The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1873-12-27 00:00:00

GLOUCESTER WINTER ASSIZES.
Before Mr. Justice Archibald.

THE EXTRAORDINARY CASE OF POISON.

ING NEAR BRISTOL.
SENTENCE OF DEATH.

The hearing of this ease (partly heard on Mon-
day), was resumed on Tuesday. Edwin Bailey
(33), shopkeeper. was indicted for the wilful
murder of Sarah Jenkins, at Horiield, on the 17th
August last; and Ann Barry (31), charwoman,
was indicted for aiding and abetting the said Ed-
win Bailey in the murder of the said Sarah Jen-
kins.

Mr. Powell, Q.C., and Mr. Gough prosecuted;
Mr. Sawyer defended Bailey, and Mr. tiriftichs ap-
peared for Barry.
The following is a brief recapitulation of the
facts October last year, a young woman
named Mary Susan Jenkins, who lived with her
parents at Myrtle Cottage, Horfield, near Bristol,
was delivered of on illegitimate female child, of
which the prisoner, Bailey, was subsequently ad-
judged the putative father, and ordered by the
magistrates to pay 5s a week towards the support
of the child till she arrived at the age of sixteen.
Bailey, who carried on business as a boot and shoe
dealer at Clifton, denied that he was the father of
the child, and strongly protested against the order
of the magistrates. He offered on the occaison to
give a half-sovereign to any one who would bring
him
.information of the death of the child. The
prisoner Barry, who was in Bailey's service, called
at Myrtle Cottage soon after Christmas last, and
professed to take great interest in the child. She
visited the house many times, and during one of
her visits she told the grandmother and mother
of the child, that the lady visitor of Cottham
Dorms Society took great interest in the case, and
would send them something for the child. On the
11th August a letter was received by the mother
of the child, purporting to have come from the
lady visitor of the Dorcas society, enclosing three
powders, labelled" Steadnan's Soothing Powders,"
and giving directionsa a to how the powders were
to be administered, One of the powders was given
to the child with some food on the lgth of August.
The poor thing was immediately seized with con-
vulsions, and died in ten minutes afterwards. The
remaining powders were subsequently analysed be
Mr. Horsley, county analyst, who found that they
consisted of "vermin killer," of which strychnine
is one of the principal ingredients. A postonortem
examination was made of the body, and, although
no poison was found, there were unmistakeable
symptoms that death resulted from strychnine.
The letter, which purported to have been sent by
the lady visitor of the Dorcas Society was. signed
"Jane Isabella Smith, Oak College, Cotthatu, Au-
gust, 1873." The handwriting of this letter was
afterwards found to correspond with the handwiit-
in several letters and bills found at the prisoner
Baileys office.
M. J. P. Wilton, senior surgeon of the Gloucester
Infirmary, said he had been desired to listen to the
evidence given on Tuesday, and assuming it to be
oorrect, the symptom described were in his opinion
consistent with poisoning by strychnine. The fif-
tecuth or twentieth of.a grain of strychnine would be
sufficient to cause the death of a child of the age of
the deceased. The third of a grain would cause the
death of all adult.

M. Chabot, the expert in writing, was the next
witness. He said he had received a number of docu-
ments, including letters and billbeads, the writing on
which hr had compared with letters known to have
been written by Bailey. and the points of resemblance
were so numerous that ho had no hesitation in afir-
ming that they were written by the same hand. He
had also compared these with the letter accompany-
ing the powders, and he said although this letter was
evidently written in afeigned hand, and to a certain
extent represented the handwriting of a lady, he
found it corresponded with Bailey's handwriting in
many important particulars, which he specified iu
detail with great minuteness.
Police-constable Critchley proved that he obtained
the bill-heads, &c., from Baileys office, in his shop;
and some of the letters he himsetf had received from
Bailey, who paid him the ss. a week to give to the
mother of the child.—Superintendent Rawle deposed
to having custody of the documents, and duly hand.
big them to Mr. Chabot.