The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-01-24 00:00:00

fourth year or thereabouts. He was educated for the
medical profession, was a pupil at St. Bartholomew's,
received the diploma of the College of Surgeons in 1846,
and settled at Rugeley, his native place. He married in
1847, Anne, the natural daughter of Colonel' William
Brookes and Mary Thornton, his housekeeper. Colonel
Brookes, who, after quitt:ng the East India service, took
up his residence at Stafford, died in 1834, leaving con-
siderable property, and more than one natural child.
To Anne Thornton he bequeathed, by a will dated July
27, 1833, nine houses at Stafford, besides land, and the
interest of 20,000 sicca rupees, for herself and her
children, and appointed Dr. Edward Knight, a highly
respectable physician of Stafford, and a Mr. Dawson, her
guardians and trustees. To Mary Thornton, the mother
of Anne, the colonel bequeathed certain property, which
was to pass to the daughter at the decease of the mother.
Mary Thornton departed this life, it is said while a
guest at Palmer's house, in 1848 or 1849. Now,
although the will of Colonel Brookes would seem clear
enough to any one who was ignorant of law, and
although, in the present state of the law, as we are
informed, it would be sufficient, yet it was discovered by
the legal fraternity some years since, that the language
conveying the bequest to Anne Thornton was not suffi-
ciently forcible to convey it to her absolutely, but only
to give her a life interest in it; so that at her
decease it was liable to be claim 3d by the heir-at-law to
Colonel Brookes. tinder these circumstances, there was
nothing unnatural or unusual in the idea that Palmer
should insure his wife's life, in order to protect himself
from the inevitable loss which must ensue in case of her
decease. And since her property consisted of seventeen
acres of land, valued at between three and four hundred
pounds an acre, besides nine houses, and the interest of
the sicca rupees—probably altogether worth at least
£4OO per annum, upon which he had borrowed largely
from his mother—there could be no doubt of his having
such an interest in his wife's life as would justify insur-
ance. Mrs. Palmer died on September 29, 1854, leaving
only one surviving child, a -boy of seven years ; and, as
if to justify the husband its eliecting an insurance, an
action was brought within a month, by Colonel Brooke's
heir-at-law, to obtain possession of Mrs. Palmer's pro-
perty. Palmer brought up the life policies on the 16th
October, 1854, and employed Mr. Pratt, the solicitor, to
obtain the money from the offices. Mr. Pratt, who seems
to have acted with entire bona fide, and the caution usual
among lawyers, required to be furnished with evidence
of the husband's pecuniary interest in his wife's life,
took counsel's opinion on every step, and obtained the
£B,OOO from the offices on the 6th February, 1355 ;
strangely enough, the £5,000 from the Scottish Equi-
table was paid through a banker, nnknown ti Pratt,
The same publication, alluding to poisoning by tartar
emetic, says :
The Rugeley case seems to be the first occasion on
which we hear of tartar emetic as a slow poison ; and we
may fully expect that this point, as well as the varied
and apparently uncertain action of this substance as a
poison, will be well handled by the gentlemen of the
long robe employed in the defence. The public mind is
not aware of tho diversity of action of poisons according
to the dose and circumstances of administration. For,
first, an irritant poison may destroy life by its action on
the glottis while being swallowed. 2nd, it may do so by
its immediate effect on the stomach, or/ion the intestines.
3rd, it may pass from the stomach into the blood, and
produce great diversity of effects by its operation on the
organs to which it is carried, and with which it may
possibly be incorporated. 4th, if the patient live
on, it may again produce a frail set of symptoms
by its passage through the organs by which
nature destines it to be eliminated from the body.
Now, in the cases in which tartar emetic has been
recorded to have acted as a poison, the symptoms were
those of the second order; vomiting and convulsions
being the leading symptoms, both arising probably from
the primary irritation of the stomach : as, for example,
in the cases of the two children poisoned each by 10
grains, as reported in Taylor. But in the case before
us the second, third, and fourth classes of symptoms
were each probably present in equal proportions. There
were irritation of the stomach, poisoning of the blood,
and exhausting efforts at elimination. Then, again,
while small doses in some persons, in some states of
health, will produce dangerous symptoms, in other per-
sons, in the same states of illness, immense doses
produce scarcely any perceptible effect at all. Then we
may look with liberal interest for the kind of proof
which will be offered of the supposed fact that Palmer,
and not any one else, did administer antimony. That
tartar emetic was found among the other common drugs
which he possessed does not amount to much

