The Express.
London, England, 1850-01-10 00:00:00

CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT.

THIS DAY.

OLD COURT.
BOOM Ms. James ?SWOOP AND 3111. JCITICS TAMPS&
THE MURDER IN HARLEY-STREET.
Sara/ D►&Ae, aged 36, was indicted for the wilful murder
list ankle bastard child, amid Lewis Drake, by choking
and sufloraiing
The prisoner appeared eery faint and ill, and she was
showed to be seated during the trial.
Mr. Bodkin end Mr. Clark conducted the prosecution for
the Treasury. The prisoner was defended by Mr. Collie r and
Mr Parry.
Mr. Bodkia haling briefly addressed the jury, the following
evidence was adduced :

lese inhumes, examund by Mr. Clack.—l am the wife of
Hoary 'Antos, mid at present reside at Skorlee•common,
near Croydon. Ii January, 1848, I was living at. Peckham.
The primmer wee introduced to me in that year, and she
brought a Odd for ma to sane. The child wee three
mouths 614 at that time. It was a male child, sad the

Neer used to call it Lewis; aad In the coarse. of this iglu
the child was baptised in that name. The prisoner 1.4 not
tell me her own Dane when she brought the child. She
was to pay me six shillings per week for nursing It, sad for
tee test three months she tame occasionally to see it, and
the paid me the mosey regularly during that period. At
this period I received a letter from the prisoner,
signed Sarah Tree's, expressing her Intention to
take the child to niece, as it was his father's wish. I
received ether letters from the prisoner, but did not see her
personally until February, 1849, sad she then pared by the
same of Drake. Ulna this ocean= she told me she could
sot leave her home before, as her mother was ill, sad she said
she was going to take the ehild to an institution st Boulocar,
were she said its father had been brought op. The prisoner
at this tmel paid me a sovereign, and 101. 10s. remained
swing. She took away the child, and I accompanied her to
the Dover station, where she paid her fare and started for
Dover. On the following night she came again to my house
at Suavity, where I had removed from P. theses, and she told
me a doctor had said the child had water on the brain,
and would sot live long, and that she had better bring it to
where it had always been brought up, and she said she would
met uke it away any more if I would keep it for five shillings
a week, and I agreed to the offer. The child was very illtat
this time. 1 saw no more of the prisoner from this time till
November; but, during that period, the prisoner sent me some
money. a balance of 91. 10s. being still due. On Tuesday, the
271-. November, I received a letter from the prisoner, is
which she stated that she was going with a family to Madrid.
In consequence of receiving this letter I went the
some day to Edward.street, I) autoiquue, and
frees thence to the house of Mr. Huth, in Har-
ley-street, where I saw the prisoner. I had the child
with me. When I saw the prisoner, she said, " Oh, it's
Mrs. Johnson, I thought I should see you by my dream."
I told her she was a cruel woman to cause me so much pain
and trouble. The prisoner said ens could not help it, she
could not send me any more mosey. I told her I had not
come for money. The prisoner then said she did not know
till the night before that she was not ping abroad. I told
bet not to say that, for I knew she had no intention to go
abroad The prisoner than asked me to ge into the kitchen
for a few minutes, while she west to her iaistrese, aid I did
so, and shortly afterwards I saw the prisoner again,
sad told her I must leave the child, and that
I must not take it home any more it I found
where she wee. The l risoner asked me to tale
him back for a week, sad I relined, and the y risen's.
remarked that the child was looking much better and stouter,
sad I replied that he wee quite well, and had grown a hearty
little fellow. The prisoner, at my request, took off the
child's pelisse and hat, and I told her he would soon want
something to eat, sad the replied " Very well, Mrs.
Jubilees; will he eat anything?" And I told bar that he
w old, and then went away, laving the child behind me.
I had informed her that my husband intended to summon
her for the money, and es L was going up the steps, the
prisoner &kid me how much it wee,, and 1 told her 91. 10..
She made no reply. I last saw the child alive in the boos.
keeper's reom. Oe 30:h Nov. I again called at Haile y•e tweet,
and saw the prisoner, and she told me that she hat got •
friend who had taken the child, and who would lead her the
money to pay us by the first week in January, ant that
she had mot • letter down to that 'fleet. Upon this occa-
sion I brought the child's clothes with me, and gave them to
the prisoner, and told her there was • bole hinds :he pun
sad a bill. I then asked the prisoner to kiss the buoy for
ate, sad she said she would ; mud she al o told me she bad
got the child out of the house without any one knowing a
it. When 1 get home to Croydon I found the letter which
the prisoner had mentioned. On Satlitesy, the Stn of
December, I went to North Levert's, in Nottinghamshire,
with the altar, and • coffin was thaws to me whicu
eontalned the dead body of a chill. It was the ssme child
teat 1 had nursed, and which I had list seen alive with the
prisoner is Harley-street. After I bad discovered the pri-
son. r's name was Drake, I always called the child Ltwis
Drake.
By Mr. Collier—The prisoner told me to have • doctor to
the child if anything ailed it. She paid the amount of the
maintesance regularly for three months. The child was also
