis , which number _rcTspectfvcly 59 , 70 , and 15 tf the _average being-36 , 37 , and 145-effects which are urobably due in great measure to the increased _KSoX * weather , the temperature of the air tS n dav with another , having been , smcelast Sundfy ? thc 8 th instant , less than the mean temperature of the same time , on an average of seven years by 6 * 7 deg . This difference , on Thursday , the 19 th , even amounted to 14-5 deg . The mean temoeraturc ofthe week was only 37 * 1 _oc-g . The _highest temperature did not rise on any day above 49-2 deg . - it was lowest on Thursday—namely , 363 deg . —on which day also the lowest mean occurred , and was only 32-4 deg . The mean reading of the
barometer in the week was 29 * 626 ; it was the highest on Saturday , being 29 * 741 . A tallow cliandlcr died in Greenwich , according to the verdict of a jury , of " disease of long _stand ' _-fig , hastened by destitution and want of commoa necessaries , " a case which , as appears from an observation that fell from the coroner , was aggravated by want and atrocious neirlcct in his own "house . In the sub-district of Marylebone , two children , the son and daughter of a labourer , died of " the want of thc common necessaries of life . " Inquests were held in both cases . The wife ofa labourer died of " exhaustion , the natural effect of delay in procuring for herself medical aid in parturition ; " a return which was also made by a coroner ' s jury . The births during the week numbered 1 , 348 .
Serious Accident . —On Friday week as the Rev . F . Hamilton , chaplain to the East India Company , was standing in conversation at the corner of Prince ' _6-strcet , Hanover-square , a ladder fell from an adjoining house and , striking him on the shoulder , prostrated him with great force . He was at once conveyed to the Academy of Music , which he had left but a few minutes previously , and Mr . " White Cooper was sent for , who found on examination that the right leg was broken immediately above the ankle joint , the left shoulder much injured , and the back greatly strained . The leg having been set , the rev . gentleman was conveyed to his residence at Poplar . Notwithstanding the severity of the injuries , he is likely to do wofl .
inquests . Suicide at tiie Dure of Devonshire's . —On Friday week Mr . William Pell , who had for many years held the situation of Secretary to his Grace tho Duke of Devonshire , in addition to an office in tbe Board of Green Cloth , drowned himself in an iron tank sunk in the carden . The tank was only three feet in length , and about eig hteen inches in depth , and was filled with water . On Monday afternoon an inquest was held at the Rising Sun , Charlesstreet , Grosvenor-square , before Mr . Bedford , on the body , when jury returned a verdict of " Temporary Insanity . " _Saicrdm-. —Death bt Fuse . —Mr . H . M . Wakley , deputy coroner , held an inquest at the Middlesex Hospital on the body of Miss Elizabeth Pettit , aged
51 . —Mr . Pettit , gas fitter , St . Martin ' s-lane , _vsaid that on Thursday evening week he had returned home to his residence , Brooks-street , New-road , and in a few minutes he heard the screams of the deceased , who was his cousin , in the drawing-room He hastened there , when he found her enveloped in flames , which he extinguished , but not before her clothes were nearly burnt off her body . She was taken to the above institution , where she died the following Sunday . She was dryingher stays by the fire , when they caught , and the flames communicated to her dress . —Verdict , "AccidentalDeath . " Death from Starvation . —Before Mr . H . M . Wakley , the deputy coroner , at the Marquis of Cornwallis , _Marchmont-street , Russell-square , on the body of Haunah Soundy , aged 41 , who it was alleged died from want of food . The jury , on their return from viewing the body , said they had never
witnessed such a shocking spectacle . The body , which lay on a miserable mattress , at No . 13 , Russell-place , was little better than skin and bone . The coroner remarked that he had never in his life seen such an emaciated form . It appeared by the evidence that about seven . years ago the deceased became insane , and had since then been confined iu several lunatic asylums , from the Last of which she was discharged three years ago . Her insanity returned , but no steps were taken to procure her admission into another asylum . Lately she had been living with her husband , a pearl cutter by trade , hut often out of employment , and suffered the freatest privations . She was unable to rise , and in er husband ' s absence was frequently heard crying "Come to me ! Im in bed , starving to death !" _Notwithstanding his distress , the husband sought no aid from the parish , and the deceased died on Friday . —Verdict , " _Natural Death . "
Fatal Accident . —By Mr . _H . Wakley , at the Jubilee , Gee-street , Soiiers Town , on the " body of Joseph Haines , aged 70 . Deceased was employed in the fitting room at the _Euston-square Station of thc Xorth Western Railway ; on Easter Monday ho was engaged , with some other men , in raising an engine to repair the shaft , which was out of gear . It was placed on sonic buffer blocks , which were on a scaffold , when they gave war , and one of them , weighing about 61 bs ., struck him on the back part of the head , which led to extravasation of the brain , accompanied with erysipelas , and consequent death . Verdict , " Accidental death . "
Moxbat . —Melancholy Death of an Officer . — Before Mr . Higgs , at the White Horse , Strand , on the body of Lieut .-Col . T . Sutcliffce , aged 59 , late ofthe Koyal Horse Guards ( blue ) . —Mr . W . Kni g ht , of 357 , Strand , stated that the deceased had resided in his house for the last three years . In thc course of their conversation the deceased related to him thc history of his life . He had held a commission in the Royal Horse Guards , was with his regiment at the battle of Waterloo , was severely wounded , and left for dead on the battle-field . Since then he ha . _l been in the army of Columbia , South America , and by thus entering another service had forfeited his halfpar from the British government . Returning to this country with but verv slender means , he
endeavoured to improve them by literary pursuits , his last work ( which he completed only a short time ago ) being "A Chronological Record ofthe Trade , Commerce , Resources , Expenditure , and Progressive Improvement in the Textile Manufactures of Great Britain and Ireland , from the earliest period to the present time . " He finished this book by the opening of the present session of parliament , and "being without the means of publishing it , wrote to Lord John Russell , with whom he had had some previous acquaintance , to assist him in putting the work to press . He was at this time utterly without
money , and all nis hopes were built on the success of lus application , but his lordship's reply was _unsatisfactory . He had depended entirely on the proceeds of his book to pay witness what he owed him for his support during three years , and the failure of his undertaking caused him great sorrow . Deceased had lately been in good health with the exception Ofa slight cold , and on Sunday witness was . much surprised to find him dead in his bed . —Mr . George Lane , surgeon , of Endell-street , said he had made a post mortem examination ofthe body , and found the cause of death to be suffocation from ossification ofthe heart . —Verdict , " Natural Death . _"
Fatai Accidest at the Bow Gas Works . —Before Mr . Baker , at the London Hospital , on the body of Henry M'Quead , aged 30 , a labourer employed at the Gas Works , Bow . —Stephen Tapping said that about a fortnight since he was in the gas factory where deceased was engaged in gas tarring the iron columns , for which purpose he had to be raised by a rope about 50 feet . He was taken up about 40 feet when the rope broke , and in his fall he knocked down the foreman ( Mr . Lawrence ) and his son . The foreman called for assistance , upon which witness and some other men went to them , and found the deceased in a state of insensibility , and bleeding from both ears . The foreman had also his left leg broken . They were both placed in a cart immediately , and conveyed to tho London Hospital . In
answer to tho jury , the witness said that the rope was about an inch in diameter , and had been borrowed for the purpose . It had heen used in the same manner on two occasions previously . The Coroner observed , that if the directors allowed ropes to be used such as that by which the deceased lost his UTe , that they might lay themselves open to a charge of manslaughter . He hoped greater caution would be used in future . The deputy manager of the works stated that the deceased had to be . plaeed on a gas pipe full of gas . The foreman had previously tried the strength of the rope . Mr . Foot , surgeon to London Hospital , said that the deceased died on Saturday last , from a fracture of his skulL Verdict , " Accidental Death . "
_Tuksbw . —Alleged _Iix-Treatment of _LUNATICS A _™ _= West Losdos _TLvro-v . —Before Mr . Payne , at the Cooper's Arms , West-street , Smithfield , respecting the death of William Lewis , aged 22 vears who was alleged to have died in the West London Lmon from neglect and ill-usage . It appearedfrom the evidence that the deceased was apprenticed to a hosier in Worcester , and he had lately come to London for the purpose of obtaining a situation . He failed in domg so , and he became very low and desponding , and at times was out ofhis mind . On -limrsday evening , the 12 th instant , the deceased entered a coifec-house on nolborn-hil ] , where he allied for some coffee , and remained there for upwards of two hours , when he suddenlv attempted to mte one of the customers . He was fortunately pre-
Health Of Loxoos Duhikq The Week.—The De...
