The Sun.
London, England, 1855-09-20 00:00:00

THE MURDER IN ARTILLERY-LANE.

INQUEST ON THE BODY.

[The following appeared in our third edition of last
evening.] _ _

This morning an inquest was held by W. Baker, jun.,
Esq., deputy-coroner for the eastern division of Middle-
sex, at the Old Artillery-ground Court House, Fort-
street, Spitalfields, on the body of Catherine Lordon,
aged 45, who was so cruelly murdered yesterday morn-
ing by her husband, Daniel Lordon, at their residence
15, Parliament-court, Artillery-passage, Artillery-lane,
Bishopsgate-street.
The jury having been sworn viewed the body. On
their return the first witness called was
John Davis, residing at 15, Artillery-passage, la-
bourer. He deposed that he occupied an adjoining
room in the same house with the deceased and her hus-
band, who was a velvet weaver. Yesterday morning
about seven o'clock, as he was lying awake in bed
he heard screams of " Murder" uttered seven or
eight times by the deceased, and proceeding from her
room, and her husband calling her opprobrious epithets.
He heard the deceased open the door and run down
stairs. Witness did not get up, because it was a frequent
practice for the deceased to cry murder when having a
row with her husband. About five minutes after he
heard a person leave deceased's room and go down stairs,
treading heavily like the footsteps of a man, when he
heard deceased scream " Murder " three times, and the
person immediately return to the room. Witness dressed
himself and went down stairs about six or seven minutes
after he heard the cries of murder, and saw the deceased
sitting on the landing in a crouching posture. He ob-
served blood on the upper landing against de
ceased's door. When he came out of his room,
deceased when he saw her appeared quite dead.
There was a great quantity of blood about the
landing, bannisters, and stairs, and also on her clothes.
Witness went and informed his fellow-servant (Ellen
Leary, residing at 7, Artillery-lane) what he had seen,
and on his return to No. 15, in about ten minutes, he
saw a doctor, a policeman, and the husband with the
deceased. Lordon said to him, " Holloa, John."
Witness said to him, "What do you call this i" He re-
plied, "I don't know ; it's a bad job." Witness said,
" Yes it is." The husband appeared as if he had been
drinking. He did not observe deceased was wounded
until Mr. Shaw, the surgeon, moved her head on one
side. He had never heard the husband threaten his
wife's life. They both drank very much, and he had
interfered on more than one occasion to separate them
when quarrelling and fighting.
By the Jury—There were persons living on the floor
where he found the deceased, but he did not alarm them.
Sarah Elias, wife of a general dealer, resided in the
same house as the deceased. She occupied the first floor
back, and did not hear any noise yesterday morning.
Had she heard any she should have taken no
notice of it, it being such a frequent occurrence
for the deceased and her husband to quarrel. About

