The Express.
London, England, 1865-07-08 00:00:00

THE PIDGEI3 CHARGE AND THE VERDICT OP

TB/ JURY.

EDINBURGH, nix it
The 001Irt met again this morning at 10 dam*.
The public ironer in the trial had pertly lowered. mil
the done d the coot veer we bregot by headiede id
room err to obtain admires to kw the jedgea ewe
to the jury.

The Lord Judos Clerk, after retards( to the Fmk
atrocity ct the mimes laid to the prison's ohmage, and the
singular means by which it wee alleged be perpetrated
these minis, said them were three thin. of which
the jury most be satisfied upon the evidenca la the feet
plate, 'they must be sandal that the deceased died by
poison ; it the wand place, that the poison was wilfully
edeeinistered far the impose of destroyieg life ; sad in the
third Mem, that it was the primmer at the her vibe me ad.
ft, or eimed it to ke so admintotered. Beebe
goes over the medical widows in regard to the drat vier
time, be said the jury would madder wise', it wee pomade
to resist theme oimotaidaame Int, that Mrs, Maud died
from the adios of amlimany alone, adasialetsred to Isom
quantities. mad, secondly,. that Mrs. Taylor died team
action al madamy either aloes or in cambiastioa
with aconite and aphis. In the case of Mn. Pritchard
the midmost( the police having bees takes continuously
for • Friedel maths maluded the posibility of either eon-
dist or saiside, sad, therefore, it @nomad imspoeible to N-
isi the comiseles that the patios must have bees Mimi:
sistseed by some one far the purpose of destroying her Me.
The eharsoler sad 'dadaist d Mrs. Taylor sad her goseVall
ocodition of body sad mind were such se sot to most the
idea of suicide In her cam as a poseibility at all, sad
whether she died through the {alums* of antimony NW-
nistend is several deems, as the inimical reports olsenly
bore can, Cr whether her death wee Margin about imme-
diately through swallowin some of the costeals of the
bottle of Battley's solution, it was very difficult to saber-
stand bow bee death was caused by solidest. The
jag would ecamider whether they maid reeled the meek.
Son that the perm by which Mrs. Taylor was deprived
of life was also wilfully ewes for the very parses of de-
stroying life. The third question, which was me of vital
interest in the case, was whether the primmer adosinis.
iced, or mused to be edmimistered, be either or both of
the ladies, the poise by which their lime ware destroyed.
His lordship wait minutely into the evidence relating to
the illness sad death of the two ladies, directing the ellen-
Mon of Me jury to the fact, sod characterising it as " •
Miry remedrable circiumtmace" that throughout, shimmer
misses had moues to explain to anybody what he
thought was the matter with him wife, he called it parte
fever. whoa all the symptoms Indicated the very mime of
liwthidag wider fever. His lordskipalsopointedoat to thejiry
. that the primmer rep ad to the registrar that Ms. Taylor
had bees trader petards for twelve hours, which be kerw
TM an absolute falsehood ; and that the disease which Im-
mediately preceded dank was apoplexy, while the snsilikal
!Wow* had danammtrated. that there we. mot *tame of
apoplexy in the case. The jury would consider whether,
la the came of a professional man like the prisoner, he could
wader the arcuustaness, if his wife died nadir the affects
ef antimonial poison, be so far demigod as to believe
she did of gastric fever. After noticing the erideace ma
be the poisoned cheese, the egg dip, and the tapioka, his
lordship said it appeared berried • doubt that some ens
bad been practising a system of poisocing, end ask In
poseemion of the primmer were the agents to carry it N-
U he understood the theory of the prisoner's counsel
aright, it wss that Mary M'Leod was the person who
mused these murders, and that the jury roost choose be-
-1 twos km and the primer at the bar by balancing probe-
hilt** ; bat the prieoner's counsel did not Nam saintly
is advert to the possibility that both might be begonia.
and if that was so they could have very little doubt who
was the master and who set on the other; bat he (the Lord
Justice Clerk) did sot desire the jury to take this theory,
and he thought it quite right that they should consider

*pea the Wailes at PrebebiliWee which el the tw wee the
perpetrator od the edam. Was it ceseebrable that a girl.
16 or IT years el age, in the positioa of a sweat maid,
could have herself conceived or executed such a desks? eel
if she had conceived it, could she have swouted
it, subject to the vigilance el the husked
of her victim, himself a wean! men? That was tear
hard to believe, indeed. On the other head, if the prisoner
conceived and executed the design, it was not so dlieult
to believe that Nary N'Leod may have been the per-
fectly UDO:NaCiOII6 and baaweet inetranseat of earryieg out
his purpose. If they were 'stilled the warder was mac.
witted, the partiselwhe had awes to tire. Pritchard galy
could have done it. Some of them were plainly ienceent,
and hi owe et ethers the probability of guilt we reduced to
two ; al these two ea*, ee both, of thew were guilty of the
deed.

The jag noticed to ocuidor thin vordist about twisty
minutes put us o'clock, sod retuned is about sallow
with as snosimots unliet of Guilty on both eincies.

The Lord Justice Clerk then senteseed the prisoner to
be ezemited et Glasgow on the 28th inst., and in pawing
suttees* said that the verdict of the jury proceeded nee*
',Memos which could lame no resemble doubt on the
minds of them by whom it woe considered.
The primer, who had maintained great oompomre
throughout the am days of the trial, seemed sweetly
effected whoa the verdict ma pronounced, and leant slightly
op the poliosessu sitting beside him, but while the sentence
was Using recorded be completely regained his mammon,
end after senteeee was paned open him be bowed to the
judge, and also to the jam before leaving the dock.