vented , and he was ultimately taken macab to the West London Union . He wa . very violent , and straps were placed round his » nd «« 2 to be Clift , the taskmaster , directed _^ _* ceM « nWho removed to the probationary ward and _^ struck him several times across the _lega . _^ t h a _^ _gf _^ g _, _claiming atthe same time with , an oath , * " _"""* youtovour _senses-you have got mto the wrong hands now . " When the deceased was placed on the Sd and fastened down , Clift again struck him with the rope . In the night the deceased called out •¦ Fire ' " and Hopwood , the keeper of the probationary ward , obtained a thick walkmg-stick , and beat bim about the body and _legs . -The deceased frequently said , "Pray don't beat me , 111 be ouiet ; " but Hopwood continued striking him with thc stick . On the following morning the deceased was directed to be removed to No . 4 ward , which was formerly used as a cholera ward . Several of
the paupers carried him there , and he was again strapped down on a bed . Mr . Clift was present , and after the usual means had been adopted in such cases , he placed some ropes round the deceased's legs and fastened them to the bed post as tight as he could . The deceased raved very much , and Clift struck him on the faco with his fist and said , " Will you be quiet ? ' ? The deceased suddenly answered , " Thank you for that , Mr . Clift , I shall expect the next . " Clift thenstruck him several violent blows on the legs and thighs with a strap , first with the buckle end , and then with the other end . The only clothing deceased had on was a pair of thin drawers , and he frequently implored them to take , pity upon him . When Mr . Bullin , the surgeon , visited the ward , the ropes were taken off him , and he was described as being very violent . The deceasedremained in that state for some days , and during that
time he was frequently beaten by Mr . Clift , Hopwood , and the nurse—sometimes with a broom , and at other times with a stick . His bed was only cleansed once in three days , and occasionally tiie effluvium was most dreadful . He died on Saturday last . One of the witnesses , named Storey , said there were several insane people in the union , and they were allowed to run about the yard and mix with the other inmates . A surgeon seldom or ever visited them , and the Board of Guardians seldom inquired about any of them . Mr . Clift had formerly been a soldier and a policeman , and he was cruel to them all , and had endeavoured to hush up the present affair . The jury said , Clift had behaved himself in a most disgraceful manner , and that his conduct required the most rigid inquiry . Tho coroner said , there was none of the officers ofthe union pre sent , and that it would therefore be advisable to adjourn the inquest .
Escape from Newgate . —On Monday afternoon , about three o ' clock , a man named Strudwick , under sentence of transportation , contrived to effect his escape from Newgate hy climbing over the wall of the court-yard and descending into the street , by passing through the house of Mr . Macdonald , tho Number Seven , Newgate-street . On Wednesday the two sheriffs ( Mr Alderman _Finnis and Mr Goodhart ) , assisted by several of the aldermen , attended at Newgate , and procoeded to make a lengthened inquiry relative to the escape . From what has transpired , it appears that the convict , who belonged to the Westminster gang of burglars , was tried at the March sessions of tho Central Criminal Court , when he was sentenced to transportation for
fourteen years , and was about to be removed to the Milbank prison , preparatory to being sent abroad . On Monday morning Strudwick and some other convicts were set to limewash some of the wards on the female side of the prison , when unnoticed in the course of the afternoon he entered an empty room , having a skylight . By some unexplained means he contrived to climb up the bare wall , _ a . distance from the floor of about fifteen feet , and gained the skylight and forcing his way through , reached the roof surrounded by chevaux-de-frize and other obstacles , and then proceeded over the roofs of at least a dozen houses , until at length he reached that ofthe house of Mr . Maedonald , the proprietor ofthe public-house known as Number Seven , Newgate-street ,
where a trap-door presented itself ; this the convict forced open , and proceeded to descend the stairs . This was about half-past three o ' clock in the afternoon . Tho waiter hearing a little dog belonging to Mr . Macdonald bark violently , proceeded up stairs to ascertain the cause , when he met a man on the stairs , one of the sleeves of his jacket being saturated with blood . The waiter asked him how he came there , when he said hc was a plasterer , and that he had been at work at one of the adjoining houses , on the roof , a portion of which had given way , and but for the parapet of the house he should have been precip itated into the street , and that he had severely injured his arm , and in his agony and confusion he had clambered up the wrong roof , and that was the reason he had entered the
house . The waiter believing the statement , and observing the marks as if he had been recently at work , torn him to come down , and opened the door at the foot ofthe stairs , as well as the bar-flap , and advised him to run over to Bartholomew ' s Hospital , and get the injuries dressed . The man then went out into Newgate-street . Nothing further was thought of it until the evening , when , from the convict being missed , an examination was made , and it was then found that he had effected his escape , when the authorities were informed of the above circumstances by Mr . Macdonald . The whole of ; the case will undergo a strict and searching investigation hefore the committee of aldermen . Although the utmost exertions are being made to recapture the convict , up to Wednesday afternoon he had succeeded in escaping detection .
