The Sun.
London, England, 1865-07-21 00:00:00

THE ROAD MURDER.

(BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.)
SALISBURY, Friday, July 21.
The trial of Constance Emilie Kent commenced
this morning.

On being arraigned, the prisoner pleaded
" Guilty ;" consequently no evidence was taken.
Sentence of death was passed.

SALISBURY, Thursday.
The business of the assizes was formally opened this
morning, Mr. Justice Willes presiding in the criminal
court and Mr. Justice Keating at nisi prius. There are 18
cases for trial. The case of Miss Constance Emile Kent
stands the seventh on the calendar. She is described as of
no occupation, and well instructed. She was received into
the custody of Mr. A. Alexander, keeper of the House of
Correction at Devizes, on the 4th of May last, charged with
the wilful murder of Francis Saville Kent, at North Brad-
ley, on the 29th or 30th of June, 1860. The grand jury,
consisting of 23 county magistrates, Lord H. Thynne, fore-
man, having been sworn,
The Judge proceeded to deliver-Ala charge. After mak-
ing come remarks upon several of the minor charges in the
calendar, he proceeded as follows :—Thero is only ono case
remaining on the calendar on which it is necessary that I
should make some remarks. It stands No. 7, and it is a
case in which a young woman, named Constance Emile
Kent, is charged with the murder of her brother by the
second marriage of her father, which she is alleged to have
committed so far back as the night of the 29th of June,
1860. Now, I shall abstain from making any remarks on
that case, except those which I think may be useful to you
in considering when it comes before you in your room
whether to find or to throw out the bill. Ido not think it
would become me here to enter into any general remarks
on a case which it would be prudery on my part not to say
has caused a very great deal of discussion. It would be
both unwise and imprudent to discuss certain questions
which may arise in the course of the trial, but which do
not appear by the depositions to have arisen before the
magistrates in such a form that I am called at
present to express any opinion upon. I will, therefore,
simply inform you that it is a case in'which the boy, who
was murdered unquestionably by some one, was taken in
the course of the morning out of the room where ho was
sleeping, and whore the maid or governess and another
child were also sleeping, in a blanket, apparently through
the drawing-room window, to a privy, where, it would seem,
his throat was cut, and he was thrust down the hole. The
blanket in which it is likely, and more than likely, that he
was carried, was removed from the bed. Inquiry appears
to have been made by persons well skilled in the investi-
gation of crime, who were sent for, and every effort seems to
have been made to discover who was the murderer, but it
seems to have been made in vain. There was ono circum-
stance, however, which was of a very remarkable character,
which will be brought under your attention in the course
of your inquiry into the evidence. The. night-shift of the
prisoner now charged with the crime was withdrawn from
the wash. That night-shift was found the day after, or
later in the day of, the murder, if it were committed, as
most likely it was, in the morning, concealed in the scullery,
and when examined there was blood upon it. There is
evidence from which, if you find a bill, it may be concluded
that night-shift was abstracted by the prisoner, and that it
was her night-shift, and which will be a point of consi-
derable importance in determining upon her guilt. As I
have mentioned, the inquiries which were made at the
time were fruitless. Public attention was withdrawn from
the case, the family left the neighbourhood, and the
prisoner appears to have been sent to school abroad.
In the year 1863 she was received at an establishment
called St. Mary's Hospital, Brighton, which was presided
over by a lady named Miss Green. Miss Green was
termed the lady superior of the establishment. The evi-
dence of Miss Green was given before the magistrates, and
in the course of that evidence it would seem that she com-
menced conversing with Constance Emilie Kent as early as
the year 1863 with reference to certain suspicions which
existed in the mind of Miss Green as to the former having
been the murderess of her brother, and, in answer to these
inquiries, the prisoner appears to have stated, if Miss
Green's evidence is to be relied upon, that she did it, not
out of spite to the child, but out of spite to her mother-in-
law, that she took the child in the blanket out of bed ; and
also, although she states this less conclusively, that she
withdrew from the wash the night-dress which had blood
upon it. It would seem that conversations of a similar
nature took place between the prisoner and a gentleman
named Wagner, who is the incumbent of a church at
Brighton. I desire to use neutral terms, therefore I say
that conversations took place between the prisoner and
Mr. Wagner, the import of which does not appear on the
depositions ; but what passed between them resulted in
the prisoner's writing down upon a paper a statement that
she committed the murder in 1860, and expressing a wish

to give herself up to justice. Accordingly, communications
took place in which it is not necessary at present to enter,
and finally tho prisoner, accompanied by Mr. Wagner, went
boforo a magistrate of great experience, the chief magistrate
of Bow-street, and handed in a statement, not signed by
her, but in her handwriting, in those terms : —"I, Con-

stance Emilie Kent, alone and unaided, on the night of the
29th of June, 1860, murdered at Road-hill House, Wilt-
shire, one Francis Saville Kent. Before the deed none knew
of my intention, nor afterwards of my guilt. No one as-

