The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-05-01 00:00:00

The first witness called was 'William Howard (a carter,
employed by Mr. Bowden, of Brunswick-street), who said he
lived at No. 13, Great Itichmoud-street. James Hudson
Jones lived with him as a lodger, and also a son, and another
male lodger. The deceased, Isabella Brew, was his house-
keeper, and had been so for the last eleven weeks. There
were three beds in the house. I slept with the accused, and
my son slept with the other lodger. The deceased slept in an
apartment by herself. 'I he deceased was of temperate habits,
and very quiet in her demeanour. On Saturday ❑ight, about
a quarter before twelve, the deceased came into the house, and
was soon followed by the accused into the kitchen. The
accused appeared to bo tipsy. The deceased was not so. As
soon as the deceased had put her basket upon the table, the
accused walked straight towards her, and with his
clenched fist knocked her down. He then turned round and
knocked me down, because I said to him, " what a shame to
knock the poor old woman down in that manner." 1 did not
see the accused do anything to the deceased after he had
knocked her down. She fell right on her back on the flags.
There was no furniture near to where the deceased fell. I
went out of the kitchen, and left the deceased and the accused
alone. I left the house for a constable, who, however,
refused to go near the place. I told the constable that I
expected the woman was dead, and he told me that he could
not interfere, and that I must summon the man. When I
went back, in about ten minutes, the deceased was lying about
eight feet from where I left her, and she had had her eye cut
open, and there was blood lying on the flaor. I told the
deceased to get up, but she said she could not move. The
accused was on the sofa opposite to her. I was afraid to lift her
up, for fear of being knocked down myself. During the
interval between that and my son comin; in, I told the
accused he should be ashamed of serving the old woman in
that way, when he said he had not done it. I, my son, and
the other lodger, lifted the deceased up, and carried her up into
the attic to bed. The deceased remained alone for some time,
when I took her a drink. Early in the following morning I
went for her daughter. She did not complain much, but
said, "he has lamed my arm." About eight o'clock a female
was called in to attend to the deceased. None of us went to bed
that night, because we were so much frightened, as
the accused was in such a state—so wild and so drunk. "He
was taken into custody on Sunday night, and the deceased
died on Monday. I never heard the deceased and the accused
quarrelling since they had been in my house. I never had
any words with the accused about the deceased. When the
accused came into the housa he looked wild.

Mrs. Cross, who lived next door, stated : About eleven
o'clock on Sunday morning the last witness called her into
the house to see the deceased, saying, " Jones had nearly
killed the old woman." She went up stairs, where she found
the deceased lying on the bed with her clothes on. The
accused followed her up, when she said to him, " What a brute
you must be to serve the poor woman in this way," and asked
him " what was it for?" He replied : "It was the cursed
drink," and then went down stairs. 'Witness took the deceased's
clothes off, and sent for a doctor. The deceased said she had
been smashed to pieces. In about half an hour she returned
to the bedroom of the deceased. The accused, Jones, was
with her. " I asked if the doctor had been with her," when
the accused replied " that there had been some old quack there,
but ho would not let him up." I asked the deceased if I
could do anything for her, when she said she wished for a
'little tea, which I took from the drawers, she saying " that
Jones had taken it to her." She then said, " Oh, lam killed
—I am dying." The accused was in the room at the time,
but was in a state of intoxication. I told Jones the deceased
must have a doctor, when he said, "She don't want a doctor, I
will have a car and take her away." Jones had refused to
say where. About five o'clock the deceased told her where to
find her daughter, and she sent for her. When the daughter
came she sent for a doctor. The accused was frequently in the
bedroom in the course of the day, and one occasion I heard the
deceased say, "that Jones had jumped upon her." About
seven o'clock Mr. Evans, the surgeon from the dispensary,
attended. The deceased was a quiet woman, for all I know.
From what I have seen of Jones he appeared to be a quiet
man, and decent in his demeanour. I never heard any
quarrelling between them. The deceased told me she was
going to be married to Jones, and had been asked up at church.
John Holland, the son of the first witness, was next called.
He said : I went home between twelve and one o'clock on
Sunday morning. illy father was standing at the door, and
the accused and deceased were in the kitchen. The other
lodger came in, and he, my father and I carried the deceased up
stairs, and placed her in the bed. We carried the deceased
most caretully, and did not in the slightest degree injure her.
Jones was very drunk ; the lodger had had a sup, but I was
sober. We sat up all nigat. Jones was in the bedroom, and
trying to close the gash in the old woman's eye, and asked me
to get him some water to bathe it with ; but 1 told him to get
it himself, and left the room. I know nothing of auy quarrel
between them. I had heard that they were going to be
married.

Mr. Richard Ellis, ono of the clerks to the borough magis-
!rates, stated that, on Monday morning last, he accompanied

Mr. Thomas Sands to the house where the deceased was
lying, In answer to me she said her name was Isabella
Brew. Jones went up to het bedside, and said, "Bella, Bella
Oh, what have I done ? Will you forgive me—you that.

I was to have made my wife—do forgive me ?" Slit!
said " Yes." The witness then went on to say that he
went for the purpose of taking her dying declaration, but found
that she could not articulate a word. Before he left the room,
however, the accused again went up to her bedside, and asked
for forgiveness, and, the deceased replied "yes."

Mrs. Archer, of Warren-street, a daughter of the deceased,
was then called. She stated the deceased was a widow, and
was 55 years of age. Jones was a first cousin, and about

twelve months ago there was a talk about their being married,
but the deceased declined it. She saw the deceased'on the

Saturday, when she was quite well, but was sent for on the
Sunday, whe❑ she found her in bed and very ill. She saw
Jones in the kitchen, and asked him what he had been doing
to her mother. He replied " I was drunk and could not help
it." I then asked him if he had had a doctor, and he said

"yes, some quack had been, but I would not let him in."
In the presence of Jones, I asked my mother " what ho had
done to her ?" She replied, " that Jones had knocked her•
down and jumped on her twice, and had torn her bonnet off,
and burned it in the fire." Jones at this time was in drink,
and Ido not recollect whether he made any reply. My
mother asked me to remain with her, as she feared she was
dying, and I remained with her until her death.
Mr. Evan Thomas Evans, a surgeon at the St. Ann's
Dispensary, was called. He said on Sunday night, between
seven and eight o'clock, he was called upon to attend upon
the deceased. She was in a bed in the top room of her house,
and the witness Cross and her daughter were with her.
I found her in a dying state. I examined her body, and found
a perpendicular wound, about an inch in length, on the right
eye brow. There was also a bruise on the chin, and left cheek.
•She told me her shoulder was broken. I prescribed what I
considered necessary. I had found some of the ribs fractured
on the light side, and her collar bone broken. At that time I
considered that the woman could not live long. She was in a
state of collapse. I attended her up to the time of her death.
Since then, I have made a post mortem examination of the
body of the deceased, and found the head and the abdomen in
a healthy state. The chest was more flat than in the normal
state, especially on the right side; and, on examining the left
side, I found sonic of the ribs fractured. The left lung was
healthy. On the right side, seven of the ribs were each
fractured in two places, and the lung was penetrated by two
of the fractured ribs. The lung was collapsed, and a large
quantity of blood in the cavity of the chest.
Public Prosecutor • What was the cause of death ?
Witness? The shock to the system, by the injuries
named, which caused internal hemorrhage. This must have
resulted from external injuries. A fall could not have pro,