called " Lewis."
Mary Anne Wiszell MY kitchen maid in Mr.
Huth's family last November, and I remember the prisoner
coming into the service on the 26* of that month as cook
and housekeeper. Oa the Wednesday following Mrs.
Johnson came to the Mules, bringing • child with
her, and she inquired fur the prisoner, sad was shorn
into the housekeeper's-room to the prisoner. I after-
wards saw Mrs Johnson go away without the thild, end the
prisoner said something to bee as she was going up the area
I steps, and she then r turned to the home keeper's-room, and
• remained there a short time. 1 n saw the child again.
, About hall-pat twelve the same evening 1 saw the prisoner
• again, and she said the woman who brouent the child had
, caused her • great deal of trouble, that she (the psis- nor)
had been responsible fir some mon, y, and that the woman
said her husband wee going to summon h. r for it. Shortly
• after this conversation the prisoner asked me if I had got •
email box which I could let her have, and I told her 1 had
one, and she wished to have it, and s.id she would
get me another ens soon. She at the same time
said she had got some clothes that were no use to her, and
she should send them to her sister, as they would be useful
for her children. I did not let the prisoner have my boa.
At the usurl dinner-hour fur the servants, baltpau one
o'clock, the prisoner said she should not dine with them, as
she wished to write • letter, and I did not see her sgain until
shortly before three o'clock, and site then told me that she
had packed her box, and I went into her bed-room and saw
a box packed in a wrapper, and corded. The box
was one of those which the prisoner liad herself
brought to the house. It remained there all that
night, and the next morning I carried it down stain,
at the prisoner's request, to the butler's pantry. It was very
heavy, and I could scarcely get it down stain. There was
so direction upon the box at this time, and the prisoner said
the butler would send boy with it to the station, and she
added that she did not wish any of the other servants to see
it, as they might think she was sending things out of the
house. Tne box was afterwards carried away. Oa the same
day I put two letters in the post-office for the prisoner. The
same box has since been shown to me at the Marylebree
Police Court.
By Mr. Collier.—The prisoner came to the house on the
Monday before this happened, and 1 did not observe scy-
thing extraordinary in her appearance. She was nut sociable
wi h the other servants, but kept to herself, and appeared
rather low-spirited. When she had an opportunity, I ob-
served that she was engaged in reading the Bible. I
remember the prisoner telling me that Mrs. Johissoa had so
distracted her that she did sot know what she was about.
Immediately after Mrs. Johnson went away, the prisoner
west into the housekeeper's room, and I did not see her
until after twelve o'clock.
By Mr. Bodkin—All the servants in the hones were
strangers to the prisoner. The housekeeper's room wee free
for any other of the servants. The prisoner had the auperin-
tendance of all the other servants, and performed the duty
of cook. The prisoner said her prayers every night when
she went to bed. The primmer always read the Bible to
herself, and never aloud. I think the prisoner made use of
the expression that Mrs. Johnson had distracted her, and not
that she had put her oat.
Sarah Powell said—l em housemaid to Mr. Huth, 33,
Harlemetreet. I remember the prisoner coming there as
cook on the 26th November, and Mrs. Johnson cosaieg there
on the following Wednesday, with a child. After she was
gone I went to the housekeeper's room, and tried the door,
and lout* it locked from the inside.
George Olen, butler in the family of Mr. Huth, proved
that shortly liter Mrs. Johnson had left the house,
the prisoner asked him to write an address, to be
placed en a box containing left-off apparel, which was so
use to her, and which she was going to tend to a married
sister in the country, and said she intended to have meat
it before she came to her situation, but she had no °prom
tunity to do so. She then mime hiss how the could send
it to the railway station, and he told her be would send the
footman with it the seat morning. The address he wrote
for the box wee " Mr. Theephilus Burton, North Levertou,
near Radford, Nottinghamshire," and it was written epos
scud and fastened upon the box, and on the following morn-
ing he seat the footman with it to the railway station, Huron-
square. Before the box was sent away the prieraer looked
at the address, and said it was quite censor, and the gave
the primmer two hall crowns to p.y the deriage. The wit
sem added that two or three days after this OCC111760C• he
asked the prisoner if she had received a letter acknowledging
the receipt to l the box, and she said she had not.
William Skelton Bryant, the footman, proved that he
took the box to the railway station on Thursday, the 29th of
November, and booked it sad paid the carriage.
W. Hall, the driver dm soma between Newark and Red-
ford, proved that, on the 30th November he euried a box
from the statism at Newark, divested to Mr. Bartow, at North
Lemrton, sad teat he lett the box at the White Hart, at
Bedford, which was about slat miles frees North Leval-tem
W. Drake deposed that be resided Is Nottinghamshire,
sad the prisoner wee his sister. Her name was Sart*
Drake, and, se far as he knew, she had never ben seam
tied, go bad a sister who woo tarried, living at North Le. ,