The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1873-05-17 00:00:00

THE sHocKINTa TRAGEDY AT DUDLEY.

COMMITTLL OF THE MURDERESS.

On Monday, at the Dudley Borough Police Court,
before Sfesars.pobn ,k•tou and Wm. Wilkinson, Fanny
Cook, wife of Benjamin Cook, batter, of Martin Rill
Street, was brought up on a charge of having wilfully
murdered her son. Mr. Joireph Stokes appeared for the
defence. The Court was crowded during the hearing of
the mum. .

The first witness called wall a married woman named
Mary Clacherty, who said: I live in a house near the
prisoner. On Thursday last, at about ten o'clock in
the morning I went to the prisoner's house for some soft
water. I found Mrs. Cook sitting on • chair in the
back kitchen, and nursing her baby. I asked her if I
should dress the eldest child, and she replied, " You can
if you like.' I also asked if I should take the baby
and wash it, and the prisoner said, " You can if you have
more right to it than me." She stared at me and ap-
peared strange. I then took away both children, and
having washed and dressed the baby I took it back that
it might suckle. I cut a piece of bread and butter for
the other child, and left it on the table, and went how,.
In about twenty minutes afterwards I returned t the
prisoner's house for the bread and butter, and I found
the front door faceni d. I called out, " Are you in,
Mrs. Cook ?" No reply was made, but the prisoner
almost immediately opened the door. I then saw she
was bleeding from the throat, and I called to Mrs.
Hirons, a neighbour, who went into the house. I fol-
lowed her, and prisoner was sitting down in the back
kitchen with the baby in her arms. Mrs. Hirone took
the baby from her and gave it to me. I was about to take
the child to my house, when I nursed it until Mr.
Bradley, surgeon, came, and he sewed up the wound. I
attenied to the child until • few minutes before twelve
o'clock the same day, when it expired. A policeman
came, and he remained until after the surgeon arrived,
and he took the prisoner away. I saw the pocket knife
produced lying on the table when I went in with Mrs.
Hiroos. The handle and blade were covered with blood.
Mrs. Cook had been addicted to habits of intemperance,
and at times her demeanour was very strange. Had
seen her almost daily for the past fortnight, and she
seemed on several occasions the worse for drink. On
the morning in question she looked sober, but shook ver7
much.

In reply to Hr. Stokes. witness said: The prisoner ap-
peered very strange on Thursday. The fire in her house
was not lighted, although it was ten o'clock. She had a
wild appearance about her eyes, and during the whole of
the time the policeman was in the house she did not
speak to me. A curate from the parish church baptised
the child before its death. He asked Alex Cook what
the name of the child was, and she replied," Edwin
Cook." When asked if she should like the child to be
baptised, she answered, •• Yes." I saw her on the pre-
vious day, and she was then very strange, brit not intoxi-
cated._ . . . .

Lionise Hirons stated, that she took the baby from
prisoner and gave it t • the last witness. Did not notice
that the baby was injured. She paid to prisoner,
o Whatever have you done?" and she replied, '• I want to
be taken to. I want to be taken by the police, and I
must go." She tried to get up from her seat, and again
said '" I must go' Witness pushed her bock into her
chair. She had seen priroher on the previous Monday,
when she appeared very strange. On Thursday morning
she stared very much and frightened witness.
Police-constable Northam stated tilt he went to the
prisoner's house, and in the kitchen he found the
prisoner, the child, and severol persons. He saw the
baby bleediug from the throat, end the prisoner was also
bleeding from wounds in the throat. He searched the
house, found a pocket knife in the same room, and in
the front room upstairs he saw a largo pool of blood on
the Boor, close
ptorote
etrehleaadcao h bed, a
car and
at.de
eo.,,ynd o
conveyed
some n e
prisoner
tbedoZtteeapod-licelie -station. She was gilled, but stared. Did
not notice anything stronge in her manner, and she did
not appear tipsy. That (Monday) morning he had
charged her with the wilful murder of her infant son, by
cutting his throat with a knife, and she made no reply.
She had been in the lunatic ward at the Workhouse,
under medical..care, since Friday.

I. D. Bradley, surgeon, stated that he was sent for
on Thursday. and lie went to the prisoner's house, in
Martin Hill Street. He found the prisoner sitting on a
chair in the back room. Mrs Clacherty, a neighbour,
was by her side with the child in her arms, and prisoner
was looking at it. The child appeared to be suncating.
Its pinafore was completely saturated with blood, which
came from the throat. On examining the throat he
found an incision two inches and a gamier long Over
the middle of the larynx. The windpipe was completely
separated, and the gullet opened. The deep jugular veins
were laid bare. He place I a tube in the windpipe and
stitched tip the wound, and left the child in charge of
his tant. He then went to the prisoner, and found
two wounds in her throat. They were clear incised
wounds. The upper one was three and a half inches
long, the lower one two and a half inches long, and
they were abont half an inch apart. They penetrated to
the windpipe, but did not cut it, and there was nothing
dangerous to life. They were in the direction from left
to right, and in tea opinion were self.inflicted, Re
stitched the wounds. lie attended the child several
times daring the day, and saw it after death, the same
night. The cause of death was the wound in the throat.
and it might have been inflicted by the knife produced.
When he first saw the prisoner she was looking at the
baby with A Eyed ',tare. Her hands were trembling, and
she had the appearance of • person suffering from
delirious trews..

By Mr. Stokes: Had seen her every day sine°, and in
consultation with Mr. Higgs. This consultation had
reference to her state of mind. He believed that even

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Saturday, May 17, 1879.