Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-10-21 00:00:00

TILE MURDER AT WATERLOO-BRIDGE.

The Medical Times and Lancet protest, as might be expected,
against the ab:nrd and unworthy suggestion to which some of the
Lou 'on newspapers have given currency, t' at the bones and other
parts of the human body found on the buttress of Waterloo-bridge,
on Friday, Octo`,er gtb, vrer, placed there by some medical students,
as a practical hoax to horrify the British 1 eges. "In the name of
common sense," 5a,76 the Medical Tines, "as well as in behalf of
medical students in general, we entirely repudiate such a
supposition."
The Lancet rema ks on the sul‘ject Such an absurd suspicion
could only have originated in the densest ignoranco. Students hive
no greater opportunit es of obtaining possession of remains in the
condition in which the e were found than any other members of
socie.y, ani we can only express our extreme disgust at tha morbid
obtuseness of the slanderer who dared to imp ite suet a barbarous
outrage by intelligent and edecated men."

Mr. Richer 1 Bud I Painter, Surgeon to the F Division f the Metro-
politan Police F.,rce, has addressei the following letter to the
.1,7 ?lc f
"S:r,—As I find there is still an opinion hell by a few medical
gentlemen, as well as by some of the pabac that the bones recently ,
found at Waterloo-bridge are not those of a murdered man, but the ,
remains of a dissection. I think it may be well to seal you a short
account of what I have observed hitherto in the matter, e peciel y as
lam the only medical practitioner that has yet reported on the .
case. I therefore propose, on the present occasion, to give a short
anatomical descripthen of the case, and will possib:y, at a future
psr;od, give a more detaled account.
" On being shown the bones at the Police-station, I proceeded to
fit them together, and soon ascertained that they all belonged to one
person—an adult man of an average, or perhaps above the general
size. The head, the whole of the viscera, all the cervical and sev
Of the dorsal vertebras were wanting, also th lef: c'avicle, p actions of
the ribs, acromion process of the right scapula, both hands, both
patellae, lower third of the left fibula, and both feet and tarsi. 0 f the
bones present, five dorsal and two lumbar were in one piece, the ribs
being sawn fc m the former. The upper and lewer portion of this
piece of the backbone was sepal* tel from its adjoining bones by cut-
ating the intervertearal substance with a knife, and the articular and
transverse processes with a saw. The lower lumbers ware cut in ha f
through their bodies and attached to the pelvis. There were five
portiere; of the thorax, throe of them belonging to the right side, and
forming, when put together, eleven ribs nearly complete ; the two
other portions were from the left side, one of which consisted of
probably the second, third, anl fourth ribs, with part of the sternum.
Between the third and fourth ribs, near the sterna n, was a eleaey-
cut stab, having its long axis ndwards and downwards, and exactly
corresponding watt the direction andaneition of the cuts in the coat
and under-waistcoat. Around this wound, fora distance o' two inches,
blood was infl treed int l the tissues, both external to the thorax as
well as beneath tee pleura. The next ribs helots, probably two or
three, were missing, the other piece of the left side above mentionee
being most likely parts of the seventh, eighth, and ninth. Thus the
ribs immediately beneath the pats where the grea'er number of
stabs in the clothes appear are missing. Bat the chaster of the cub
above mentioned are qui,e conclusive as to the wound being infl cted
during life. The thorax had not been opened in the invariab'e (as I
believe) manner of anatomists—viz., by cutting the costal cartilages,
but the sternum was sawn down the middle vertical'y. The right
clavicle was I_,ft hanging to the upper rib, an had a square loch of
dark skin n it. Tate right scapula was detaehea and had lost its
acromion by the sow, and Wan roughly disarticulated from the
humerus. Tee right radius and nina were in one piece, but sep .rated
by rough disart'e !latices from the lan netts and hand. The left
scapula was also separate, but scam from the humerus, to which the
neck rem 'nee attache 1. At the seism joint the heads of the lett
radius and ulna, party sawn, and partly broken off by great force,
were also attached to the humerus. The rem titling portions of
radius and ulna were together, and pro latsci. On the back of each
wrist w•le a large patch of dark skin, with numerous long, black,
i or darkish hairs.
he pelvis was divided with a knife (I believe) at the eymphysis
pubis, and with a sew down the centre of the sacrum. It was of
large dimensions, the internal measurements being at the brine five
inches lateral, and five inches and a querter antero-posterior. At-
tached to one of tee rami was a , Istinct portion of the corpus cover.
nesum. T,.e heals of both fa Tnera were articulated, but sawn from
their shares below the trozhanters. Thr right stump had muscle
around it, and was flrmiy fixed, pointing almost at right angles to
the body of deceased. The capsular ligament of the left hip joint
was cut open, and an endeavour hal been made to wrench out the
heal of the femu-, but it was held by the ligament= tares. The
shafts of the femora were again cut just above the conayles, the
right lower portion still rem,icing' attached ty the tibia. The left
W 39 separated and detached by rough , utting. 113 right lib'a was
cut at the junction o its lower third. T. .e right fibula was similarly
divided and detached. The left tibia and fibula were similarly sawn.
The lower portions of the right tibia and fi mla aed the left tibia
formed separate fragments, and were dlserticalated from the missing
tarsi. The right knee was strongly fitted, and had a large piece of
skin with h.ir, as oa the wrists, firmly adherent to the head of
the tibia.

