The Express.
London, England, 1858-07-26 00:00:00

COMMISSION OP LUNACY.

EXTRAORDINARY REVELATIONS OF PRIVATE

ASYLUMS.

YORK CASTLE, Jv

This day a commission de lanatioo inqairendo was
opened at York Costley bdere F. Barlow, Eq., ono of t►s
Masters in Lunacy, to aecorktia the Mate of mind of Mrs.
Mary Jane Turner. the wife of Charles Tamer, Esq., official
amlosse in the Liverpool Court of Bankruptcy, at present ma
beset la the private asylum called /tomb lien York.
Mr. Mapinoll was "Nines!, and Mr. Norris, of Uverpool,
aelleiter, to the petitioner , aid Mr. E. James, Q.C., conned,
ad Mr. Pemberton, of Liverpool, solicitor, for the usproont
lunatic.

A very influential jury of twenty gentlemen having bale
morn, and the anal preliminaries having been game
through,

The htaetet briefly introduced the subject into which they
were cedhod ors to inquire , and, hawing stated the dation
which Ibe Pis, would be called upon to perform,
. . _

Mr. Alilwa promaidied to open the Oar,doing which
he said that im eitenhi emisavour to abstain as much em pos-
sible from Mftwiming wagedwg which might be otlemaim and
Is the sitiveset the part The petitioner,
riire.Tratible: was the afield amignes in the Liverpool Bank-
ruptcy Com; and eneinmeisil be the lady whoformed the sub-
Jett al the primal ingairy la 1545, she at that time not being
in the setae geellian ii lills a• Kr. Tamer. Boca shoe thek
marriage they had deamema miming tram di
of
mind, which enbaegasmily bourn mere fully
After the marriage the paillawar anil his wllhatt
Dedliseas, in Chian*, awl while them • Law
to Mr. Turner (but not mended for the petitiaber) got Into
her hands by mistake. This War err from some servant in
Wales, mid reqoasted the to whom it was addressed to
meet her at a ;Moe w Mrs. Turner junsped
to the costehuion that her husband was engaged in arms
private oxammication with the girl. Mr. Turner at this
time was from home, and during his absence she went into
Wake, saw the person who had seat the letter, and thereby
...temopesed elicited information which she applied to Mr. Turner. On his return to Li the met bun at the
stalky, and, on getting into a ca assailed him with
her tongue and her hands in such a manner that Mr.
Tamer drove to • surgeon, named Stephenson, who saw
Mrs. Tumor, and doomed his opinion of her. From that
mewed her mind became possessed of the most extra.
anlinexy imspicions respecting her husband, for whether at
ham, at hotel, or lodging-houses, she was constantly
&wen her husband with too great facialliarity with
memen, and especially with the domestics. A woman maid
M bosh at him in the street, but Mrs. Tamer upbraided
hies with sodas familiarity. She often dm into fits of
ging vialsom, sad la sae of these the jumped out of •
Mailer sed broke her leg. While confined to bed, Kr.
Tamar was meet antitheses in his attention to her; but

ftetwitheendlei, on two common when he left the room
eke sold he had gone to bat with cm of the servants, sad it
was whit the iperitet pride Ilikulty that she could be
pentawisd M rani alai tad mot follow hina. Oa another
were es oho aid • rubor, and eftadag bee Itusbend on the
brad, Ms skull was *..s d. Mrs. rumor was given ate
milady sal Owl la filebeabead Oasi, butts /we buibute's ro-
wer', ere wen his Madam and lerhemenso that be doelbod
roasentlei her. A eaparillyatloa, however anened, Kra. Tamar
ember to meth the offal*, whore . Turner alter-
"KM MOM herla,
end he the hes& of herMr
loath took has
bit Sesioad sod the Was. Mrs. Twat, subse-
quently war ee bat in December Let she went
se LOA to the hero of her -is-law. Oa the 19th of
that ralatb, shout 4clobeek la the worming, she called up Mr.
floy, when aloe lederased him that an seems had
hem to Oen bar while at the hoagie of a Mend. She had
a ample el Maas with hr, sod ohs was accompanied by • po deo-
ma she Wait la the stmt. She told Mr. Hey that one had
bma aid with pains la the stem* and on getting up
she toil her Mends that eke susgmeted they bad poisomd
bar, end she left the hones with the bona. She told Mr
Hay that her purpose in Gowan to Loads was to have the
ereeente tithe berme examined by Mee competent medical
antherity, as All mopeds& that she had been poisoned et
&schen:ash. The boxes contained several jars, which ton-
hdaed Taw& and other evacuations, and she requested that
they night be forwarded to Professor Taylor Cu Lowder.
away, but presently returned, saylag she would
bees the comsata of the jars analysed in York ; but soon
after the main changed her mind, and mid she would send
the Jere to Professor Taylor. At this thee • letter was re-
mind by Mr. Turner, who was then &memo:tidy 111, and in
samosqnseoe he sent for Mr. Redhead, the Incumbent of
Sesedeery, in Cheshire, • friend ef kis and requested him
tosathe him. Mr. Redhead ascardingly came over to
York ki march of Mrs. Turner, when he hod be • drug-
gist's shop In Coney-street, begging on mode to make hes
vomit, killag the same story about hoe Irvin been poi-
soned. Her clothes were greatly disordered, and she led
rind up her stays In the shop with • knife Mr. Redhead
Wok her away, sad subsequently went with her to Mr.
Procter at her request. Mr. Redhead considered that It
would be as well for Mrs. Turner to have lodgings in York,
and be under Mr. Proctor's care. She had then lodgings
taken for her at Me,. Potter's, In De Grey-street, where- she
was seen by Mr. Proctor and Dr. Simpson on two occasions,
after which they came to the conclusion that she was of
unsound Wad, and gave the usual -certificate for her ad-
minket Into Accents-home. During this tin,• yhe charged
Mr. Redhead sad Mn. Pott r with having attempted to
paean her. She told Mr. Redhead that she should abstain
from eating; at least anything which was not partaken of
by the fistio.l/. Before leaving York, she asked Mr. Red-
head to s to the police to protect her, and be thought
it desirable to speak to the superintendent. In the middle
of the night Mrs. Turner got out of Mrs. Potter's house,
and was found entree on • step by • policeman, and con-
veyed to the station-house, whence she was afterwards re-
moved to the establishment of Mr. Metcalfe at Aeomb, near
this city. The learned counsel then read a letter which Mrs.
Turner addressed to her bullhead from Leeds, In which she
addremsd him ea " Dear Cheeky," and asked him to pay
kr • vhdt there, as We " cold-blooded wardens," had made
two allempla to pones leer-once st Searbro and against her
Inefiber•is-law's, Mr. England, at Headiagley. She gave a
dinalled savant of her state subsequent to the latter sup-
posed event, and said she did not think her husband would
he gMlty of each • thing. If, she added, he had nothing to
de with these attempts on her life, she hoped he would ald
her in bringing the really guilty permss to justice, and
concluded by saying that she had the same love
and affintion for him, notwithstanding the neglect,
insult, and cruelty she bad experienced at his hands.
Mace she had bees at Acomb.house, she escaped
and walked to Leeds. She wee brought leek and placed
up-stain, when she escaped a second time by letting her-
self down from the window, end proceeded to York. when
she had taken lodgings. She was now much improved, bat
eill she was, it was submitted, of an unsound state of mind.
This, however, was the point for the jury to decide, and he
now left the case in their hands.
The following evidence was adduced

