The Express.
London, England, 1852-09-13 00:00:00

ALLEGED MURDER OF A BOY BY HIS

MOTHER.

On Friday evening last, says the Northampton
Memory, the town of Daventry was thrown into a state of
great excitement, by a rumour that another murder had
been awarsitted there. A woman named Oibbias lived
near the Market-plan with her unmarried sister, named
Selina Hartwell. Oibbins hes a husband living, but he had
left her for the last fortaight, in consequence, it is said, of
her profligate course of life. The ma, other person resi sing
in the house wee an illegitimate child, the sea of Mrs.
Gibbins before her marriage ; he was about eight years of
age. It is this boy who is @apposed to be murdered, and his
mother and aunt were promamed to be the murderers. On
Friday last the mother shut him up in the attic all day for
haying got a trifle in her name of her husband's mother,
and ailed threatened to have him locked up in gaol.
It was said that the boy had said he would hang himself if
she did that. At five o'clock in the afternoon a neighbour
saw him at the attic window eating some bread and butter,
and else spite to him. He seemed then to be well
and deaf Between six and seven the mother put
the hey be bud and then welt out, locking the door of the
hems shim her. At eight she and her sister returned home,
and the latter hay*, gone up stairs with some supper for
the hand him en the bed dead, with a handkerchief
tied sum tightly rend the throat. Mr. Snell, assistant to
Mr. Shuman, the empty, was sent fur, and Mr. Sharman
Ithsteett saw the heel shaft after, asueboth agreed that it
was impeneNd• that Ihs peer W eeelit have destroyed his
I own U& isilisisa fail=ishe mother and aunt.
The media to have ill-treated her child,
and to have mften expressed a wish the was dead. The
aunt, on the esatrary, was said to haw behaved very kindly
to him, sal le have remind same severe blows from her
awe Alm biteepietes le ewe bin kosher eager. Why she
sees Yuri la tie Inspisies whisk attedsed to the mother
bast to en. Nothing has tammpired in the slightest
degree te her, and the essemea told the jury at the
higuest that their deliberation most lays reference to the
meter rely. Both mother and and however, were taken
het Inady, and an inquest wee halo em the body us Satur-
day ad by adjournment on Tuesday. It was the opinion
el the medical awn that the poor boy had not died by
• it was supposed that the handkerchief had
lisZetleahLt his neck either immediately before or ins.
nedistely deer death; and it was suggested that he may
have push:may had poison administered to him. The sto-
mach, accordingly, and its contents, were forwarded to Mr.
H. 11. Oreeille, of this town, for Ansi] ution. Mr. Ore
Mlle, however, found no traces of poison, although
there woo inflammation to a certain extent, both of the
stomach and the intestines. On Tuesday the in.
quest was brought to a conclusion, when the aunt was set
at liberty, and a verdict of wilful murder returned against
the mother, and she was forthwith committed to gaol under
the coroner's worms- No suspicion attaches to Oibtias,
the Mohamed of the supposed murderer. Although the
child was sot his, he is said to have been much attached to
it, aad to have treated it with uniform landaus. He had
beam, as we have stated, not been living with his wife,
who had been conducting herself in a very disreputable
mariner, for more than a fortnight. It is a curious fact
that the wows* charged wall the murder is a native of By-
field, the birthplace also of the late Mrs. Pinekard, and of
Mary Clarke and Philip Haynes, who were executed for
the murder of Mr. Clarke, husband of the female prisoner,
in the year 1821. They were all, it is said, born within •
hundred yards of each other.