The Sun.
London, England, 1862-09-25 00:00:00

MANSLAUGHTER.

An aged man, named Shirtcliffe, was indicted for the
manslaughter of a female named Oliver, with whom he
cohabited.

The prisoner and the deceased lived together as man and
wife, the female being of a very dissipated disposition,
while the prisoner was altogether as industrious. On a
Sunday night they quarrelled about some money, when he
took up a shell and threw it at the woman, the missile
striking her on the head, and her death occurred 15 days
after.

Mr. Sleigh contended that death had arisen through
natural causes.

The jury returned a verdict of not guilty.

THIRD COURT.
(Before the Common Sergeant.)

Floretta Hemming, a highly respectable-looking young
woman, the daughter of the late Henry Hemming, the
comedian, of the Adelphi Theatre, surrendered in discharge
of her bail, on a charge of concealing the birth of her infant.
The court was crowded by a number of the leading mem-
bers of the theatrical profession, including Mr. B. Webster
and Mr. C. Mathews.

Mr. Poland prosecuted, and Mr. Sleigh and Mr. Mon-
tague Williams defended.

From the evidence it appeared that Miss Hemming, when
in London and out of an engagement, was in the habit of
residing with Mrs. Willis at 43, Southampton row, Blooms-
bury, On the 10th of August of the present year she re-
turned to the same lodgings, and was accommodated with
a portion of a bedroom with the daughter of Mrs. Willis,
who occupied the same bed. She became ill, and from cer-
tain circumstances it was suggested that a surgeon should
be sent for, but she stated she had been seen by Dr. Bain-
bridge, of the same neighbourhood, and that she was suf-
fering from a failure of nature, and the pains were produced
by natural causes. She afterwards became very ill, and
was visited by Dr. Bainbridge the following day, but after
that she got better; and on Saturday, the 23d of August,
it appeared she called at the residence of a lady named
Walton, of Angel-road, Brixton. That lady was engaged
at the time and could not see Miss Hemming, but she
asked permission to go to the closet in the garden. She
then went there and was absent for some time, and after-
wards, having seen Mrs. Walton, left the house. Shortly
afterwards the female servant observed some strange marks
in the closet, and the appearance of the place altogether being
very unusual, a search was made, when the body of a child
was found underneath the top of the closet wrapped in
flannel but quite dead. A communication was made to the
police and a constable was appointed to investigate the
case. Mr. Christy, a surgeon residing in the neighbour-
hood, was called in to see the body, which was in a high
state of decomposition, and in his belief it had been born
about 10 days. The prisoner was afterwards charged
with having given birth to a child, but she denied
the accusation. The constable, however felt justi-
fied ,in detaining Miss Hemming in custody,
and on her being examined by a surgeon he
gave it as his opinion that she had given birth to a child,
and he also expressed an opinion that Dr. Bainbridge who
had attended her must have been aware of the fact.
At the close of the case for the prosecution - -

Mr. Sleigh in a very pathetic manner addressed the
jury for the defendant. She was a person of the highest
education and attainments, and had been deceived by a
person under whose management she had been engaged in
a most base and heartless manner. With respect to the legal
bearing of the case he was of opinion that it had altogether
failed. There was nothing to show that she had not con-
fided to Dr. Bainbridge the fact that she was about to be
delivered of a child.

The Common Sergeant said, the. prosecution not having
called Dr. Bainbridge, entitled the jury to come to the same
conclusion as that just mentioned by the learned counsel.
The question the jury had to try, was not the disposal of
the body, but the actual concealment of birth.
The jury having conferred for a few minutes, returned a
verdict of not guilty.
The defendant, who appeared to be suffering very severely,
then quitted the court with her friends.