The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-02-19 00:00:00

ALLEGED MURDER AT HOXTON

On Sunday night the body of a young girl between
thirteeen and fourteen years of age was discovered
in the coal cellar of a house, No 17, Lenton-street
New North-road, lloxton, The throat of the
deceased was cut in a shocking manner. It appears that
the unfortunate girl resided with two foreigners, Charles
Sommer, aged 29 years, and Celestine Sommer, his wife,
aged 26 years, both of whom have been taken into custody
on the information supplied to the police by the servant
girl of the house in which the transaction *took place.
According to the statement of the servant girl on Saturday
night, when in bed, she heard a scuffle and loud screams as
if proceeding from a distance. Shortly afterwards some
person stealthily entered her bed room, and passed a hand
over her face, as though to ascertain if she was asleep. She
pretended to be so, and the intruder then retired. On
gAting up the next morning she missed the girl, whose
body was subsequently found, and her suspicions being
aroused by what had occurred, s'e.e took an opportunity
towards evening of leaving the house, and bringing in the
police, by whom a search was mule, and.the body of the
deceased found as already described.

The prisoners were examined before Mr. Corrie, at Clerk-
enwell, yesterday. After the evidence of the policemen
had been given,
Rachel Mont, the servant, said that her mistress went out
on Saturday night, and told her to go to bed. She, how-
ever, sat up making an apron. Shortly before her mistress
returned home she put out the candle, and when her mis-
tress came in she said, are you in bed Rachel ? She made
no answer. ller mistress went up stairs, and came down
with a little girl. The witness then proceeded as follows—
" Mistress went into the cellar, and the little girl stopped
at the kitcl:en door. She said, lam not afraid, but it is a
strange place to me, I have not been here before. When
they were in the cellar the little girl said some one wanted
to murder her, and mistress said shall I cut your throat?
The girl said, oh, you want to murder me, and called out
murder several times. She afterwards said, the devil
will take you—the devil will take you; you will kill me—
you will me. lam dying—l am dying. Mistress said
hush, and I then heard a noise as if she was breathing hard.
Mistress then put out the candle, came into the kitchen,
walked about, and said, I will kill you. She came in and
lit the candle, and went into the cellar again, but I never
heard the girl speak again. Master was out at the time, and
did not return until one o'clock. The little girl
I had seen once before on one Sunday evening with
my mistress. After stopping there some time
with my mistress they both went out, and then
returned with a box with three bolts on it. Mistress
then went out with the girl, and had a big stone wrapped
up in a piece of cloth. Mistress told me to go to bed that
night, but finding that I did not go she took the girl away.
and told me to sit up for her. After my mistress came out
of the cellar on Saturday night, she said you will not tell
any more lies about me. She then came and touched me,
and said she had been out to market to get change to pay
her the money, but would not give it her then."
Mr. Coale said there was no evidence against the man,
and he must be discharged. The female would be re-
manded for a week.

CIVIL SERVICE SUPERANNUATION BILL

The Superannuation bill introduced by the Chincellor
of the Exchequer, is printed with the parliamentary
votes of ysterday. It lays down the scale of remunera-
tion as follows :

For those officers entering the service subsequent to
the 4th of August, 1829, the scale is, for ten years ser-
vice, sixteen-sixtieths of the salary, and one-sixtieth for
every additional year, until 35 years have been com-
pleted, when the allowance would be forty-sixtieth; or
two-thirds of the salary. No addition to be made for
any further service.

For those entering prior to August 5, 1829, an addition
of one-sixtieth shall be made for each year's service, from
34 to 49 years, and for 50 years service full
.salary shall
be given.

A special scale of allowance is designed for offices re—
quiring " professional or other peculiar qualifications" to
which it may be for the good of the service that persons
should be appointed at a more advanced period of life
than the officers comprised in the ordinary scale. This
scale is—for ten years' service, thirty-sixtieths or one
half, with one•sixtieth for each year's additional service
up to 20 years. when two-thirds may be granted, but no
addition is to be made for services of more than 20 years
duration in this class.

The conditions on which a superannuation allowance
is to be granted are the attainment of sixty years of age,
and bodily or mental infirmity.