Steam Boiler _Exp . losh »" . — Between half-past ten and a quarter to eleven on Tuesday morning , a terrific explosion of a steam boiler took place in the saw-mills of Mr . Keys , Back Church-lane , Whitechapcl , by which the roof and walls of the mills and some of the surrounding houses wero blown up , and a great number of houses in the neig hbourhood materially injured . Immense p ieces ofthe boiler were blown into the air a considerable height , and in their fall thoy broke everything before them . Immediately behind the saw-mills there is a row of
small houses , forming one side of a narrow lane called Charles-street , and in one of these houses was kept a school where there were between twenty and thirty children at the time of the explosion . The back wall of this house , which joined the mills , was completely destroyed , but providentially the children sustained no injury . Large pieces of wood and machinery were blown to . considerabh ? distances beyond the premises , causing great damage , and there is scarcely a house within somo distance ofthe mills , which has not sustained more or less injury . Fortunately at the time of the accident , the workmen were in a part ofthe premises at some little distance from the engine-room , but when their proximity to that room is considered , and that large masses of
iron were blown into the air , and fell in , crushing the roof and floors before them , it is surprising that no life was lost . Two grown-up persons and one child received some injury , but not of a serieus nature . The premises were insured in the Sun Fireoffice . Subjoined is a copy of the official report of the extent of the damage done : — " Tuesday , April 24 , 1849 . —Quarter to eleven , a . m . —Called b y a stranger to a fire at Backchurch-lane , Commercialroad-m-the-East . Upon arriving there found that an explosion had occurred in the patent saw-mills of Mr . Thomas Keys , which did the following damage : Backchurch-lane , Mr . Keys—One boiler exploded , the shaft displaced , roof of boiler shops blown off , ends of engine-house and part of factory
blown down , machinery and contents severely damaged by explosion , the counting-house and offices seriously injured , and windows broken . No . 88 , ditto , Mr . Starkey—Back , front , and roof seriously damaged , and windows demolished . No . 89 , ditto , Mr . J . Ricketts—Building similarly damaged and furniture broken . No . 87 , Mr . J . Edgington _, grocer and cheesemonger—Premises shaken by explosion , window glass damaged , and roofs of kitchen and washhouse broken in . Sos . 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 68 , and 69 ditto—Window glas 3 broken , and premises damaged by explosion . No . 83 , ditto , Mr . Readdy , cooper—Roof of dry shed damaged by explosion . Charles-street , the school-house belonging to Mr . Hibbert—School partially destroyed , and front house ditto . No . I , ditto—Premises nartiallv blown
down , and furniture destroyed by breakage . No . 2 , ditto—Buildings and furniture extensively damaged by the explosion ; back , front , and roof destroyed , and window-glaBs demolished . Berners-street , No . Hi , Mr . Stagg—Stabling damaged by explosion . Ditto , Nos . 23 , 24 , and 25—Buildings damaged by explosion , & c . Ditto , Mrs . M'Donald—A piece of wood , about fourteen feet long , forced through the wall , and window-glass damaged . _Batty's Gardens , Nos . 1 , 2 , 8 , 4 , and 5—Premises severely injured , and glass destroyed . _Campbell's-place , Northstreet , Mr . J . F . Campbell—Roof of premises broken in . Church-street , Nos . 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , and 6—Premises all severely injured , and glass demolished . The cause of explosion unknown . "
Most Serious Accident at Kensington . - Oii Tuesday evening a . band of brass instruments was playing in front ofthe King of Prussia publichouse , ' Kensington , when a phaeton , drawn by a grey horse , in which were a gentleman and lady , approached . The horse took fright at the music , and started off at full speed down the road , when , between the King of Prussia and the church , three boys were run over hy the phaeton . At thesamo instant , opposite to a most dangerous turn in the road , the phaeton came into fearful collision with an omnibus , the pole of which was driven with
dreadful force against the lady and gentleman in the phaeton , and one of the shafts of that vehicle entered the chest of one of the omnibus horses . Several * persons who witnessed the accident instantly went to the assistance of the sufferers , and messengers were sent for a surgeon . Thc boys were first taken into the neighbouring shops . The lady was found to be lifeless . The gentleman , who was carried up into the back room of the Castle , had sustained an injury ofthe abdomen from a blow from the omnibus pole , and the medical gentleman in attendance , said it was impossible that he could long survive : tbe body ofthe lady was soon afterwards
Health Of Loxoos Duhikq The Week.—The De...
conveyed to , the Crown Inn , adjoining the churchyard , where it awaits a coroner s inquest . Of the three boys , one of the name of Connor had his leg broken , and was promptly conveyed on the police stretcher to St . George _s Hospital , where he now lies . The second boy , who is named Boucher , had a serious injury of the forehead , from which he was covered with blood , and also of his left arm , and was conveyed to the same hospital in a light cart soon afterwards . The 'third boy , named Simpson , who was not so severely injured , was conveyed home by his father . The crowd that was immediately collected was immense , and continued until a late hour throughout that portion of the high road . The name ofthe lady is Roeerson , and the gentleman is a Mr . _Tucksfield , of Elm-cottage , Barnes , Surrey .
The horse of the latter was stopped in its course , and is now in a stable at Kensington , not much injured , and the driver ofthe omnibus is detained at the station-house . Further Particulars . —Mr . J . Austin Tuxford appeared weaker on Wednesday than on the preceding night . Mr . James Merriman and Mr . John Merriman are in constant attendance upon him . He has been twice visited by Dr . Arnott , ot Bedford-square . Mrs . Rogerson , accompanied by her two daughters , arrived at Kensington on Tuesday , and remained there in a most distressed state of mind till midnight , when the medical gentlemen prevailed upon her to return to Elm-bank . One of her daughters remained with the body of her deceased sister at the Crown Inn . Mr . Tuxford ' s
brother has also been constantly with him . The _reports ofthe medical men give no hopes of the ultimate recovery of Mr . Tuxford . He has five ribs broken , and he has been gradually sinking . The deceased young lady was about twenty-two years of age , and Mr . Tuxford , who is about forty years of age , was about to be married to one of her sisters . The boy , George Connor , whose thigh was fractured , and the boy , Joseph Brucher , whose head and left arm were injured , and who were taken to St . George ' s Hospital , are reported to be progressing favourably . _Robdebt . —On Tuesday afternoon some thieves entered the house of Mr . Maurice Levy ,, wine merchant , Norfolk-street , Strand , and stole his cash box , containing upwards of £ 500 , in notes , gold , silver , and securities .
