The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1874-09-22 00:00:00

SHOCKING DEATH OF A WOMAN AT
DRIDFORT.

About four o'clock on Tunnd•Y the vicinity of Wert-
thrown Into • state of excitement by the report
West-
et had committed suicide by cutting her
tkrostas" report.proved true. A woman named Susan
Record, aged JO years, who lived with her mother
lea" between Chard's and Mr. Newberry's
in • Pn"6
had, it seems for a long time been in. low state
;;InTind ; brought on by the death of her husband about
nnr years ago, and her being left with two young children,
She was also subject to tits, and when she had them often
fell down, injuring herself, and bruising herself about the '
head in fact, elle had for • long time complained of
pains in her head. On Wednesday about three o'clock
her mother went out, the two young children were at
school, and on the mother's return about three-quarters
of an hour afterwards, she found her daughter lying under
the table, on her face, with her throat cut, and quite
dead.
The inquest was held on Wednesday evening, at hail-
put cdock, at the Star Inn, before Mr. N. M. Leggin
and the following jury :—Mr. Henry Patten (foreman),
Mr. Isaac Mina, Mr. Henry Hutchinson HIM Mr. Richard
Kendall, Mr. Thomas James Smith, Mr. Arthur Charles
thale, Mr. Isaac Foster Foot, Mr. Samuel Diller, Mr.
Thomas Turner, Mr. John Gold Phillip', Mr. Edward
Norman. and Mr. Richard Ebdon. The jury, having been
sworn, proceeded to see the body, and on their return the
first
.witness called was
. .

Eliza Morrie, the mother of deceased, who was very
deeply affected, and continued to sob violently during the
time she gave her evidence. She said yesterday afternood
she had occasion to go into the Bradpole road; she left
her daughter at home, saying she should not be gone
long. Her daughter Deemed very well at the time she
left ; she should think she was Agent about three-quarters
of an hour. On her return she found the latch gone from
the door of her house, so that she could not gain *Amis.
Mon. She asked tho neighbours " Has anyone seen
Eliza r hut no one could give her any information. She
then took the latch out of • neighbour's door, opened the
door of her house, and went in, when she saw her
daughter lying on the floor with her Inuid under the table.
She exclaimed "Gh I my dear maid; have you had
another tar She turned the body over, saw that her
daughter was dead, and then cried out "Lord have merry
upon me; my poor maid la dead." Her daughter was
always very delicate; her husband had been dead about
four yearn, and left her with two young children, and
this had preyed upon her mind. Dr. Hay had attended
her six years ma, for eta, and at that time took a stone
out of her head.
By Mr. Norman •. She had been very desponding since
her husband's death, and kept herself indoors.
By the Goroner : When she (witness) came back It was
about half-past three. There was no lock to her door, only
• latch, and this the deceased had taken out and placed
in • shell in the house. She and her daughter had lived
together all their lives, and since her daughter's husband's
death she and deceased and the two children had lived
together. She (witness) repaired umbrellas, and her
daughter was a braider. She had never heard her
daughter threaten to destroy hermit she generally had the
fits of • Monday morning; she had several bruises about
her head and body occasioned by falling down when she
was in these fits. They lived about the same on Sundays
no they they did on other days, so she did not think anything
deceased ate of a Sunday could bring on the fits. When
she found her daughter she was lying on her face; and
she saw the knife blood all over, lying near. Her daughter
had bled very much; she had not taken off any of her
clothes; there was plenty of room for her to cut her throat
without taking off anything. The deceased was braiding
when she left her, and lying under the table quite dead
when she came lark. She did not know of anything
likely to cause the deceased to destroy herself ; she had
the last tit last Monday week; the fits would take her
sometimes when she was combing out her hair, and down
she would drop.
By Mr. Hill: Sometimes when the had a fit she would
knock_ herself.
_shout_ .

