The Sun.
London, England, 1863-09-24 00:00:00

The Castle Hedingham Witchcraft Case.

On Tuesday Emma Smith, 36, and Samuel Stammers,2B,
were placed at the bar before Mr. Bernardiston and a full
bench of magistrates sitting in petty sessions at Castle Hed-
Ingham, charged with having unlawfully assaulted an old
Frenchman, named Tummy, on the night of August 3, and
thereby caused his death on the 4th inst. The female pri-
soner is the wife of a beer-shop keeper in the village of
Ridgwell, and Stammers is a master carpenter. Nearly all
the 60 or 70 persons ccneerned in the outrage are of the small
tradesmen class. The victim of this belief in witchcraft was
deaf and dumb, about 80 years of age. For the last, seven or
eight years he resided in Hedingham, in a wretched hut,
and previous to that he lived in Braintree. There is little
doubt that he gained his living to a great extent by telling
fortunes, if not by pre:ences to witchcraft. In the hovel
were found numberless scraps of paper and between 400
and 500 walking sticks, a number of umbrellas, some French
books, several tin boxes, a hoard of foreign coins, chiefly of
the French empire, and about a ton of rubbish, which it
was found impossible to classify.
Mr. Cardinall appeared to conduct the prosecution, and
Mr. Jones defended Stammers. Mr. Smith was undefended.
The first called was

John Pettit, a shoemaker, living at Hedingham. He saw
an old man called Dummy, about 11 o'clock on the night of
the 3d of August, at the Swan Inn, at Sible Hedingham.
There were about 40 or 50 persons in the tap-room. Emma
Smith said that she had been in a bad state for nine or ten
months. and she attributed her ailing to bang bewitched
by Dummy. She said it was all through what Dummy had
done to her. She asked him (Dummy) to go home with
her to Ridgwell, and she told him that she would give him
three sovereigns, and would use him well. When this was
told to the old man he refused, and drew his fingers across
his throat. He meant he would rather have his head cut
off., or his throat cut, than go. Witness saw a man named
Gibson dancing about with Dummy, and Gibson fell on him.
Shortly afterwards witness saw the old man sitting out-
side the Swan. Mrs. Smith was there, urging him to go
home with her. Ile refused ; upon which she caught hold of
his coat and began to drag him towards the brook, about two
rods off. Witness thought they both fell into the water—
but he could not see well on account of the persons that in-
terfered with the view. He presently saw Dummy on his
hands and face in the brook, which was not deep there.
Some one said, " He is trying to get out on the other side."
Mrs. Smith then crossed the bridge, and, as he was trying to
get out at the other side, she pushed him back into the water.
She pushed him back a second time ; but afterwards Dummy
got out. Witness saw the prisoner Stammers standing at
the side when the man was first thrown in. Witness did
not see him do anything, nor what became of him. There
were so many people about, witness could not see. When
the man got out he went and sat on a heap of stones oppo-
site the S wan Inn. Mrs. Smith appeared anxious to get him
to the water again, or to go home with her. She struck him
several times across the shoulders and arms with a stick.
She struck him once on the head, ar,d witness said to her,
"Don't hit him with a stick, 'specially on the head." She
was partly behind hire. She said she would not hurt him
on any account. Witness heard the blow. She laid the
stick down, and began to kick him. Sho kicked him on the
side. Witness asked him not to do so, and she said she
would not hurt him, as her boots were thin and soft.
Fifty persons were standing by, and Stammers was there.
A number of persons told me Mrs. Smith and Dummy
and the crowd went down Watermill-lane. Witness
heard that Dummy was carried. The brook ran down
the side of the lane to the river, and was deep there.
The street was full of people. Witness heard a female
voice say "Put him or swim him in the millhead.”
ness then heard a splash in the water, and went down to see.
He saw Dummy in the water, and Stammers was in the act
of fitting him OU t. Mrs. Burty was helping him. Mrs, Smith
was standing close by. Witness asked "Who did it?"
Mrs. Smith said " A drunken man fell in the ditch?,
grass ten
thma
Mrs. Bruty and Stainers crossed the road, and.laid.Dummy
upon the grass. The water appeared to be in his throat,
or
aa nqdu he
quarter
waser
of qauni t
he
owuer t.. He
appearedayon tloe
so
withoutminutes
help he could not have got up. He afterwards went back
towards the Swan, leaning on the wall for support. Le
knocked at the door of Mr. Ames, the butcher, who refused
to let him in. Ultimately Mrs. Bruty and another female
helped him to his hut, witness following. Witness recom-
mended him to change his clothes, and he kissed witness's
hands. Witness left him. He appeared much, exhausted,
and was in a very different state from what he bad 1,
been
when witness first saw him at the Swan.