St . Martin's-ik-the-Fields . —Election of Goarpians of the Pook . —In consequence of there being 60 names proposed , the result of the election was only known to-day : —The 24 persons proposed by tho churchwardens have been elected , the highest having polled 1 , 462 votes , and the lowest 1 , 158 . Of the 24 names proposed by Mr . Charles Cochrane , that gentleman himself obtained 871 , and the lowest of his nomination 193 votes , Ofthe 16 . names proposed by others , four were also included in thc churchwardens' list , and were consequently among the highest . Of the remaining 12 , Mr . Wakley , M . P ., obtained 838 , and the lowest on the whole poll 130 votes .
Health Of Loxoos Duhikq The Week.—The De...
tered , were in the handwriting ' of the prisoner during the year 1847 , but during the whole of that year the entries in the general oash book do not correspond with the entries of the receipts from the collectors of the water rents . There is an entry of the accounts for the year 1847 , having been audited by two directors on the 6 th of May , 1848 , but witness was not present . The " rent cash-books were at hand for audit if thoy had been required , as well as the general cash-book . In 1848 , during the absence of Mr . Mann , Mr . Preston was in the habit of receiving thc rents from the collectors , and handing the cash-box and the key to Mr . Mann on the following morning , or on thc morning of the second dabut he made no entry in the " rent cash-book ,
y , leaving that to be done by the prisoner .. The sums paid in by the collectors were entered m their collecting books by themselves or other clerks . During Mr . Mann's absence for three months of that year ( 1848 ) Mr . Preston received the rents from the collectors , and made payment thereof to the treasurers Messrs . Beckett and Co . The accounts for 1848 have not yet been audited , in consequence of the Michaelmas survey of empty property not having been completed , and other charges for water supplied under special circumstances , not having been adjusted . —Mr . Robert Bird , who had been a collector of the company since February , 1846 , states that his duty was to go to the office ofthe company _svfirv _niirht . and there to enter the water rents he
had collected during the day in ' a book called the collector's water rent book . When he had so entered them in detail , he had to make out an account on a piece of paper , ; specifying each portion of the year to which the ,, accounts received related , as sometimes there were arrears received . The accounts of water rents were formerly presented halfyearly , but now quarterly . Mr . Mann signed a receipt in the book in red ink for the sums the collectors paid him , and it was his duty to enter those sums in the " rent cash-book . " All the entries made by Mr . Mann in his presence were correctly made in the collector ' s water-rent book ; but sometimes it happened that Mr . Mann was not at the office in the evening , and then he left the money
with another clerk , who locked it up in a cash box and gave it to Mr . Mann when he came , and witness frequently found when he went to the office next morning that Mr . Mann had correctly entered the money he had left overnight . All the payments he made to Mr . Mann were in that manner correctly entered . —Mr . Richard Newton , another collector , gave similar evidence as to the course of business , and said that the prisoner had always correctly receipted at the foot ofthe daily accounts the monies he paid him or left for him . —Mr . Preston , on being recalled , said that for the last three or four years the arrears of rents received , are partly in tho handwriting of other clerks , and for the last three or four quarters the entries in the rent cash
hook are principally in the handwriting of other clerks . —Mr . Mallinson , a ledger clerk in the bank of Messrs . Beckett and Co ., the treasurers to the Water Works Company , referred to a pass book showing the accounts between the bank , and the company from January 1 , 1841 , to Dee . 31 , 1847 , and a subsequent book bringing down the account to the present time . The monies were generally paid in by Mr . Mann ; occasionally by Mr . Preston . The money was generally drawn out by cheques signed by directors , and recently were countersigned by the chief clerk . The first-mentioned pass book was signed at the end bj the three gentlemen who were auditors of the borough fund accounts in 1843 , and dated Oct . 18 ; there were also the initials of two of
the directors . —Mr . J . R . By water said that he had been employed during the whole ofthe last week in investigating the accounts , ofthe Leeds Waterworks Company . He had looked into the rent cash books partially , but more particularly into those from Feb . 28 , 1847 , to Dec . 31 , 1847 , and those from Jan . 1 to Dec , 31 , 1848 , and from the latter period to March 31 , 1849 . Witness produced an account which he had drawn out of the sums received by Mr , Mann from the collectors , as shown by the rent cash books , and also the amounts paid by him to Messrs . Beckett and Co ., during the ten months from Feb . 28 , 1847 , to Dec . 31 , 1847 , which showed a balance
against him during that period of £ 1310 lis . 5 a . Tlie rent cash books from which this account was made up , do not appear on the face of them to have been before the auditors , though there was an audit of the accounts for that period , by the company ' s auditors , on the 6 th May , 1818 , and on the 18 th October by the auditors of the town council . The general cash book , which appears to have been before the auditors , agrees , so far as relates to thc payments made by Mr . Mann to the treasurer during those ten months , with the pass book of Messrs . Beckett and Co . He could not mention any particular sum that Mr . Mann had received from the
collectors , and had withheld , as hc paid in several days' receipts at one time , or at least a sum on account of those receipts . The cash account for 1848 had not yet been balanced and consequently not audited ; but a " rest" was taken of the receipts to the 31 st of December , 1848 , and that showed that the prisoner had paid to the treasurer £ 3050 4 s . Id , less than he appeared , by the rent cash book kept by him , to have received from thc collectors during that year . In the three months ending 31 st March ,
1849 , there was a similar deficiency ot £ 342 ls . 2 d ., making an aggregate deficiency of £ 4702 16 s . 8 d . As the witness was unable to state any particular sums which thc prisoner had received anil not paid over , the further examination was adjourned until Monday next , for that to be ascertained . Lancashire . —Reform . —A petition to parliament in favour of tiie reform movement—namely , for retrenchment and direct taxation—is being got Up in Liverpool , and has already been signed by great numbers .
Somersetshire . —SuspEcrEn Poisoning Case at Bath . — -Much excitement has for several days existed at Batb , in consequence of rumours having been circulated that a man had been poisoned by his wife , who had married again three days after her deceased husband ' s funeral . The indecent haste of the woman ' s marriage is certain , and a coroner ' s jury are investigating the circumstances connected with the man ' s death . Deceased was a quarryman , named Henry Marchant , about 28 years of age . On Saturday night , the 31 st of March , he was in good health , and left a fellow workman at twelve o'clock , saying hc was going home . On reaching his lodgings his wife made him a cup of tea , which was very unusual for her to do , and in about an hour after partakin _g of the tea Marchant was seized with violent
vomiting and pains in his stomach . He continued ill for about a -week , and then died . He was buried on Friday , the 13 th of April , and on the following Monday his widow was married by licence to a Mr . Harris , a man of independent income , upwards of seventy . This Mr . Harris , had buried two wives , within the preceding thirteen months , the last only a few weeks before his marriage with Mrs . Marchant . —The jury decided unanimously that the stomach of deceased should be analysed by Mr . Herapath , of Bristol ; and the inquest was adjourned for a week . Fike at Greenock . —On Sunday morning a fire was discovered to have broken out in the extensive
sugar-house in thc Glebe , the property of Messrs . Ebenezor Connail and Co . The fire maintained its unabated fury for two hours , when the voltrec beams , joists , and roofing gave way , carrying with them in their descent cisterns , pans , p illars , and sugar moulds . The loss is estimated at about £ 20 , 000 , nearly one-half of which will , in all likelihood , have been comprised in the value of the building and machinery . Clarence-street , opposite the sugar-house , was covered to the depth of several inches with the boiling molasses as it escaped from the interior of the house . The premises and stock arc both insured ; the latter was large at the time .
