The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1884-03-18 00:00:00

TO ATTEMPTED MURDER OF A WIFE.

To-day (Monday) the prisoner, Timothy King,
who has been under reinanl for the but six we,ko,
I was nolo brought before the megiatratas op Ile
charge of attomptiog to =ruder hi. wife, Matilda
King
may briefly recall the oircnamstaaou of the m.o.
The prisoner, who is a little one-umed men, having
loit the tight no. about six year, ago in an accident,
hae siiiee that time bun of • tuoroas and eomewhat
eccentric disposition. lie live* at • little villa.:e
on dm border, of Wimboree, in • small c dime oocii.
pied by himulf. wife (the Injured woman), and his
eon, a la I aged ato mt 15. He himulf I. ab .ut GO
yews f age. Oa the occasioo of the anima the SOO
happened to enter the houe la the evening, n'ter the
pauper had returned from work, and was horrified to
find hia lath it standing over his mother, wbo was
lying in • pool of blood, with his tot on her chest,
brandishing • formidable claw hammer. Seeing his
• no the infuriated roan at one, made • rush at hloo.
The lad, however, ma le his 'seeps from the house,
sal proceeds Ito alarm the neighbour.. Seeing help
coming the prisoner ran to • well on the premises,
which le about seven feet deep, and jumped into it
feet downwards. On coming to the earful one of the
neighb,urs seined him by tin, hair, and held him above
the water until others arriving when he wu got out. He
then bee on, very violent, and at last the neighbour.
were obliged to tie him to • tr it. The police and
medical aluistance were then sent for, and Dr. Par-
kinson and Mr. Supt. Batty, with an officer, very
itaickly appearei on the souse, and the poor woman
—load to and her assailant taken into custody.
11-r woun cc wet. ••• forrible nature, and chied y
on the bead, and she seemed at the atee. b. dying.
Sbe, however, railed, and since then, under am, ...,.
remitting care of hr. Parkinloo, hem been progressing
favourably—the GIS fear beteg eryalpelas set X ne in—
until the last remand, ei.ht days ago, when she wee
still unable to appear, two of the wounds having
broken ott airfoil. Mr. Parkinson, however, ex-
pressed his belief she would be able to appear on
Mon lay. Whim taken foto CU4tOdc the prisoner
made some remarks to the effect that he did it,
and be hoped she wee bet:, off. Since then he has
been very taciturn.
The only magistrate pruent wad Mr. C. J. Parke.
Mrs. Matadi King, the inju-ed woman, who wee
obliged to be seated during the examinati ,n, and
even u .w br, traces of her injoriee, sail on We lOW
day, the 13th of February, during the afternoon.
when her little boy cal gone to • •hool, she went into
the stable to cut emu, limit She should think it was
between one an I tem. Whits there her husband, the
prisoner, canoe lo an-I st nod over her with a hammer
In Ms hand, and Gil I—'' 1 sill beat your brains out."
So. told him she hal done nothing to him, and said
nothing shoot him, and that there was • policeman
coming. He looked out of the door an) said there
wasn't, but William Baker wall coming up the road.
Jest before this she took the hammer away from him
sad threw it to the other side of t ce stable. When
he knee William Baker wu coining he said he wool)-
not dill agail—:hat Wa, po.ll her 'town, if she would
not say anything. She then weht and spoke to Baker,
who aeked her if she hml home dilopiog to sell, and
said he would call On his •ay hack for it in the even-
ing. Her niece, R ate Mayring, subsequently came
during the afternoon and stayed MOMS time, and she,
the witness, went out with her • little way. When
she got home she loan I her boy bad returned from
school, and she sent him for tome milk.
She and he, husban I were then at oncling outside
the do 1, sod he th.ll by e otne 020.00—ibe 0 Mild
hardly tell how—t 11,11 of her, got his arm round
bier waist and threw hero 'ac-I,halfway. 111T011 the
house, saying " (Line alone She held on to the
Jamb of the door as long se she could and sznissool
oat Altos that Wu saw bins reach something from

the stable, she could not tell what, and he struck her I
directly with it, and she became senselesk She knew I
nothing after that —By the Slaniotrate : Toe marks
on her heal and face were the rseull's of the blows.
The pri.oner said he had no qn.3.tions to o.k his
wife ; he did not remember anything of it.
Fre lerick King. Lb* sou of tit, pris.ner and the
oomplainate, a lad of abLmt It. was the neat witnem
called, and stated that on the day In rosetion be erne
working for 14r. Ox, of Weeding Perm, Broutbill,
Holt When he got boots, between four and firs, he
saw " mother 171.14 on the ft ..r and father jumping
on her throat.' H a3k4.1 him what he warn sb
sod he sii I " I tohl her I sh..uld .10 it, sodl will 40
for you too." He ran away, mud hie father came after
him. He called uut " Ur. Poo., Ur. Po .r, father has
kill. lan Aber." Mr. Po .r Can. ran dug. and father
went round the house. Wbs hie f .thor vim sten ling
on his mother she w3s " all in h1.43d," end there war a
h =o'er lying by her aide. (roe hammer was pro-
duced, a short coal hammer, stui very much stained
with
.b 1 o I, and UN wittiest said that wee the one.)