sisted me in the crime, nor in my evasion of discovery."
On that she was ordered into custody by Sir Thomas
Henry, and sent down to the magistrates in this county,
who have taken the remaining depositions, and the result
was that she was called upon to say whether she de-
sired to state anything in answer to the evidence, with the
usual caution given in pursuance of, the statute ; her answer
was, as you will of course find in the depositions which will
be forwarded to you for tho purpose of seeing the foregoing
statement, and the answer she made before the magistrates,
" I wish to hand in of my own free will a piece of paper
with the following writing on it in my own handwriting,
videlicet." Then sho handed in the paper of which I have
read to you a copy, and she proceeds:—" I do not wish to
add anything to the above statement.—CONSTANCE EMILE
KENT." She spells her name Emile, probably from her
having been educated to some extent abroad, but she signs
her name to the statement before the magistrates. Now a
person who is unacquainted with judicial inquiries might
ask why is there so much discussion in the other evidence
when there are two confessions by the prisoner herself,
one in her own handwriting and the other signed by her.
The answer is because admissions of this description ought
always to be closely investigated, and we ought, if possible,
for the purpose of arriving at a satisfactory conclusion of
the guilt of a prisoner who says " I am guilty," to take
care that such an answer is not given on any misappre-
hension, or upon some motive other than the consciousness
of guilt and the desire to make a confession. The proper
way to deal with such admission is-first to see whether it
is a mere acknowledgment of guilt, or whether it is circum-

stantial as to time, place, and other things ; secondly, in a
matter of so much importance to the prisoner, to see
whether the circumstances of the case established by inde-
pendent evidence do or do not confirm such admission. I
am bound to say, upon the outline of the case as presented
by the depositions, it is one in which, in my judgment,
you ought to act upon these admissions, and you ought
to find a true bill. Whatever questions may remain
to be dealt with in the case will be more satisfactorily
dealt with here. I trust the case will be tried in the

ordinary way, before a petty jury, with the advantage of
the prisoner being represented by counsel, who can urge
anything that remains to be said in her favour. I have no
doubt in advising you that it is your duty to find a true
bill ,for the murder with which the prisoner is charged, in
order that the case may be fully investigated here.
The grand jury wore then dismissed to their duties.
About half-past 4 o'clock in the afternoon they returned
into court with a true bill against Constance Emilie Kent.
Mr. Karslake inquired when the learned judge intended
to take the case.

Mr. Justice-Willes replied that as there would be a great
deal of other business, ho apprehended that it would be
most convenient to take it on Saturday morning.
Mr. Karslake said it would be a great convenience tohim
personally that the trial should be taken as early au possible,
as ho wished to be away on Saturday afternoon.
Mr. Coleridge informed the court that it did not matter
to him when the case was tried. He was quite ready to go
on at once.

Mr. Justice Willes--Then, Mr. Karslake, we will proceed
with tho case the first thing to-morrow morning.

GOODWOOD RACES.—" The Goodwood Cup, just
produced by Messrs. London and Ryder, 17, New Bond-
street, is massive in form and very elaborately ornamented.
The designer, Mr. Robert Jefferson, has taken his subject
from Burger's ballad of Leonora, and has most skilfully
depicted the midnight ride of the poor maiden with her
spectral lover. The handles are formed of the attendant
angels who intercede for Leonora, and at the base are
smiling cupids entwined with passion flowers, all admir-
ably made to illustrate the mournful love story. Both
designer and manufacturer have reason to be proud of their
work, which will, no doubt, be highly prized by the winner
of the coveted trophy. It will be on view at Messrs. Lon-
don and Ryder's, 17, New Bond-street, during the present
week."—Morning Post, July 19, 1865.

STRUGGLE FOR LIFE ON CHARING-CROSS BRIDGE.

—Yesterday afternoon an alarm was given by two
ladies that a respectably-dressed man, who had divested
himself of a portion of his clothing, was about to commit
suicide by jumping into the river from the middle of the
bridge. Fortunately a gentleman named White, residing
at Kennington-cross, was passing at the moment, and
seeing the man with his right leg over the parapet, rushed
to prevent him, and succeeded in grasping him, and threw
him on the footway. A desperate struggle then com-
menced between them, the half madman trying desperately
to accomplish his object. Further assistance was at length
given by an engine-driver from the railway, and the man
was thrown on his back, and bound hand and foot, and
given into custody.
_ _

At the Winchester Races, on Tuesday, a large
number of thieves were present, who made a rich harvest.
Many persons had their watches stolen. On Wednesday
Southampton was crowded with thieves on account of the
races. The police superintendent there received a telegram
intimating that quite an army of professionals were tra-
velling the western race circuit, and requesting him to
have a strong staff of police in attendance on them.

„MA I)* aim
61121 curitar

HER MAJESTY.

OSBORNE, July 20.

The Queen, accompanied by Princess Helena and
Prince Albert Victor, drove out in the grounds
yesterday morning.
Princess Helena rode on horseback in the after-
noon, attended by the Hon. Emma Lascelles.