The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1878-02-09 00:00:00

HORRIBLE MURDER NE All

IiALESOWEN

I frightful murder took place on Tuesday morning at
Coombs Wood, near a place called the Coirkdhads, about
a mile and a half from Halesowen, and between that
place and Old Hill. At nine o'clock in the morning the
mother-in-law of a man named Harris went to take her

lansband's 'breakfast to ItheiCoombs Brickworks, and on
returning home about twenty minutes afterwards she
found her daughter, Harris's wife, lying murdered in
the kitchen, her brains being dashed out and her face
battered all to pieces. Near her was the body of a
child murdered in the same way, and upstairs another
child lay in bed at the point of death from the frightful
ijurie4,,he had received. It oppears that the house
wnere toe murder took place (which is a four-roomed
dwelling, situated in a lonely position at some distance
from the turnpike road) was occupied by Joseph Harris,
a collier, his wife Amelia Harris, their two childreu
named respectively Eve (three years old) and Alice (five
years) ; James (or Elias) Jones, a brickmaker, employed
at the Csombs Brickwoiks, and the father of Harris's
wife ; and Ehasbe Jones, the wife of James. Joseph
Harris, whose age is about 28 or 30, was employed at
Mr. Walter Bassano's " New Colliery," Haden Hill.
His wife, tbe deceased woman, was 26 years of age the
3rd of last Augast, and was a stout, well-made woman.
She does not seem to have lived on very good terms
with her husband, the latter having an ides, it is stated,
that she was not faithful te him, and there have been

frequent quarrels between them. On Monday night
they had hiLh words together, and the deceased's
mother, Mrs. Jones, says they stayed up quarrelling
urtil after thilnight. Ou Tuesday morning the old
man Jones went to his work at the briekyard, and at the
usual hour his wife started with nis breakfast, leaving
Harris with his wife and children in the hoarse. On
her return, soon after nine, she was horrified to find a
dreadful crime had been committed. Harris was not in
the house at the time she returned, bat there can eno
. _ _ _

doubt he was the perpetrator of the deed. Mrs. Harris
and the youngest child, Eva, were both dead, aad were
lying in the kitchen, the former being streetelsed upon
the floor, while the child lay upon a couch near her.
The woman's head and face were literally battered to a
pulp, portions of the brain had been dashed out, while
the features were an undistingaishable mass of mangled
and bloody flesh. Her nose was all but severed, and
from this and the appearance of the head and face (the
only injured parts), it was evident the blows which had
caused her death had been inflicted by an instrument
having both blunt and sharp edges. The appearance of
the marks on the deal child was also similar ; it had
received several heavy blows on the head and face, with
the same iastrament that had been used on its mother.
The other child, Alice Harris, was discovered in bed up-
stairs, her face and head frightfully gashed like the
others. Immediately on finding what had happened the
old woman Jones raised an alarm, and Mr. Harris, a
bailiff (not a relative of the family), who was the nearest
neighbour, came to the hone° with his housekeeper.
! Other persons were also speedily attracted by the old
woman's cries, and medical assistance was sent for.
Information of the murder was also conveyed to the
police-station at Carter's Lane, and Pollee-constable
Knowles immediately went to the home, followed some
time after by Police-constable Barley. On a search
being made a small hand-axe, bespattered with blood,
was found in a hole over the oven at the back of a screen
which was in the kitchen; and this was in all probability ,
the instrument used by the murderer to accomplish his !
purpose. It would appear that after leaving his two
victims for dead in toe kitchen, he went upstairs to
finish the tragedy by destroying the life of his other
child, who had not yet risen, After striking her a
murderous blow on the temple with the axe, he went
down stairs again, and artervrards walked out of the
house and round Gorsty Hill. At a quarter to ten
o'clock—only half au hour after the murders took place
—he came walking nonchalantly up towards the house.
Twa men named Tomyns and Toy perceived him, and
instantly ran to secure him, which they managed to do
with ropes. He did not seem perturbed in the least,
merely asking, " What was the matter? "and he sub-
mitted to be arrested and handcuffed by Police-constable
Knowles without another word. Shortly afterwards
Mr. Kemp, the superintendent of police at Haleiowen,
arrived at the house, and he conveyed the prisoner to the
lock-up. As a on as the murder transpired there was
no lack of time in sending for medical assistance to
save, if possible, the murderer's third victim from death.
Or. Walker, of Blackheath, was on the spot by half-past
nine or soon after, and Dr. Dunn, of Halesowen, got
there about ten o'clt,ck. Both gentlemen, however,
were of opinion that the little girl must succumb to her
injuries; it RA almost impossible she could recover.
some neighbours attended to her, and remained with
her to carry out the directions of the surgeons, after
the latter had done all that could be done, but
death was momentarily expected. The news of the
tragedy soon spread. and a number of persons speedily
congregated around the house, but it remained in the
possession of the police, and only a few were allowed to
enter, _ _ _