Mr. Terra eisiadaid-116 said . I am himband of Mary
lea Tants; and era married to her In 1845. la diet
year I wed M Imp a Bedlington, la Cheshire. In 1848 I
weal to lasidea, sad on my return home, Mrs. Turner met
me at Lhardwag elation. I did ad gaped to meet ber.
Oa sagas lad the cab, she struck SO repeatedly in the
Mir od son. Oe to year wessea." Is eassequanm of
wad legpard. I demo to Mr. eleplessenes, as the other
ells el water, sal he toil me what wee the matter.
Oa the hod Desisaliw. ISM, she broke her leg by leaping
est d a wieder. She spit et me on that occasion. and mod
not abooloo lempuego to ma After this accident I attended
hr mey seddiensly, sad sat up with bar frequently, so that
et implit I hams myself. After she met as at the
Limmarset dales she becems simpletons der, end charged
me with hits latimde with women, more epscially serve are
at Web. Witiorbouwor, sad other prom. Os Jon 26
ISM, he direst me with • poker at Rocliferry. We had
bees to Mated Bridge, when a lady pared, end elm charged
me with looking at her. She broom very auspicious. 0a
the 25th she wee very violist, and, while I was trylag to
pecify her, die struck as on the heed with a poker, end I fell
paralysed. My skull was fractured, sad my life was In
deeper. She afterwards struck as. es I ley In bed, and dank
so much that the engem would not allow her to attend on MO
loam. I then gave her Into custody, mine reoreriog In two or
three weeks I dectieed proseartag. A deed of settlerneet
wee Men prepared, sad we ospwwwl. Os the 9th of Sep-
tember I came over to York SIP as he, die having written to
my eke was very ill. Ills met me et the seethe, and she
Inked ill. I took her to lloodomil asi the Haploid ides.
lien& her beak le Ye* eel I lull her. Leitrim&
awl bar et Neemedes, visa site add my bed treatment
wee daidag he ord. I. Dessmitter I weal with her to
Seethred, sad these she seemed is be emir the oreatast
="ifaMat I wee latkerawitit the serveate la the
rill eat walk la the elder without bar tirenking
set sad thrift me with tee pees Ihwilliorky. I took her
hems, and on one sesemles she Mood me by the hair of
the heed and dragged mos ereemmly. Mn. Turner's
Wileasy was of two my *My and of woolen.
The witness was ezemlael sokotoMor edsloh which are
award fa the °peeks of the basil smemel. There
ems sot the Aghast mod he Ist aor he
bee impieties. of meshy. Is et ..em le sal ,
that Wmeriege wee for a rag time kept sem* from his '
UM, owl frionds, and he told Ike, of the fact when she
broke her leg. Re was prolegramlyallached to her, and he
believed she vas to him. Ho lost hie amper at times wham
she we. very violent, sad he ha salsa her 14 strumpet. He
did sot named her with Wog is the Nit when he married
her, nee MS her Mat gibe might go them *gar. She could
neither` reel Mr writs wide he married hr; but now
she writes oiairoMy, sad Is a Teem of some atom-
Oakmont& Ilho weeepll W bsosatold oralms
and as one log a uses •asellortable homes at Sm.
He did sot hoop mash nrulp, sad when he was away
she ass idt doss .Aletsellooss Imo au &Meat for two
or dna days it a the. What she elesek hint Is ISAS, he
pm her Late dere of a pitman. Bs hettjost before MI