Henrietta Garrod said that she was ten years of age.
She lived with her mother at He
Swan for
ham. On n the night
of the 3d August she went to the
supper
beer. She went into the tap-room, and stood on a form
to see them twisting old Dummy about. Gibson twisted
him about, and they fell. Dummy fell
On Gibson first.
Gibson then turned
him about again, and fell on him.
`Witness was there an hour and a half, we ,
uen ner mother
came for her, and took her home. About half an hour after-
sweaerwdshwatitNnveass thshe eard a noise at the Swan and ran down to
matter.
Dummy Was coming
out of the
Swan, and Mr. Smith was with him, She asked him to
go home with her,
but he twice refused, and drew his
hand across his throat. She asked several people to give
her a stick, and as no
one gave her one she took Dummy's
stick from the wind ow,
and hit him twice across the top of
the head with it, and several times on the shoulders and
arms, She had first taken his hat off and flung it in the
water. She said, .i You old devil you served me out, and I
will serve you out." He tried to get hold of her clothes.
She dragged him to the brook and shoved him in. He tried
to get out on the other side. Then Samuel Stammers ran
through the brook to the other side, and pushed him in
again. Dummy got out and went to the stone-heap and
sat down. Mrs. Smith asked some one to lift him up, and
the old man walked down towards the water-mill, Stammers
and Smith holding his shoulders, In some way he got on
to the ground and shuffled himself, and made a growling
noise. Mrs. Smith got hold of the collar of his coat, which
came up and covered his head, , and she dragged him along
the road. Some one helped her. They dragged him to the
side of the sluice water. It Was a girl larger than witness
that helped her. Mr. Smith then caught hold of Dummy's
shoulders, and Stammers of his legs, and they threw him
into the sluice. The Water eovered him, and witness
could only see his arms. Witness could not recognise
many that were there, though there were a great number,
because she was looking at old Dummy. Stammers
and got Demme
jumped in y out of the water, and laid
him on the grass. Dummyn
tried to get the mud and
the water out of his throat. Stammers assisted him to
the Swan gates. Dummy then went to Mr. Ames,and held
up his arms to show that his sleeves were all torn. He had
a crying in his eyes, and Was green and muck-wet all over.
Mrs. Harrisou and Mrs.
. Bruty then helped him on his way
Ile was shivering home. with cold.
Mr. Sinclair, surgeon to the Halstead Union, said that
on Thursday, the sth August, the deceased was brought in.
There were bruises on the shoulders. He pointed to indi-
cate that he was hurt on the back of the head,the shoulder,
and the loft side. In a day
or two afterwards indication of
chest affection showed themselves. There was inflamma-
tion of the lungs and bronchitis. Death took place on the
4th September. ;The post mortees:examination showed that
there was total disorganisation of the lungs,that the kidneys
were diseased, and that there had been recent inflammation
of the brain. Death was attributable to those causes com-
bined, but more especially to the disease in the lungs and
kidneys. Having heard the whole of the evidence just
given, he was of opinion that the treatment deceased had
received gave rise to a great shock to the system, producing
fever, which set up the causes which resulted in death.
The immersion in the water,and the sleeping in wet clothes
would produce fever. The blows described had not, in his
opinion, caused death. Ho had no doubt whatever that
death resulted from the treatment deceased received.
After other evidence,
Mr. Jones addressed the bench on behalf of his client
Stammers.

The Chairman said that the bench had resolved to send
both prisoners for trial at the next assizes.
The prisoner Emma Stuith was then formally asked what
she had to say
she replied in a peculiar voice, and evidently under the
why she should not be committed for trial.
influence of some•superstitious fear, that she would tell the
truth. The man came to her house first. He spat upon her,
and told her that after a time she should be ill, and she was
ill, A doctor came to her twice in one night, but could not
cure her. The man (Dummy)
ago, and asked leave to sleep in her shed. She let him;
but in a few days, came to her shop ten mouths
when she wanted him to leave, he made
signs and wrote upon a door that she should be ill in ten
days. Ho made her ill an/ bewitched her, and she went