Portsmouth . _—Alaumiso and Fatal Accident . — A most awful accident happened on Wednesday afternoon in this dockyard , which is expected to terminate fatally to one or „ more persons . As a gang of men _ttere employed on the new dock , building by Mr . Bramble , atthe north corner ofthe yard , in working the " traveller" of the tramway * supported on piles for raising and lowering stones into the basis of the fabric from a lighter moored alongside , the gear broke , and the " traveller" went over the rails into the lighter , and most seriously injured two men in thc vessel , and dragged several others from the scaffolding supporting the tramway . Some fell into the vessel , and others mto the water Six men were maimed , three of them dangerously .
Three of the . most seriously injured were conveyed to the Portsmouth , Portsea , and Gosport Hospital . One man , whose leg was so severely injured and lacerated ( a bolt having stuck into his thigh four inches deep ) that the only chance of saving his life was by removing thc limb above the joint , had that operation most skilfully performed by Dr . E . J . Scott last night by gaslight ; little hopes , however , are entertained of his recovery . Another man who had both legs broken—one in three places ; it is much feared he must lose it , but he is not in a state at present to undergo the operation . The third is seriously injured in the chest and head . The greatest attention was promptly afforded by thc Excellent gunnery-ship , and the poor sufferers were
taken to the hospital upon the shoulders and in the arms of the crew of that ship , which is moored adjacent to the spot where the accident occurred , The medical officers ofthe Excellent were the first in attendance , and accompanied the sufferers to the hospital . The less injured were convoyed to thc medical department of the dockyard , where they received the promptest attention from the officers of tho establishment . The cases of these poor men illustrate in a most striking light the value of such a benevolent institution as the Portsmouth Hospital . The poor fellows were not admissible into the Naval Hospital , and but for the establishment ofthe former , would have had no place of reception where their cases could have been done justice to nearer than Winchester .
Death or a Miser . —An inquest was held on Monday afternoon , at Bristol , on the body of Mrs . Parsons , an elderly lady , who was found dead in her bed on the previous Saturday morning , when soma
Health Of Loxoos Duhikq The Week.—The De...
facts were detailed ofa rather extraordinary character . It appears that at the latter , end of last July-her husband , Samuel Parsons , who was a master mason , was accidentally killed by a stone falling on him from the top ofa quarry in which he was engaged at work . The deceased administered to the property , and in her account stated there was only 6 s . in money in the house . She has since continued to live in the most penurious way , denying herself even the very necessaries of life , and has been even known to assist in making and carrying the mortar for the men to use , and she was frequently in the habit of collecting the offal from the public roads . As some rumours , however , had got afloat that the old lady had a good deal of money , on the
information relative to her death being , circulated , a whole tribe of her relations , first and second cousins , entered the house , with _aj-iew of seeing what they could get . In _ransacking an old chest of drawers they pulled open one which seemed rather weighty . There was a large sheet of paper on the top , on removing which they found underneath a whole layer of sovereigns ; there was then another sheet of paper , and underneath that again another layer of sovereigns , and so on till they amounted altogether to £ 1 , 000 , with eighty old spade guineas , and thirty half-guineas . The deceased has left behind her a considerable property , consisting chiefly of houses . A verdict in accordance with the above facts was returned by the jury .
Health Of Loxoos Duhikq The Week.—The De...
_Eears in the Evening Post : Dreadful crimes of this ind , from motives of p lunder , hare _bccouio frequent in this country since the commencement of the famine : — " Poor Miss Prendergast ( a venerable lady of seventy-nine , and a connexion ofthe Sligo family ) was , on last Friday night , inhumanly murdered and mutilated . She was found quite dead on Saturday morning by the daughter of Lord Clanri * carde ' s steward , her pockets rifled , but no other effects touched or disturbed . Mr .. Edward Ryan , R . M ., of Portiimna , and Mr . Edward Burke , of Marble Hall , hastened to the spot with police ; and the coroner , Mr . Hosty , has been sent for . The poor old lady was evidently robbed , but why the savages took her life is strange , as she was wholly defenceless , and had not even a maid servant living in the house , or any near neighbour to give an alarm . "
Emigration . — From the Powerscourt estate , in the county of Tyrone , the trustees havo lately sonfc to New York about two hundred small farmers and their families , who have been provided with clothing and all necessary outfit , besides receiving a sunn of money to meet their immediate wants on reaching their destination . From Waterford , and other ports , emigration is proceeding on the most extensive scale . Renewed _Insi / _brectionart Symptoms . —The following appears in the Tipperary Vindicator , a Repeal paper : — "A Carrick-on-Suir correspondent states that from circumstances which recently occurred in that locality , and came under his cognisance , there is too much reason to fear , the presence of emissaries among the people exciting to
disaffection , and a renewal of the scenes of July last . The Carrick people ought to be on their guard against these machinators , if any such there be among them ; they should not suffer themselves to be betrayed into ill-advised proceedings by the ' poison of their words . ' Like some of the last incendiaries , they are indubitably vile emissaries , _Dobbyns or worse , and only seek an opportunity of battening on the lives and liberties of their victims . With the long and sad experience which Irishmen have had of the enemy ' s tactics in dealing with this country , they must bo the veriest dupes in existence not to be convinced that nothing is too base , nothinir too bad .