I THE ASSASSINATION

IN BEDFORD-ROW

Yesterday, the adjourned inquest on the body of the
unfortunate Mr Waugh was resumed at the board-room of
St. Andrew's Workhouse, Gray's •inn-lane, before Mr.
Wakley, coroner, and a highly respectable jury. The
inquest was adjourned on the former lay in order that
Westron, the murderer, might attend, and be identified by
the various witnesses who saw the prisoner on the morning
of the horrible and melancholy occurrence. A memorial
was presented to the Secretary of State, who issued an order
accordingly to the Governor of the House of Detention.
Yesterday morning the prisoner was conveyed in a cab, in

custody of Inspector Checkley and Sergeant Haynes, of the
E division, to the board-room ; but owing to his temoval
being earlier than was expected, but few persons had congre-

gated to catch a glimpse of him

The prisoner, whilst before the coroner, appeared not to
feel the awful position in which he had placed himself by
the diabolical act he had committed. _lie stood with his

arms fol

, and leisurely surveyed the proceedings i❑ a

manner almost amounting to total indifferent

Hum-

phreys attended to prosecute on the part of the executors of
the deceased gentleman, and Mr. Lewis for the prisoner.
The various witnesses, whose examination has already
been given, were in attendance to identify the prisoner, but
before he was brought into court Mr.Wakley requested Mr.
Whitfield, the principal witness, to retire. The prisoner
was then brought into the room, and allowed to stand
amongst the crowd ; when Mr. Whitfield was called in, and
asked to pick out the man who he saw shoot the deceased.
He immediately pointed out the prisoner as the man.
Inspector Checkley deposed, in addition to what has
already been published, that ott searching the prisoner's
lodgings he found, amongst other things, a bAt containing

powder, percussion caps, from twelve to fifteen bullets, and
a bullet mould. The bullets fitted the pistol, which the
inspector ascertained the prisoner purchased about fifteen
months ago, for a guinea, from Mr. Wilcox, tobacconist,
Railway•arcb, Minories.

The Coroner then directed the Inspector to remove
the prisoner from the room, and have him conveyed to the
police station at once.
The prisoner was then removed.

Mr. Lewis said it was to be regretted that the prisoner
laboured under a delusion with reference to the deceased
gentleman, and the friends of the prisoner were anxious
that it should be known that so far from that gentleman
having behaved ill to him, he had treated him and tharn with
the greatest kindness, and had always acted for their benefit.
On another occasion he (lir. Lewis) should be able to prove
that the prisoner was labouring under'a delusion; but it
was useless for him to do so then, as that court could not
act on such evidence. This delusion was, if he might so
term it,. an hereditary complaint in the family. The
prisoner's father, and uncle destroyed themselves whilst
labouring under mental derangement, and his aunt died in
a lunatic asylum. His conduct in his lodgings had been
such as would leave no doubt but that the prisoner ought
not to have been permitted to be at large, and ho had had to
leave various lodgings from his conduct being, as the par-
ties:stated, that of a madman. On one occasion he opened
his window, and set the things in the room on fire, and
when remonstrated with, alleged he did it to destroy the
devil.

The Coroner, in summing up, made some remarks on the
impropriety of allowing persons of the prisoner's description
,o be at large. He looked upon it as an act of cruelty to
allow such persons their freedom.
The jury returned a verdict of Wilful Murder against the