Pawner asked no questous.
Thomas Kong, brother of the prisoner, who bad to
be reque.ted to ra-ki-e the book, instal the first thing
he know of the affair was hoodoo( the previous witness
cry oat. it. *onto hi. brother'. 11011.10, Sad saw Mrs.
King in snob • slid slats that he faint, I. When he
" came-to' be wont Li the back of the how* to see
after Lis brother. When beg ,t there be saw him get-
ting into the well, which l, I ea.. n ur right feet of
water in it, and be wont to bin, and oo•ld him up by
Viers mit of his arm until it broke off, and then he
caught him by the collar of his c iat, an I whilst be was
holding him Frederick Poor came, and they, with
other aosirt.noe, got him out.
Pri+coner said (in this instance) hi did not wish to
ask any question, mire than ti say that he waa so
" terrified " that he dil not ko., wiuit he was doing.
- . .

Nlsry Tomos, of Brombill, an aged woman, who,
suffering from bronchitis was also allowed to be
slated, it stovi she w as • near noighbour of the prisoner,
and OD the 13th of February, hearing the alarm raised ,
by the boy, sue went to the ho lee, au I saw Mrs. King
lyia; oo her bed( in • p•al of blood. She g 1 OHDO
e.ter, an I washed bar f .c$ to try and stop the blood.
The hammer, c .vere with wet blood, was lying Woes I
outside of the d sir. dhe seat fur the doctor and tbe
polic-, nod than, with the help of Frederick Poor, got
her up in•o • chair. and gave her a little brandy and
water. When Dr. Psrkinivin came she helped him t
cl...se the wounds. Before he arrived she put oobwebe
to the wounds, and did shit could to stop the wounde,
as she was almost gone.
Frederick Poor, bricelayer, of Brombill, deposed to
helpint to get the prisonss out of the well, and after
that, in a insiquenc• or his violent behaviour, they
tied of. feet. lie salted if his wife was deal.
P.C. Carter, ststioned ot Holt, said he wee Galled
to the house of the prisoner, and described the state In
which he tom I her, Tut., bleedlad end insensible. He
looked round the house an I Land the hammer he pro.
dccvi.overed witn wet blood and hair. He afterwards
went to ihr beak of trio house cud saw the prirsoser
hell by two or three men. He waa bleeding from the
m 'nth end wet 015rou4h. He took chug* of him, and
brought him to Will:aroma On 030 10 Pi he said"
Mr. Outer, you .lou't know whet I do, I thought I
eh mid have dont this a twelve.mouth No. I hey.
been drove to it." 04 the road they net his brother,
mad he then alas said " Ab, I have done it,
toll ti-, whet t'woeld clothe to long ago. It's MI
our 'lit.'s fault." .

_
Prisoner again said he did not remember saying it.
Dr. Sidi., George Parkinson, who was maid in to
see tie injured women, add be fouiiii her setni-ooi.
iacious' supported by tui neighbours, Ti. bleeding was
st ipplid partly from exhaustion • id partly (rum Are,
Thorns's minim ra sea. in applying cobwebs to the
wounds. Hs found two-thirde of the right ear separ-
ate I from the bra I; awl the lower part be hal Bruce
removed. The left ear wee out through. Titer. was
• de-p irregular wound on the chin; • iiimple fraottna
of toe lower right jaw.hone ; ant severe blows sod
Injury t the upper right jaw.b o.e. There was also •
long deep out across the centre of the iorehead, end.
log on the right elle in • deep triangular-ahaped
jagged wound which extended to the boas. There
were eeverel more wounds of lees,, degree about the
face, and it was generally bruised and swollen. He
found on the scalp itself nine wounds, varying from •
belt t two and a hell inchee. The throat was like-
wise very much bruised and swollen and the women
complained of intense pail on the right
aids where she bad reosivel some injury over
the liver. ether she lied born carried to
be I. wi, en' tr u de they Naito el her from her
state I d collapse. S. hal Mayo on I. hi. care ever
emu's. She w. in • very danger.., slut,, awl con-
tinued g • for three vree're bta.. wee now out of it.
Iva eking at the harourar p:oinoed. he should think •
great many of the wound* were p Alio& I by it.
Hr. Sipr. Batty, who went to the Mr.*. toned the
injare I woman iii the abate .le.cribed by the previous
wittisse. There wee a deal of hi eel Ouut the floor,
and she wee in one mut iif blood herself. On rotor..
I•ht to tha Mahon, police-atatioo, he charged the
prioonsr with attempting Ic murder his wife, and he
sail "Yes. I done it; !hope my peer whets better."
Afterwards, he ha I handed him the crook of the
pris in.'s arm, which wan found in V. ghillie, and
he Ito arks of bloat! mil hair on it. In the well toe
d oith of water was lit.

_
Tnis w. ths who's of VI) evi !once, awl the
prisoner having boat duly obsro I by the marl&
trstes. isil_ _

,
" I hay; this much to say, if I doe it I was quits
unconicione of what I have done. I hays nothing
Co ire to say."
111 was thereupon cemmltte I for trial at the stint
Ageism for the attempted murder of hie wife.