for those to resort to whose object is to deprive this country and its people of their legitimate rights . " The State Prisoners . —The Freeman ' s Journal contains the following : — " Some days since it was announced that thc state prisoners would be removed from Richmond Bridewell to London , at the end of the first week in May , in order to appear in the House of Lords to have the writ of error argued . We have heard that the Attorney-General has received directions to proceed to London on this business , but up to yesterday the authorities at Richmond Bridewell had not received any instructions as to the removal of Messrs . O'Brien , Meagher , _M'Manus , and O'Donohoe . "
Depreciation op Landed Property . —In 1344 a small fee-simple estate in Westmeath , with'n a few miles of Athlone , was offered for sale . It consisted of a mansion-house , and 126 acres of fine land , free from tenantry of any kind . By private contract it was sold for £ 7 , 000 ; but the purchase was prevented by some legal difficulties . The following year thc estate was bargained to be sold for £ 6 , 000 ; but difficulties ofthe same kind interrupted the sale _. Another year elapsed , and the same property was put up in the master ' 6 office in chancery , when the highest bidder was £ 5 , 100 . The inheritor petitioned
the court to prevent so great a sacrifice as a sale at £ 5 , 100 , and there was an order for the adjournment ofthe sale . The creditor became importunate at the long delay—a peremptory sale was directed last December , and the estate , which would have brought £ 7 , 000 five years ago , was finally disposed ot for £ 3 , 500 exactly one-half the amount . The solicitor in the cause has given me the particulars as I have stated them , and he is of opinion that the same property , if now iu the market , would produce a still smaller amount , if bidders could be had at all . —Morning Chronicle . The Cork Examiner states that a nobleman in
that county " has offered 600 acres of land rent free for a period of seven years to any respectable party who will _undertake to pay the poor-rate and cess thereon for thc term specified . " Thc Poor Law Commissioners have resolved on enforcing the Roman Catholic holidays in the case of Catholic paupers in workhouses . For doing so they have been severely assailed in the northern prints . It is quite clear that making Catholics work on these days ( nine in the year ) would be violating their reli g ious feelings , and the poor law is unpopular enough , without giving its administration a sectarian aspect .
&F)E Iurontncc*.
_& f ) e iUrontncc _* .
Caubringkbhinb.—Alleged Case Oi? Suicide...
CAUBRinGKBHinB . —ALLEGED CASE OI ? SUICIDE . — . About two years ago , a Miss Bowtell _, the daughter ofa bookbinder , residing in Cambridge , became a convert to the Romish church , and after a time sho became acquainted with a young Irishman , named B . Smithson , who was employed in the town , and who proposed marriage , but wished the ceremony to be performed privately ; to this , however , Miss Bowtell objected , and the present Catholic priest , the Rev . Mr . _Quinlivan , it is understood , was altogether opposed to the match . Consequently , and for some supposed interference of Mr . Quinlivan ,
Smithson waited on that gentleman on Monday ni g ht _, week , " arid at the close of the interview , com mitted a -very grievous assault , for which he was taken before the magistrates on Tuesday ; but the prosecutor waB suffering so severely from the injuries sustained that he was unable to attend , and the case was remanded until Monday last . On Wednesday se'night the legal adviser of Smithson ( Mr . Garrett ) waited upon Miss Bowtell , and pointed out to her as delicately as possible the serious nature of the charge against ' her lover , at which , as might be expected , she was seriously affected , and great depression of spirits followed . On Thursday Mr . Hammond , surgeon , was sent for ; but his aid was of no avail , for the vital spark had fled , the young
lady having , there is too much reason to fear , taken poison . An inquest was holden on the bod y of this unfortunate woman , when Mr . Hammond stated that he had made a post-mortem examination , and found a stricture of the stomach , some patches of inflammation , and a whitish powder mixed with the food , but what it was , or what was the immediate cause of death , he had not been able to ascertain ; consequently the inquest was adjourned , and the coroner requested Dr . Webster in the meantime to analyse the contents of the stomach . Miss Bowtell possessed considerable personal attractions , and was thirty-two years of age , It is evident that Smithson strongly suspected the priest of interfering to prevent Miss Bowtell marrying him ; although
when he accused Mr . Quinlivan of it , that gentleman denied it , and said his feelings were just the reverse . On Monday last Mr . _Quinlivan appeared before the court to prefer his charge against Smithson . He was in very delicate health , owing to the injuries received ; and the magistrates decided upon committing the prisoner for trial at the assizes upon the felony . _NonroLK . — Emily Sandford . —All persons holding subscriptions for Emily Sandford or Eliza Chestney will have the goodness to pay the same to the bankers immediately , the former being about to emigrate under the protection of a brother . —Daily News . Surrey . —Daring Burglary . —On last Saturday evening , between the hours of eight and nine , the
residence of Mr . Daffovne , Russell-terrace , Bmton , was feloniously entered , and various articles of jewellery , trinkets , < tc , stolen . Among theso were a lady's gold chain , two or three brooches , and a morocco case containing a silver fruitknife , fork , and spoon . The thieves gained admission through an unoccupied house nearly adjoining , and then making their way along the parapet , which is surmounted by a high-stone balustrade , they entered a bed-Chamber window after cutting the glass and removing the fastening . Fortunately , they were alarmed before they had secured all within reach , and several similar articles to those stolen were left behind .
ExplosioS in a _Colliebt . —On Friday morning week , about seven o'clock , an explosion of sulphur took place at Keeling ' s Colliery , the property of Benjamin Gibbon ? , Esq ., in this parish , and adjoining the Oak Farm Works . The " doggy " had examined the pit as usual at six o ' clock , before the men went to work , and believed that all was right , but about seven o ' clock an explosion took place , by which three men were dangerously burnt , and two others slightly injured . One of the three men , John Hickman , who is about fifty years of age , was so severely injured that lie died on the following morning . Mr . Ireland , surgeon , of Kingswinford , two ot tne otner dames
is attending men ( wazzaru and John Lester ) , but entertains no hope of their recovery . —Birmingham Journal . Lancashire . —Female Bubglar . —On Friday week a young woman , Isabella Crook , was charged before the magistrates with breaking into the house of Mr . Steel , Duke of York Tavern , Urmston . The prisoner had been discovered secreted in one of the bedrooms , behind two sacks of flocks , lying on the floor , with a sheet around her . She ' had broken through a wall out of the shippon , into the back brcwliouse , and so gained admission to the house . She was committed for trial . Worcestershire . — Alleged Poisoning . — On
Thursday week , Martha Price , a widow living at Maddresfield , and who had attained the venerable age of 93 , died under circumstances pregnant with suspicion , and strongly suggesting that she had been poisoned by her son , Thomas Price , a labourer , who lived in the house with her . She had been for some time attended by Mr . West , surgeon , of . . Malvern , but though she had been ailing , she seemed to be recovering her usual state of health . However , when he made a call upon her on Tuesday he found her much worse and sick , and on asking the son the reason , he said that she had had some soup sent her from the court ( Maddresfield Court ) which was too rich for her stomach . This tale has since proved to be altogether untrue ; Mr . West , howbelieved it at the
ever , time , and left her without making further inquiries . She got worse afterwards , and died . As soon as this event had taken place , a neighbour , named Ann Bridges , informed the Rev . H . Philpot , the clergyman of the parish , that she had seen Thomas Price give his mother a cup of tea on the Tuesday , on the top of which she observed an unusual _sciim , and when his mother had drunk it , thero remained a spoonful of white sediment at the bottom . She immediately afterwards was seized by a pain in her stomach , and continuous vomiting ensued . The motive for this supposed matricide is thought to be supplied by the fact that the old woman had £ 170 in the bank , which her son would become possessed of on her doath .
iorksiiire . — The Embezzlement of nearly * 5 , 000 AT Leeds . —On Monday , Mr . Peter Mann , chief clerk ofthe Leeds Waterworks Company , was f ? i examined before the sitting magistrates at the Court-house , Leeds , on a charge of having embezzled a sum of nearly £ 5 , 000 , the property of his employers , the Waterworks Company . The investigation , which was taken before Mr . Carbutt , Mr . Monkland , and other justices , occupied a considerable time , in consequence of the necessary reference to the books in wliich the accounts of the _eomnnnv
kept by thc prisoner were entered , but the facts lav within a very narrow compass . Mr . N . Preston a clerk in the service of the company , produced a number of " rent cash books , " each being made for a separate half-year , which purported to contain thc particulars of the various sums received on account of water rents by , the collectors , and paid to the prisoner . Tlie entries of these sums in the rent cash books , as well ss in the _generij . 1 cash book into which the sums p . iu * porting to have been so received were , or should _ibeve been , correctly en-
St'ckino.