By Mr. Blips : They commix' to lire the best way
they could; her daughter had no parochial relief for her-
self, only for the children.
Mr. Norman said the mother of deceased applied to him
about three weeks ago, asking if he had a net to put sot
for her daughter to braid, as she was always so low-
spirited when she had nothing to do, and was only happy
when she
.had work.. . . .

the witness had there been t dis-
turbance up the passage in the morning of Monday. It
was reported in the town that there had been, and he
(witness) had taken the part of the neighbours against her
daughter.
Witness said it was not so ; she and her daughter had
never had the least unpleasantness.
In answer to Mr. Gale, witness said she did not know
of anything that would account for her daughter's com-
mitting the act.
Mr. Phillips (to witness): Did your daughter ever say,
in your hearing, that if she cut her throat she would do it
177aless : I never heard her say anything of the kind in
my life.
Mr. Phillips said he had put this question, as there were
a lot of reports about the town, and he thought it would
I,' satisfactory to have some of them cleared up.
Selina Smith, wife of William Smith, said she saw the
holy of deceased about half-past three o'clock yesterday
afternoon. Mrs. Morris came and told her that she could
not make her daughter hear, and then Mrs. Morris
(deceased's mother) went and took Mrs. Neale's latch, and
entered the house, when she (witness) went in with her,
and saw a lot of blood about, and deceased lying on the
floor, with her throat cut.
By the Coroner: There was no one in the house at the
time: she saw Mrs. Morris leave the house when the
children of deceased went on to school, and she saw her
come back again and go into the house as she had
legcribed. She did not see deceased after the children
o ent to school ; deceased generally kept herself very close;
deceased complained nearly every morning to her about
her head, saying that she did not like to vex her mother
I)' telling her how much she troubled herself about the loss
of her husband, and the care of her two children. She
heard the deceased say last Saturday week she should like
to be a nun, as she would not then hear or see anything;
deceased had been very dull since her husband's death.

_
Ily Mr. Hill: Them was no quarrelling in the court
on Monday. When a woman came to live there • little
time ago, Elisa said she did not like to live by the side of
her. There were • few words on Monday: deceased had
nothing to do with it, nor yet her mother. The fact was
Mr. (bard who occupies the fmnt shop, came out and said
he should n it have bad characters standing about; she
was yen, glad to hear Mr. Chard say so, and she and the
woman complained of had • few word.: of course Mrs.
Neale liked to let the bousear but the neighbours did not
like to have bad characters about,
By Mr. Gale: She did not think deceased thought one
of her fits was coming on when she saw her that day.
Deceased had told her how she was taken all of • shaking
at night, and how she did not think she should live long;
but the morning of the occurrence deceased seemed quite
cheerful. She had heard deceased's mother say that she
was not fit to he left alone, as she was always very low
spirited.
By Mr. lull: Had never heard her say she would cut
her throat: she had heard deocasted tumbled about when
she had the fits, and she must have bruised herself very
much.
. . . .

P.C. Masterman said he was on duty at the station
about four o'clork yes when he w told that •
woman had cut her thrWartie as
went at once to the house
of deceased, and found her lying on her back with her
throat cut; her head was nearly off ; the windpipe waa
severed, and the end of it sticking out. Ile found a piece
of hag, and on it the knife he produced, which was covered
with Mood, and appeared to have been recently sharpened.
(It was an ordinary blade of • dinner knife, but had no
handle.
fly the Coroner: There was not the least sign of any
struggle having taken place; when he first went into the
house, there was a quantity of blood under the table,
showing that she must have fallen there when she rut her
throat. He law nothing more than the knife lying about.
Dr. Hay was present, as he had been sent for on the
discovering of the body, but it was not thought necessary
to call medical evidenne.
The Coroner said what the jury had to consider was,
whether any one else cut the throat of deceased ; or
whether she cut her throat herself. It appeared she had
been suffering very much in her head, and also that she
had been in low spirits for sonse time.
The jury immediately returned as their verdict "That
the deceased destroyed herself whilst in a tit of temporary
humility."