Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-08-01 00:00:00

SEDUCTION AND DEATH OF A GIRL FOURTEEN

YEARS OF AGE.

On Tuesday and Wednesday last Mr. James Hitchins,
coroner for the city of Lincoln, and a jury were engaged
for several hours in the investigation of a case horrible
and disgusting in all its details ; indeed, such an amount
of moral turpitude and depravity is in these days rarely
brought to light. The facts are briefly these :—ln a bye
lane of the city, in the heart of a populous neighbourhood,
reside Thomas and Sarah Mann. both in the prime of life,
and surrounded by a family of children, the youngest of
which at this date, is scarcely three weeks old. The
woman, it appears, has been married before, and at the
time of her marriage with Mann had one daughter—
thea only five or six years old. Mann follows the
occupation of hay-trusser and thatcher, and for four
years, i.e., since the age of ten years, his daughter•in-law,
the young girl alluded to, has been in the habit of assisting
him in the fields. This she continued to do until within
a week or two ago, when an advanced state of pregnancy
compelled her to desist and remain in.doors. On Sunday
morning, the I9th of July, she gave birth to a full grown
mail child in the natural way. Now comes the horrible
part of the story. The girl, on being questioned, positively
affirmed that her father-in-law, Thomas Mann, was the
father of the child, and this statement was fully borne
out by corroborative circumstances. After the girl's
accoucheraent, Mann's wife declined to call in a nurse, or
allow the infant to be put to the breast in the ordinary
way, and represented to the surgeon who called to inquire
after the health of his patient, but did not sea her, that
she was going on quite favourably. The result was, that
inflammation set in, and the wretched girl died of conjes-
tion of the brain, exactly a week after she gave birth to
the offspring of her shame and her guardian's (?) villainy.
Under these circumstances, the coroner thought it his
duty to institute an official enquiry, when the facts above
stated were proved. It was also given in evidence that
since the age of ten the deceased girl has been subject to
the infamous proposals of her father-in.law, and at the
age of 13 her ruin was effected. The jury after a long
deliberation returned the following verdict :—" That the
deceased at the age of 14 years gave birth to a male child
uuder circumstances of a distreosing, disgraceful, and
awful character, being the victim of him who ought to have
been her paternal guardian; that subsequently the de-
ceased was not attended to as she ought to have been by
the mother ; that there was culpable if not criminal neg.
lect on the part of the mother in refusing to follow the
instructions of the medical attendant ; that milk fever,
succeeded by phreniti., and ultimately congestion of the
brain caused the death Of the said Sophia Welch." Mann
is about 40 years of age, and well to do in the world. The
disclosures have caused the most intense horror and dis-
gust throughout the city.

THE HOUSE OF SAXE•COBURG AND ITS
MATRIMONIAL ALLIANCES.

The Debats profits by the marriage of Princess Char-
lotte of Belgium to draw the attention of the public to the
remarkable position attained by the house of Saxe Coburg
Gotha in Europe by means of its matrimonial alliances.
Our contemporary believes that the result of these alli-
ances will be most favourable to the influence of England,
and that it will draw still closer the political union of
Great Britain and Austria. We extract the following
passages :—" The King of the Belgians is a prince of the
house of Saxe Coburg Gotha, which has become great and
powerful within a space of thirty years. He is the uncle
of Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria. The nume-
rous children of the Queen are Coburga• Apart from the
near relationship existing between the two royal families
of England and Belgium, the Queen of England is ten_
aerly attached to King Leopold, here uncle, whom she
considers with justice one of the wisest and most eminent
sovereigns of Europe. The princes of the house of
Coburg are destined to reign one day over Great Britain
and Belgium ; but with this difference, that the Coburgs
of England will preserve the protestant faith of their
fathers, while the Coburgs of Belgium will be catholic'
like the French princess, their mother. This circumstsnce
favours in a singular manner the aggrandisement of the
house of Coburg, which may aspire to any alliance.
Thus the princes of the Belgian branch marry in catholic
Austria, while the eldest princess of the English branch
allies herself to Protestant Prussia. The time, therefore,
is not far distant when Coburgs will be found everywhere
in Europe, and as relations or friends of the King or
Queen of England they will reflect on that nation the
greatness and power for which they are indebted to their
numerous alliances. At the present moment, King
Leopold, who is so closely connected with the Queen of
England and the Emperor of Austria, would be an ex-
cellent intermediary for bringing about a political union
between them; and his consummate experience and pro-
found knowledge of the men and politics of Europe
would not fail him in that task. We have stated
already that Europe carrot see with an indifferent eye
the intimate alliance which is gradually being
established between Austria and England. We
may mention that the union of those two
countries in former times by no means prejudiced the
interests of Prussia and Russia. On the contrary,
Prussia, protected by that union, rose to the rank of a
great power, laid the foundation :of future aggrandise-
ment, and at present balances in the Germanic confedera-
tion the influence of Austria. Russia also conquered
immense tracts, which gave her the rule of the Baltic and
the Black Seas, and so powerful an influence over the
German States as to lead to the belief that the equili-
brium and independence of Europe were menaced. Are
we to consider the family alliances of the royal house of
Belgium and of the imperial house of Austria as a step
towards the ancient alliance between England and Austria?
We do not believe that such is the case ; but we can com-
prehend the interest with which Europe watches the
political effects of these alliances."