_St'CKino .
Dublin, Mosday.—Influx Op Paupeeism In T...
Dublin , Mosday . —Influx op _Paupeeism in the Towns . —I have had occasion to remark , recently , upon the increasing evil of the influx of rural paupers in the southern towns , caused by land clearances ,, by the wholesale committals for larceny by the country justices , and by the utter destitution . The spread of cholera , and tho dread of contagion , have induced the civic authorities of Cork to attempt the dislodgement of these hordes of rural paupers ; and the Town Council , on the application of tho health committee , have " voted a sum of £ 100 for clearing the streets , _apd carting paupers to . some distance from the city boundaries . " But what is
to become of these wretched beings when the carts of the Cork corporation shall have dropped them upon the road sides , some five miles out of thc precincts of that city ? There is no law of settlement in Ireland , else those intruding , paupers might be forced back to the places from whence they came , and their own electoral divisions or parishes compelled to maintain them . As it is , many of them , no doubt , will wander elsewhere for a refuge , if they do not betake themselves to plunder ; many more will find their way back to the lanes and alleys of Cork , to be driven forth again at the expense of the corporation , for the poor law guardians have no power to interpose ; but the far greater part , it is to be feared , will perish from cold and hunger in the fields or upon the roadways . In explaining this
alarming accumulation . of pauperism , the _Corifc Reporter says : — "If every case were inquired into , nine out of every ten of these paupers would be found to have arrived in our city through the medium ofthe county gaol , having been driven thither by magistrate-landlords , whose only object was to throw upon other shoulders the burden' they ought to bear . This iniquitous systcm we havo over and over again exposed—it is a system now continued more perseveringly than ever . " This forcible expulsion of paupers is one ofthe worst manifestations of our horrible social system , every day becoming more desperate , and approaching nearer to general embarrassment and insolvency . —Daily News . The cholera is making progress in Cork ,- but in other places generally its ravages have greatly abated .
Arrival of the _LoRn-LiEUiENANT . —His Excellency the Lord-Lieutenant , the Countes 3 of Clarendon , and suite , arrived on Saturday evening , shortly after ten o ' clock , in Kingstown Harbour , from Holyhead , by her Majesty ' s mail packet Banshee , Lieutenant Smithett , R . N ., commander . State of Trade . —The weekl y commercial report of the Freeman ' s Journal contains the following : — " Trade continues in the same depressed state , the transactions in many articles being insufficient to
attord a quotation , and , we fear , from present appearances , no amelioration can be expected before harvest . It is very distressing to be obliged to record the same observations week after week , but the depopulation of some parts of the country is so complete , between the workhouse on ono hand , and wholesale emigration on the other , that trade may be said to to be almost extinct , and judging from the falling off of consumption in Dublin , there must be a serious diminution in the Customs and Excise revenue of this country . " The
Crops . —It is rumoured that the young potato crop is much injured by the late severe wea ther , and the accounts from the country are looked for with much anxiety . There is hope ofa change in the weather to-day . The last three weeks have been as bad as ever were known in this country . Tuesday . — The Famine . — The most afflicting accounts of the condition of the western districts are daily received . All classes are suffering dreadful privations—the poor are perishing in numbers , whilst those who had struggled against adversity , up to this time , are on the gulf of bankruptcy . The deaths by starvation are hourly increasing , and there is a lamentable want of preparation to meet the next two months . The private accounts from
the west are most harrowing , and the misery of the lower classes is shown by the number of paupers that assail a person for alms in the nei ghbourhood even of this city . The famished look of these beggars , and their wretched rags , tell too plain a tale of abject wretchedness . The Rev . James Anderson , rector aud vicar of Ballinrobe , and Protestant chaplain of the Ballinrobe workhouse , has addressed a letterto Lord John Russell , describing the horrible scenes which he is hourly compelled to witness . '' Can it be possible " says the reverend gentleman , " that we are to be left to die , and be lost wholesale in this truly wretched country ? Here now the cholera has reached us , and no wonder , for really language
cannot express the deplorable condition we are in . We have a workhouse built for 800 : but often do I find over 2 , 000 stuffed into it ? Besides this , the auxiliary establishments , temporarily got up , are crowded to a frightful excess ; thc paupers , of course , dying in awful numbers , and even on the public roads at noon-day . In fact , death has hurried multitudes away who might have been saved had small timely aid been afforded , and this disastrous work still progresses with increasing power . For a year and more the workhouse hospitaland fever sheds have been crammed to overflowing with patients , I myself , a few days since , saw in one bed ( five feet three inches wide ) ten large children , five being , I may say , the common complement . Hence
hundreds of persons' lives are continually being victimised , and their places again filled up in quick succession with fresh candidates for the grave , while the nurses and officials are all down in their turn . Misery is thus concentrated , as it were , in the workhouse , but , alas ! it is-widely spread , and spreading faster and wider than over , all over the country in every shape and circumstance ! I beseech you , mv lord , that you will find out what is to be done , as something must , and that speedily . Your lordship may _^ erhaps say , « Why not get in the rates and teed and clothe the people ? ' Put all the medical aid and appliances in requisition—strike new and higher rates—multiply auxilmries , & c . ' In God ' s
name , let us have no such mockery now , for the country itself is bankrupt—the lands are wastedthe proprietors ruined—no rents coming in , and the better classes all flitting to other regions . Surely , my lord , if things proceed in this calamitous way we shall only find a parallel to our own case in the plagues of Egypt I" The vice-guardians are acquitted of all blame by the Rev . Mr . Anderson , for they labour to their utmost from . morning to night . The tax-collectors are in hopeless avrear ; for , after the most perilous exertion their books show a deficiency of £ 7 , 000 . Some of the creditors of the union , who cannot obtain payment for the supplies already furnished , are themselves on the brink of starvation .
