Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-05-23 00:00:00

THE HORniBLE MURDER

AT LEDDURY.

It t;rotticl be difficult to conjure up anything more fear-
fully atcociotis than the details of the murder discovered
On Wednesday *turning to have bein: committed at this
place, as briefly n'Oticed by us on Ffiday. The name of
the victim was 11-erica Baker, about forty-two years of
age. respectable, honest, and of a kindly &Position. Her
husband died about two' mouths ago, leaving her the sole
regular occupant of an old house- in Horse-late, Ledbury,
where Mr. Masefield, solilitor, had hie epees, a path.
from the back door leading to his residence, about 150
yards distant. On Tuesdrow night a friend named
Miss Jackson visited Mrs ilahr, and left her a few
minutes before ten o'clock, wheit she was preparihg to
go to bed. She had taken the usual means of securing
the &am, both back and front, with"the ordinary lock and
bar on each, and hung a bell, as usuaft • on each door, to
create au alarm if any one should gain entrance to tae
house.. Miss Jackson remarked that tle widow seemed
less absocbed in grief that night than she had been
since the death of her husband. Chi Wednesday
morning threierk (John Jones), who arridid at the usual
hoar of btriness, found the_ and windows chised.

Suspicion was naturally excited, an entrance was effected,
when' a most horrible scene presented itself. In one of the
rooms,
evoneetahseed'ff e
;tc;me
plagty placed,wasfoa thetntdere ft
half-corAimQd body
after
slid
been
murdered, as way shown by the fearfully battered state of
ofth ethskull.
The -horror-stricken spectators immediately sum-
moned the pace, who took charge of the premiiisc and a
further se-fifth warinstitutcd. It was then found 'that the
place had been thorotighly'ransacked, and a large aranint ig
cash, notes, and' cheques., had been stolen froth Mr.
Masefield's private dovio:. An inquest on ths' body
was commenced on Thursdt7 afternoon. John Jones,
the first witness;` was exammed at great length,, aad
deposed as to haying found the body, as detailed
above, after findiitt the. OW tfke path, four or five yards
from the back icier:" it was, a few minutes after
nine When the discovery WAS' roads. Elizabeth Paine, the
little girl who slept with Mrs: Baker in the house, Was
questioned by the &Toner, and' said'Mrs. Baker put herto
bed about eight o'cld3it on Tuesdayniight, but did not come
to bed herself that niOlt:' She- heard nothing, and saw no
man in the house. - ChaigOtte .fltellsva proved that she
parted with deceased `few mitiut6s Eiefore ten on Tuesday
night, when she fasteited up thg-doorm. and said she was
going to bed. The vvithaes Jones,- recalll by the foreman :
I did not open any chest with • drawers= in Mrs. Baker's
parlour on Wednesday 'morning. Bye the coroner : I do
not know if anybody saw me .go- to.berVon Tuesday night.
I have a Tatchkey 'on the back -door; and' t bolt it when I
go in after ten o'clock. • The COroner: I should- like to
subject Jones's landlord int& the 'otherrlod4er to a strict
examination as to what firer saw° and beard of Jones that
night

Jones continued : I did not go,out' on Wednesday
morning before I had my breakfast; unless-it was into the
shoeroom. The back yard common. tt) both houses.
By the foreman : I often tcek gin home- at night in a
bottle. I had a glass of gin at' Ms.• Bakeei lipase about a
fortnight ago. She gave it to me.. I think Il went into the
office that night for change. That was the only time I had
any gin there. Thomas Bowkett; shoemaker; at whose
house Jones lodges, and whose premisesadji?in- those of Mr.

Masefield, gave' a similar account of the 7diseovery of the
murder. He went to bed shortly after ten o'doek, end heard
no noise, though there is only a partition between his bed-
room and Mr. Masefield's office. He did not hear Jones get
to bed that night, but heard him getting up between seven
and eight next Morning. The medical gentlemen:who made
the post mortem examination, Mr. Griffin and Mr. Wood,
gave their evidence at considerablelength. TUT found the
features much swollen and congested thetongue swollen and
protruding between the teeth. There wapecchvmosis under
the skull wound and under a bruise at tho,back: of the head.
The stomach was healthy, and contained a small quantity
of food, without any peculiar smell. The cerebral mem-
branes and muscles were greatly ecchymosed. The
lungs were much congested, and the', heart contained
a small quantity of fluid blood. Strangulation-4.ms the
cause of death. The blow on the forehoad-tnight have pro-
duced insensibility, but not death. The food had4irobably
_
been in t-

he stomach three or four hours. ..Both blaws were
probably received before death, butznight have been de
livered afterwards. There were nct marks of the body
having been violated. The rope found had a slip-knot, and.
unless there was more than one person engaged in the com—
mission of the crime, the rope could,probably:not have been
put over the woman's head until she had. become partially
insensible. It was difficult to say whether a wound was
inflicted immediately before or immediately after 'death.

The inquiry was .adjourned for a week. In.the meantime a
large staff of police are making diligent inquiry. • There is
a general hope that the murderer will be brought to iustice,
as the crime is one of almost unparalleled atrocity.

MUSICAL, DR XM AT IC, LITERARY,
ARTISTIC NEWS AND GOSSIP
Mr. Bentley will shortly publish " The Life and The-
atrical Times of Charles Kean," embracing a suracnary of
the English stage for the last half century.
A new paper has just appeared—the Austmlion h6ail. It
is wholly devoted to the Australian colonies, dealing with
all questions of politics, agriculture, mining, and general
commerce.

In consequence of the unsettled state of Europe, the jury
of English artists (Messrs. David P. Frith,
Thomas Creswick, A. Elmore, and ,J. P. Roberts,orsley, acting
with M. E. Gambart as director) have resolved not, to send.
pictures to Paris this year.
A contemporary announces that .Miss Arabella Goddard,
the celebrated pianist, and James Davison Esq.,,the musical
critic of the Times have been for some time. past united by
the bonds of holy matrimony, and calls upon all true lovers
of art to hail this union of musical talent with critical