THREE WOMEN STRUCK BY I.4IGIITENING IN ABERDEEN-
simm—A sudden death from lightning occurred at
Kirkton Farm, Fraserburgh, on Monday last, between
three and four o'clock. The thunder and lightning for a
time were tremendous, and the lightning struck dead on
the spot one of the women at wink at Mr. Burnett's turnip
field, and severely injured other two, who are reported to
be dangerously ill.—Aberdeen Journal.
THE HARVEST.—Harvest is progressing most rapidly.
The crops are large and heavy. Wheats are remarkable for
the length and squareness of the ear. Oats in many places
are already housed. Some large breadths of barley are cut
in good condition. Pease and beans are abundant: The
crops are ripening so fast that it is difficult to decide which
field to begin first. If the weather holds fine for ten
days, the bulk of the harvest will be over, and by this
day week many samples will have been laid on the market
tables.
A Cow WITH A WOODEN LEG.—Last week, Mr. Robert
Wright, farmer, of Bourton Lazars, near Melton Mow-
bray, had a cow which broke its leg, and which they
attempted to set themselves, but finding they could not
succed, they scat for Mr. Reynolds, veterinary surgeon, of
Melton Mowbray, who found it in so bad a state as to
render amputation necessary, and he has affixed one of
timber in its place, which is likely to answer every
purpose. It is fastened round the knee-joint by means of
leather straps, and the beast can use it. Nottingham
Journal.
" I CANNA FOLLOW."—The almost telegraphic velocity
with which Mr. Fitzroy, the chairman of committees, is
in the habit of reading votes in supply, and the proposi-
tion of clauses and amendments, during the discussion
of bills, is but too well known to every one, who, like
members and reporters, are occasionally bewildered by his
rapidity of utterance. Durifig the discussion on the Scotch
Police Bill yesterday, the right hon. gentleman was getting
along with his usual speed, when the plaintive exclamation
4‘ I canna follow," burst forth in a despairing tone from
the hon. representative of a western city, and arrested
for a moment the chairman's progress, and the house's
attention.
THE OPERA SEASON of 1857.—1 f there be any truth in
the apothegm, " Happy is the people that bath no history,"
the Italian Opera-houses, or rather the two managers of
them, ought to be very happy indeed. A season presenting
less matter for record, or mere devoid of interest than the
opera season of 1857, we do not remember; and were it
not that anything like a large retrospect of the progress of
any art shows that suuch pauses as that which we are now
making are not unprecedented, nor even few, we should be
disposed to think, as perhaps some in every generation
have thought, that the resources of music were exhausted
—that the well-springs of melody were dried up. and the
fountains of harmony had ceased to flow.—Frsser's Maga-
sins for August,

ST. HELEN'S RAILWAY AND CANAL COMPANY

HALF-YEARLY MEETING.

The ordinary half-yearly meeting of the St. Helen's
Railway and Canal Company, was held at the Station,
St. Helens, at twelve o'clock 3esterday. There were bat
a few proprietors in attendance. The chair was taken
by Gilbert Greenall, Esq., M.P., Chairman of the Com-
pany.
The Secretary, Air. A. SINCLAIR, read the advert' se-
ment convening the meeting, and the half-yearly report
of the directors, which was as follows:

8. d,

18,069 18 0

Association.