Mr . Tracy , the claimant of the Tracey peerage died yesterday morning in this city , where he had only lately arrived from England . Wednesday . -Famink w the WEST .-The fearful state of affairs in Mayo is most painfully exhibited m the following statement , which appears in the Mayo Constitution : — » During the . Quarter Sessions ot Westport we witnessed a scene which we believed no state of misery or suffering could have brought about . It was that of hearing seventeen unfortunate creatures , convicted of various crimes imploring the Court to transport them from their native countrv , as their only refuge from the horrors of death from hunger , " . Cholera . —The average deaths in tho _poorhouses of Westport are set down at 100 per week . The following is an extract of a letter from Ballinrobe : — " On Monday , the 16 th inBt . I regret to inform vou , a case-of cholera occurred in the workhouse Here which fatalsince then it has
proved ; raged through the town most fearfully ; few . ( if any ) once attacked have recovered . The mortality , in the workhouse is awful . What with fever , dysentery , and cholera ' the people are dying like rotten sheep . " ' Death of Sir Arthur Blennerhasbett — Th * Evening _iW announces the death of Sir " Arthur _Blenncrhassett Bart ., of Churchtown House heaf KHlarney , of cholera . In general the epSeraS declining but m some . localities in the ; South the mortality has been to a very serious mW . ! , i ; Rathkeale and other p _^ _TtToSSSVLtoS _E vic ? i b 0 r T Ot _^ middle Class have bee _° ™ ! ' S : , In _£ he country generally , however " titiS kX f as _^ _coined to the poor and des-~ _i „ ri ? ' _. th < ; choIera has made no great _pwffii I I _'T- V ' account of t _^ _^ tent of destitution , it ls feared- that it will produce calamitous results . Alread y the mortality is very considerable m Ballinrobe . REVOLmo MURPER AT PoRTUMNA CASTLE . —Th _« touoirwgaccount of a most appalling murder ap-
The Stanfield-Hall Murders. Executio"Fo ...
THE STANFIELD-HALL MURDERS . EXECUTIo"Fo F RUSH * Norwich , April 21 . —James Bloomfield Rush , the perpetrator ofthe Stanfield Hall murders , wasex * ecuted this day at noon in front of Norwich Castle . The enormity of his crimes , the station in life which he had previously occupied , the extraordinary circumstances of the whole case , his inexplicable conduct during the trial , and the steadiness with which he has since then persevered in denying tho guilt which was so clearly brought home to him , have all tended to attract in an unusual degree the attention of the public to his fate . It is very seldom , in this country and age , that the crime of murder rises from the vulgar and debasing associations by
which the influences of civilised society surround it , and by its appalling magnitude takes its place among the list of historical events . In this case unfortunately such has been the result . Tho assassin ' s first victim was Recorder of Norwich , once the most important city in England after thc metropolis , Thc second victim was that ill-fated gentleman ' s only son . They were shot down at night , within their family mansion , without a moment ' s warning or opportunity of resistance . It was proved beyond the possibility of doubt that thc man who did this foul deod was James Bloomfield Rush , a farmer , living in the immediate neighbourhood , and who owed a deep debt of gratitude to the father and grandfather of those whom he had so ruthlessly
murdered . Two helpless women , the one wife and daughter-in-law to the murdered men , the other her heroic servant , still suffer from wounds received by them on that dreadful night . Suspicion fell immediately and instantaneously on Rush , lie was taken , tried , and condemned , the principal witness against _hiih being a girl whose innocence he had betrayed , whom he then used as his tool in the perpetration of forgeries which were to gain the property of thc persons he had marked out for slaughter , and whose life thero is very littlo doubt that he would have taken after she had served liis infamous designs . Such were the crimes for which the convict Rush was this day hanged upon the scaffold .
The conduct and language of such a monster inhuman form previous to Ins execution , when oppressed by the memory of liis tremendous guilt , and knowing that his days and hours were numbered , cannot be uninteresting to the psychologist . There arc , too , a variety of circumstances _abrcauv _pu blished to the world whicli have increased the curiosity felt upon this point . Rush , like several other great criminals—amongst whom niav be mentioned Eugene Aram and Thurtell—undertook liis own defence , which he conducted so as to strengthen thc case agaiiist him and supply links to thc evidence previously wanting . Liko Tawell , who was also a native of Norfolk , he was observant ofthe outward forms of religion , and while contemplating a savage
and wholesale murder practised family devotion with his mistress . One of our greatest novelists , by a happy flight of imagination , represents a convict , when on tho scaffold and about to die , proving the ruling passion strong in death by pickiug the pocket of . the chaplain . Rush managed at his trial , in the presence of judge and jury , with ihe court crowded in every corner by spectators , to abstract a £ 40 check from , i pocket-book handed « P to him for . inspection , and . dexterously to conceal the paper in the lining of his hat , principally , as it would appear , for the purpose of _blackening i _!' character of tho solicitor prosecuting on behalf of the Crown . Liko several other celebrated murderers , he was not a man addicted to drink , and ,
singular to say , his general abstemieusness on th * point gavo tremendous force to . a little fact in liis conduct on tho ni ght of the murders which ffa 3 stated by Emily Sandford . These remarkable coincidences give additional interest to tho details , of his conduct immediately before his execution , and to " his general bearing from the time when sentence of death was pronounced against him and his doom irrevocably fixed . The following particulars we owe to the courtesy ot Mr . Pinson , Governor of Norwich Castle , and of ihe Rev . Mr . . Brown , . ' Chaplain to the Gaol . The * gentlemen state that Rush , from the commencement ofhis imprisonment , assumed the character of innocence and piety , and so carefully asserted his pretensions to theso qualities , and so over-acted « is part , as to throw at once the strongest susp _icions on his sincerity . He took every opportunity o _dcnvilKT his _o-nilt-.. _TH-nfAosinw T > m _> fioiU . + _i"vnniliHitV al »*
unhesitating confidence , in his acquittal . _H's c 0 stant language , was , " Thank God , I am q » 't e c 0 f fortable in body and mind ; I eat well , drink _W ' and sleep well . " Tho wretched man's sleep was _observed by his attendants not to be- so quiet as » himself represented it . He was _consent in l » _^ tendance at chapel ,. and . very soon after his con * mitt . il requested tho chaplain to administer th « _^ crament to him privatclv . This , however , the cifl lain refused to do , and thereupon Rush lost aU c- ' ' fidencc in him . After conviction he requested t" the Rev . W .. W .. Andrews , of Felmingham , and u Rev . C . J . ' Blnkc , of Ketteringham , might he | - > mittcd to visit him in Mr . Brown ' s company . *' wish was of course complied with , and no douut i _^ convict expected to work upon the minus ot _tiu _> gentlemen , whose churches he had been in the «• of attending , a conviction of his innocence . ''
* An Account Of Die Execution Appeared I...
* An account of die execution _appeared in ° fourth edition of Saturday last .
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), April 28, 1849, page 6, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns3_28041849/page/6/
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