The Express.
London, England, 1863-12-23 00:00:00

THE FLUSHING LUNACY CASE.

Samuel Porter, charged with neglecting and O-
ttomans his brother, Robert Porter, a lunatic, at Fl
was spin brought
before the county magistrates, uaatbkl:
meth, an
Mr. J. B. Moirmaa auto defended the prisoner ; and
Mr. H. S. Law, of Bush-lau, London, aohcitor to the one-
'Melamine in lousy, sow nominated the prosecution.
Edwin Elliott said—l reside at Flusbiog. I know the
defendant, Samuel Porter, and have raided in his hones at
Flush! . I first went to live there lest Christmes. He
was myolandlord, and occupied part of the house with me
Os the 28th of March last, defeedaetreinoved into another
house at Flushing. Oo entering on the occupation I be-
came acquainted with the teat that there was a man in
lithe house besides defendant, his wife and family, and my
family, because of the noises he }node. The noises were
sot such as nesegenerallymake—theee was no sense in them.
t They were like a ball roaring. There were cries axed marines
out Jot night, not during the day. They were like the
cries of • lunatic, and nut of • sane person. At the time
ddeedant war going to remove, be came to me in the
evening, and said to me, "Neighbour, if you hear any
mess en the night, dou'l be alarmed or trouble your.
self to get up, for through the night I am thinking of
takiog away this man." I understood him .to allude to the
man who made the cries. I told him if be wanted any help
I would lend bbn a hand. H. told me he was •ery much
obliged to me, but that be could manage to do it
Nothing else pseud between us then. In the course of
the night, I should think between twelve and one o'clock,
I heard a noise like the wheeling of • wheelbarrow past the
front door to the back door, and to the bottom of the hill.
I did not get up, but, after an interval of Bve or six minutes,
I heard the barrow wheeled away, I saw Samuel Porter the
next morning, and he said to me, " Did you ma us come
through the night r I said "Oh, la
h, yes, I heard yeti come
within
the wheelbarrow during the night. He said, " Didn't
you hear me go into the room?" I told him I did not.
H. told me he said to his brother he me going to remove
him to a new boom, and that he had put him in a wheel-
barrow. I asked him if be had more help, sod he amid
no one but himself and his wife, and that he (the brother)
was quite quiet until he got him up to the now house, and
after be got him into the house he (the defendant) said,
"This is • nice room, isn't it, Robert ''land his brother
answered," Riddling, oomdderMg." The new house is at
the bottom of the New-toed aWlmbilig, and the ow at
which he is Dow reskling. I had teen in it with the de-
fondant before this removal, end he pointed out the place
in which he meant to put Robert. On the morning after
the removal, about five o'clock, I went into the room that
had been previously occupied by Robert. I °posed the
door, but found the stench se had that I war obliged to go
beck. I left the door open for a few minutes to air the
room. I returned to the room, and went inside. I can
hardly describe the state in which it was. It was worse than
any pigsty I ever saw in my life. Both the walls and the
floor were strewn with human dung and wet, dirty, rotten
straw. Just inside the door I saw his bed in the corner. It
was a large blue stone like a hearthstone, bricked up about
four inane above the general level of the floor. The stone
was covered with dung about four inches thick, and on it was
the impression of the man's body. By dung I mean human
dung. There was not a bit of straw. Theirs was the mark
of the man when he had lain, like • vessel in the mud. I
oonvinoed myself the bed was stone by taking a shovel and
shovelling the dung off it. It was about four feet long. In
the forenoon of the same day, assisted by two boys, I re-
moved the greater pert of the filth. We winked is turns, for
we could Not stay there long at • time. There war quite
half a cart load of dung. Both walls were like the door,
smothered with human dung. I found about six feet of the
floor thoroughly rotten. There was a window to the room.
I tried to open it, bat found it ballot. The glass was
coveted with green mould, wed I could not see through it.
There was no internal communication between this room
and the house. To get to the room we had to go out at
the beck door and through an alley about 18 inches wide,
and from 18 to 20 feet long. The alley is not straight ;it is
at a right angle. I never saw any feed carried but bread
aultrowle. There was no chimney in the old room. It
wee nearly twelve feet long sod six feet wide, and about
eight or nine feet high. There have been alterations made
in the room now, and communication established with the
house. The man had been digging into the wall. There
were marks of a man's hand, but I have had that repaired,
sad one-half of the floor ha, been renewed.
Julia Tregiddgo, an old woman, examined by Mr. Law,
said—l reside in a house next door to the one defendant
occupied until the 25th March hat. He had lived there
ten yeah, and occupied that house as the owner of it. I
knew be had a brother called Robert. I knew Robert quite
well. He was a fine young man more than twenty-five
year. ago. I
mother died, in 1842, until about three years ago. I
had previously been very much Warred by the Mined he
made. During my husband's lifetime I was not so much
afraid, but three years ago I determined to ascertain whether
he could not get out. I went to the buk door of the
room. which was the us from which the noises bad come.
The door was latched, bet net looked. I opened it a smell
bit, end just looked in. I saw • human being there without
a bit of clothing, stark naked. He was doubled up together
in a crouching posture. sad seemed to leave his legs behind
I him. It was Robert Porter, I am sure. This was about
ten o'clock in the morning, and thelight was good. I did not
speak. I was too much afraid, and ran away se quick as I
could. I have no doubt that was the person from whom
mad to bear the cries sod poises. I did not observe the
state of the room. Daring the whole tea yeans—not every
sight—l frequently heard him cry out. He mostly called
=is sister Charlotte, of whom he war so food, "Chub,
food,
She is now in America. I have eat heard any
noises sines he was removed eight or nine years ago. When
I last knew him he was not a triple. He made more noises
in the winter time than at any other, beginning about nine
o'clock.
Mr. Moorman—Do you know be was kept there against
his well?
Witness (warmly)—Poor soul, he was pushed into the
room, and there he was kept.
Mr. Law (addressing the bench) said—That is the ease
for
fees prosecution, and upon that I ask you to commit the
pri for trial.
Mr. Moorman, at considerable length, then addressed the
bench in defence, arguing that the act of parliament did not
apply to this case.
At the conclusion of his remarks the magistrates retired.
In a few minutes they returned, when
Mr. Hereford said the bench had given this cue every
consideration, and had come to the coeclusioo that there
was evidence of an offence statutorily as well as in common
law. They were therefore determined to commit Samuel
Porter to take his trial at the next earning &mixes.
The formal charge having bees eyed,
The prisoner, in reply, aid—l have nothing to say at
precient.
This concluded the proceedings, and Porter was wooded
through the streets by a guard of constables. However,
the few pintoes who awaited the prisoner contented them-
selves with hooting him, but he was otherwise unmolested.