The motive for the horrible crime Is generally sup-
posed to be jealousy ; though the prisoner's wife is
stated by the neighbours to have afforded him so ground
for the supposition that she had wronged him. The
quarrel on the previous night probably excited and
frenzied hint, and resulted in a temporary fit of insanity.
This is the more likely to be the fact from his having
been subject to attacks of insanity before. Some time
ago, after working at a pit at Blacrheath, where there
was a great deal of water, he was seized with illness'
and giving symptoms of derangement, was removed
from the Birmingham Hospital to the %Vinson Green
Institution. From here he wee taken to the Powick
Asylum, from which he was only released in September
last. Ile is a quiet man, and since his release
from the asylum has been of sober habits, though
before his derangement he was a hard drinker. It re
stated that he has not been particularly short of work,
so that there can be no ground for the belief that
poverty had something to do with influencing him to
commit the crime.
The child Alice Harris, who was stated on Tuesday
to be at the point of death from the injuries she bad
received, expired on Wednesday morning at two o'clock
at the Cottage, Coombs Wood, near Halesowen, where
the murder took place. This makes the third of the
victims in the terrible event. 'Elie father, Joseph
Harris, who is in custody at Halesowen, maintains his
calm, indifferent demeanour, and has taken his meals
regularly up to the present time. In response to
questions pat to him by the police officials as to his
being warm and comfortable in the cell, he made col.
iected and intelligent replies, and his appearance was
that of a man perfectly seise rather than of one suffering
from mental derangement.
The iuqaest was opened at Harris's cottage on Wed-
nesday afternoon by the District Coroner, Mr. It.
Dcsaer, but no evidence was taken, the proceedings
being only held in order that the jury might view the
bodies as they lay when death took place. Mr. Kemp,
Superintendent of Police, and some constables were pre-
sent, also Colonel Carmichael, the Chief Constable.
rhe inqui.ty was adjourned by the Coroner until Tues-
day next, when it will be resumed at the Shenstone
Hotel, Halesowen, at two o'clock. A number of persons
gathered round the building eager to pin a glimpse of
the bodies. It was expected that the prisoner would be
brought te the place from the cell, and a large crowd
congregated near the Shenstnne Hotel in order to see
him, but this expectation was disappointed. A post-
mortem examination of the bodies will take place
shortly. A very large number of people have visited the
scene of the murder.
On i hursday morning Joseph Harris Was brought up
before Mr. E. B. Phillips, at the Halesowen Pollee
Station, on the charges of murdering his wife and two
children—Amelia Harris, aged 25 years ; Alice Farris,
aged 5, and Eva Harris, aged 3. His appearance was
just as indifferent and unconcerned as ever, and this
calions composure he has maintained during the whole
of his confinement in the cell. He has made no state-
ment as to the murder, and, in fact, has scarcely spoken.
Mr. Phillips came purposely to the poliee-station.
instead of to the Public Office, and there were none but
officials present.
Mr. Kemp, superintendent of police, gave some eri-
del:too as to the finding of the dead bodies and the arrest
of the prisoser. He had charged the latter twice—
once, directly after being taken into custody, when he
was accused of murdering his wife aid one of the chil-
dren and maliciously wounding the ()tier; and again,
after the second child had died, when he was charged of
the murder of the three. Prisoner made no reply on
either occasion,
After hearing Superintendent Kemp'e statement, Mr.
Phillips remanded Harris till Tuesday next, the day of
the inquest.
The man was taken by the Superintenient to Wor-
cester early in the afternoon, but the proceedings
were so quite that scarcely anyone was aware of the
fact.
The time of the inquest has been altered from two
o'clock on Tuesday to twelve o'clock, at the New Inn
(Mr. Melly's) instead of at the Shenstoue Hutal, as was
originally arranged.