The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1868-01-28 00:00:00

"PECULIAR PEOPLE" CoM MITTED FOR
M A NS LA UGHTER.

l(r. Wm, Payne, City e roner, bold an inqniry on
Friday, touching the death of Louis Wagataffe, 14
econtho.

The deoemedVl the daughter of "two saints" of a
faith oelled the " Peculiar People." Though • girl she
was named Louis, after a saint of the (Meech.
Mrs. Fanny Miley, 16, Prince's.strret, Blackfeiaes-
reel, ,aid that she wan • widow, and wee 'one of the
"Peculiar People." The deceseed was the daughter of
Thumu Warteffe, • wharf labourer, and Mary
Andrew.. his wife. The child was always delicate, and
it suffered from a cough. The elders of the church were
cane togeV er gni tipsy anointed the chili. The oere-
MOOT gone through was the pouring of oil out of • phial
t the child's chest. They prayed to the Lord to
heal the child and raise it up .gain. Witmer. did not
•uggest the calling in of • doctor, because when she wax
herself laid In. the Lord of all raise' her up again. she
went by the word of God. On Towle, hat she saw
the child was worse, and death took place on Wednes-
day. They gave every nourishment to the child, and
also brandy and water. The reason they did not oral in
a enctor was that Scripture sail "Cursed is man that
riusteth in man;" and also, "Trask not in an arm of
fish." . . . . . .

A Juror : Did not Jesus speak of calling in physicians
to the eiek ? _ _

.
Wi,ness : In what part of Holy Writ do you find
that - . . . .

The Juror confessed that he did not know, but be
asked the witness, "If your leg was broken would vou
cell in a dort,r. or would you merely pray to the Lord
to get it mind.d r
Witness: The Lord says, "Not bone of the righteous
shell be brok.o."

Thomas Cook, the coroner's officer, deposed that on
Wednesday last, from information he received, he went
to 3, White Home-yard, and in a loft over a etabbs io
which was one horse, he saw the dead body of the de-
°eared child. The mother, Iffre. Adley, and two male
persons were in the loft. They said that the child had
M.en ill a fortniglA, and that no doctor had ...11 it—
Gil raised op the sick hod the wounded." Witness
*aid, " What I without medical aid !" What do you
cell your religion? They answered "Peculiar People."
Witness remarked that he had never bawd of each a
rellion before, and he thought they were very peculiar
indeed. . . . .

Dr. Thomas llonahoo, 19, Westminater-bridge-road,
mid that the parents called upon him for • burial
eerttacate after the child was dead, and of course be
refused to give it. He had since, by the coroner'.
order, made a post-mortem examination. He found
that as., b had reunited from inflammation of the lung..
The disease had been going on for ten days. If mt dies]
aid had been called in the chili would !MVO had a fair
chance of reooaery. Brandy and water would be highly
improror ; it 1.0.14 aggravate the disease.
Tacoma. Wagstaffe, the child', father, wag then asked
for an ~planation of hi. ...duet in not getting medical
aid fir his child. He said the remain is, Igloo my heart
to the Lord six years ago, and I believe that God in of
my body. Now. I believe that when lam laid low the
Lord trill raise me up. Six years ago I belieyeJ as the
people of th• world do. Orie at tbe elders of the church
will address you upon this.
Tbe Coroner said as the case was a Notions one he
would hear any witness that could be produced.
•

A middle-aged man, who bad the appearance of •
shop-keeper, then ittepped forward and said he ima an
elder. He hand. din 'A plan for the elders of the
Peculiar People, 1867-8," which way simply a lot of 13
places which were to he visited by the elders. The
head-quarters of the mint appyared robe in Font.
The C ronar said the deceased child hod lost it. life
through the fault of the sorority in not smearing
neoemary aid, and the offence amounted in law
to manslaughter. lien might leave their own Hem
ti the care of the Lord if they liked, bet the lives of
children should not be played with. He liked their
notion of trusting is the Lord, but in this mas they
had gotta too far.
The jury. after a short emmultation, returned a verdict
of "M•nalaughter against Thomas Wagstaff. and Mary
Andrews Waptaffe."
The Coroner said that be would talcs bail for the
appearaace of the •onniied at the Central Criminal Court.
He tied the amount at £BO Inc Wartalfa and hl• wife,
and two sureties of £4O each.
Two members of the sect. hat manufacturers, became
sureties. _ . •

The elder above alluded to said that in Rue:, where
they bad numbers of the.. 04• PS. Ilir. Oodd, Ole coroner
ate, oolvolting with the recorder, decided that when
they sincerely believed in the Lord it WIJ not man.
eleughlisr.
The Coroner said that he WM Of • different opinion,
end that he would send the parties to Newiate in
future cases, for ohildren's bees should be protected.
The sae for miracles was past, end they would Sod
ihat thoogh the gates opened for Paul sod Silas,
the Kates would not open for them while they were in

The elder remarked that physic killed agreed many
people.

Ihe saints pined • victory over the people of the
~..141 et the end .1 the Gene When they had eigerd
the hell hoed', they refused to pay the weal fora and
"Um' /*ail "WO Ikon' and assented, the,. was no
ve7 ni asropeniag Om is head am Me nobly.

So that the profits realoed front nianuf ictures in
there five 'rile in seven years kept the patient., down
to about El 6s. ps r convict per annum, while to the
Hooghly ganl the resillt of Hie seven years' work was a
Cl. ar gain to the goy. roment of £1,488, or at the rate
of more than £2OO a year. I may add, that taking the
whole of the pole in Lower Bengal with their i.e.,
prison population of more than twenty thotwand
touvicts, the sectimulatri income of the la..y eleaen
yens colored about one.thirl par of the wir 1 • •zEi
dhow incurred. So mu • h for the results of convict
I•bour in Bengal. Thy drrearth .y-tem. introduced by
Mr. Motile, is carried out in •11 the bent managed p.o.e.
with werrtained and complete success. The gaolers
show you places used &illy by hundrede if °onside
which are as inoffensive ti sight or smell as a
H. Igravia drawing.room. A system haa been introduced
Wee, grit, as I hear, by Mr. Mooney, the gaoler at
Honghly, so receutly as 16.10, whereby welhbeheionl
convicts are employed in the etants, to the client ,e( 5i
net cent. of the mean prison p.pul•tion, w in tty others.
eff •et a sort of m •notori•l systole) is introdoced into
gaol management. This system is found to work with
auceew, and will probably adroit of consider•
able development,