The Press.
London, England, 1856-08-30 00:00:00

Xabr ad Volta.

BETSY lii'Mum.eiv, of Bolton, tried last week at
Liverpool and found guilty of manslaughter, for poi-
soning her husband with small doses of antimony,
was sentenced on Monday by Mr. Justice Willes to
transportation for life. The evidence was strongly
against the prisoner, and in favour of deliberate
murder ; but, apart from that, the trial presented some
curious features of the manners and customs of
Bolton. It appeared from the evidence of the diffe •
rent witnesses that the druggists of Bolton are in the
habit of selling •certain powders called "quietners."
These powders contain tartarised antimony, and are
sold with the view of quieting and curing drunken
husbands, by making them so sick and prostrating
them so completely that they feel little or no incli-
nation for some time to come to get drunk again.
Daniel M'Mullan lived with his wife unhappily. He
was a flour-dealer, and they were both drunkards.
Mr. M'Mullan's life was insured for 1001., and he
was jealous of his wife, apparently with good cause.
On the 7th of June last they both got drunk, and quar-
relled about a man named Peter. Ann Hutton, the
servant, in washing her drunken mistress and putting
her to bed, searched her pockets and discovered a
powder. For some time past Hutton had observed
her mistress, on several occasions,-mix a little white
powder with Mr. M'Mullan's food; she had put some
in his broth, in the gravy on his plate, in his buttermilk
and treacle, and on each occasion her master was after-
wards very sick. • Early in April M'Mullan had con-
sulted Mr. Donien, a surgeon. He complained of
constant vomiting and• pain, and Mr. Dorrien pre-
scribed for him. He continued unwell during May.
On June 22nd he was very ill; be vomited constantly,
suffered severe burning pains in his stomach, and on
the 2nd of July he died. During these latter days
Hutton had observed her mistress mix somo white
powder with Mr. M'Mullan's medicine and tea. Her
suspicions being excited on observing a powdery
deposit in the bottle, she took it, and also some tea,
over to Mr. Dorrien. In both antimony was discovered.
A post-mortem examination took place, and, although
the medical evidence was not quite satisfactory as to
the cause of death, yet antimony was declared to have
materially hastened death. Upon being questioned,
Mrs. WM ullan acknowledged having purchased these
powders from Simpson, a druggist in the town, and
to have administered them now and then for the pur-
pose of eurialf her husband of his drunken tastes.
Simpson in ho evidence acknowledged the sale

SATURDAY,

The powders (he said) are used by factory operatives to
clear cotton from their stomachs. 1 don't remember ever
to have seen a man come for these powders. We always
tell purchasers to divide each powder into four doses. We
sell about five every week.

The jury, after nearly three hours' deliberation, re.
turned a verdict of " Manslaughter," and Mr. Justice
Willes commented severely on the custom of women
dosing their drunken husbands iu order to keep
them quiet. " A woman," said the judge, " has no
right, whether for good or evil, to administer doses
of any drug to her husband without his knowledge
and consent." " Such acts," he added, " appear to
me to be perfectly terrible." He did not pass sen-
tence at the moment, but he made a very useful re-
mark before he parted with the case :
I likewise think it right to state, that if Mr. Simpson or
any other person engaged in the sale of drugs chooses to
sell to married woman such poisonous drugs without the
knowledge of their husbands, and well knowing that they
are to be administered to their husbands, no matter for
what purpose, and death ensues, I repeat that Mr. Simpson
and all others so acting are equally guilt of manslaughter.

A "FOUR•OLAMP " MAN, JAMES ORPIN, of the
Coldstreams, in a St of despair on Sunday morning
at being deserted by his wife, attempted to drown
himself in the Thames. He was rescued in time,
and taken to Bow-street. On Monday he was brought
before Mr. Hall. It appeared from the evidence that
while Inspector Thomas, of the Thames Police, was
on duty at the station•gallery tear the Adelphi pier,
at about half-oast nine in the morning, he saw the
defendant go aboard the halfpenny steamboat,
Endeavour, run across the deck, throw off his leather
belt, and jump into th 3 river. The inspector imme-
diately called his men to the oars, and proceeded to
the spot, where they caught defendant's body with
the boat-hook, and succeeded in getting him into the
boat. The defendant remained breathless for some
little time, and then called to the crew to let him
drown, exclaiming earnestly, " Oh, let me drown ;
pray let me drown ! I did not know you were so near
me." He then made several attempts to throw him-
self in again, struggling very bard with the men,
until the inspector threatened to handcuff him if he
did not remain quiet. On being asked what motive
he could have for destroying his life, he replied,
"My wife, my dear wife, whom I loved so truly, has
left me." He was then taken to Bow-street. The
colour-sergeant of the regiment, a stalwart fellow,
also wearing the Crimean medal and clasps, here
stepped forward and informed the magistrate that
defendant, who had been on duty throughout the late
campaign, was a most efficient soldier, and bore an
excellent character. He bad sent home a great deal
of money to his wife during his absence in the
Crimea—more, perhaps, than any other man in the
battalion ; and when, on returning home again, he
handed her every penny of his savings, she suddenly
absconded—having, it was believed, formed a connec-
tion with another man during her husLand's absence.
The defendant, who seemed painfully affected, said
he was fully sensible of the wrong tie had committed
in a moment .of bitter anguish; and assured his
worship that if he would overlook the offence this
time, it should never be repeated. He had lived
happily with his wife for fourteen years, and her
sudden desertion now, without any conceivable cause,
was so great a shock to him that it was almost more
than he could bear.

Mr. Hall inquired if there was any one to look to him
until his mind became calmer and more settled ?

Defendant: Take my word, your worship, I will not
attempt it again. I had better go to the barracks; that
will be the place for tue. I had leave, as a married man, to
live out of barracks, but now I must go back. Let me go
with the sergeant.

Eventually the defendant was given up to the
sergeant, who undertook to look after him for the
present.

A CURIOUS CASE (Petrie v. Ellis) was tried this
week before Mr. Baron Bramwell at Liverpool. The
action lay between the master of a merchant ship
and an underwriter for "total loss" on an insurance
policy for 3,8001. on gold dust and nuggets, and 0001.
on sovereigns. The details of the " total loss " were
singular. The plaintiff, in 1852, made a voyage to
Adelaide in his own vessel, went to the Junga
diggings with 1,8001. in his pocket and a dray.load of
provisions, kept a store, sold his flour at 150/. a ton,
bought gold dust at 31. an ounce, and soon realised a
tolerable profit. He then made several voyages be-
tween Adelaide and Melbourne, and at length, in
May, 1853, started on his return home with some
4,4001. worth of gold dust and sovereigns, packed in
strong boxes and sowed away under his bed.
Coming up channel on the night of the 12th of
October, blowing hard and a heavy sea on, he
thought he would burn a blue light to show his posi-
tion to passing ships. He unpacked the blue lights
in his cabin, took one on deck ; it was damp ; he
went down for another and found it ready lighted,
fizzing away on the top of the powder magazine,
and setting fire to his bed-clothes. He smothered