All the bones hal portions of muscles, nerves, arteries (unin-
)octoa), I. • , ndhprin2. cut shalt in a rough. " haggled " manner,
and ha i not been dissecte I. The colour of the parts was reddish-brown
externally, redder if cut into. No decomposition had taken place,
excepting la the left acetsbulum, where there were blue diseolorations,
and a very strong smell of putrefaction. No portions of ak n were
present but those named. From the condition of the tend o,s, ar-
teries, cuticle, Bt,, , I should not wonder if the t,arts had been bo'led.

"It is evident t xat when cala-prous rigidity set in, t►se ri ht
thigh and leg ware strongly drawn up.vards ani outwards, the latter
partly fiesta on the former. The left humerus must have been ab-
ducted from the side, and tha f.irerm half flexed and prJoated at
the same time.

" Some dark halrs were adherent to the remains, and also a few
long ones of a lighter c)lonr. Some saline gritty partiles were
found on the muscles, &c. These will probably be analysed.
"I think I have said enough in this hurried note to show that a
foul mur:er hts bean committed. I have not time to add core, or
speak of the c'othes, and my chief object in writing this at all is to
ende tvour to free my medic it brethren from the horrible imputatio❑
that they dispose of their subjects used for study in such a
m uner cs this.
"I am, sir, your obedient servant,.
RICUARD BUDD PAINTZR.
" Brydges-street, Covent-garden, Oct. 15.'

Upon inquiry at the Bow•strezt police-station, on Tuesday, it was
stated that Meters. H •nion, of 25, Skinner-street, Snow-111,1,1nd rac
ved a letter f•em Mr. H.,gh Pattison, stating that ha was at ;resent
in Ireland, and that he should shart'y re urn to Lonl.m, when he
would ca lon them. The supposition of his being the murdered man
is set a' rest. On Tuesday moraMg, Errin;ton, the toll c Meet& at
Waterioo bridge war t ken to a house iu the Borough, t look at a
woman supposed to to the parson who pissed over: the bridge w th a
carpet ha.; and brown I.aper par el the night pre✓ious to the die
covery of the renal, s. After spending some time in her company,
and conversing w.th her, ha informed the detectives who accom anied
ham that she was mora like the woman than either of the others he
had previously een. On the same night, a r:spectab'e man, welt
known to ErrMgton, pas el through• the bridge a fey seco ids bafo e
the woman with a c trpet-bag, and he hos communicated to the police
the fact that he can identify her. He says teat after pacing the
turnst le he turned round with the intent on of asking Errin;ton for
a light for his pipe, but that seeing Fxrington wrangling will a
worn n aboat :or-nettling, ha change l hi; mind, and went on ; the
gas light at the bar was so stroeg on the woman's face, that ho feels
convinced Le should know her again.