The Sun.
London, England, 1864-03-24 00:00:00

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE,

OXFORD CIRCUIT.—HEREFORD, March 23. -
CROWS COURT.
(Before Mr. Baron Pigott.)
THE HENNOR MURDER.
Thomas Watkins was indicted for wilfully, and
of malice aforethought, killing and murdering Mary
Ann Watkins, his wife, at Hennor, near Leomin-
ster, in this county, on the 18th of January last.
Mr. Cooke and Mr. Matthews conducted the pro-
secution, and Mr. Wightman defended the prisoner.
When the prisoner was arraigned yesterday he
pleaded guilty, but by his lordship's advice he after-
wards withdrew the plea, and the trial was fixed
for this morning. The trial occupied most of the
day, but the facts, as elicited in evidence, lie in a
narrow compass. It appeared that the prisoner
had led a dissolute life, and had separated from his
wife, who earned a living by going out washing
and ironing. The deceased lived with a cottager
named Smith, and some time before the murder the
prisoner had said to Smith that he " should like to
be the death of his wife and of one or two others."
The deceased, too, was afraid of being out at night
in consequence of the threats that her husband
had used towards her. On Monday, the 18th of
January, the deceased went to do a day's wash-
ing at the house of James Lane at Hennor, and
left Lane's house to go home at about six o'clock
in the evening. When she left Lane's she said
she did not much like going home by herself for fear
of meeting her husband. The poor creature never
reached her home that night, but between 10 and 11
o'clock, as a witness, named David Lipscombe, was
passing through an orchard on his way home, a
short distance from Lane's house, he heard groans
proceeding from the other side of hedge. He got
through a fence, and following the direction of the
sound soon came up with the poor woman, whom he
found lying on the ground in a pool of blood which
had flowed from several frightful cuts in her head.
Lipscombe placed the woman in a position in which
she could breathe more freely, and having obtained
assistance, she was carried to the union workhouse,
where she died. Next morning at daylight an
examination was made of the locality of the murder,
and traces were found of a person wearing clogs of a
peculiar make. The prisoner was suspected of being
concerned in the murder, and it was ascertained that
he had been in the neighbourhood on the evening
of the murder. Between five and six o'clock he
called at a house about a mile and a half from Lane's,
and about nine he was at another house about a
quarter of a mile from where the murder was com-
mitted. Ho then wore clogs, and said he was going
to Smith's to ask his wife to go and live with him.
As he left he said, " Good night; perhaps I shall
never see you again." A day or two afterwards the
prisoner was apprehended, and, being charged with
the murder, answered, " Well, I did not do it."
A number of witnesses were examined to prove
the above facts. It was shown that on the night of
the murder the prisoner called at several cottages
distant from half a mile to two miles from Hennor,
with no apparent object. He talked of his wife's
conduct, and said she had been unfaithful to him
during his 4133eucv, he haying been for four years