These allowances may be varied by the Treasury,
having regard to special circumstances appearing on the
records of the department, but not otherwise. The
power of increase to extend to the amount of the full
salary at the period of retirement. The Treasury is also
empowered to give gratuities, Rcc., in cases of abolition of
offi,v, of ill health, and of injury received in the discharge

BIRKENHEAD POLICE COURT.-YESTERDAY

(BEFORE J. S. JACKSON AND R'CHARD BRYANS, JUN., RECI,RS.)
EXTRAORDINARY IMPOSITION ON THE PARISH OFFICERS.
—Catherine Dayton, a poorly-clad, sickly-looking woman, far
advanced in pregnancy, and carrying a child in her arms, was
charged with obtaining relief by false pretences. Mr.
DiMierney, the relieving officer, stated that -early in October
last the prisoner applied to him for relief, alledging that her
husband had left herself and family in great distress, and that
she supposed him to be in America. She added that she had
not heard from him for twelve months, and showed two
letters from him, dated September 15, and 19, 1854, as the
last communication she had had from him. Upon these
representations he (Mr. M‘Nierney) ordered her relief to the
extent of 6s. per week, and this she had received up to the
present date, obtaining altogether from the parish £l5
14s. From information he received a few days
ago he again questioned her as to when she had last
heard from her husband, and she persisted in her first state-
ment. He subsequently learnt that she was receiving money
from Messrs. Baines and Co., and he had her apprehended on
a charge of imposing upon the parish. Mr. Walker, cashier to
Messrs. James Baines and Co., deposed that the prisoner's
husband, John Day:on, was in their employ as cook on board
the clipper ship James Baines, daily expected home from
Australia. He was now in his second voyage in her. When
he started on his first voyage, he left a monthly note for £3,
for his wife, and during his absence, the prisoner received the
amount regularly every month. He sailed on his second
voyage on the 6th October last, and on that occasion he also
left a monthly note for his wife, but this time only for 42.
On the 7th October, the prisoner received the first
monthly payment of £2 on the order, and had
received a similar sum every month since. 'Die
prisoner pleaded tbat she.had, from peculiar circumstances,
been in great distress, and compelled to apply
for relief in addition to her monthly allowance. She added
that she had no intention to defraud, and that her husband
would repay the money when he same home. The bench re-
marked that her persistance in her false representations to the
relieving officers showed a clear intention to defraud. It was
a case of base ingratitude; in fact it was robbing the rate-
payers to a good extent. Even if what she had stated were
true, she ought to have matte these statements about her dis-
tress to the relieving offieer, and not have deceived him so
grossly as she had done. The magistrates bad no alternative
but to commit her for trial, and, considering her condition
they were sorry that hers was the first case of the kind that
had occurred. but perhaps her punishment would be a warning
to others. The prisoner repeated that her husband would re-
fund the money. The Bench,—We cannot compromise cases
of this sort. The prisoner was then committed for trial, but
it was intimated that bail would be taken for her appearance
at the Knutsford sessions, herself an £5O, and two sureties
of £9,5 each.

James Dyer, a young man of good address, was also com-
mitted to the Knutsford Sessions, for stealing a coat belonging
to ➢ir. Webster, of the No w-ferry Hotel, whore he had been
sleeping. He had been committed to gaol for a similar
offence last August, and Mr. Jackson remarked that he was
sorry to see ono whom he knew to have been brought up
respectably, pursuing the road to ruin.
A PAINFUL SCENB.—Anne Tasker, a girl of seventeen,
was charged with robbing William Orrell an elderly man.
The complainant said that ho went home to his lodgings tipsy
about two o'clock on Saturday afternoon, with five half-
crowns in his pocket. He went up stairs and was put to bed,
and awoke on Sunday morning to find that his money had
hcen taken. From the evidence it appeared that the prisoner
had been staying at the same house for four or five days. and
was, on Saturday morning, without money to pay for her lodg-
ings. She bad put the old man to bed when he came home
tipsy, and the same afternoon paid the landlady two shillings,
for her lodgings, with an injunction to " say nothing about it."
besides giving a woman three half-crowns to take care of for
her. These circumstances becoming known, she was appre-
hended while drinking with some men in a public house on
Sunday evening. The prisoner row admitted the robbery.
As the police officials know nothing about her, she was about
to be remanded for inquiry, when it was intimated that her
mother was in court. The bench called the latter forward—
she was an elderly woman, and had traces of care on her
countenance. In answer to the bench, she said, sobbingly,
that her husband was a cabinet maker, and that their daughter
bad been a great trouble to them. She would not take any
good advice, and was now being beaten with her own rod. She

had been turned away from her last place in disgrace, but the
parties had not prosecuted her, out of consideration for her
parents. She had very bad companions, and persisted keeping
their company. Upon hearing this, the magistrates said 'they
thought the best course would be to commit her for trial, in
the hope that she might learn better ways in gaol.

TRADE REPORT.-MONDAY,