half-past seven o'clock, or 20 minutes to eight, witness
came out of her room and found deceased sitting on the
top stair of .the first flight of stairs, with her elbow on
her lap, supporting her face with her bands. She saw
blood about half a yard from where deceased was sitting.
Witness passed her, went downstairs, and returned
without speaking to her. About five minutes after her
attention was called to the arrival cf a policeman, and
Mr. Shaw, surgeon, and then it was she knew de-
ceased was dead. She heard no screams of murder that
morning. Witness was much disturbed about 2 o'clock
in the morning by the deceased and her husband quar-
relling in the street. Deceased was apparently tipsy
at the time. Witness did not speak to deceased on the
landing, considering she was in liquor. The husband
was generally of quiet habits, and rarely tipsy ; but the
deceased was scarcely sober one day in a month, and
quarrelled with everybody. She used vile language.
Witness never heard him call her other than "You dirty
blackguard, you have been drinking again."
Police sergeant, 13 11, Police constable, 59 H, and
Inspector Marsh gave similar testimony to that before
Mr. D'Eyncourt, at Worship-street, yesterday after-
noon, and reported in The Sun.
Margaret Lordon, one of the daughters of the de-
ceased, 18 years of age, deposed that, in accordance
with her mother's directions, she slept on the stairs.
She went at 10 o'clock on Monday night with her mo-
ther to a raffle, at the Green Dragon, Half Moon-street,
Bishopsgate-street. Her father was there, rather in-
toxicated, but not so much so but that he knew what he
was about. Two of her mother's brothers were also
there, and they quarrelled with her father, and one of
them, Daniel Crease, threatened to throw him down
stairs. Daniel Crease pushed her father, and he fell over
the stairs. A man named John Kingstone was at the
Green Dragon, but no quarrel took place between him
and her father. About one o'clock in the morning, just
as she and her mother got home, they were met at the
door by Kingstone. Her father returned home about
half an hour later, and saw her mother standing with
Kingstone at the step of the door. On coming up to
them he pushed Kingstone and went up stairs, leaving
her mother and Kingstone at the door. Her father
threw something out of the window, which she believed
struck Kingstone on the face, after which he came down
with a poker and struck Kingstone. A struggle took
place between them. He then went up stairs, and she
saw no more of her father that night. Witness and her
mother slept that night on the stairs, being afraid
to go to her father's room. Her two brothers, aged 12
and 14, slept with her father. They were called by her
mother, who knocked at the door, one at half-past 5,
and the other at 6 o'clock, and left to go to their work.
After the boys had left, witness and her mother left the
house about a quarter to 7 in the morning, followed by
her father to Sandy's row, Bishopsgate-street, but she
did not hear him speak to either of them. She and her
mother walked up Bishopsgate-street until the clock
struck seven, when she parted with her mother at
Whitegate-street, which was the last time she saw
her mother alive. Her father had previously gone in
the direction towards home. When she parted with her
mother she turned to go home to wash herself. She
said she felt wretched and miserable. Mother was per-
fectly sober yesterday morning, although she had had
a little drink over night. Witness believed her father
was jealous of Kingstone, but he made no remark to him
when he pushed him aside at the door step on Monday
night. Witness on her return home about 10 o'clock
with her mother, was sent by Kingstone for a pot of
porter, which they drank at the door.
By the Jury—When her father struck Kingstone with
the poker he throw him down, but was unable to take
the poker from him. Her father got up and went up
stairs directly. Kingstone left five minutes after, at the
request of deceased, to get a policeman to take her father
into custody. She did not think her father heard what
her mother said.
The knife produced by the policeman was identified by
the girl as belonging to her father, who used to keep it
in his chest after he had finished his day's work when
out of employment. He had been out of work some
infactlinetrlerl-assttroweto.rkedshass asalwabohuimreronat
sthnendtaeya
tseimareehouliseer
night last put the knife and his ticket in the chest close
by the bedstead.
By the Jury—Kingstone was an old friend of her
father's, and he had frequently brought •
him to their
house.

Mr. Henry Shaw (Shaw and Floyer), of Bishopsgate-
,wh and was
street Without, deposed that he was a Lirg
called on Monday morning to visit the deceaseeodn
found dead. He found a large pool of blood i whom h
n heral lap
mo
ving
the her clothes much saturated with blood. On
the head aside he saw two large wounds on the
neck
under the right ear ; one just above the collar bone in e a
k
line with it about an inch and a half long, the other
about three inches and a half long, and was au oblique
wound extending from the angle of the jaw to near the
shoulder. The muscles were exposed by the latter
wound. He put his finger into the wounds and found
they extended to the vertebra, near the collar bone. A
small portion of the vertebra) was chopped or broken,
showing great force must have been used in inflicting
the wounds. A post mortena examination of the body
showed the muscles were completely divided to
the vertebra, and the carotid artery half cut
through. The point of the knife produced was
slightly turned, as if from coming in contact with
the bone stated to be chipped. It was just the
kind of instrument he should have suspected the wounds
were inflicted by ; groat force must have been used.
Witness found the lungs, liver, &c., healthy, and ho
attributed death to the loss of blood. He thought, from
the pof-ibion of the wounds, they were inflicted when her
back was towards the party. She could not have sur-
vived the injuries two minutes.
By the Jury—The small wound was not sufficient to
cause death.

This being the whole of the evidence, _
to
The Deputy-Coroner summed up the evidencettle.
the
jury, remarking that in addition to the husband, s
sta
ruents there was sufficient evidence to show that the
death of the unfortunate woman was caused by her hus-
band. Neither drunkenness nor jealousy was a sufficient
excuse for the committal of such a crime as this, and it
would be for the jury to consider what state of mind the
prisoner was in when he committed this act and the na-
ture of the offence. He quoted several cases where
death had resulted from wounds inflicted in haste re-
ducing the crime from murder to manslaughter, pointing
out their bearing on this case. If they were satisfied it
was a premediated act they would, of course, return a
verdict of murder.
The jury, after a quarter of an hour's consultation,
returned a verdict of ‘ wilful murder"
against Daniel
Lordon, the husband, adding that he Committed the act
through jealousy and drunkennese.